Sometimes it's nice to just back off and take a little break, isn't it?
It feels like I've been swimming in new games lately; games that are unique, fun, experimental, and just plain cool. Though I only own DSi and Wii out of the current generation of game machines, there's plenty to play for a guy like me who also has homeownership, child-rearing, and a totally non-game-related day job to juggle alongside. I routinely have to skip a title I would have loved to play, which saddens me a little.
It made me think back a little to the days when I got back on the gaming train, when I bought a GameCube specifically for The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. I played that game for three months, exploring it thoroughly, seeking out all its secrets. I've been wondering lately where that feeling went, and decided I might like to try recapturing it.
Of course, life is a little different these days. Back then, I had less responsibility; the house we had then was less of a burden, the grounds easier to keep up, and my daughter was then only six months old and very well-behaved. (The fact that The Wind Waker became her favorite "show" for awhile was rather nice, too.) But these are all factors that should just mean I have to work a little harder to get my time, not abandon it altogether.
So, as the summer began to draw nearer, I made a decision. On the horizon: reputedly phenomenal monarchical combat title Little King's Story. I decided that rather than do the usual receive game/play fiendishly quickly/review cycle with LKS, I'd put in my order at Amazon, get the game and the little squishy preorder bonus, and just take my time at it, when I could, no pressure. (I didn't realize it at the time, but LKS turned out to be absolutely perfect for this—its world is densely packed with all sorts of little quests that can be taken on and paths to explore.)
It's not that I didn't play anything else—DSi in particular kept me quite entertained with a bunch of fun little titles—but I certainly didn't tackle any other "weighty" games at the same time. I ignored all other comers. I put aside my just-started Layton; I will probably get back to it later. Metroid Prime Trilogy I relegated to my wishlist for later—and who knows, I may end up skipping it entirely... perhaps an unfortunate thing, but if the net result is me actually getting the chance to really enjoy a handful of games instead of powering through one after another, then I'll take it.
I'm very pleased with how my summer experiment turned out. LKS is special on its own, of course, but I think I really ended up appreciating it a lot more than I would have otherwise, if I constantly had upcoming titles on my mind instead of what I was playing right here, and right now. I consider about the people I find scattered around the Internet, people who have amassed such a backlog that some use a website specifically dedicated to keeping track of it. They are surrounded by such a wealth of good to great games and are responding by getting into every last one that tickles their fancy, and I wonder if perhaps they are, like me, not really appreciating the games they already have. (The people who review games for a living and must play absolutely everything... those people I weep for in particular.)
It's definitely a way of thinking that takes some effort to subscribe to—especially in an era where we, tuned into the Internet as we are, hear about something new and interesting practically every week—but in the end it's so worth it. I recommend, if you're feeling like you're not appreciating gaming like you used to, that you try doing something like I did. Select a title that's right up your alley (may I humbly suggest Little King's Story?) , something you can really get into and explore for weeks or months (depending on your available time, of course), and just shut everything else out until you come out the other end, satisfied. I think you'll be glad you did.
It feels like I've been swimming in new games lately; games that are unique, fun, experimental, and just plain cool. Though I only own DSi and Wii out of the current generation of game machines, there's plenty to play for a guy like me who also has homeownership, child-rearing, and a totally non-game-related day job to juggle alongside. I routinely have to skip a title I would have loved to play, which saddens me a little.
It made me think back a little to the days when I got back on the gaming train, when I bought a GameCube specifically for The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. I played that game for three months, exploring it thoroughly, seeking out all its secrets. I've been wondering lately where that feeling went, and decided I might like to try recapturing it.
Of course, life is a little different these days. Back then, I had less responsibility; the house we had then was less of a burden, the grounds easier to keep up, and my daughter was then only six months old and very well-behaved. (The fact that The Wind Waker became her favorite "show" for awhile was rather nice, too.) But these are all factors that should just mean I have to work a little harder to get my time, not abandon it altogether.
So, as the summer began to draw nearer, I made a decision. On the horizon: reputedly phenomenal monarchical combat title Little King's Story. I decided that rather than do the usual receive game/play fiendishly quickly/review cycle with LKS, I'd put in my order at Amazon, get the game and the little squishy preorder bonus, and just take my time at it, when I could, no pressure. (I didn't realize it at the time, but LKS turned out to be absolutely perfect for this—its world is densely packed with all sorts of little quests that can be taken on and paths to explore.)
It's not that I didn't play anything else—DSi in particular kept me quite entertained with a bunch of fun little titles—but I certainly didn't tackle any other "weighty" games at the same time. I ignored all other comers. I put aside my just-started Layton; I will probably get back to it later. Metroid Prime Trilogy I relegated to my wishlist for later—and who knows, I may end up skipping it entirely... perhaps an unfortunate thing, but if the net result is me actually getting the chance to really enjoy a handful of games instead of powering through one after another, then I'll take it.
I'm very pleased with how my summer experiment turned out. LKS is special on its own, of course, but I think I really ended up appreciating it a lot more than I would have otherwise, if I constantly had upcoming titles on my mind instead of what I was playing right here, and right now. I consider about the people I find scattered around the Internet, people who have amassed such a backlog that some use a website specifically dedicated to keeping track of it. They are surrounded by such a wealth of good to great games and are responding by getting into every last one that tickles their fancy, and I wonder if perhaps they are, like me, not really appreciating the games they already have. (The people who review games for a living and must play absolutely everything... those people I weep for in particular.)
It's definitely a way of thinking that takes some effort to subscribe to—especially in an era where we, tuned into the Internet as we are, hear about something new and interesting practically every week—but in the end it's so worth it. I recommend, if you're feeling like you're not appreciating gaming like you used to, that you try doing something like I did. Select a title that's right up your alley (may I humbly suggest Little King's Story?) , something you can really get into and explore for weeks or months (depending on your available time, of course), and just shut everything else out until you come out the other end, satisfied. I think you'll be glad you did.