When life gets in the way

Video games are a big part of our lives, so it’s a major bummer when you have to put them aside to do mundane things, like forced camping trips with relatives or studying for finals.

I started college in 1996, and my dorm was so crappy it didn’t even have a TV, so gaming was not an option. My mom paged me one to let me know she had bought a brand new Nintendo 64 with Super Mario 64 for me, and I was stuck miles away from home with 6 older guys and no TV.

A year later the torture continued when Final Fantasy VII came out. By then I had moved to a better dorm and had my own TV, but everyone knows it’s not wise to play role-playing games in college and maintain decent grades.

The other time I reduced my gaming to nearly zero was when I met my wife. Video games are not exactly aphrodisiacs for most women. The sad part is that during the courting period I was working at EB Games and I still couldn’t find time to play!

What about you? What has kept you away from gaming the longest?

Tags: Final Fantasy 7, Super Mario 64

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Jason Lomberg

June 02, 2011

Hmmm...the three months I spent down in Ft. Benning. For some reason, the Army thinks that video games aren't conducive to training...

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Samir Torres

Tell that to these guys.

I realize that my humor is dry as the Sahara, but I was joking :-)

In any case, I was in training, and all privileges were strictly limited. Though in a follow-on course, several guys brought mini TVs for their rooms, and we'd watch movies. Not sure about games, though.

It's a different story in the actual Army and even in Iraq or Afghanistan. In fact, we used video game-like simulations, like the EST 2000 (www.peostri.army.mil/PRODUCTS/EST_2000), as training devices.

People love games about war, so maybe wars should be more like video games.

Shot down an enemy aircraft? Get a new combat uniform. Disarmed a weapon of mass destruction? Get a collectible Colin Powell bobble head.

Ryan Knutson

What? What is this? What a great article image on the top of the page! I'm not trying to think about it anymore and get focused on the actual question the article provides. There has never been a time when I was without video games, but there has been times when I have been without 'good' games. There have always been ROMs for me to download or particular old titles to go back to, but I never really felt so empty about gaming as I have now. Most of it has to do with being unemployed, and the psychological aspects that such a position can bring, let alone not having the captial to purchase the next AAA game investment. The other issue is with the wife. My dearest wife has minimal interest in playing games that are 'non-casual', and when she is home, I most often have to share in the non-gaming activites she chooses. Recently, my wife has been interested in WoW and we've been playing together when she is home, but her gameplay style, expertise, and control issues oftentimes make this game more of a chore than entertaining. At least I have articles like these to vent on when I don't have the gaming freedom I've taken for granted! :P

Brings back memories, doesn’t it? If you liked that Street Fighter Alpha 2 image, check out the one I used on my If Only They Made Memory Cards for Your Brain article!

http://bitmob.com/articles/if-only-they-made-memory-cards-for-your-brain

Not having any good games to play made me think of that scene from the movie The Cable Guy, where the cable signal is lost when everyone was watching that over-hyped murder trial. People rediscovered books and basically life outside of TV.

If it’s not Tetris, my wife won’t play it. I’m surprised yours is into World of Warcraft so much, even if she’s not that good at it. Makes me wonder what our wives say about us on whatever websites they visit…