11 signs that you're too old to be a hardcore gamer.

[Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard]

http://www.techradar.com/news/gaming...e-gamer-329291

You used to play videogames all night. Your Quake prowess was unmatched; your skills at Command & Conquer unparalleled. You have a gaming history that stretches back beyond the PlayStation generation to the SNES, Megadrive, Amiga and ZX Spectrum. You were there at the dawn of gaming.

Tick-tock... Time passes. You've quietly come to realise that you're not the hard-core gamer you used to be. Even your Xbox 360 Gamertag seems far too 'sensible'. How do you know that a mid-life gaming crisis is setting in? Watch out for these warning signs…

You prefer playing against the computer

Online gaming against real people has become depressing – it exposes your faded, spoon-sharp reflexes and you abhor the trash-talk from 12-year old fanboys. You prefer playing offline against the computer because a game's algorithms are slightly more predictable. And, once you master the scripted patterns of play, you stand a real chance of being good… of actually winning. And that feels great, doesn't it? Ranking second-bottom on a multiplayer leader board doesn't.

You only play when your girlfriend is out

Because you only have one high-def TV and to play videogames on it while she's at home is 'selfish' and not something the two of you can do 'together'.

Assassin's Creed

You believe that winning isn't everything

It's the taking part that counts. Obviously. And that's not because you're not good at games. You are. But you've found that there's more to life than spending five hours every night killing all of the Templars in Assassin’s Creed. The fact that you can't find the last three Templars is irrelevant.

It's been days, not hours since you last switched on your console

Because things keep getting in the way: TV, movies, books, going out to restaurants, shopping, going down the pub, DIY, dinner parties, the gym, more DIY, your girlfriend/wife/boyfriend [delete as applicable]… oh, and having a job.

Old man

You’re the oldest person trading in games at GameStation

So you lie about why you’re there. "It’s, ahem, my son's birthday. I'd like to trade these in for Guitar Hero please…"

You like your Xbox 360 and your PS3 equally

Being a more 'mature' gamer means you have more disposable income, so you can afford the luxury of owning a PS3 and an Xbox 360. So you've become the gaming equivalent of the United Nations, calming accepting the virtues of both consoles to the deaf ears of Xbox zealots and Sony fanboys (who simply ignore you and carry on their slanging match regardless). Because when you stare at those side-by-side game comparison shots on CVG, you can't see the difference. Maybe the PS3 palette is lighter… maybe… Of course, your eyesight could be failing…

Sensible Soccer

You fondly remember a ‘golden age’ of gaming

You lament the current glut of videogame sequels and often talk fondly of an innovative 'golden age' of gaming. You remember Manic Miner, good ‘ol Chuckie Egg and the Ultimate games on the ZX Spectrum. You played Sensible Soccer the first time around on the Amiga, Elite on your mate’s BBC B, and finished Sonic The Hedgehog on the Megadrive. Happy days… But when modernised versions of these gaming classics turn up on Xbox Live, your excitement quickly evaporates. You quickly realise that, by today’s standards, those cherished oldies are now shallow, repetitive and not much fun.

You avoid playing on the Wii because it’s too much effort

There's no denying that the Nintendo Wii is a revolutionary games machine but… well, it does require a lot of effort. Aren't there times when you just want to slouch into a comfy sofa with a traditional joypad? Times when you can't be arsed with all that wiimote waving and waggling? It's way too energetic – a 20 minute bowling session in Wii Sports is almost akin to a full workout.

Call of Duty 4

Your FPS experience consists of spawn, run, die... spawn, run, die... spawn…

The reflexes that served you so well in GoldenEye and Quake seem to be two seconds slower than everybody else these days. You think 'fire', 'jump', 'spin', 'run', 'collect spinny power-up', but your fingers press 'fire' (and pause), 'fire' (and pause), 'spin' and… no, I actually meant 'jump', and – oh, I’m dead. Either you're slowing down, or today's hard-core gamerati are faster than you ever were.

You find the idea of videogames based on board games perfectly acceptable

Anyone for a game of Carcassonne tonight? The wife's out until 10pm and I'll be online after I've had my dinner…

GTA IV

You've pre-ordered GTA IV but don't mind if it doesn't turn up on launch day

Wednesday's just fine. Really. You're a bit busy at the moment, anyway. In fact, you probably won't get a chance to play GTA IV until the weekend. You're also not bothered by the prospect of downloading the DLC for GTA IV either. You'll never finish the main game anyway.

[Tarma]

AAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAGGGGHHHHHHHH - THIS IS ME!!!!!!!!

[Takumaji]

Haha, actually that's not too far off, apart from the reflexes thing, they're still as quick as... as... what were we talking about again?

[Lovergoat]

That is scary accurate, are we really that predictable?

[Hentai Sama]

Looks like I'm still a hardcore gamer, for the most part.

[lachlan]

"You only play when your girlfriend is out"

Exactly my situation.

[dark penguin]

I learned that I do not have the time anymore to care about the next generation of gaming. Life is way too busy when you have kids. Whenever I buy a new release, I pretty much never have time for it. Games that require 30+ hours for completion are right out.

Where on earth would I find that kind of time anymore?

I tend to stick to handhelds and my supergun these days. Arcade games are great for people without a lot of time on their hands. Sure, you could spend a lot of time on one to master it, but you can also play for 15 or 20 minutes and it's still a good time.

Also helps that the PSP has seen some great arcade comps.

[Takumaji]

"You prefer playing against the computer"

Nope, I prefer playing with my friends.

"You only play when your girlfriend is out"

I'm married... but I also play when the wife is around, she doesn't mind at all. lol "girlfriend"...

"Assassin's Creed"

Don't play it, don't like it, is that a typical game for an old gamer? I don't think so.

"It's been days, not hours since you last switched on your console"

Nope, played Strikers 1945+ on PSX last night.

"You’re the oldest person trading in games at GameStation"

Hmmm, not really. Even if I were I'd hardly need excuses for being there, those sticky-Wii-games-swappin' protozoae and 14 years olds with gelled hair and popped collars don't notice anything around them anyway.

"You like your Xbox 360 and your PS3 equally"

I have neither.

"You fondly remember a ‘golden age’ of gaming"

Definitely.

"You avoid playing on the Wii because it’s too much effort"

That, and the fact that the wiggle whaggle controller is about as accurate as writing with a thick glove. Wii is bullshit lie.

"Your FPS experience consists of spawn, run, die... spawn, run, die... spawn…"

Yes and I'm proud of it. Quake 3 Arena for life, fuck that boring 30-frames high-def crap.

"You find the idea of videogames based on board games perfectly acceptable"

I don't know what this has to do with old gamers... let's say I like some boardgame adaptions like MechForce and Civ but other than that I haven't played a game like that in ages.

"You've pre-ordered GTA IV but don't mind if it doesn't turn up on launch day"

Me preordering GTA IV? Not until hell freezes over.

.

So... either I'm not as old a gamer as the author had in mind or even older...

[Neo Collector]

Originally Posted by dark penguin

I learned that I do not have the time anymore to care about the next generation of gaming. Life is way too busy when you have kids. Whenever I buy a new release, I pretty much never have time for it. Games that require 30+ hours for completion are right out.

Where on earth would I find that kind of time anymore?

I tend to stick to handhelds and my supergun these days. Arcade games are great for people without a lot of time on their hands. Sure, you could spend a lot of time on one to master it, but you can also play for 15 or 20 minutes and it's still a good time.

Also helps that the PSP has seen some great arcade comps.

I quoting cause im in the same situation.

[dark penguin]

Originally Posted by Neo Collector

I quoting cause im in the same situation.

Nice to see I'm not the only one. It's interesting to see how things have come full circle. I used to play arcade games in short bursts as a kid because I only had so many quarters.

Now, I've got the quarters, but I've only got so much time.

[Gameoz]

"Your FPS experience consists of spawn, run, die... spawn, run, die... spawn…

The reflexes that served you so well in GoldenEye and Quake seem to be two seconds slower than everybody else these days. You think 'fire', 'jump', 'spin', 'run', 'collect spinny power-up', but your fingers press 'fire' (and pause), 'fire' (and pause), 'spin' and… no, I actually meant 'jump', and – oh, I’m dead. Either you're slowing down, or today's hard-core gamerati are faster than you ever were."

Yep.

[cannonball]

I'm about half way there

[Abraham Lincoln]

All of the traits that the author defines as "hardcore" I define as "pointless juvenile bullshit".

Oh boo hoo, I don't spend 14 hours a day playing CoD4 online with a bunch of whiny 13-year-olds and bigots, woe is me.

[Kiselgof]

This is depressing because it's true.

I barely have time nowadays to just relax to myself, much less play video games. My Neo cabs get turned on, oh, maybe once every couple of weeks for an hour at the most. I play the games from my "youth" because most of them can be played for 30 mins and turned off. I suppose the same can apply to some arcade-style shooters and fighters nowadays, but not the 20+ hour adventure quests.

I keep slowly building up a PS3 library wondering if I'll ever get around to playing most of the games...

Sincerely,

Mikhail

[Stand Watie]

How about if you take Exception to being called a "Faggot Nigger" on Xbox Live?

[William H. Seward]

I am 35 yrs old i play every day and so does my girlfriend i own lots of different consoles.
Yesterday i finally bought a neo geo aes with the following games:
art of fighting(dog tag)
kof 94(eur?)
last resort(eur)
world heroes 1+2(eur)
it came with two joysticks and a memorycard.
Ibought it for 275,-euro(app.$400,-).
i couldn't be happier!!!

[William H. Seward]

By the way i'm new in neo world.I've known it since the beginning but they were hard to find in my country so some nice facts and info are welcome

[Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard]

Originally Posted by ratson

By the way i'm new in neo world.I've known it since the beginning but they were hard to find in my country so some nice facts and info are welcome

welcome to the boards, there is an endless amount of information floating in pinned threads, the price guide list, and if you look at the market area you can get some good concepts of how much stuff costs in todays market as well. Lots of knowledgeable people as well.

Funny how it seems like arcade games are very exceptional for those who have little time, maybe a resurgence is in order?

[William H. Seward]

Thanks i am dutch so excuse me if my english isn't good all times.
I really like it that there are so many people who still like neo geo and the fact that the knowledge is being shared.
Is the price i paid +-$400,- reasonable?
I thought it was but someone told me i paid to much,because there was no box with the console (all games are in good condition)

[Lovergoat]

Originally Posted by ratson

Thanks i am dutch so excuse me if my english isn't good all times.
I really like it that there are so many people who still like neo geo and the fact that the knowledge is being shared.
Is the price i paid +-$400,- reasonable?
I thought it was but someone told me i paid to much,because there was no box with the console (all games are in good condition)

That isn't a bad price at all, also you're happy with it. Can't say fairer than that.

Probably the wrong thread to be asking in but heh, you're new. Welcome to the drama.

[Aaron D]

Certainly not as hardcore as I used to be. Not a bad thing though. A lot of materialism has faded with my hardcoreness as well... Always good, in my opinion.

[William H. Seward]

Thanks everyone i'll go searching for the right threads to post my questions

[BIG]

lol hardcore

[Stand Watie]

How about if you sold all your AES carts to go MVS... Then all of your MVS carts when you bought a Rombox?

[Dr. Motherfucking Hobbit]

I miss the old days, just me and my SNES (and Amiga) and no money for games, lol.