I was writing this out on my local !letstalkaboutgames@feddit.uk and realised I was basically making a patient gamers post, so here’s a copy and paste:
Despite everything you might read from gaming journos about corporate greed destroying the gaming industry I still think it’s an amazing time to be into video games. I’m absolutely spoiled for choice with games to play and I think it’s just down to not caring about online multiplayer or getting caught up in marketing hype.
You don’t have to pay through the nose to buy a fancy machine to play half-finished blockbusters, there are decades of classics that you can still play. Borrow a friend’s old console and play some old games-of-the-year, find some random classics on Humble Bundle or GOG, see what random freebies I’ve posted in !freegames@feddit.uk, stick an emulator on your phone or find one that runs in a web browser.
Example: I played Metroid Prime after seeing a Lemmy post talking about. I could either:
- Dig out a GameCube or buy a Wii on eBay for £5 and find a copy of the game at CEX if I fancy the retro experience
- Buy the remastered Switch version if I fancied splashing out
- Just pirate a ROM if I feel rebellious
- Dump my own ROM and play it on PrimeHack if I feel like tinkering
This is just one example of a great game that passed me by, there are thousands of others out there. We have a crazy amount of choice not only of what to play but how we choose to play it. The bittersweet part is that this could all change so enjoy it while you can!
It’s also never been a greater time to be an indie game fan. There are loads of smaller games every year that are a really fun time. Pizza tower and lethal company were one of my favorite games last year.
I’ve yet to play Sea of Stars and Cocoon but they’re high on my list of next games to play.
I mostly play indie games, and there’s just no way I’m keeping up with all the great games out there. I have like 100 unplayed games I’m interested in (and hundreds more I’m not), with like 20 of those purchased in the last couple months.
Cocoon and Pizza Tower are also on my wishlist, but I just can’t in good conscience buy them until I’ve gotten through some of the others I’ve picked up recently. They’ll inevitably go on a good enough sale that I’ll just get them though.