More gaming regrets, might need help

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I recently purchased a PS4 Pro and a couple of games (one of which was free with the console). I was after one for a few weeks now, thinking that I'd like to get back into couch-/console-gaming. Or at least I thought I did??

It's almost 48 hours since I bought the console and I'm feeling like something is wrong. So far the only games I have are Mafia 3 (the free one), Mortal Kombat XL, and Sniper Elite 4 (which my dad enjoys very much). Thus far I only have one controller and no other accessories. I'm also using Wi-Fi until I can get an Ethernet cable connected (if I still want to). Wireless is bad for downloading stuff, especially since PS4 games require some sort of update nowadays.

I also tried to geo-surf Netflix US, but that failed miserably since their countermeasures have been put in. Now I'm stuck with (thankfully non-recurring) subscriptions to both the VPN and Netflix. Can't get my money back there!

This goes back to something I've felt on and off for a while now - maybe I'm getting sick of gaming because I'm growing out of it. It isn't just a World of Warcraft thing, but with all video games it seems. I'll play them for a while, or as far as I can, then I'm like "Okay, what's next?". Like I'm searching for the next thrill, but not able to find something long-term. Except perhaps with WoW; it does have an engaging story, I'll give it that.

Anyway, I consider this a problem because I feel like I hyped-up the idea of owning a PS4 and couch-gaming, and that I've wasted a significant sum of money on it too. I thought I was beyond this after the ton of cash I dumped into my old Warhammer 40k interest.

Maybe I'm overthinking this. I do tend to do that sometimes. It's just there's this nagging feeling that I've mistakenly purchased something I thought I really wanted, but actually didn't. I guess you could say I'm "scared" in a way that I'm repeating history again (bad/impulse/hyped-up purchases).

It might be time to simply try new things, as gaming goes. I went through this same thing years ago.

I do have a PS4 right now... I say "right now" because I might sell the bloody thing, as it's effectively a doorstop or dust-collection machine. Pretty much useless. It's entire function is playing Diablo 3, but... I can play that on PC as well. I mostly used it to play that while I was on an island for a month (and thus, no PC). But now it's gone back to it's default status of "I have no idea where it is and dont care enough to look for it".

The XBone I dont care about and never bought (and never will buy). The Wii U, now I do have that, but it's core function is Mario Maker, and Splatoon... there's really nothing else. I do play those quite a bit, but they're hardly the "usual" sorts of games that most people play on consoles. They're not GTA or Mass Effect or blah blah blah...

But 95% of my gaming, and 99% of my gaming COLLECTION (and that's not an exaggeration) is on the PC. It didnt used to be like that though. I used to be very into console games, and for the longest time, they were my main thing. Until some number of years ago, when I just started getting tired of them. I couldnt find games I was interested, and cared less and less about "big" releases.

And eventually, the reason for this hit me: I was *really* tired of typical AAA trends. Those current trends hadnt always been like that... back in the older days of gaming, developers could be very creative, they could make challenging and deep games, and they could make unique stuff. But now? Hah. Everyone focuses on graphics. Games try to be movies with 10000000 cutscenes, none of which I want to watch (I dont buy games to WATCH the freaking things, I buy them to PLAY them). They're usually stupidly easy, very shallow, and very linear. In other words, they're very dumbed down and focused more on everything that ISNT the actual gameplay. The more that AAA games do this, the less I give a crap about them.

And then, came Steam, which was starting to get big around the time this was happening for me. So I started trying out indie games... and that's what "clicked" for me. Indie developers dont have to worry about trends: They can do whatever they bloody well feel like doing. Why? Because there's no giant publisher forcing them to do specific things, and because the games they make dont cost 10 kersquillionty dollars to make. And that extreme freedom allows for INCREDIBLE variety. Hell, it's what got games like Minecraft going, and THAT game warped the entire industry and gave TONS of other developers (such as Relogic, who created Terraria) inspiration and ideas. I found entire GENRES that literally dont exist on consoles (such as roguelikes). I found a bazillion shmups, which are exceedingly rare on consoles (WAY too hard for most players, and they tend to be low on or outright completely lack story elements). I found games that were like 5 genres smashed together in super creative ways.

Instead of the usual way of playing a AAA game, where I'd play it for like, 15 hours and then it'd be completed, I was finding games where 300+ hours not only never felt like enough, but also never got BORING. Like the Binding of Isaac for instance: I dont get tired of that. I've put hundreds of hours into it, and it doesnt... get... old. It's got stupid amounts of content, and the developer can do whatever the heck he wants, because who is going to stop him? But it's not just well-known indie titles like that... some of my absolute favorites of all time are more obscure games.

This also taught me that the amount of money/resources that go into a game DO NOT define it's quality. You've probably heard of the whole Mighty No. 9 fiasco, yes? That game had millions of dollars pumped into it, and various big-name devs working on it. ....And it's freaking terrible. But I found something else, a game called 20XX. The way I describe that game is: "It's the game that Mighty No. 9 wishes it could be". It's a Megaman X styled game, right down to the movement of the character and feel of it. It's got everything that a good Megaman game has (including powers that are actually useful).... and then on top of it, they added roguelike elements, creating endless replay value. The game is SO well-designed.... and it's made by two guys. Just two. That's it. It's FANTASTIC, and completely outdoes so many "huge" games out there. Sticking to "major" games only, I would have been disappointed. But going with indie titles instead, I've found sooooooo many games like that. I went from buying games rarely, to buying games *really* frequently. That they tend to cost 1/4th of the price of a AAA game (for something that then could give me 300 hours of replay value, or more) just makes it that much better.

And beyond that, I even now work on one, with a developer that I got to know. A long string of events led to a contract offer (despite that I havent worked a proper job in like 10 years), and now, work on the game is constant (even after release), and there isnt much restriction on what I can do with it: The devs know that I know what I'm doing with that genre (bullet hell / roguelike), and that I produce good results, so I have the authority to make decisions about what goes in, and what doesnt. If I feel like adding a new boss, well, in it goes, because.... because. Which is what development of these games tends to be like, and is what allows for such wild creativity. I can (and do) make it REALLY HARD, too. Player reception to the game has been great, and everyone's been quite satisfied with it.


So yeah, overall, that one change is what really did it for me. No more hyper-restrictive trends really made a difference. The one thing though: You have to get used to the idea of games that DO NOT focus on graphics. That's not to say there arent any hyper-gorgeous indie games out there, because there absolutely are. But many devs will choose to do things like make a game that looks like it came from the SNES (like Terraria). Or stuff like that. Which is fine by me... honestly I tend to prefer that type of look to the hyper-realistic 3D stuff. Since I've been using very high-end gaming righ PCs for years now, I've already seen the best of the best as graphics go, and as such graphics dont impress me anymore... only gameplay does, which is what I think is most important.



Yeah, I'm ranting here, but... if you've seen enough of my posts (and you probably have, since we've talked at each other a bunch of times at this point, hah) then you already know that I do really long posts.

The overall point though is: It can be a really good idea to try something new, within the hobby that you normally enjoy. Something like gaming isnt static... you have SO many options. You just have to look around, and see what's really out there.

The reason why you might be burnt out on games is because AAA haven't innovated much.

You have the same old open-world games, FPS shooters are practically the same, etc...

So many AAA games have too much fluff and not enough good content that keeps players engaged.

I personally think there's way too many open world games on the market.