Do you still play video games?

Mr_Serenity

I've been pretty busy lately, been running out of time to play video games like I used to. But I can still enjoy them every once in a while. What type of video games do you still play in your free time for fun though? How do you feel about them? Which are your favorite types?

I play fishville every other day for about 20 minutes to keep my virtual fish collection alive because I have always admired salt water fish, but find them too expensive to maintain for real. I got really cool deep sea, reef and kelp garden theme tanks going that really help me calm down at the end of a busy,long day. I also play warcraft in small amounts every other week, which makes me think maybe I should cancel my account.

I've also been considering playing the new Kingdom Hearts game on my brothers PSP, just to play through and enjoy the interactive story. I've always enjoyed action orientated, story games like kingdom hearts.

Cloud

I still play every now and again, but they've lost the hold over me that they once had. God of War II is one of the games I'm currently playing, meaning a couple hours a month or so. Deus Ex: The Conspiracy was my favorite PS2 game, along with first-person shooters like Call of Duty 4 (and its sequel), the Syphon Filter games, KillZone and the TimeSplitters franchise. I also like RPGs, especially the Final Fantasy game series. Final Fantasy 7 is simply my favorite game of all-time.

ShiftPlusOne

Yup, though I've moved away from those games which suck you in and drain your life (MMOs). I am finding it hard to enjoy many games as well. I have so many games on steam I have no desire to play or that I have only played for a couple of minutes. Seems like my priorities have changed a fair bit.

mugzy

I used to be a dedicated Halo: Reach player (before that came out it was Halo 3) but lately I've had to stop because I get way too angry when I play. I'm trying to work on my mind and emotions, and shooting people in the head and stabbing them in the face isn't very conducive to a peaceful state of being! I get so mad when I can't kill someone, or sometimes after being tea bagged I feel vengeful and try to hunt down the same player and kill them - it's all just reinforcing these negative aspects that I want to change. If it didn't affect me so much it wouldn't be a big deal.

I do play with friends sometimes, but I don't feel as into it anymore. I'm almost done with Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood so I'll finish that at some point. My xbox is mostly for watching Netflix these days. On PSP I like Little Big Planet, that's a nice happy game

zombiegirl

i really dig any sort of zombie game (no way...), although the resident evil series tops my list. mario galaxy is my chill game. it can be difficult, but it's mostly just fun and weird, awesome after a stressful day. i also play a mmorpg called Silkroad. very similar to warcraft, except free... if you're thinking about an alternative. i go through periods where i play SRO a lot... and then i won't touch it for months. this is why i would never pay for it.

mugzy

i really dig any sort of zombie game (no way...), although the resident evil series tops my list.

OMG :eek: You like zombie games?! j/k I really like Resident Evil 4, it's fun to play on the Wii.

MellowViper

I played the Simpsons Game recently. That was pretty fun. I like classic video games especially. I own a classic nintendo and a bunch of cartridges along with my Xbox 360.

zombiegirl

i really dig any sort of zombie game (no way...), although the resident evil series tops my list.

OMG :eek: You like zombie games?! j/k I really like Resident Evil 4, it's fun to play on the Wii.

yes! this was my favorite RE, by far. i'm also a huge wii fan. first person shooters are just so awesome on that system. i mean, i grew up with duck hunt...

also, i'm patiently awaiting the new zelda release... i guess you use the wii remote like a real sword with different attacks depending on positioning. very excited.

MellowViper

I used to be a dedicated Halo: Reach player (before that came out it was Halo 3) but lately I've had to stop because I get way too angry when I play. I'm trying to work on my mind and emotions, and shooting people in the head and stabbing them in the face isn't very conducive to a peaceful state of being! I get so mad when I can't kill someone, or sometimes after being tea bagged I feel vengeful and try to hunt down the same player and kill them - it's all just reinforcing these negative aspects that I want to change. If it didn't affect me so much it wouldn't be a big deal.

I do play with friends sometimes, but I don't feel as into it anymore. I'm almost done with Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood so I'll finish that at some point. My xbox is mostly for watching Netflix these days. On PSP I like Little Big Planet, that's a nice happy game

Oh I was like that with Reach also. When I get angry, I tend to curse out loud. THe end of the campaign probably pissed me off more than anything. It was so unresolved feeling.

mugzy

Oh I was like that with Reach also. When I get angry, I tend to curse out loud.

Oh yes, I yell and swear when I get frustrated with that game. Mostly it's a lot of "WTF!" and "AARRRGHGHHHG!!!!" :rant:

zombiegirl

I used to be a dedicated Halo: Reach player (before that came out it was Halo 3) but lately I've had to stop because I get way too angry when I play. I'm trying to work on my mind and emotions, and shooting people in the head and stabbing them in the face isn't very conducive to a peaceful state of being! I get so mad when I can't kill someone, or sometimes after being tea bagged I feel vengeful and try to hunt down the same player and kill them - it's all just reinforcing these negative aspects that I want to change. If it didn't affect me so much it wouldn't be a big deal.

I do play with friends sometimes, but I don't feel as into it anymore. I'm almost done with Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood so I'll finish that at some point. My xbox is mostly for watching Netflix these days. On PSP I like Little Big Planet, that's a nice happy game

i dislike these emotions as well. i never really liked the halo games, but i used to feel that way sometimes in my mmorpg. as i have said before, the more i practiced, the more this bothered me so i ended up making a new character that was a cleric. now my attack is pathetic, but i can help other characters instead of killing them. honestly, my girlfriend's little brothers are obsessed with halo and just watching them play makes me feel disturbed. a lot of anger.

i really don't play video games as much as i used to, but i do love netflix through my wii...

mugzy

@zombiegirl Yes games like Reach definitely bring up the feeling of anger. When I was at my peak of playing I could play up to 12 hours or more; needless to say I had dreams of war, shooting people, blowing things up, running from enemies, etc. Resident Evil did the same thing when I was playing it a lot, dreams of zombies and monsters, ugh!

MellowViper

Oh I was like that with Reach also. When I get angry, I tend to curse out loud.

Oh yes, I yell and swear when I get frustrated with that game. Mostly it's a lot of "WTF!" and "AARRRGHGHHHG!!!!" :rant:

...and "holy s**t b***s, I can't believe I f**d that up!" :banghead:

Its not always anger either. When I'm happy I might spout some profane statement like, "Damn, that fool just got knocked the fuggout!" to express my personal jubilation in conquering a foe. :clap:

... you know how it goes.

I feel so insincere self censoring, but I like this forum too much to get banned.

tbunton

I play the Metal Gear series. I like all the sneaking around. You also get more points for non-leathal take-downs. They added Metal Gear Online which I dig too. Its free with the purchase of the latest MG game. Most of the poeple that play it are respectful and play fair. MOST.

Jeffrey

Right now I am playing Titan Quest which is a Diablo2 style ARPG. Playing the underlord mod.

Zombiegirl, there was a fun game on gamecube several years back called Eternal Darkness. Good zombies and they had an insanity meter in addition to life and magic. When that went down weird things would happen. It was a scary video game.

Seeker567

kingdom hearts ^.^

being

I'm one of these not so rare cases in today's society, who has been addicted to computer games. Started out with what was just having fun with friends, playing games in LAN... then at one point started playing online. Quake 3 for years, then WoW at some point and a lot of DOTA somewhere in between.

After seriously taking up my Buddhist practice, I started to understand how it's actually only bringing me suffering, since I get very attached to games and my performance in them - they become part of my ego. So I quit all games for quite some time and didn't even feel any desire to play anything.

Then at some emotional low point, when I couldn't find anything to do, started to play again. It was fun for a while, but then came the attachment again. And again after a lot of suffering related to that attachment, I gave up all games. Supposedly for good this time.

I can see, how it's possible to just have fun with no attachment towards what happens in the game and I'm sure there are many people, who can enjoy games like this.
But someone who does not have many goals in life and does not do much (no school, no work) or someone, who's just not very satisfied with his/her life situation is in the risk group of getting addicted to the games.
Especially online games where one is competing with 'real people'.
The reason is simple: ego.

Talisman

I play Starcraft2 as zerg. One of the best ways I've discovered to maintain a healthy attitude toward a competitive game is simple good sportsmanship. I like to chat with my opponent while we're playing and discuss the game afterwards with them. I only play 1v1 games and practice a lot of rush tactics so most of my games only last at most 12-20 minutes each. I watch peer commentaries as well and like to study new strategies. My attention to this hobby has it's highs and lows, but in general, I find it to be a healthy outlet and a fun past-time. I'm sure that in time this game will eventually be shelved like many others. In comparison it took me over 4 years to finally shelve WoW, and I've been playing SC2 for about 3 months.

Theswingisyellow

I used to play the COD series a lot, esp Nazi Zombies and then zombies in Kino der Toten on COD black ops. I just kept playing it. I would get so frustrated, I am trying to in effect win a game that is unwinnable. It is addictive for sure. I actually threw the game away. It's the violence and the addictive quality of these games, big time wasters and the fact that they brought up all these afflictive emotions. I used to be a big gamer, I started in the 80's as a kid when video games were coming out.
All the best,
Todd

Vincenzi

sure, mostly Wii games and Wesnoth.

Zayl

I'm partial to First Person shooter games myself, or single-player RPGs such as the Elder Scrolls series. I also like to mess around in GTA.

Honden

I've turned into a weekend gamer as I can't seem to find time to get really involved in a game, except for the random iPhone game that I can pick up and set down at any time. I hop back and forth from FPS to RTS games, Call of Duty and StarCraft 2 being the big names of the group. I also dabble with Global Agenda and Star Trek: Online (I know, I'm a geek ), free online play is a great reason to keep them up to date.

clearview

I don't think it's possible for me to play videogames without becoming attached to them. I used to play counterstrike source and I was so good that I was ranked #1 on a server of over 100,000 people. Then I took up nba live and madden. The bottom line is these games are addicting, they feed your reward system when you win and whenever I lose I feel like shit. It's all ups and downs. And then I realized that videogames are pointless and take you nowhere in life. I applaud anyone who can enjoy a videogame mindfully, but it's really hard for me to do...

Talisman

I do it by just making light of it with the people I'm playing with. Just remember that "it's only a game."

Vangelis

I'm one of these not so rare cases in today's society, who has been addicted to computer games.

Hey being, have you ever seen a tv series called Pure Pwnage? It's a Canadian made comedy about a game addicted guy filmed by his film director brother. It's been on in Australia since last year. I you haven't checked it out, you might find it very funny. I loved it only because sadly, I understood it.

As for me, I used to play games when I was younger on my Atari 800 (yes, I remember Atari when it was a computer manufacturer, not just a software house). The best 8-bit computer ever and was so addicted to Star Raiders that I kept getting the highest score possible. So, being the geek that I was (am?) I dissassembled the program (after figuring out how to copy the cartridge software to the disk), changed it so it was harder, recompiled it and started playing the harder game!!! I was dedicated. But back in those days I spent my whole summer holidays programming games in assembly language, not some high-level graphics language that the soft game programmers of today use .

Anyway, more recently I got back into gaming because i started playing games on my PSP on the train to work. Untold Legends and Dungeon Siege being my favourite games on the PSP platform. Recently I bought a PS3 only for blu-ray and network video streaming but when I saw Assassin's Creed and how good the graphics and physics engines were on these modern games, I was hooked. Ironically my favourite game ended up being a cheap $20 game I bought: Sacred 2. Have played it many times. Now am looking for something to replace it. Some interesting fantasy RPGs coming out in 2011 which might fit the bill.

Mountains

The first video game I ever saw or played was the original Pong in the mid-1970s. I didn't really see the point then, and I certainly haven't changed my mind. So not only do I "still" not play video games, I never have. I'm just not a game person (gamey maybe, but not game).

lightwithin

I go through phases where I game often and then fall out of them. I bought a PS2 (yes, PS2 cause I can't afford a PS3) in 2006, played every day for a year, then got stuck in nearly all the games I was working on, so I hated that and ended up not touching it for two years.

Recently got the gaming bug again and I've been playing nearly every day again. But part of me has a dislike for the way the games make me feel. I get too into them, so much that my arms and hands shake after an intense session.

It's like my brain thinks the games are real somehow, so I get really tense and nervous, nearly SCARED when I play certain games. This is why I can't play anything overly creepy or scary, like Resident Evil games, or anything with awful monsters and zombies.

That said, whenever I'm able to just relax and enjoy the games, I like to play FPS ones like Killzone (which I finished recently. Wooo!) and whatever else seems interesting.

Currently I'm playing "Shadow Of The Colossus", "Destroy All Humans", "God Of War", "Okami" and I have a bunch of games I still need to start playing.

I see this gaming phase lasting longer this time around, but I dunno. God Of War gives me chills (the bad kind) sometimes. So it's not an activity without stress for me.

being

Hey Vangelis, yes, I used to follow Pure Pwnage years ago - was fun. Not so much lately, tho.

Anyways, I thought I'd add a bit of a PM I just wrote on this topic. A more detailed analyze and description of my experience with video games:

I never saw my gaming as addiction, when I was playing. I just saw it as something to kill time with. But if I think back on it and reflect, I see, that my state of mind was much of the time dependent on how I was doing in the games.
And of course you can't win all the time, especially when playing online against other people. So it actually caused a lot of suffering. And the satisfaction I got from doing good, was actually just a temporary egotistical satisfaction - not something I would call pure joy. :P

I was not playing for fun, but out of my egos need to prove my worthiness to others and in the end only to my ego itself. So if I did good, I would feel satisfied, if not, I felt miserable. And how-ever good I performed, it was never good enough. I always felt, that I could have done better. So it was just an endless cycle of misery with some tiny egotistical satisfactions at times.
With each game the fun lasted only for a while in the beginning, till the attachment kicked in.

shanyin

@Talisman

What league are you?

Mr_Serenity

I think the more someone is aware of being mindful of unnecessary attachment and ego it becomes easier to play games just as a hobby, rather than a life style. It's true most gamers I know play as a life style. That's when it starts to mess you up.

But if you can play games the same way productive people watch movies, then with that same type of temporary outlet in mind I think games can be played with a balanced perspective. It does make it harder to play MMOs this way, mostly because you're dealing with others to accomplish something.

You just have to be able to draw the line, and not become so absorbed to where you're no longer productive. I personally can't raid or really can't do guild things on warcraft anymore. But so far I am able to play that or another game of my liking casually for not very long.

Talisman

@Talisman

What league are you?

Bronze
New Fulsom Victor
Rank 3
My name is Dhune

I can't figure out how to get out of bronze yet =P

zombiegirl

@zombiegirl Yes games like Reach definitely bring up the feeling of anger. When I was at my peak of playing I could play up to 12 hours or more; needless to say I had dreams of war, shooting people, blowing things up, running from enemies, etc. Resident Evil did the same thing when I was playing it a lot, dreams of zombies and monsters, ugh!

lol, i have dreams of zombies all the time. but they're always really fun dreams. "night of the living dead" type zombies (slow and stupid) and i'm just a general badass, usually i have a sword, not sure why.

Zombiegirl, there was a fun game on gamecube several years back called Eternal Darkness. Good zombies and they had an insanity meter in addition to life and magic. When that went down weird things would happen. It was a scary video game.

hmm that sounds pretty interesting, i've never heard of this game. i do love scary games though i think i'd have to vote silent hill as my all time scariest video game though.

Mr_Serenity

If you like scary games Zombiegirl, I'm pretty sure you won't find a scarier game than this lol. I know grown men that were too afraid to finish this game. It makes resident evil feel like an E for everyone game.

http://www.amnesiagame.com/#main

zombiegirl

If you like scary games Zombiegirl, I'm pretty sure you won't find a scarier game than this lol. I know grown men that were too afraid to finish this game. It makes resident evil feel like an E for everyone game.

http://www.amnesiagame.com/#main

holy crap. that game looks terrifying! i'm not sure if i would want to play a survival horror that didn't give me a gun, haha.

Vajraheart

I love video games. I've got a top quality computer with LED screen for game playing, as computer games are still better than all the consoles as you can tweak the graphics to be better. Generally speaking, they already come with settings to make them better than on any console. But, they don't create the same amount of frustration in my mind anymore when I screw up. I also feel compassion for every virtue enemy I slay... which is interesting... I really feel it in my heart as if the virtual person I just killed was real. It leads to all sorts of contemplations about reality... but anyway. I still loooove video games but through deepening experience in practice, they don't have the same effect on me as they used to. I used to get so pissed!! But, I'm also smarter now and games are just pretty darn easy to get through these days, though I hardly ever play on the hardest setting, mostly just medium or medium high. I find making games really hard is just not fun, as I'd rather get through the game and play the next one... also a nice addition to playing through a game on the computer, I get all my games for free.

Vangelis

I just bought Demon's Souls - had to order it from the UK. Why? UK delivered to my door = $33. Australian pricing: $59. Almost double the price! Why is the UK so cheap when it's supposed to have a higher cost of living? I just can't understand why we get so ripped off in this country. Oh well, I've had my little rant now. Can't wait to get the game and play it even though it's been out for about a year.

Mr_Serenity

I've been playing Kingdom Hearts birth by sleep for the PSP. It's one of those games that feel really high on quality and production value for a hand held. My younger brother hacked it into this PSP I'm using so we didn't have to buy it, but it's a game that is definitely worth buying.

It really surprised me that a game this good went to the PSP rather than trying to make it for the PS3, but I figure it must be because the PS3 has two new Final Fantasy games coming that will be even bigger. So far it's really entertaining in the action department and the story driven cut scenes. Anyone who has a PSP will probably want this game.

twilly

I have a lot of trouble dropping video games tho I know they take up way too much of my time. I used to use them to block out dukkha but meditating is a way to do that and also be peaceful too. However, I still use time when I should be meditating to play. At least I've dropped games that agitate and aggravate me.

I play stupid games like mahjong butterfly. Guess I came to games too late in life to have patience for the complicated stuff.

Ficus_religiosa

I like RPGs, hence I (still) play Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion on the 140-something hour. I also enjoy Fall Out 3 (like I did the other games in the series) and Dragon Age.
Of other games I play GTA IV (which I looove), Assassins Creed I&II, Mercenaries 2.
I play Anno 1701, Pokemon Silver, Sim City DS, Mario Kart, Worms and Advanced Wars on my DSi XL.

On the pc (which is just my laptop) I play the (free) MMORPG Ragnarok Online on the normal server (iRO Valkyrie), Civilization I, Infocom-games (currently Bureaucracy) after they were mentioned on this forum

I play other games as well, but they are more "play-then-forget"

shanyin

@Talisman

What league are you?

Bronze
New Fulsom Victor
Rank 3
My name is Dhune

I can't figure out how to get out of bronze yet =P

Ahh ic ic. You just have to win alot of games. Helps to beat people who are favoured.

Tip: learn the hotkeys, so you don't click to do everything you just use your left hand.

If you've picked a race find a strategy that works against each race on youtube. That's what I've been doing and I've been winning alot today.

I'll probly add you :P.

Sabre

I have been addicted at one point. I used to keep awake until tournaments of C&C Generals started and play it at night. I totally left it behind me and now I only play Chess Titans once a month.

Buddhism is wonderful :bowdown:

Vangelis

I've been playing Kingdom Hearts birth by sleep for the PSP.

Ah yes, Japanese RPGs. I don't like how they have a separate battle system. I tried Final Fantasy on the PSP and didn't like it.

Vangelis

I like RPGs, hence I (still) play Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion on the 140-something hour. I also enjoy Fall Out 3 (like I did the other games in the series) and Dragon Age.

Haha - yes, I love RPGs but the only one I've liked on the PS3 so far is Sacred 2. Old-fashioned hack and slash rpg!!! Yeah!!!

I'm hoping to find others this year like Two Worlds 2 and Gothic IV. In the meantime I'm still waiting for Demo's Souls to arrive. I've also bought a 640Gig HD to replace the woefully small 40Gig I have in my PS3.

Jeffrey

Vangelis I also like Sacred 2. I'm playing a dual wield dryad now.

Vincenzi

I like games where strategy and tactics instead of the actual depiction of violence... the most extreme example of this may be Chess.

Jeffrey

Me too Vincenzi

I enjoy strategy and tactics the most in the games I play. It is deliberate that I play games where I fight scorpions and goblins rather than a game simulating war in the middle east. That way it is easier to see that it is pretend.

Vangelis

Vangelis I also like Sacred 2. I'm playing a dual wield dryad now.

[geek on]I'm playing with a level 110 Shadow Warrior[geek off]

Hehe I've played the game so many times now I'm over it but I can't find anything that I like as much. I'm hoping this year will provide some good fantasy rpg's for the ps3.

Jeffrey

Oh I play PC or I could recommend some games.. Dragon Age Origins is on ps3 I think if you have tried a Bioware game. Its not ARPG though.

Mr_Serenity

I've been playing Kingdom Hearts birth by sleep for the PSP.

Ah yes, Japanese RPGs. I don't like how they have a separate battle system. I tried Final Fantasy on the PSP and didn't like it.

The only Japanese RPGs I actually finish are Kingdom Hearts and Pokemon. If you haven't played Kingdom Hearts you definitely should. It's one of the best games I've played period. All of them are good and not just good in a story way, I mean they're actually fun. They're more combat and action orientated compared to other RPGs. So to me all that hacking and slashing with the elemental attacks added in is fun and therapeutic.

Personally I've never played an RPG that felt like it had a better combat system than Kingdom Hearts. I feel Kingdom Hearts has the best combat system of any RPG I've played. And all the good ones are probably learning from that.

God of War has a great combat system too, but of course that is more action/adventure game than RPG.

ZendoLord84

I play chess, backgammon, hearts, mayong those kinda games.
I own a Wii, sometimes I play games like mario kart, donky kong, smash brothers brawl etc.
The day that I would be playing harcore games online with other people for hours on end are long gone.

Ficus_religiosa

@Vangelis
I think I might try out Sacred 2 I play my games on the X360 mostly though - I got it for Christmas years ago, and even though my girlfriend bought a PS3 one day, I never really use it (she does, though. She's into Japanese RPGs like FF and Eternal Sonata).
Now that we both study and don't work, money aren't exactly in surplus so games are not brought in every other day (to say it the least)