Slashdot Mirror
What About the Grey Gamers?
Chris Morris at CNN's Game Over column wonders out loud about the legions of older gamers, and their snubbing by most of the gaming industry. From the article: "The Entertainment Software Association reports that 19 percent of the people playing video games are 50 or older. That's a huge jump from 1999, when players of that age group made up just 9 percent of the gaming world. Game publishers, though, seemingly couldn't care less - mainly leaving senior gamers to Web-based games, such as PopCap Games' 'Bookworm'. And while it certainly makes loads of sense for publishers to focus primarily on the core market, especially in transitional times like they're experiencing now, that focus is at risk of becoming myopic."
I'm not an older gamer but I just recently started to play the games of my youth again. Telengard and Castle Wolfenstein (the original, not the FPS) rock!
And this isn't to say I'm upset with the gaming industry, they're just getting old (as in tired). I still love playing stuff like CS:S but have you looked at what's coming out? Aside from the new Hitman all the new releases are just crap.
Dedicated Cthulhu Cultist since 4523 BC.
Naturally, of course, there's still plenty of clout among the "video games are just for kids" crowd to delay this eventuality.
I'll be honest, we're throwing science against the wall to see what sticks. -Cave Johnson
I only hope that when I'm 72 and sitting down to play a little Mario Cart or Half-Life, my little brat grandkids won't bug me all the time with questions. "how do you play this game without stereo-glasses grandad?" "Is that supposed to be an alien?" Goddamn kids.
In team based online multiplayer games, the older players bring a level of experience, maturity, and organization that often make the group better as a whole, or at least more fun to play with. In many gaming clans I've been with over the years, its usually the older players (40+) who take the lead and provide an example for the 12 year olds in the group. So I say they're good for gaming, and at the very least, they don't swear as much over teamspeak and don't call everyone a n00b.
I'm not yet "old and grey," but I've never liked FPS games. DOOM was unique when it came out, but if you've seen one, you've seen them all. (Yes, I've tried more modern versions; the graphics are much more realistic, but there's still really no plot.)
Why aren't there more games like Syberia, Myst, The 7th Guest? Even Zork, with *no* graphics, was more interesting than the shoot-anything-that-moves games that the industry seems to concentrate on these days.
Why not, for example, a space exploration game -- concentrating on the science, economics, and logistics involved, instead of the usual shoot-the-evil-green-aliens theme?
Paleotechnologist and connoisseur of pretty shiny things.
Does this mean the slashdot community is getting older too?
"Get Off My Lawn 1.0" We could have Maxis do it, ala the Sims engine. Where you have a life simulation where you drive at 5mph down the roads, pay for food at the supermarket with 5,000 coupons, and yell at kids to get off your lawn.
What would you, a "grey gamer," like to play?
I'd earnestly like to know the answers to these questions.
It's clear that you can "learn new tricks," otherwise you wouldn't be playing these games. So, what sorts of new tricks do you want to perform?
I'd like to see more games with a wider range of difficulty settings. I get frustrated with games that expect everyone to have lightning-fast reflexes and excellent hand-eye coordination. There's a reason I became a computer programmer and not a baseball player.
Mea navis aericumbens anguillis abundat
Still, most people in the 40s and 50s just don't have time for computer games. Between family, work, church/community and other activities (yardwork, household repairs, struggles to get to the gym, etc.), they typically don't have the amount of free time required by most modern computer games. I work out of a home office on a consulting basis, so unless I'm swamped by current engagements, I can easily block out several hours to spend on a game. However, there have been other times in my life when I've had a 'regular' job; during those times, I've gone months or years without playing a computer game for the reasons cited above.
Another downside for older gamers is that the 'costs' of spending lots of time on games are higher--e.g., it can interfere with work (and income), can cause serious marital problems, and so on. I know a man in his early 30s whose marriage is undergoing severe stress largely because of his obsession with HalfLife 2. In my own case, I have from time to time simply thrown away games because I felt I was wasting too much time playing them and not enough time on other projects (books, etc.).
My own preferences tend to be strategy/simulation games, including historical war games and large-scale strategy games (the Civ games and various space-based 4x [eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, eXterminate] games). I tend to prefer turn-based games over real-time strategy (RTS) games, but have still spent time with the latter (e.g., LOTR: Battle for Middle Earth). I've played several RPGs (e.g., DungeonSiege, Neverwinter Nights, Freelancer) and even some MMORPGs (Earth and Beyond). While first-person shooter (FPS) games are not my first choice, I'll cheerfully play them if the subject matter is interesting; I've bought and played several of the Star Wars FPS games (Republic Commando, Battlefront I and II).
Were I to design for 'grey gamers', I would probably focus on the following:
Beyond that, I'd apply some of my own preferences on game design:
FWIW. ..bruce..
Bruce F. Webster (brucefwebster.com)