I had a little appointment last night. Nothing much, just a cleaning. First she digs around in my mouth for like 20 minutes with a sharp jagged piece of stainless steel and then has the balls to tell me that my gums are bleeding. Well no shit sherlock. Then she precedes to have a conversation with me while she's wrist deep in my mouth.
Her - "How are you today" Me - "Ughh ohh?" Her - " I'm fine thanks.. What are you doing for thanksgiving?" Me - "Ugghhhh"
Seriously wtf is up with her? Does she like having these one person conversations with people who can't possibly talk back? Must be nice.
For me, video games have been a way of life ever since I was 3 years old. It all started with the intellivision back in 1982. That one console spawned a love of video games that continues to this day. While normal kids have memories of playing catch with their dads, I have memories of us playing Utopia together. My childhood was centered around games and our family game night often included sitting around the TV playing Nintendo. My mother, brother and I even played co-op through Secret of Mana (we rented it every week until we actually beat the game). I don't assume I had a normal childhood, but I did have an enjoyable one that I wouldn't trade for anything else.
In highschool and college, I still played video games. It was more of something I'd do between homework and it had less of an impact on my life. But every now and then a game would come along and just consume me. Final Fantasy 7 was the reason my grades were so low in the fall of 1997. Everquest in college started a MMO addiction that ended in WoW. I would often go through periods of my life where I wouldn't play as much. These periods usually occured the same time as other factors of my life were more important...dating, socializing, school.. etc. But still, like an old friend, I'd come running back to games as a way to escape the stressful reality. I went to college, pledged a fraternity, met my wife, and did my homework. I still played games through all of those life defining moments.
Now, I'm 29 years old and I have been playing video games for the majority of my life. I have been married for 5 years and have a 2 year old daughter and still I play games. Life, I believe has a pattern and is cyclical in nature. So, I am still playing video games and once again, I am finding their hold over me to be fading. However, this time it is different. There isn't a life definiing moment to take my attention away. It is as if games today are just not as exciting to me as the games of my youth. I look at all the AAA titles released this year and I simply have no interest to many of them. Of the AAA titles released this year, I played Fallout 3 and GTA 4. Both games are follow ups of my favorite games when I was younger. There are very little "new" game franchises that are exciting to me.
I still play games in my spare time, when I get some. My old friend is still there to distract me from the stress of reality; but it has less hold of me anymore. Mostly because there's rarely any new games that I am interested in. Look at Gears 2 for example. It's got good action, good graphics, good story; basically everything I would and should love; but I'm indifferent. I'm in a unique position to question my life with video games and I'm afraid I don't know the answer.
Am I just growing out of video games? Am I "too old for this shit"? I honestly don't think so. I just got a collection of point-and-click adventures that are far more interesting to me than the of latest graphical marvels released today. Or maybe games in general are getting too stale, repetive, and generic. I've discovered a love for older PC games, a genre that I neglected when I grew up. Games like Full Throttle, Monkey Island, and Broken Sword are the gems of my collection. Maybe I am just trying to relive the memories of my childhood by playing these games. I don't know.
There is one thing I know for sure. Video games have always been a part of my life and I will make sure they will be a part of my child's life. I look foward to sitting down and playing whatever Nintendo (probably) game with my daughter and letting her have the same fond memories as I had. But I don't see myself buying a new gaming system after this current generation. I might get a PS3 when the PS4 comes out. But for the most part, I'd be getting games and systems for my kids and not for me. I guess in the end, I would've turned into my father and finally grown out of video games.
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