How I've changed as a gamer

I was just idly pondering my navel and I wondered when we were going to get some new intel on Halo 5. I would love to get my hands on Halo 5 I thought. And then I thought, but I want to play a new Mass Effect game first. And that surprised me as I’ve been a Halo nut ever since an old flat mate said, “Here Jimmy Jangles, try this Soccer game.” And “I went, cool but who is that dude on THAT game?” Or something like it.

Whilst I played Combat Evolved across the following week I realised I was having dreams about Halo. I was the Master Chief in my dreams.

But that was some 8 years ago and many Halo games have come since then. Some good. Some great. Other games have come into my life two. I fell hard for Gears of War. And then I  picked up a cheap copy of Mass Effect and bamn! video games were not only about killing alien hordes, they were about killing alien hordes AND talking to blue Asari aliens as part of an attempt to lure out some broker who lived in the shadows. And elevator rides. Who doesn't love elevator rides?

And that’s how I grew up as a gamer. No more Tetris or Leemings or Duke Nukem 3D for me, I expect my video games to tell me real stories. Stories that make me want to come back and read (play) them again and again. I want the run and gun but I also want my Arthur C Clarke tales too. I want the big boss battle but I also want some secrets to be found out over time. I don’t want to be hearded ‘back to the battle field in 10 seconds or the Guardians will kill me’, I want some joker to fly to the next battle field in the next system.

So while I’m hanging out for Halo 5 as a mid 30s aged dad with a mortgage, I know I’m a different player now. Not so much time for multiplayer as you can’t press pause on that when a little boy needs his dad. So maybe that’s it, as a campaign player, I need varied and interesting experiences.

So now I’m more open to video games that are a bit different. If money and time allowed, I’d explore further than the Bioshocks of this world. That Titanfall looks pretty interesting. As for Destiny...

But Halo, you had me at Hello.