Has anyone got better at gaming, as they've aged ?

[80s_Atari_Guy]

I'm 48, and over the years I have got worse at the usual age-related activities such as running, sports, snooker, darts, football. These are things I used to do regularly when I was much younger.

 

And yet, when it comes to gaming, I feel I have not only got much better, but my attention span is better - I don't give up so quickly, or get bored so quickly. This could be in part due to PC gaming, and many games getting much more complex over the years, especially in the 90s and early 2000s. I used to play lots of first-person shooters, sniper games, all games requiring fast reactions, and to be mentally focused. Perhaps these games work the mental muscle, and it becomes stronger allowing you to focus more without losing concentration and getting bored ? I don't know, perhaps I'm talking nonsense ? lol.

 

Just as a few examples. I can now complete Bruce Lee, on my 800XL, in a single sitting and without getting bored. Same for Manic Miner on the ZX Spectrum, a real sod of a game in the later levels - But I can complete this without resorting to save states in a emulator.

Perhaps, back the 80s, loading games was often slow and tedious. And, during that tedium, I wasn't so focused when I eventually got to play the game. Perhaps the boredom of loading games meant I wasn't in the right mood when the game eventually loaded. Couple that with, perhaps, disappointment in the game ? A poor arcade conversion of a arcade game I recently played ?

 

One thing I definitely remember is that, as a kid in a family that didn't have the money as other friend's families, I had to settle for what we could afford. So my first computer was a ZX81. But I got this pre-owned, just as all the cool kids got a ZX Spectrum, BBC Micro, or a Vic 20. I eventually got a 16k ZX Spectrum just as the Spectrum kids got a 32k upgrade, so all the games were now 48k. By the time I got my 32k upgrade, those in well-off families got a BBC Micro, or a C64.

So I think my gaming skills lacked because I knew there was always something better out there, and rather than settling for what I had - I focused too much on what I didn't have or couldn't afford.

So fast forward to today, and I can play anything. Either using emulators, or the real thing. PC games are running on amazing hardware - I7 8700k, 16Gb DDR4 RAM, Nvidia GTX1080 FE, etc.. And while that is not the best, I can play any PC game at max details at 2k. Even if I had a couple of generations older hardware, I can still play the latest games, albeit at lower details.

 

I mean, I can now fire up nearly any game, on real hardware, in a blink of a eye. All using modern hardware like HxC, Flash Floppy, Divide 2k, etc.. So there isn't any long lengthy waits, or load errors from cheap tape decks or dodgy media. Perhaps it's that instant, any game I want, on tap, without that wait, puts you in the right mood from the start ? Does that make any sense ?

 

Is it perhaps the simplicity of these, often primitive, games that make them easier ? I'm obviously more used to much more complex games, especially compared to Atari 2600 games.

 

Apologies for the long post. I'm just wondering if there is anything more complex here, or is it just something simple ?

[Flojomojo]

Yup -- I remember when a D-pad, let alone dual analog sticks, were tricky for me. They probably still are, for non gamers. But it's second nature now. Practice helps.

[Austin]

Yes, I've definitely gotten better at games. I know the mental aspect is a large part of it as I am more focused and I analyze things on screen much differently than I did when I was younger. My reflexes themselves might not be as fast as before, but the new strategies and techniques I have learned help me play much more efficiently.

[Tanooki]

I'm pretty much the same there as Austin, but my reflexes have not slowed down in the least bit. My focus isn't as good, but that's not age it's the fact I don't play much anymore at all, at least not with any consistency because of everything else that goes on in a home and one with a child in it at that. She tends to come first, so the hours get cut hard. If I could piss the time I did back in school now I'd be killing it far better than I did then and I used to be damn good at quite a few games and genres.

[Skippy B. Coyote]

Yes and no. There's a lot of games that I can beat now that I could never beat as a kid. Gremlins 2 and Jurassic Park on the Game Boy come to mind. I also got pretty good at classic arcade and Atari games in my early 30's and could consistently place in the top 5 of high score club competitions for just about any Atari 2600 game.

 

Unfortunately that didn't last. A few years ago I developed Hashimoto's thyroid disease and had to get my thyroid gland removed, and ever since then my reflexes and ability to focus have slowed down a lot. I guess the synthetic thyroid hormones don't work quite as well as the real thing. I can still play games better than I could as a kid, but not quite as well as I used to a few years ago.

[p1FqO3]

I've become better at not looking for spoilers. When I was a kid, I don't think I ever once beat a game or found an easter egg without using Nintendo Power or strategy guide. About a year ago I beat Dragon Warrior without knowing a single thing about it.

 

VVVVVVVVVVVV*SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS**SPOILERS*VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV

 

I spent 3 - 5 hours looking for the Shield of Erdrick before trying to fight the final boss. I finally gave up and just did the fight without it, and won, easily. Turns out the shield doesn't even exist in the game, I had everything I was meant to have. All the other outfits included a shield so, naturally, I assumed the best one would as well. However, I don't consider that time wasted, I don't think there's a tile of that world I haven't seen or a character who's comments I didn't analyze to death looking for hints. Map exploration has a distinct kind of satisfaction on it's own.

[Eltigro]

Heh... nope... there are lots of games I beat as a kid (or at least younger) that I can't beat now...

 

But then, I devoted more time to them then. I spent a lot of time on something like Castlevania before I finally beat it. I just don't play any one game for that long any more.

[derFunkenstein]

Yes and now. I mean, my reflexes have been basically downhill for the better part of a decade (I'll be 40 soon enough) but I've gotten smarter with strategy games. Not sure if that's anything more than just being a late bloomer and starting to understand the games better. Probably just that.

[retrorandy]

I'm pushing 50 and I've always been fairly mediocre at games. Back in the day I did finish Montezuma Revenge, but for the life of me (even with save states/cheats now) I can't seem to complete Montezuma's Return. I did just recently get really far in a few GB/GBC games Frogger 2 & Lock N Chase comes to mind. I think more than anything just like the look and graphics. I'm a sucker for nostalgia and the care free days of the 1980's.

[Shawn]

Compared to when I was a little kid playing on my 2600? Ya, I've got a lot better since adding in over 3 decades worth of experience .

[godslabrat]

 

 

There are a bunch of games in my collection, especially in the NES era, that I was terrible at as a kid. Some sat in storage for 10-15 years. When I tried them again, I was suddenly REALLY good.

 

I don't get it.

Edited June 27, 2018 by godslabrat

[80s_Atari_Guy]

Thanks for all the interesting replies.

I guess it is experience gained over the years that has made me better at those older games.

 

One other thing, after having another think about it, I was a very active kid. If we had days like we have had this week in the UK (really hot), I would always be looking at doing something outside. Football, cycling, running, tennis. I could never concentrate on gaming while the weather was good. While today, even in very hot weather and lots of work to do, I could fire up a game on my PC, or my retro machines, and quite happily play away without wondering about what I could be doing instead.

 

Bizarrely, my react times are much better, despite them being much worse in other things I used to do like sports. Probably more to do with the fact that I never gave gaming up, I kept at it for all these years.

[HoshiChiri]

Oh HELL no! I am defintely WORSE now! At least I sure as hell feel like it. The biggest change is, I have lost the ability to tolerate forced repetition for very long.

 

As a kid, I had more time and less games. So, I was a lot more willing to commit to whatever the game needed. Spend an entire Saturday getting the good ending in Sonic 1? Will do! Oh, to get all the endings in Streets of Rage you need 2 players? Time to learn this game with my feet so I can be my own second player! In high school I got into JRPGs, so I largely quit playing the reflex-heavy, twitchy platformers of my youth.

 

But now? I have two jobs and a lot less time. While I can still run a grind just fine, I don't want to spend 40-plus hours with a JRPG anymore. I've also let my reflexes atrophy enough that shooters and platformers I'm not familiar with can start in on me by stage 2, and I don't have the patience to re-play for 30 minutes just for another go at wherever I'm stuck. Cheat codes have become much more important to me as an adult- specifically level selects and infinite lives. I'm still willing to play the games & prove I can beat the challenges. I just think I should only need to do it once.

[zzip]

I've mastered all the Dark Souls games + Bloodborne in my 40s. These have a reputation of being difficult games

 

When I play an online game like Battlefront, sometimes I feel like I'm at a disadvantage against younger kids and useless, but other times I'll finish in the top 3

 

I definitely do have a longer attention span though

[roland p]

I can basically finish any sokoban level , does that count?

[Gamemoose]

I've gotten worse but that's because I hardly play games much any more. My kids want to play as well and right now I have a 2 year old that wants to do what you are doing when you are doing it. He can watch his siblings play but as soon as Daddy has a controller in his hand, "whatcha doin?". Or, like last night I was trying to play Nintendo Golf", I had two people talking to me at once and a little one whooping and hollering. Needless to say...my score sucked and I stopped out of frustration.

 

It's like as they say: you don't use it, you lose it. It seems worse in 3D games as opposed to 2D. The 2d ones tap into my memory muscle so games like Shovel Knight I do all right. FPS games...ugh I suck worse than I did.

[TDIRunner]

It depends on how you look at it.

 

Today, I'm certainly better at playing video games for the first time. I was so young when I started getting into gaming, that I simply didn't have the hand eye coordination that I have now. When I was young, if I played something for the first time, I was usually terrible at it. Today, I can pickup a game I've never played before, and I will be at least somewhat competent with it.

 

On the flip side, when I was younger, I didn't have money for lots of games, so I would play the same game over, and over and over again. If I got a game over, I would just start over and try again. Today, I don't have time for stuff like that. With a huge backlog of games, if I get stuck, I'm either going to move onto something else, or find some type of cheat around it. In that regard, when I was younger, I was more likely to "master" a game, where as today, I'm more likely to just finish it.

 

 

Example:

 

I love TMNT IV: Turtles in Time. When it was new and I was a kid, I had no way to cheat with that game, so if I wanted to beat it, I had to get good at it. My brother and I were able to beat that game multiple times as kids and we never even owned it. Today, I have to use "unlimited lives" cheats in order to get to the end. I'm not going to put in the time again to get good at it. I still love that game, but when I'm in the mood, I just want to pop it in and play to the end in one sitting, and then not play it again for another few months.

Edited June 27, 2018 by TDIRunner

[digdugnate]

yes and no- anything requiring some degree of thought or puzzling, im significantly better at (now that i have 30-35 years of gaming experience), lol. I will say that my twitch/reaction skills are awful- any game that relies on coordination or reflexes it takes me a few more tries now.

[Zonie]

I play about the same. I'm 51. When I was in my first marriage (Sucked), I had the attention span to sit and play games like Myst for hours. Not so much anymore.

[spacecadet]

I think gaming is like pitching in baseball. Some people can find other ways to win as they get older beyond the brute force approach most younger kids take. But it does get physically harder, and not everyone can make the transition, or at least not in every type of game.

 

I've gotten better at certain types of games, especially maze games (like Pac-Man) and basic shooting games like Astrosmash and Demon Attack. I used to have to really concentrate on games like that to get anywhere but now it's like I see the entire screen all the time and can identify threats when they're a long way off. I usually get bored way before I really lose. When I do start dying, it's usually because I just don't feel like bothering anymore, not because I can't make it past that level. I know the next level will be basically the same thing, just faster, so I just get tired of playing and start thinking about what I'm going to have for dinner that night. Only then do I start dying in the game.

 

I think some of that's the fact that games have thrown more at you over the years, so going back to those early games just seems easy now.

 

More modern games, though, I feel like I haven't kept up with the current crop of gamers. I used to be about on par in most FPS's, for example - we used to play them after hours on a LAN at work (and I worked at a game company with other gamers) and I did ok. But these days, if I try to play online with these whippersnappers, I get my ass handed to me basically every time. It's an embarrassment. So I think what I'm not good at in my old age is making very fast, very precise movements. I've gotten better at seeing the entire screen and understanding what's happening on a 2D playing field, but add depth and then quick and basically random enemy movements to it and I have more trouble than I used to.

[dj_convoy]

I'm probably better in some ways. I can figure out how to actually drift in most racing games, and I'm not joking when I say that, for years, that was an alien concept to me. Brake now? Keep accelerating? ARRGGHHHHHH

 

I'm probably about as good at puzzle games as I ever was... unless my eyes give out on me. I'm still relatively decent at shoot 'em ups, and those are my jams of choice. Like retrorandy said upthread, I feel like I've always been rather mediocre at games, for loving them so much.

 

I definitely succumb to hand and eye fatigue faster. I feel like my reflexes are probably off a touch, but that's what practice is for.

[+thegoldenband]

Definitely better, at least in the genres that are in my wheelhouse and I practice a lot: tennis games, platformers, action-adventures, etc.

 

What I've lost in terms of reflexes (which I don't think is much), I've more than gained in terms of quick pattern recognition, anticipation/thinking ahead, and persistence.

 

The one thing I can't/won't do anymore is button-mashing for extended periods of time. It's just too bad for my hands and forearms, at least the way I've always button-mashed (basically tensing all the muscles in my arm and "vibrating" that limb). I slightly injured myself a few years back trying to beat Burning Soldier on the 3DO on Hard mode; after that, I just used a turbo controller (which I very seldom do) and saved myself the grief.

 

Maybe I'm a bit less patient with some genres too -- hard to say. I want to sink my teeth into a game relatively quickly, and struggle to get myself to spend 3 hours puzzling out a Koei game's manual. I'm especially wary of games that expect me to learn stat-based tactics through trial and error.

[BackInTimeSime]

I dont play games the same way as I once did, if it starts to get on my wick I just move on... I just dont play games as completely as I once did, so games like fighters I never get good enough at, love fighters but all online based now, there is no way I would be able to sink the time to get good enough, so just dont buy them now.

 

For sure though I dont think I got better...

[Jim Pez]

As a kid i used to give up on games that were too hard but now I keep playing till I get better at it.

[Video]

As a kid, we were largely forced to become good at a game cause we didn't have many. But now, with disposable income, we can largely get games that actually interest us.

 

Don't get me wrong, I know my reflexes aren't as fast or accurate, but because I legitimately love the game, I tend to be much better. Put me on a game I didn't particularly care for, even back in the day and it's immediately obvious I'm not as good. Likewise, a game I Loved back then, I'm as good at now, or even better.