Rambly thoughts on video games

Intro

I'm not a gamer. While I technically do play video games, they're not something I think about often, it's not the go-to thing I do in my free time, and it's not something that's part of my personality. They're fun, but I could easily live without them.

I've seen a lot of people arguing as to whether video games are bad or not. This article isn't to argue for or against video games, it's just to share my own thoughts.

A waste of time?

A lot of people say video games are bad simply because they're a waste of time. While I think gaming in general is unproductive, that alone doesn't make it bad because a hobby by definition is something you do for fun. Sports aren't inherently productive (unless you're in the Olympics or something), but that doesn't mean sports are a waste of time.

However, I've noticed that some gamers get very defensive when their hobby is criticised. Instead of just acknowledging that it's okay to enjoy something unproductive and moving on, they come up with a bunch of copes like "Twitch streamers make loads of money!"... well sunshine, you're not one of those streamers.

Financial Impact

Gaming can be an expensive hobby. Individual games can cost up to $60, and while games might be cheap individually during Steam Sales, it's easy to compulsively buy games just because they're on sale and then never play them. A lot of popular multiplayer games are free to play, but monetised through in-game purchases like battle passes.

There's also the cost of a PC or console. I used to be part of the PC Master Race and I get that it's exciting to build a new computer, but a lot of people justify overspending by saying "oh well I won't have to upgrade for a long time", only to upgrade when a new generation of hardware comes out. Often one upgrade isn't enough because of bottlenecking (e.g., more FPS doesn't matter if your monitor can't display it).

Things are different if you also use the computer for work (e.g., video editing, CAD, programming) since the computer becomes an asset rather than a liability, but many people spend a fortune on a computer just to play games and consume content.

Time Wasted vs Time Enjoyed

You can recover lost money, but you can't recover lost time. Unlike some people, I don't think having fun is a waste of time, so I think the real question you should ask yourself is "are you actually having fun?"... you may know someone who always rages at games. Why do they keep playing if it's clear they don't enjoy it and just ruin the fun for everyone else?

Even if you genuinely like gaming, you might've fallen into a period where you sink into video games. Perhaps you have nothing to look forward to in life, you hate your job, you have tensions in your relationships, or your mental health is suffering and so gaming becames an escape...or rather a distraction because it's not permanent and will normally get worse over time.

Gaming without gaming

As I've gotten older, I've noticed that a lot of the time when I interact with video games, it's usually not because of the games themselves but other hobbies. In recent times, I've probably spent more time gaming on old computers, on old Operating Systems, and SBCs than I have on my actual computer because I think it's fun to push the limits.