Gaming as a whole has largely lost its appeal to me over the last few years. With the added complexity in my life (more responsibilities, less ability to research gaming and its culture while at work, closing on a condo, et cetera), I just don't really have the spare cycles to think about gaming. That isn't to say that I don't want to game, but I never open Steam, never start a random emulated game, never look at my growing pile of console titles I haven't touched - I'm out of the scene, though not by choice.
In fact, I want to get back into things. I want to discover new RPGs, new worlds to shamble through in search of bugs, glitches, bits and treasures off the beaten path. I want more games like Final Fantasy XII where I can combine active battles with discovering oddities in a large, explorable world. I definitely want games where I'm presented with choices and my picks ACTUALLY INFLUENCE THE OUTCOME. I want engaging platformers, exciting racing games, compelling pinball simulators, and silly little things to drop time into. I want to try my first roguelike and get stuck in a dungeon and die for stupid reasons over and over again! In short, I really want to get back into gaming.
Growing up, I had access to Nintendo products. Not until the waning era of the PS2 did I own a Sony console, and I've hardly done so much as TOUCH an Xbox in the past. The only PC games I've played in recent years have been a bit of Portal and Goat Simulator. The fact of the matter is.. I'm out of touch. This influences my ideas for game design, too, because I'm so limited. Why do I keep going back to the ad hoc designs I do for Insert Credit(s)? They're what I know.
Once I move, once things calm down, once everything is in place, once I get my entertainment center sorted.. it begins. I want to experience game streaming on my LAN so I can play PC games in the living room, I want to race all day and night on the weekends and regain my skills in Mario Kart with the Wii U and 3DS versions (though I can TOTALLY stomp anyone sans Mr. Bond in Mario Kart Wii!), and I want to get super caught up in complex moral choices in massively open worlds. I ALSO want to get into Final Fantasy XIV for PC. I have so many things to do! Any ideas where I should start?
