Gaming Suggestions For A Non-Gamer?

StephenLegge asks: "I'm a 33 year old computer programmer and I have not played video games since X-Wing came out. My wife is going away to visit her mom for a *month* and I'm thinking about getting a video game or two -- but I hardly even know where to start!" What games out there would you recommend for a non-gamer, especially those must-play-because-they-are-the-greatest games that are out there? We wouldn't want Stephen to miss out.

"If I rent a machine from Blockbuster, should I get an X-Box or a Playstation 2?

What's a killer:
- action game where I can play a spy or a soldier?
- driving game where I can race around in cool cars?
- D&D style game so I can re-live my pubescent RPG days?

Thanks."

Comments

Advices

[Snowspinner]

If you want one or two games to occupy you for a month, I reccomend something in the MMOG flavor. EverQuest, Dark Age of Camelot, or Shadowbane. I'd reccomend one of the first two, personally.

If you're looking to grab a console and you haven't played a game since X-Wing, I'd actually advise the Gamecube. It's certainly got enough games to entertain for a month, if not longer, and its games tend to be a bit more "old sk00l", and will probably be just a bit more familiar in their style and reasoning than a PS2 or XBox game, which are really catered to the generation after those of us that grew up in the Nintendo era. Look into snagging Metroid Prime, the new Zelda, Star Wars: Rogue Leader, or Eternal Darkness.

Ask Slashdot: How did he do it?

[Darnit]

Hello Slashdotters,
I frequently game on my Linux PC sometimes 20 hours per week. How do I get my wife to go away for a month so that she'll stop nagging me? I want her come back after a month so that she can clean the house and make some more money for me to waste on games.