Games

Video Game Post: Bite-sized Thrills

55 Comments

I don't have a whole lot of time to play video games anymore.

Okay, so that's not entirely true.


Like Philo, I have a fair bit of spare time between Newbish going down for the night at eight and whatever time my body forcefully declares that it is done with this whole "consciousness" thing for the day. The problem is, I like hanging out with my wife. Therefore, my game playing comes in bits and chunks.

This presents problems. There was a golden age where video games were big enough and advanced enough to allow saving, but were still, by and large, level-based. As the scope of games has increased, my ability to take them in bits and chunks has decreased. It seems games are meant to be "binged" now, much in the same way a show on Netflix is. Sit down and devote a weekend to finishing a game in a couple of sittings. I just can't really do that anymore.

So thank goodness for DOOM.

Among the many other much-hyped throwback aspects of this year's Doom, the one that resonates with me the most is that I can play for a half hour to an hour and finish a distinct segment of the game, then put down the controller and move on to something else*. Anymore, that's a very valueable quality, and one that I wish more games had (even if I understand the reasons why that's not the case).

* I wonder how much of this is also to do with the fact that the plot is laughably threadbare. Many first person shooters these days try to beef up plot, even when the plot ends up being "go here, shoot these people. now go over here, shoot these people", but Doom mostly sidesteps any sort of plot in favor of "deranged cultists are trying to unleash demons. shoot anything that moves." It seems similar in theory, but in practice, I've probably never been less engaged with a post-PS2 game's plot, and it doesn't lessen the experience one iota.

So, what do you think? Do you wander more towards small, episodic or level-based gaming, or do you binge on epic scaled stories and the like?

Also, I really like RPGs, but unless I'm able to string together a little more time, I always feel like I get stuck in a spot where I'm coming back to the game not really remembering what exactly it is that I'm supposed to be doing and then just sort of disengaging from the whole experience. Is there a decent game that would lessen that effect?

55 thoughts on “Video Game Post: Bite-sized Thrills”

  1. I've never been heavily into the big, epic story-based games but with how busy it is around my household I can't imagine working my way through something like Mass Effect 3 again.

    The combination of available time and nostalgia has me playing a lot of arcade-like experiences these days. Pinball Arcade on tablet and console, arcade ports on various consoles, games like RC Pro-Am. And on the newer side of things Forza Horizon 3 is perfect, I can rip around Australia in a monster Jeep or Lamborghini for 15-30 minutes at a time.

  2. I used to enjoy epic games when I was single, though I still preferred them to have points where it was easy and obvious to take a break. Never been a fan of open sandbox games, with the exception of the original Sim City. I tried playing Skyrim three times and my attention span lasted about 12 minutes. I mostly just play my baseball or football simulation games. Not a ton of thinking involved and definitely bite-sized chunks. And I can literally stop at any moment.

    On my last vacation I did start playing L.A. Noir, which I was totally digging. Unfortunately, my vacation ended and while the game can definitely be played in bite-sized chunks, it does require a good solid 30-60 minutes of not being interrupted and I'm rarely confident I will have that before I get interrupted or just plain tired.

    1. I played some of the original Quake a while back. I really liked that game, though I eventually realized that I only got, like, halfway through it as a kid.

          1. If that's the one I'm thinking of, someone wired a bunch of computers together back in high school. to play that. We had, like, 8-10 hooked up I think.

                1. Hmm, nope. This was in the late-90s. FPS that could have multiple players over a network. Not sure if that narrows it down at all... Descent sounded right, but nope.

                  1. I might not be of any help then. My earliest FPS LAN parties are playing Day of Defeat in 2001.

                  2. Half-Life or Counter-Strike? CS was released in 1999 so maybe too late for your window.

                    If not, sort the FPS list and go by date. It has to be in there.

  4. So much this. I end up playing lots of Hearthstone and mindless clicking games as a way to unwind. Each individual game is short, and replay value is high (though waning, part of why I'm looking for something more.) I've been thinking about picking up Civilization VI, but I'm not entirely sure it'll be worth it and/or I'll ever get the big chunk of time to play that I want.

            1. A few years ago, there were a couple of series that I would shell out full price for.

              With the massive backlog, plus the fact that there are about ten years that I've barely scratched the surface of, I doubt I'll ever pay full price for a game again.

            2. Also, re: the X360, I wish they would pick up the danged pace on making them backwards compatible. I mean, at least they made Super Meat Boy work on the XBone, so I'll never really be wanting for a twenty minute time waster again, but it would be nice for some of the middle tier games to be converted.

              (I get that AAA titles are probably a colossal pain in the butt to get all emulated properly, but they did the 360's Deus Ex game for the XBone, so...it's possible)

          2. Civ 5 is one of the few games I wasn't that way on. But it was a case, much like this winter, where Philosofette was largely engaged in her education (now 1st year of teaching), and I needed some sort of leisure that she wouldn't feel bad missing out on.

      1. It's pretty sweet.

        Any reciprocal recommendations for titles I can play on my computer this winter that I maybe missed once upon a time?

    3. RE: Hearthstone, I dunno. I like it, and generally really like CCGs as a genre (though I prefer them in person with friends ), but it didn't hook me for more than a few months.

      1. They keep releasing new expansions at just the right time for me. I've nearly put it away for good about a half dozen times, but they manage to suck me back in. Also, I don't have very many alternatives right now, which is why I'm seeking that out.

  5. Am I the only one here of a certain genus that cannot first read "RPGs" as anything besides "Rocket-Propelled Grenades?" My mind momentarily stutters while it tries to process why Nibs likes them so much, until the context of the post sets in.

      1. Is this just a part of Iraq War-era news and vernacular? Or where else would that acronym have been so prominently featured?
        It wasn't a N64 Bond weapon was it?

          1. Yeah, we used to play hours and hours of Goldeneye. RPGs were on the ban list.

            So were sticky grenades, because the game wasn't smart enough to avoid respawning you in a spot if it detected a grenade there.

    3. ZG - I'm with you. Luckily I didn't see it on the sidebar first - read it only in context (though even here I only have a tenuous at best understanding. Not much for video games coming up.)

  7. I've been working on Dragon age: origins for a couple months now. I'm nearing the end but I took a break to play through Max Payne 3 because those games are always fun.

    I also played the first season of The Wolf Among Us, which I thought was great. I loved the set up of fairy tale characters exiled to NY. Unfortunately, it's a couple years old and there hasn't been a season two yet, so I may not be able to get back into that world.

    I have the first episode of Life Is Strange a try because it was free. It seemed interesting, but I'm not quite sure of in going to spend the $15 for the rest of the season yet.

    Right now, I'm playing The Force Unleashed, which was a whiskey fuelled purchase. But it's a lot of fun and the prologue puts you in control of a powerful Darth Vader, which was immensely satisfying.

    1. They had episode one of the The Wolf Among Us a long ways back, and I played through it in an evening on my phone. I liked it quite a bit, though I still find the Telltale interface a bit dodgy at times, especially on a phone. I've always meant to pick up the rest of the season, because the plot interested me a lot.

      1. No disagreement on the interface here. I've played telltale games on an iPad and the Xbox and its not great for either. It's a good thing their storytelling is gripping. Anyway, I would recommend finishing it the season. Who knows, maybe your purchase will push them to do season two.

          1. P...C?

            I kind of wish I could still afford to have a gaming pc. Man those were the days. (except for in the early days when I had to lug a thirty pound monitor to LAN parties.)

            1. I don't really have a gaming PC. But Telltale games don't require a gaming PC. Just a PC from this decade really

    2. My recent whiskey-fueled purchase was an Atari Lynx...I would rather have just bought Force Unleashed.

      Dragon Age Origins is a good example of my inability to see through to the end of a massive game. I enjoyed it for a quite a while, but after not playing it for a month or so I just couldn't get back into it at all.

        1. Haha, I have very fond memories of having the system as a kid. I'm sure the games aren't going to hold up too well. It has some decent arcade ports, including some more obscure ones like APB and STUN Runner that aren't available many (any?) other places.

          Compared the the GameBoy it really had a "holy sh*t" factor going for it. At the end of the system's life I remember raiding Toys R Us for a bunch of $5 games.

        1. I might blackout before getting to "buy a Jaguar" drunk at the prices those are fetching these days.

    3. The Force Unleashed is...decent. I had fun with it. Once you start getting more of the powers towards the end, it gets a little better.

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