I love my favorite games and have been playing them for years, but I disliked about 99% of the games I played.
I don’t think I have FoMO or anything; I just find it weird because my taste in music, film, or art/media in general is usually fairly broad. I guess I just wonder why my taste in games is aggressively limited.
It’s not for the lack of trying new games; I’ve tried more or less anything I could find, sometimes because it’s popular, other times because it looked interesting, but nothing really hits the mark like my favorite games.
I just don’t like what most developers create, I guess?
I’m hoping, by posting this, maybe I can find others who are having a similar experience, and we can share thoughts.
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I find it’s not that I don’t like them, it’s just a decent commitment to get into it.
You have a narrow taste in games and that’s perfectly OK, nothing to be ashamed of at all. Enjoy what you like. You have no obligation whatsoever to play the newest, most popular thing just to keep up with the gaming Joneses. The list of popular games I haven’t tried myself is MUCH longer than the list of them I have played, either because they don’t appeal to me or I just don’t have the spare time or money, and I am 100% fine with that. I buy the games I know I’ll put time into and enjoy and don’t worry about the rest.
It’s ok dude. What do you look for in games, is there a common theme?
I’m the same, I actually look for cinematic games with clever, interesting stories. Idgaf about multiplayer or any of that shit, I want to be a director in my own movie.
Bioshock, half life 2, LA Noire, and so on.
You like horizon? I played the first one and thought the story was pretty good. Maybe not like Bioshock level, but better than most games of the type.
Never played actually. I’ll check it out. I don’t have much free time generally as I work on a lot of projects, so I usually look for really good stories if I’m going to invest my time.
I’ll take a look though, thanks for the suggestion.
Sure, no problem. Hope you like it.
I’m the same way. I just want to live in those stories until I’ve played them and replayed them so much that the feeling goes away. Currently: cyberpunk.
I ended playing Deus Ex for the 10th time last week and I realized there’s not many big budget titles that I like that shipped past 2017. The attention to detail, system complexity, and writing quality is just not there anymore. Its all slop. The last one that I can even remember with any fondness…is Arkane’s Prey. Well that’s not true, I dig Metaphor ReFantazio’s (sic) art style. But I’ve played JRPGs.
I think the AAAs are cooked, folks. But Indies? Have you heard of Mouthwashing? Empires of the Undergrowth? Satisfactory? Those are my timesinks and what sticks in my mind the longest.
That sounds wonderful to me, as long as you have fun with your favorite games and the other content. You save a lot of money and, more importantly, time.
I myself get bored of the games quickly, imo. I guess when I feel like devs are ‘cheating’ I lose interest.
Some examples:
Batman Arkham Asylum: Gave up I got to Killer Croc level. Didn’t like how the stealth/action game turned into precision platformer.
Batman Arkham City: Stopped at Mr. Freeze level. I looked up how to beat him and turns out I had to follow specific moves to defeat him. Ain’t got time for that tbh.
Spider-man: Stopped at Rhino + Scorpion level. Again with getting Rhino to headbutt a wall, under heavy load to drop it on him to stun him and beat him up? Bye.
Life Goes On: Gave up on a level where timing was crucial. Until that point I focused on steps to solve the puzzle but at this stage, even though I knew what to do, timing was too important and I haven’t got those reflexes or patience to replay the level again and again.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with it. The genres I like keep getting new games, but if most games now were precision platformers or MMORPGs, I’d read more lol.
Just try to hold back the good ol days mentality, try new stuff if it catches your interest, and let yourself enjoy your 10000th replay of your favorites? You aren’t against new things entirely, after all. You just don’t make yourself play games you don’t like. Somewhere out there is an indie developer with similar taste, also frustrated they can’t find a game they want to play, and I hope you find them and add a new game to your list.
I’ve found that as I got older, my taste in games has narrowed significantly. I used to be able to play pretty much anything, or especially any popular or critically acclaimed games. But these days I just don’t give a shit about most of what’s out there. I do have certain genres and developers that interest me though, so I know there are occasionally going to be some new games that I really like. And every now and then I might get surprised by something too.
Does it not feel weird sometimes to be disconnected from the gaming zeitgeist? Like, we can obviously still follow news and whatnot, but I’m particularly talking about having no significant emotional investment in contemporary releases—in other words: being disconnected from the hype of announcements and release cycles.
I know people consider this a blessing in this age of hyper-consumerism, but there’s a communal aspect to it that I like, and it often feels odd to not be part of it.
Like, we can obviously still follow news and whatnot
I stopped following the news first, then largely lost interest in new games after that. After TotalBiscuit passed I haven’t seen a single thing about video game news or reviews. If there’s something I’m interested in I might skim through a review, but that’s the most I do.
Not weird for me. I don’t play anymore at all. Don’t even have a system to do so. But, I watch YouTube videos about games and game facts or speed running every night before bed. I know more about games now than when I actually played them. I just don’t have time for them anymore but that doesn’t mean they don’t interest me. I lost my passion for playing games years ago but not the idea of it. I don’t know or care about the hype but I just find it terribly interesting via others hype or interest in these games. If that makes sense.
I suspect this is a natural result of having much more limited time as we become adults. I used to love all kinds of games too, but today if I feel like a game doesn’t respect my time it gets thrown right onto the “no thanks” pile.
It’s limited time, but also the selection these last few years has felt very uninspired. Everything is extremely derivative and been done to death.
There was a mass consolidation of developers/publishers recently, on top of further extended development cycles that has really limited any kind of variety we might have seen.
Yep I just go to indies now. The AAA studios feel just samey.
You can only play reskins of essentially the same game for so long. Not to mention recycling gameplay loops microtransaction hell toxic multiplayer experience (cheating griefing), makes for a minefield of unplesant game experiences. Sticking to what you like and know is how you get enjoyment out of playing.
The last few games I was looking forward to have all been pretty disappointing.
I’m retired and have basically unlimited time. I still don’t like most games.
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I thought I was the only one!
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I realized that I need a certain amount of time with a game to warm up to it or else I‘m always drawn back to known quantities. Seems like playing things I know is just more comfortable. I also realized that I really like racing games for a similar reason: I don‘t have to learn anything new about the mechanics/game, I just have to drive.
Lots of people have replied with similar experiences.
But personally? I’m having the time of my life currently playing tons of new games. I love trying new ones and getting surprised, and maybe falling in love with a genre I hadn’t considered before.
I feel totally contrary to what others are saying: as I’ve gotten older, I find myself enjoying games way more. My time is more valuable to me now than ever before, so I want to fill it with things that are joyful and meaningful. Often those things are art. Games to me have always been very special in the way they can deliver a powerful artistic experience.
I think they also have a special power to be blatant disgusting soulless cash grabs, to be fair. As the years go by I feel like many aspects of the industry have become particularly unpalatable. But many studios are still releasing good games, and so far I’ve continued to find joy in seeking them out.
Not too many people on this post are actually listing games. So, in no particular order, here are some games I absolutely adored that I played recently. Games from the last ~year that have touched and moved me in some way. Experiences I don’t think I’ll forget.
Sable
Chicory: A colorful tale
Manifold Garden
Signalis
OneShot
The Talos Principle
Night in the Woods
Citizen Sleeper
Webbed
Rusted Moss
Armored Core VI
Iron Lung
Slay the Princess
Ghostrunner
Mundaun
Crosscode
Eastward
Animal Well
Pseudoregalia
Dave the Diver
Nine Sols
Patrick’s Parabox
Cocoon
Smushi Come HomeNot to imply that I expect you or anyone else to take a deep look here or to try any of these games. Just wanted to throw my perspective out there, and to show the games in concrete terms that have left an impression and continue to motivate me to keep looking and keep trying more
obligatory but entirely sincere addition for those looking for palate cleansing games: Outer Wilds
and for those after a variety of others, in particularly no order, that may or may not come up as much:
- The Powder Toy
- Heaven’s Vault
- Vilmonic
- Intraquartz
- Interior Worlds
- Mixolumia
- Thousand Threads
- Mu Cartographer
- Hypnagogia: Boundless Dreams
- Jazzpunk
- Crossniq+
- BrogueCE
- Heart&Slash
- Umurangi Generation w/ Macro
- NeonXSZ
- Paradise Killer
But this is all from a flipside of a flipside, so each is as likely to appeal as repel, quick slide to catch clicks and clunks
Now this is a list! Thank you, based on the few I have played here I can’t wait to check out the rest
I have been firing up The Powder Toy for well over a decade to kill time during meetings
God, Outer Wilds is one of the most incredible gaming experiences I have ever had.
Have you tried Outer Wilds by any chance? Seems like the kind of game you would enjoy.
Yea! An all time favorite, but I played it a long time ago. I wanted to keep my little list just to recent games. Irl I am very annoying about recommending OW to everyone, as well as its dlc which continued to blow me away
I also recently played through In Stars and Time so I recommend that as well considering you were into Slay the Princess.
I love that you’re having a different experience! This is exactly why I posted about this: I have found that my taste in almost everything else has become broader as I aged, so I was wondering what’s the deal with my uncharacteristically narrow taste in video games.
Sadly, I tried most of the games on your list, and found out they’re not for me. I’ll try the rest though! Thank you for taking the time to list them.
I find the same thing, but I’m really questioning the taste of others.
Never really did PC gaming, bought a SteamDeck to get into that ecosystem after seeing all the posts about “ZOMG! STEAM SALE!!!”
Are people just… not discerning? Do you just buy ANYTHING because it’s on sale?
The signal to noise ratio on Steam is just nuts to me… Yeah, some game might be $1.99, 90% off, but if it’s not worth the bandwidth to download, why are you bothering? Do you lack the ability to tell good games from bad games?
Wrong comment
The thing is, there’s just so much stuff on Steam that even if you only care about the crème de la crème (hell, even if you only care about a specific genre), you’ll still find yourself with a wishlist longer than you’ll possibly have the time to play. I often go “ZOMG! STEAM SALE!!!” so in my case it’s slowly becoming a backlog but I do intend to play everything I buy.
We don’t really teach appreciation of art enough. People unabashedly “hate watch” shows or go out to see blatant cash grabs in theatre, and buy games they don’t enjoy…
I’ve had arguments with friends who defend shows they admit have no redeeming value, and are only watching it because there’s a lot of it. Like there’s a hole in them that can only be filled with sufficient volumes of content. I can’t even talk to them anymore.
Art is in a way the study of choice. To simply make things without meaning anything by them, without doing anything on purpose except to make money, to me is little more than cheap nihilism - without adding to the conversation in the way that considered nihilism can.
A few game makers actually do contribute to the conversation of games as art, following on what came before and enriching us with new ideas. Those few should be followed closely and supported, when you find them.
And then there’s…
82% Positive? Are you shitting me?
82% positive just means that out of everyone who decided to buy it in the first place, 82% feel like they got what they expected. If you don’t expect greatness, then perhaps this game is exactly what you thought it’d be.
… Maybe it’s in the tradition of Magritte? “This is not a game.”
Eh, I get it. There’s an overwhelming abundance of choice that’s growing faster than the average time it takes to form a connection with any one game. Why deal with the FOMO and misbuys if you know what works for you.
That doesn’t stop me from purchasing way too many (non-refundable) indie titles on the Switch, though. And I’m glad to say some of those feel like they’ll keep me hooked for a good while.
Still, nothing can ever top my love for one classic game in particular: AOE 1 (definitive edition). Why? (It’s unfair to the rest.) Years ago I used to play against my dad over LAN. It’s some of the most fun we had together. Standing outside while he took a smoke break mid-game, I’d explain how I was about to wipe his whole civilization off the map in ways he couldn’t possibly imagine. Sometimes when I miss him, firing up AOE lets me feel closer to him again.
All this to say, nostalgia is a tough bar for any new game to beat.
That’s so sweet bonding with your dad over that game. May you retain that memory forever ❤️
I’m with you. The concept of gaming as a disposable medium never really worked for me either. The idea of going through my wishlist like it’s a watchlist—beating a game only to move on to the next was just never really for me.
If I don’t think a game is built to be organically replayable, I’ll probably just lose interest in buying it.
I wonder what separates games from movies as disposable media, especially with games that are meant to be cinematic/telling a story. Like Spec Ops is loosely based on Heart of Darkness and has a strong narrative, but without that is just a sort of middling shooter. So once you know the story it doesn’t have a ton of replayability, but it’s still impactful in the way a good movie is.
Hmm… I think it’s definitely a spectrum. Even arcade games have stories. It’s not what drives them, but they still do.
When you start considering something like Bandersnatch, the spectrum gets even wider.
This just means you’re figuring out what you like, and refusing to force yourself to enjoy trash.
Remember, 90% of anything is shit, and of that 10%, not all of it is going to appeal to your tastes.
On top of that, AAA gaming is a fucking wasteland right now. Publishers have squeezed all the life out of the medium in search of ongoing profit bonanzas. I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a AAA game, unless we count Cyberpunk which had the benefit of being self published, so I don’t really think that counts.
Oh, my bad, Elden Ring would definitely count as AAA. That was awesome (still need to finish it, and the DLC). But let’s be real, Elden Ring is great because it’s so different from the vast majority of the open world games out there.
Anyway, I mostly spend my time on mid-shelf, indie and self-published stuff, and even then the number of games I like is pretty small. My main go tos are Darktide, Warframe, Insurgency, Chivalry 2, The Finals (I guess that’s kind of mainstream?), Stellaris, and Total War Warhammer. I’ve also recently enjoyed VA-11-Hall-A, Slay The Princess, Shadows of Doubt, and Space Marine 2. Those were all pretty great.
I like that a lot of games get more long term support now. That’s really cool. It’s fun to be able to keep coming back to a game I like and finding new stuff.
But yeah, you don’t owe it to anyone to enjoy everything, and you owe it to yourself to not waste your time on things you don’t enjoy.
Do you play indie games often? Most of my favorite gaming experiences have come from indie studios. They put more love into them
I try them often, but haven’t had much luck finding a favorite other than Crimzon Clover. Nex Machina and Furi got close, but not quite.
Some experiences were nice, but not replayable, which ruled them out as a favorite for me, like Hyper Light Drifter.
Some I had some fun with, but took issue with some of the design choices, like Dead Cells and Hollow Knight.
Some I outright did not enjoy at all like Hades or Stardew Valley.
Most recent indie game that got close for me was Kill Knight.
What are some of your favorite indies?
I recommend CrossCode, if you haven’t tried it. It’s a top-down twinstick shooter/fighter so the gameplay is comparable to some of those you’ve listed and the story is long and unforgettable, with tons of fun optional content. Probably my favorite game narrative; there’s nothing like it.
Some other favorites of mine are Revita, but there’s little in terms of story, and Outer Wilds, but it’s a slow burn. And if you’re looking for games to play with friends, these are some of my favorite multiplayer indie games:
- Deep Rock Galactic
- Roboquest
- Gunfire Reborn
- Don’t Starve Together
- Risk of Rain 2
(Also Starbound, Terraria, & Core Keeper but those are bigger time investments)
