Not a thread about a game, just a thread about gaming.
I'm in a huge funk right now with games where I just can't seem to really enjoy any. I feel like it happens on occasion, but I'm not really sure how to get out of it. I can't decide if it's just I'm older and grumpy about it, if it's just a reflection of other shit going on in my life, or if games are just getting worse. I mostly play PUBG and Hearthstone, and they are both just in the dumpster for quality. I don't like to spend too much money on games, because I tend towards playing one game a lot, and other games just don't get played.
Other stuff I've played recently.
Endless Space 2. Seemed neat, but overly complex and time consuming. I don't think I finished my first game. Feels like I need a thousand page instruction manual to really understand everything.
Rise of the Tomb Raider. I'm like 50% through. Good enough game, puzzles are decent. Combat is generally easyish. I'm pretty completionist, so having to pass things by and come back later is a little annoying.
Slay the Spire. Good for a while. Mostly just waiting for third character before I play it anymore, don't feel like playing Beta branch.
What's the deal.
Yes I get into funks like this. For the past 3+ months I've been "going through the motions" just to pass time. Hearthstone usually when I only have access to a tablet, and then on PC I really had no desire to play ANYTHING so would log in to Overwatch just cause it's there. But I really don't care for the game. I was so bored of my options that I decided to load up FortNite again and now I've been hooked to it all week. Getting no sleep and in the learning phase atm which keeps me thinking on the game most of the day.
I'm not sure if Battle Royales will keep me interested for long, but the FortNite team seems to make changes quite often. Seasons last just over 2 months and they add additional modes (Thanos mode right now). To keep it interesting.
However, in these FPS games, including OW, and why I haven't tried PUBG, I sometimes get thoughts that my age drags me down a bit and maybe I should just play an MMO or more Hearthstone. Watching the kids speed build and run circles around me feels like I might not ever be able to keep up. But I'm trying damnit! At 36 I'm hoping I can at least stay somewhat competitive with FPS games into my mid-40s.
A bonus with FortNite, is it's VERY strategic (the build aspect is a giant puzzle game). And having a strategic mindset is a skill a lot of people, especially kids, lack. Also FortNite has such wide ranging audience, you really face a wide range of skill. You're not going up against Ninja every game.
But back to the point... I'm similar to you in that I stay focused on 1 game at a time usually. Hearthstone is a filler game for me so I don't count that. I had no primary game for a LONG time this winter. I like to put my attention into 1 thing at a time and I gravitate toward the popular multiplayer/online games. I was very close to trying PUBG and I almost got back into League of Legends (lasted about a week).
I wasn't moping or depressed really, because my RL is hectic and I have very little time anyways, but I always need something to occupy me. So what I did last October was started teaching myself the Unreal engine and learning how to MAKE games. So if I get bored again I just load up the Unreal engine and go through a tutorial or 2 of whatever. It got me through the winter but I see that actually making a full game would be very unrealistic for 1 person, so I just focus on creating individual game mechanics of ideas I have... and maybe 1 day I'll have something I could sell on the Unreal Marketplace or that I think could be revolutionary to make an entire game around (with a team).
Nobody here can tell you this answer. I know I've interacted with you a lot in Hearthstone and I know you like to stream. I always thought you had a passion for building your stream. You can start there maybe. Or focus on RL/Family/Job, whatever your situation may be, until a game comes along you have a desire to play.
Do all games just suck now? Are we in the dark days of gaming?
A lot of games suck. They are built to make a quick dollar, the space is highly congested and they are all striving to stand out. Budgets are thinner because risk is higher. It really is a shit time for gaming. Also basically everything's been done already. But I do believe there are good games and still good ideas to come.
Again I'll bring up FortNite. I played this when it first came out and only had PvE mode. People hyped it for about a week as "fun", but lacking. And it does lack in many ways. The PvE is fun for a short while but the layers of "systems" piled on top of each other is hot garbage. People easily saw this as having insane potential, but the backend systems drove it down.
Then BR releases and originally the big streamers give it an "ok", but the kiddie graphics turned most of them back to PUBG. Also FN has a smaller map and wasn't very fleshed out in its original version. And no store/leaderboards for the first month+ of BR as well.
I took a break from FN and then it explodes in popularity.
I believe it's popularity was a perfect storm of things:
1. Some people (Ninja/some other big streamers) realized how revolutionary the FN "building" aspect was in a BR game. It adds a ton of depth to a mode that is fairly mundane.
2. While a lot of the big PUBG streamers refused to play FN because of the graphics, and were very vocal about it, the graphic style is what attracted all the kiddies to the game, and parents see it as a cartoon so allow their kids to play it.
3. Pop culture gets on board cause the kids are, Drake plays with Ninja, his stream explodes, and now he's a household name among the youth.
4. It's a very strategic, high skill-cap game. Kids see adults playing at a very high level and want to emulate this. I only see FN becoming more and more popular. It can easily be a 10-year lifespan game.
So I'll wrap this up in saying: FN got a bad wrap because of it's PvE mechanics and also the art style, but it's not a terrible Battle Royale game. It's very unique imo. I recommend giving it a shot. You'll spend at least a week working out hotkeys/building techniques alone. After 5 days of learning I finally had some decent build-offs last night. Was amazing.