To those who might consider themselves “well-rounded” with careers and families and sports etc. Does that magic and sense of free time to dig deep into something ever come back?
[Possible Existential Crisis Warning] https://www.failflow.com/die
This may seem counter-productive and like it might ruin the fun, but the opposite turned out to be true. Since free time is finite now (and arguably always was), it helps to get the most out of a game, prioritize which games I really want to play, and what I expect to get out of the experience.
Cut down on tv series and your gaming time suddenly shows up :)
Either you decide that it's a hobby worthy of your time and MAKE time between your other responsibilities (or remove some of them) or you make peace with the fact that you don't really care that much about this hobby and that you're done with it.
Part of what I nostalgically yearn for was that feeling of, "my homework is done, it's a Friday night, there's no hockey tomorrow morning. I have a Pentium 2 in my room, summer breeze through the window, the world is asleep, there's a distant train rumbling quietly by, and I'm about to spend an hour reading up on every detail of Baldur's Gate while it installs."
This is probably gone. There's so many parts of this that don't work anymore. But I guess I really cherish that it happened. Those were absolutely magical nights.
Also, getting older and having more responsibility typically means you become wiser. I no longer want to waste that much time gaming. I'm good with a few hours a week. There are so many better uses of time that I have. I've got outdoor hobbies like mountain biking that take priority over screen time. I spend 40hrs a week doing work on a screen and have a hard time feeling good about MORE screen time when I get home.
I definitely have to pick & choose which games I delve into more carefully. I basically only play 10/10 new games & classics now.
Also, if given a choice between a 5-7h game, and a 15-20h game I'll pick the shorter one.
Then I also set time aside in my weekly calendar to game. I try to have it be a mindful, rather than mindless activity.
I prefer spending some actual quality of time (having a walk, having a conversation) with my SO instead of staying idly next to my SO and half consider it couples time.
On game length, I also default to shorter experiences. How Long to Beat [0] is perfect for that.
If you share an interest then go for it. What I meant is that some folks prefer to prioritize watching something "meh" on TV with the excuse of spending time with your SO and then complain they don't have time for gaming.
Instead of half assing two things: free time and familiar time. Spend some free time on your personal interests and then spend time with you SO where you are both engaged with each other!
It wasn't the games, or even the time, it was my age. That's gone now, and I'm finally admitting it to myself.
I think the grown up version of gaming is coding. It's tackles the things I enjoyed, but in a more mature way.
but it'll never be like being in 8th grade and playing starcraft until your eyes bleed, and then hanging out that the pool; repeat.
Aside from whatever Soulsborne shows up, I've only bought games on sale for years. Still have more than I can play. A lot on 75-90% off.