Shallow Depths

With a large pile of unfinished games spoilers are always a potential issue.  I am pretty far along the spoiler-hating spectrum.  I avoid trailers, and sometimes even refuse to read book blurbs.  I realise that's pretty extreme, and I don't actually expect anyone to be that considerate.  I've had to learn to make allowances, but I am still reasonably choosy about the information I read.

If I care strongly about a particular game I'll prioritise playing it, and be careful about what I read online.  Normally this works out fine.

Mass Effect 2 is something I would normally prioritise, partly because a lot of my friends play it.  But I held off this time, and decided to finish Dragon Age: Origins first.  This plan didn't work out very well.  I started to get really bored with the monotonous Deep Roads (old Dwarven tunnels).  Then the weather started to get colder, making console gaming by the heater a more attractive option than the PC in my freezing bedroom.

So, of course Mass Effect 2 has been coming up in conversation at just about every social event I attend.  I have talkative friends who are not easily put off once they start telling anecdotes.  One or two of these conversations I could have handled, but after the third or fourth I rapidly hit my spoiler threshold and started acting like a brat about it.

And it really is being brat.  Maybe if it came out last week I'd have something to complain about.  As is, it's a pretty minor thing and I brought it on myself.  I could do to get more perspective sometimes.

What actually interested me most about this situation was the difference of opinion about what constitutes a spoiler.  Once everyone knows someone listening hasn't played a game (and intends to) there are certain things they will hold back, and other things they continue to discuss without any concern.

We are probably all in agreement about any pivotal plot twists being spoilers.  But after that it gets messier.

In the case of Bioware games, I normally expect very little from the overarching plot.  The first Mass Effect really interested me at first, with the worlds and characters it had created.  By by the end it had devolved into sickening patriotism, with humanity as the last hope for the universe.  I rapidly went from loving to hating it.  My major wish for the series is that we all get bitten in the arse for our arrogance.  Which may well happen, but I still don't really trust them to fix the things I have big problems with.

So, I haven't been too concerned about the larger-scale stuff in Mass Effect 2.  I am much more interested in the smaller stories and character interactions.  Those are also the things my friends have been less guarded about, and after so many conversations I've heard about quite a lot of them.  They are spoilers to me, but clearly I have opposite ideas about which topics are most important to avoid.

I've been thinking a lot about spoilers in my writing, and how to handle them.  As usual the answer is just to use my best judgement, and keep working on improving my writing.  As well as hoping people will forgive me when I do cross a line.

I hear a lot of people lamenting how much less time they have to play games these days. I suppose I'm one of the lucky ones, being almost 29 and having more play time than ever.

Actually, I'm not lucky at all.  I make very deliberate lifestyle decisions.   Not having kids is particularly helpful for maintaining my free time, admittedly.  If I ever decide to go down that path I will have to re-evaluate my choices again, but that's true of any major commitment.  Essentially, I've chosen to leave some time for games rather than taking on more things.  Not watching television and living very close to my work also help a lot.

When I still lived with my parents games were a bit of a luxury. Then as a university student I simply didn't have time to play many games. Anyone who just looks at the contact hours on a course and thinks uni students are slackers has absolutely no idea.

As a full time worker though, I have money to spend on games and the time outside work is actually my own.  I do have plenty of other things to fit in, but working has freed my life considerably. Everything I commit to now is a choice rather than a chore.  It's the only phase of my life where I've been able to play games without feeling guilty about it.

And maybe that means I'm living my life backwards. I grew up with a concept of what it meant to be "responsible", and having a list of things I "had" to achieve. Then I realised how much of that was false, and I could live pretty much however I wanted. It's been a lot more satisfying than trying to please everyone and prove to the world how smart and dedicated I am.

Oh yes, how dare I live for my own satisfaction?  If I must shouldn't it be as part of the race to constantly work more, do more, want more?  Games are my major indulgence, and not a very expensive one comparatively.  They let me get by on a rather simple lifestyle (by the standards of this rich, Western society anyway).

I'm very aware of the things I'm missing out on, and that I can choose to go after them at any time.  I wonder how many people can say the same?

I've reached the point now where I don't actually want any more time for games. There's a healthy balance to be maintained, and other things I also want to spend my time on.  Instead, my problem is wanting to get through everything and it not being possible. I am always trying to make a dint in the pile of unfinished games, but it's a losing battle. Ultimately, I end up with exactly the same problem as the people without a lot of time for playing games.

Tax-time sales really don't help matters. My best finds this year were $5 Chinatown Wars, and a half-price Collector's Edition of Bioshock 2. I'm sure they will be fun... when I get around to them.

Having all those unfinished games on the shelf isn't completely terrible. There's enough diversity to satisfy different moods, and I'm unlikely to get bored any time soon. It does feel horribly decadent though.

This whole post has been a bit decadent.  It's also quite defensive.  Gaming is a hobby I find myself needing to defend sometimes.  It has always surprised me that people can watch as much or more television without anyone batting an eyelid, but as soon as it's games people worry and look at me sideways.

As someone who no longer watches television, non-interactive media have become slightly strange to me.  I'll still watch video sometimes, but games have become more natural to me.  I wonder about the impact of sitting passively while ideas filter through you, instead of being forced to have some agency and consider what is being presented.

Even if I were in the majority I wouldn't tell other people how to live though.  I can only make decisions for myself.  All I really hope for is the same courtesy.

As may be obvious I avoided making an "April Fool's" post here.  That probably puts me in the minority among gaming blogs.

I may just be a spoilsport, but I don't really see the attraction in trying to trick people into believing untrue things.  Admittedly, the gaming posts tend more towards the ridiculous, and probably create (at least potential) humour without people needing to be taken in.  But I'd still be very wary of taking part in that particular tradition.

Did you find any prank-posts that you thought were actually amusing this April Fool's Day?

More disturbing are posts like this one from last year on game pranks to play on friends.

It warns:

many of these jokes can be quite mean. They involve playing on gamers' deepest fears. So if you decide to attempt one, don't be surprised if it causes a rift in your friendship.

Thank you for that.  I might not have realised what an arsehole I was being otherwise...