Moderating/finding time for video games as an adult....how do you do it?

As I prepare (and dread) to return to college classes in a little over a month from now, I fear as if I'm at a crossroads as a life-long fan of video games. As I've mentioned one or two times before, for the last 7-8 years, I've been stuck in a "video game" time warp of playing nothing but pre-Dreamcast/PS2 stuff, and for the most part missed out on the last console generation (PS2/GC/XBOX) and haven't even delved into the current one. Initially, this all was because the older stuff simply intrigued and excited me over most of the new stuff, and because I had, early on caught the "collecting bug" (fueled by those "Collector's Closet" pieces on the defunct "Tips & Tricks" and started buying and "speculating" over stuff I really didn't need or intended to play (like the brand-new "Derby Stallion" Sega Saturn that I once owned and dickheadedly sold away for chump change......yeah, I was spoiled).

Over time however, I found myself with a lot of stuff that I n00bishly bought thinking that I could re-sell for big money, or stuff (mostly bargain-bin or price dropped) that caught my eye and which I intended to "get into". The result was that months and even years would go buy without me barely if at all touching it. Not just that, but having been introduced to the quick conveniences of emulation over six years ago just straight-up ruined my "appetite", and completely put a halt to my classic game buying and collecting (which, in a way was a VERY good thing).

So, a couple years bck I ended up selling off most of my classic game collection (again, for a good amount less than it was worth, desperation and lack of online knowledge SUCKS) and intended to "start anew" with the PS2 & Dreamcast, but the first things I felt obliged to buy for them (especially PS2) were.........classic game compilations. In all of the time that I had spent shelving away my games and consoles and trying (and failing) to get into them many times, I'm now 21 and have the obligations and expectations of adulthood tugging away at me. This past summer (which I chose to completely sit out) is most likely the last time that I'll ever have as much ample and guilt-less (for the most part) free time that used to be a given during my childhood and teen years. And up until now I haven't even bothered to pick up and play my PS2 and DC, and am intending to completely sell off the latter. Instead I mostly fool around with my PC, organizing or surfing the web, randomly fire up an emulator here and there, and try to get my long-delayed VHS-to-DVD conversion projects fired up. Come this fall, with classes and a new Work-Study gig starting up, there will be no looking back.

So, with all of that in mind, does this all sound like:

- I've become burned out from years of classic gaming and need to finally get with the times, (even if today's games seem to require a lot of time and dedication)? to "revive" my hunger?

- I've become spoiled and addicted to PC's and to a lesser extent emulation?

- I'm lazy and/or OCD???

- I lack and don't know anybody else who share my gaming tastes, and have "lost my hunger" as a result??? (Seriously, only gamers I know are modern-day Madden/FPS/music game fiends or people who barely play at all and instead party/drink)

Not to forget to mention (and this is the original intent of my topic title), now that I'm 21 and have obligations that I need (and in some cases feel pressured) to attend to, I feel guilty and remorseful at spending more than just a couple of hours gaming, so much that I have to "plan ahead" inside my head, and even then there's too much of a backlog available to play.

Two cents anyone??? I'd really appreciate hearing your thoughts.

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as for finding time, during the semester I may go days without touching a game system due to work/homework. I won't even start playing a non-saveable game unless I have at least 2 hours set aside so I can play it all the way through. By no means does that mean I'm going to ever stop playing games, but sadly sometimes I have to do without.

As for classic gaming in general, I had just got an N64 when I found out about emulators and have played them off and on ever since. Only for the past year or so have I actually started to buy used games from a combination of learning that you can in fact clean them, they are mostly dirt cheap on Amazon and eBay, and that there is nothing quite like playing them on real hardware. I still have a PS2 and (sadly) a Wii (which I never play). I don't play my PS2 as much because of all the retro games I've been buying, but its not uncommon for me to go from PS2 to Genesis to SNES and back to PS2 in one day. Good games are good games, period, nothing is ever going to make Streets of Rage 2 suck and likewise nothing is going to make Superman 64 good, so the age doesn't matter, just the quality. I had always dreamed of owning all of these games and systems and I have no regrets about buying them at all.

I remember that when I got into college in 1994, I was still an avid 16 bit player. In college I found some friends with the same interests, so for the first 2 or 3 semesters we still played a lot of Road Rash, Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat during weekends.

However, a year later I completely disconnected from the gaming world. I was totally drawn to calculus, physics and laboratories. I skipped the whole Saturn/PS1/N64/3DO era and also the beginning of the PS2 rage.

My passion was still there, and it was only re-ignited last year, partially due to Sega-16. I understand when you say you are hooked up more to the games of the past, for that happens to me as well. I also understand you when you write about feeling guilty of playing too much sometimes. Or when you talk about people with same gaming tastes.
I am lucky because I have some friends who dig retro. Yesterday we played Atari 2600, NES, MD, PS1/2, PCE and DC, all during the afternoon, all of them with the same passion. I don't feel my love for gaming vanishing any time soon. I also consider myself lucky because I can easily deal with my work and my gaming addiction (at least for the time being)...

No matter what's happening though, and no matter how messy my personal and professional life gets to be at times, I always try to see games as fun.
If it's not fun, it's not worthy it. If you don't feel better after you play it, then just don't play it.

Perhaps it's time for you to dive into college, who knows?

Actually, I'm really loathing college and the non-direction that I'm going into at the moment. I honestly have no idea what to pursue, and fear falling into the "retail trap" like so many people in their 20's do. I'd really like to pursue video editing, buy my ancient PC is far from the task of that. I'm also moderately good at computers and a good writer........but that's about it.

I'm also wondering if my attention span has all but eroded as far as video games go........perhaps I have Adult ADD or something?

I do what I feel like when I feel like it for the most part. Granted, I don't game at work. When I am at home, if I feel like playing games I will play them. It's not that hard, especially since I don't have kids or am not married. But even a friend of mine who is married (with brand new kid) finds some time to game.

Another problem that I face: I feel as if I'm "overwhelmed" by my game collection, and feel a need to "get my money's worth" and play them through completely.

Oh yeah........OCD indeed. That's one of the main reasons why I sold off the majority of my old collection, it felt too much like a "burden", because there was so much stuff that I bought up and at most only played through once before shelving it completely.

[Warning: long post ahead]


Aarzak, it's much easier said than done, but you need to somehow find a way to "feel at peace" with this hobby. That may include selling off any systems/games you have little or zero interest in (playing) whatsoever. Just clearing a little bit of clutter can go a long ways in clearing some space in your mind, even if it is all mental, you know the ole saying, thoughts can become real things, or moreso perception is reality. Plus the fact that imagine selling just one or two systems away with 50-100 games. There is a LOT of space cleared in the real world!

I used to feel overwhelmed with my gaming collection too. I know how you feel. There's just too many games still to be played, and my want list at the time was still pages and pages long.

Eventually, I decided I couldn't keep up the torrid pace I was going. I sold over 100 Saturn games (from Super Tempo to Astra Superstars to TAROMARU) and today my only real gaming focus relates to playing my Super Nintendo. Sure, I'm closing myself off on other great games on other good systems but hey, you can't play them all. I'm at peace with the hobby and to me that is what I ultimately care most about. If I miss out on Okami, so be it. Life goes on. I'm plenty happy discovering a gem I missed out back in '93.

I'm also completely done with buying video games, so my to-play pile is only decreasing by the weeks, not increasing, which gives me incredible peace of mind. Eventually, I do want to play through these stacks of games (if not beat it, then at least see the game to near completion; hey, some final levels/bosses are just too damn cheap/difficult). Anyway, a while ago I decided I'd focus in on one system. For me it's much easier to focus on one system and squeezing the most out of it brings me incredible joy. Especially when the system's library is my cup of tea and the nostalgia factor doesn't hurt, either. I've bought every game I ever wanted, and I (try to) practice moderation.

Moderation is so big in this peace of mind process. You said you sort of have no direction in college. You're 21 so that would make you a senior this Fall I'd surmise. You're definitely getting up there in college age but that's OK, there's still plenty of time. Hell, I wish I were 21 again. (I'm about to turn 25). You still got a couple years to work this out.

Just get involved in college. Explore your options, and it's always neat meeting new ppl with your same interests. My senior year in college I joined an acting club (I minored in Theatre Arts) and I made a University play in the Fall of 2005. That experience (the midnight rehearsals, locker room ribbing, teamwork and camaderie, lunch, dinner, sleepover, clubbing, opening night and so on) was easily the best time I ever had at college, not to mention I never felt more alive or confident in my abilities than I did during that three-week span or so.

Do well in the real world, be happy with yourself, and peace of mind in the video game hobby should follow a bit easier. IMO, doing it the other way may solve your game hobby ills, but it may not cure your real life concerns. Deal with the bigger priority first.

Actually, to kind of deflate my self.........I'm a community college student, currently @ 21 credits with a 3.1 GPA. Currently seeing my mother being harassed and stalked by college loan debts from 20+ years ago is reason enough for me not to have invested in a uni, not to mention that I STILL have no friggin' idea what I want to pursue.

College consumes your free time; it's a universal fact known by... well, current and former college students like me. That is all. :)

When I was still doing my animation courses, I drew, painted and Photoshopped the whole time for my assignments, but I hardly worked on personal art. :( As well as that I was too poor at the time to regularly buy games, and when I had time to play them, I burned up my entire weekend just playing games. Recently I've been trading in a ton of manga that I'd bought a few years ago (thanks in part to a hefty-to-crap Government college grant), and getting store credit for me to buy vastly superior books (collections of Chinese Propaganda posters, anyone?)

tl;dr College sucks your life in.

I find, as an adult, that although my time spent gaming has deminished it is now of a greater quality. Back in school/college/doing shitty jobs I would just throw on any old tosh, but now I have sold most of my superflous consoles (Saturn/SNES etc) and focus on what I truly enjoy - my Mega Drive and PS2, although I haven't bought a Mega Drive games in months.

Great place to get time for gaming (and for other things) is the sleep time... Night is the best time to do anything...

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Originally Posted by Aarzak

Currently seeing my mother being harassed and stalked by college loan debts from 20+ years ago is reason enough for me not to have invested in a uni, not to mention that I STILL have no friggin' idea what I want to pursue.

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Granted we don't know the full details, but that is no reason to avoid going to a university. I know UNO here comes to about $2,000 per semester, which is hardly worth 20 years of debt over the course of a degree. You don't have to go to an expensive school and should consider shopping around.

Still, community college is a good value, particularly if you can transfer most of the credits to a four year school. The thing you need to realize is that short term debt is fine if the end result is a significantly higher paying job. Not understanding what you want to do is fine as the first couple of years of college is wasted on prerequisites anyway, and there's no harm in pursuing something and deciding you don't like it. I'd suggest the important thing is to do something regardless -- don't let your indecision stop you from attempting some degree. Your time right now is too valuable to waste. The paper alone will open doors and increase your value, even if you're not working in the field.

I've had less time for gaming lately as well and its only going to get worse with college starting soon however I'm hoping holidays will be free for gaming and I plan to sleep less so I can play at night :)

I played religiously all through high school. After graduation in '91, I finished my BA and never stopped playing. I finished my Masters in '01 and still play. Hell, when I started Sega-16, I was married, had a mortgage, and a year-old daughter! Now I have two kids, a job, this site, and I still find time to rack up a 48k gamer score on my 360.

It's all about time management. The "real" responsibilities of life shouldn't mean that you should have to give up anything you love, regardless of what it is. Gaming won't be a major priority anymore, but it shouldn't disappear entirely. I was never a straight A student, but I did what was needed to be done in order to achieve my goals, and I wasn't going to give up a hobby I love for anyone.

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Originally Posted by Benjamin

The thing you need to realize is that short term debt is fine if the end result is a significantly higher paying job. Not understanding what you want to do is fine as the first couple of years of college is wasted on prerequisites anyway, and there's no harm in pursuing something and deciding you don't like it. I'd suggest the important thing is to do something regardless -- don't let your indecision stop you from attempting some degree. Your time right now is too valuable to waste. The paper alone will open doors and increase your value, even if you're not working in the field.

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This.

I won't necessarily say that you MUST go to a four-year college, because that's not for everyone, but you should do something. It's getting harder and harder nowadays for people to find a job when they have no skills or preparation, and even a short stint, like one of those two-year programs, is a good thing to do.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Aarzak

Actually, to kind of deflate my self.........I'm a community college student, currently @ 21 credits with a 3.1 GPA. Currently seeing my mother being harassed and stalked by college loan debts from 20+ years ago is reason enough for me not to have invested in a uni, not to mention that I STILL have no friggin' idea what I want to pursue.

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The worst part of that is not only finding what you want to do but also being able to succeed at it. I would've loved to do something cinema related (director, writer, editor, etc.) but there are so many people out there desperately trying to get their name out via youtube, etc. that even if you are talented you just fall into the sea of other wanna bes. Right now I'm in Mechanical Engineering and the only reason I haven't switched out of it is because it would take me longer to graduate in any other major at this point and there are hardly any other majors with a guaranteed job when you graduate (engineering is always a sure bet). I actually want to go to law school and thanks to MCHE I'll be graduating in 5 1/2 years instead of probably 3 1/2 like I would if I would've gone into some liberal arts BS major instead (getting a minor in English also added to my graduation time). I really can't wait to get out of MCHE because it is like getting prison raped on a daily basis.