Does anybody else suffer from this? I’ve got the consoles, the games, the screens, the couch, the PC. And yet, I don’t have any motivation to use it. And that gets me so frustrated (at myself). I ask myself why? Is it because everything is in the basement and I prefer to stay upstairs? Could it be the payoff is the build and not playing on the build? Self-deprecation and minor depression? Exhaustion from work some days? Okay, that last one is true. I’m trying to think about what keeps me from playing on my setup and how I can break through the mental barriers.
What do I do instead? IF I do make time for gaming, it happens in the living room recliner on a Steam Deck. Don’t get me wrong. I thoroughly enjoy the Steam Deck. I have logged more gaming hours in the past 2 years with that device than I managed in the 2-3 years before owning it. It’s allowed me to play through several backlog titles and take more games on the go than what I own on the Switch. Without the Steam Deck, I doubt I’d played Talo Principal 2, Guacamelee, Outer Wilds, Sable, and more last year. But there are a lot of console games I want to play. Maybe finish the FFX save I started 24 years ago. Finish Turok on N64, Sonic Adventure 2 on DC, LoZ:TotK, Warcraft III. Start Sly Collection 3 on PS3, Metroid Prime, Star Fox Adventures, Super Mario Galaxy 2 on GCN, 3D Dot Game Heros, Shenmue I/II. Replay MGS 2/3/5, Horizon Zero Dawn, Kingdom Hearts Series. You get the idea.
As for the setup: Everything analog uses component video and routes through an Extron switch to RT5X and CRT TV. Everything HDMI goes to a projector, capture card, and small TV (now our temp living room TV). All the switching may be manual, but it’s pretty straightforward. My wife and daughter can get the Roku routed to the projector every time. And they’ve learned how to get the GameCube routed for some Mario Party sessions. The PC has a Ryzen 7700X and RX6800 GPU, perfect for playing 1440p at the desk with keyboard+mouse or at 1080p on the projector with a controller. The wheel is for sim racing with friends for the winter months (I need to find a league that runs more).
What about you? What gets you excited/motivated to play the games you’ve got instead of just looking at them?
