
In two years' time, we're going to be celebrating the 25th anniversary of the original Xbox, and that's a slightly scary thought if you're of a certain age! We can very much recall enjoying the OG console in its heyday, and yet the reality is that plenty of fully-grown adults weren't even born when it first released. Ooft, that one hurts.
It's also got us thinking about how we've spent our time gaming as we've gotten older. Personally, I'm still playing a lot of Xbox games in 2024 — probably more than ever — but I also feel the weight of responsibility that comes with being an adult. There's always that feeling of, "I should be doing something else", and that can be hard to shake.
Of course, all of that multiplies when you've got a stressful job, a family to raise and support, and various other elements that can reduce your ability to play games. That's why many people prefer shorter titles rather than big 100+ hour adventures, and why devices like the Nintendo Switch and Steam Deck have proved so popular.
There's no right way or wrong way of doing this - like me, you might find that you play more games now than you ever used to. But what we're particularly interested in here is how your gaming habits have evolved as you've got older. You can vote on this in the poll below, but please do share your personal experience in the comments as well!
Has Your Gaming Slowed Down As You've Got Older? (882 votes)
- Yes, I play much less than I used to
- It's slowed down, but not by that much
- It's about the same to be honest
- No, I actually play more than I used to!
So, has your gaming slowed down as you've got older? Tell us in the comments, and don't forget to vote above!
Comments 71
I played to much before but now I have kids and other responsibilities so get about 2 hours now a day which is still good ha
I play much more now. I basically quit video games (except for the odd major release) for a decade while I was focused on my career/dating. No regrets.
Now I’m catching up and have so much more time to enjoy games to their full potential.
I remember rushing Fallout 4 because I took a few days off to play it when it came out. But I recently went back and played through survival mode for 170+ hours and it was 10x more fun.
As a nearly 40 years old with no kids I now play more than ever (well not at my peak this year because I have a little less home time since moved jobs...). I only played a couple of games a year since late 90s until 2017 and last year I finished nearly 50 games.
Definitely down. I'm in my 40s now, family, career, etc. I'm limited to an hour or two most nights after everyone has fallen asleep. Still a lot of fun, but I am way more selective of what I buy and play. Game Pass is a game changer for those like me.
It's probably not that much different for me. Maybe even playing a little more now. I had way more hobbies when I was younger and not many of my friends were into gaming back then. I played 3 sports through high school and football in college while also working part time and all the classes. I think I have more free time now than I did back then.
Being able to afford more games and all platforms is keeping my interest much higher in gaming then it was when I could only afford a couple games per year.
Much much less. I still love gaming but I have far less time to actually do it. This is probably a big part of the reason why I dislike games with long cutscenes, this is time I could be actually playing lol
@Ricky-Spanish this is me as well. I get about 2-3 hours an evening which is nice.
Plus my gaming tastes have changed, I’m too old now for shooters, I have the reactions of a sponge so don’t really play those anymore. 😂
I game more. Did the hard graft when young and played much less then, but have now set myself up with a more comfy life in middle age. Having experience means you can charge more and work less. Also better at time management than when I was young. Conviction to say NO, or wait, to clients means better control of my free time.
Less, of course.
It's clearly less lol. Job, kids, kids activities....if I could go back and have gamepass it would be amazing. I don't want to be a kid in today's world....I want to go back to the 90's and just bring gamepass with me.
@SuperJoon Yeah I'm the same not into shooters much now either but elden ring keeps the reactions sharp enough but my tastes have definitely changed aswell for the better
Over time I have had more and more obligations arise which take me away from the amount of gaming that I used to do. However, I am trying my hardest to pry back some free time wherever I can find it to spend on the things I enjoy.
I get an hour a day max these days. My wife is pretty accommodating to my hobby, but having a son and work makes it much harder to have time (and sometimes I'm just too tired to enjoy it). I will say getting to game less has made me appreciate gaming much more than before I was married and had more time and disposable income.
For me it's a little less but as I didn't really play all that much when I was younger, it hasn't made much difference. I also play different types of games these days. I was all about Halo and now I'll play RPG style (and other) games too.
I’m in my early 50s, no kids, and probably game as much as I always have. My reflexes may not be quite as sharp though, hence why I rarely play online 😂
Hit 40 years old and two kids under the age of 3. No time to play. Just collect for that future time to play which may never come.
Yes.
But not because I have gotten older. But rather the state of the industry.
I've got money to spend now unlike when I was a kid.
However, everyone and their mom wants to make a live service game. And on that very fact alone the number of games I've bough has dropped.
For example there was a time I bought every Ubisoft game the day it came out. And now Ubisoft is a gross word to me. I remember always getting the newest Splinter Cell, Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon, Assassin's Creed, etc.
Now you'd have to pay me to bother playing 90% of their games.
And you have other ex-giants like Bungie that just give you the middle finger and lock content, that you paid for, up.
played more since covid than probably ever had, late 40's... but de quervins limited play time this year to minimal
Gaming has gone through different phases in my life. When I was young I played games in almost all my spare time. When I had a family gaming was still there but didn't have the time I had when I was young. My kids are in the graduation phase from high school and university and I am getting more time but not gaming much because I am in a lifestyle transition from the big home with a family to the home I will probably have until I retire. I expect once I get done this transition I will start to get more gaming time. It is one of my hobbies. But, I am no where nearly as competitive and I don't have the reflexes I had earlier so not much of an online gamer. Much more enjoy a great story and a game that isn't overly challenging to get through. Gone are the days of 100% percenting achievements and being able to do games like Souls and twitchy MP games like Street Fighter, etc. In are the days of games that have a great story, make me think to get through them, and at least involve some talent to get through the story. Only a few games will I strive to get 100% achievement completion as long as they are not a full on commitment for weeks/months.
As I am getting older I am facing the reality that my health depends on a balance. To me gaming is more mental than physical, but I will also need the physical me to avoid the big issues like heart disease, stoke, cancer, etc. My advice to people is that too much of any one thing is not good. Gaming to me is an important hobby, but so is getting outdoors, eating healthy,, and physically being healthy. No one approach fits all and you need to do research to figure out the balance you want in your life for gaming.
It's not the amount of gaming that has changed for me as I've aged into my 40s, but the types/genres of games that I find myself playing. I am playing lots of older games that feel comfortable and do not require as much mental energy and attention or focus. That's mostly a result of being so brain-tired from staring at 3 screens for my work.
I used to play WoW, but have a wife now, kids, job (both me and my wife), so way, way less. Max 4-5 hours a week.
@sonicbooming yes, I agree, that’s also another reason for me why I game less. I also have a job staring at a lot of screens the whole day. I also prefer not staring at screens for most of my evenings.
I’m 40 and playing way, way more than when I was in my twenties. It really became my go-to hobby during covid, since I couldn’t focus on watching movies any more. It sticked with me since then.
Having a career, child and a girlfriend to spend time on has definitely cut my gaming time down. I still play, but I tend to focus on shorter arcade style games or online matches. Gone are the days of the 100 hour RPGs for me, except for Starfield since I was quarantined for COVID when it came out lol
Way less then I used to but the steam deck has improved that slightly. Gone are the glory days of university where I had about 16 hours total a week where I needed to be a responsible human adult.
I probably play more games overall but spend less time per day. Only play about an hour or two per day. Couldn't afford many games when younger so it was a matter of playing/replaying games that I had.
Age has not hindered my gaming desire or wishes at all. New job, work schedule, drastically lessened my gaming time. Upsets me very much so.
There’s not enough time in the day as you get older , everytime i game i look at the clock just as much as i look at the game
it sucks , aging sucks (im not old yet though , im just speaking in general 😆)
Quite a bit less between the stagnation of the industry and less time to play with friends & family.
Probably play for a couple of hours a night during the week but none at the weekend so definitely less than back in the 80s/90s. Also losing interest in modern gaming but since getting into emulation I'm enjoying revisiting previous generations in 4k
Down for me. Mainly due to family and young chid. Have a day in the week when play at night into early hours to get some time in but I suffer the next day. Switch to PlayStation other year and game time went very casual but back on Xbox and got back into it since coming back and enjoying it again
I picked it’s slowed down but not by much because I would say I still purchase and beat most new games the year they come out. But because of my job and other factors I play much slower. Take for instance FFXIV. To catch up to the at the time new expansion Endwalker before it came out I was starting at say 8 pm taking a two hour break sometimes at 10, and then playing at times until 4 or 5 in the morning. Nowadays the longest playtime a Persoma 3 Reload, Stellar Blade or yes even the now newest expansion Dawntrail can get sometimes is 2 hours between 12am and 2am.
Now that my children are grown up, and have left home (well, other than my free-loading 35 years old son 😂), and with having retired, and my wife having passed away, I game a lot more, and I mean a lot!
I used to work 50-60 hours a week (sometimes more) as a Police Officer, doing all sorts of shifts, and so my gaming time was limited. Plus having 3 children and all the demands that that entailed. Now, my Xbox goes on mid-afternoon, and apart from stopping to cook, and eat, tea, I'm often still gaming until gone 11 p.m. It's not all I do, but it does fill a sizable chunk of my day... 😊
Without a doubt my gaming has slowed down alot. Back when I was a teenager and early 20s I would burn through games like nobody's business. Even long RPGs like Suikoden or Legend of Dragoon would take me no longer then a week. I remember when Metal Gear Solid first came out my roommate and I went a few days without sleep till we beat that one, lol.
Sadly though as family and a job took over I now am lucky to get 8 hours a week. I can't play long epic games like RPGs anymore due to my inconsistent gaming schedule mainly because when I get back to the game I forgot what I was doing mainly cause it's been a few months since I played it. And forget about playing multiple games lol.
Now my gaming consists of jumping on for a few matches of XDefiant or doing a few quests in World of Warcraft or playing a quick short indie game like Unpacking or Little Kitty Big City or whatever it's called.
Even if I do get a long stretch to game, which is rare I can only do it for an hour or two before I have to get up and move about due to my back and when I do that very rarely do I go back to the game because I usually start doing something else.
About the same. The main reasons are the gaming is definitely worse than the 360 generation, but I also like to replay games a lot because it’s my favourite hobby and TV sucks now, so what else am I gonna do?
I feel like it varies for me. While I game for fun, I sorta also game to "self medicate" when I am depressed or stressed. When I was younger I was working a lot and managing stress poorly, so I would binge game more. I work just as much now and juggle even more responsibilities, but my ability to manage stress has improved so I game as a hobby now which means it is somewhat more scheduled (unless tired I usually play about 30minutes to an hour a day on weekdays and 2-4 on Saturday). I don't like to binge game anymore because I have other things and hobbies to do (I play several musical instruments and gotta get in that daily practice), plus grad school and work are ramping up, so my focus is on those things. I'm also trying to get my business off the ground so yeah gaming is less of the instant go to.
I probably played more as a young child as it was my primary hobby outside of reading and there were very few kids in my neighborhood (and no other girls my age which super sucked) but I would say if I average it out I have played about the same rate for the past 20 years. Just it is more evenly spread now instead of crazy binges. My reflexes are still good for fighting games and that's my only concern...well that and going blind but that is gonna happen so it is what it is.
I would say mine has as I have got older but mainly over the last two years and it is nothing to do with age.
Most know I’m a big AAA campaign game player and the best big AAA games at that.
And recently that has taken a decline especially to my most wanted action adventure, linear or open world and some rpg elements.
2023 it was only TOTK and some Starfield and a little HFW burning shores that kept that a live.
This year is not much fun for me at all so far.
So there is my reason not my age but game releases and quality.
Additional I like new experiences so going all nostalgic and backwards compatibility and remakes and remasters don’t do much for me either.
I’m hoping Star Wars outlaws and Astro bots will soon remedy my want for quality AAA campaign games in late August.
@Fiendish-Beaver Sounds like you have worked hard enough my friend do what you enjoy👍
I just turned 45, so I have been enjoying video games for 40 years, starting with the Atari 2600 at my Grandparents’ house. Video games have always been my favorite hobby and entertainment, so I played a lot as a grew up. As I first became an adult, my gaming declined as my family started, but now that my 2 kids are both nearly grown, and I am once more a single guy, I suddenly have way more time to play again. I have a full time job, so I don’t have all day to game, but most of my free time heads in that direction.
With kids I would say I play an average of 5 to 8 hours a week.
I played more before getting married and have 2 wonderful children. I played a lot less raising them. They are both now in college or living the adult life. Each year i play more now since my wife and I are now empty nesters. We travel and enjoy heading out to the mountains or beach but when home we both work and play 🤓
Hate to say it but yes. Played and still own everything from the amiga days. Have all the modern systems too so i have no excuse……… i barely switch them on.
I still read all the news, check out youtube and listen to the podcasts and still get incredibly excited by all the new stuff, but i find ive seen and played it all before.
Truth be told, modern games bore me to play. Saying that makes me sad, sorry
It’s much, much less than it used to be. Part of that is that I am caught up with my backlog, so I’m not trying to catch up anymore, but most of it is that I just don’t have much free time anymore. A lot of times, if I drop a game now, it’s dropped forever with no intention to return. This is the first year that I’ve dropped more games than played through. I think I’ve beaten roughly a game a month this year, which is far below usual.
I used to play a bit as a kid; NES, GB, SNES then a lot more as a teenage. N64 with GoldenEye 007, Perfect Dark and DKR with friends. Then as uni age hit I started getting into Halo.
Took a bit of lull of console gaming. During uni I tried out MapleStory and meet my wife online. Then we did Guild Wars & World of Warcraft from Burning Crusade to Cataclysm.
Wife & I got married and then I got hooked on online multiplayer games like Halo 4 and starting proto live service games with The Division 1 and Destiny 1 before getting back into online multiplayer games again. Fortnite and then Apex Legends. Bounced around those games for a bit before finding Halo Infinite. Played Infinite multiplayer religiously from launch until the exchange came in and I quit.
I’ve tried playing single player games but I’m going to be 40 next year and I’m loving having more time with my wife and to do stuff that I find to have a more positive impact on my life. I just can’t get back into live service games again. They tend to really suck me in. I just play them healthily.
My wife is a fellow gamer though. She doesn't play multiplayer games but she loves Vampire Survivors and the odd ARPGs like Dragon Age or AC:Odyssey. She’s super supportive of me playing games but I just don’t want to get dragged in any more.
So I think in my late 20s and 30s I probably played more games than when I was younger.
This 45 year old still loves gaming but my more creative hobbies are grabbing a bigger chunk of my spare time as i get older (guitar / piano playing).
Honestly I think the vastness of games these days overwhelms me and puts me off - build this, micromanage that, etc. Also, I gave up on the first puzzle of Hellblade 2 the other day - I just found it a bit too melodramatic and slow, so I installed "The Orange Box" Instead and relived a few memories on HL:2!
This is such an interesting question by the way - really enjoying reading the replies, and turns out a lot of you have the same sort of sentiment as me.
I play way more than I used to. I work in a very high stress job and gaming helps me cope. I play almost daily now.
We need another poll option that is "I used to game more but now spend that time on Purexbox, Pushsquare, Nintendolife or Reddit talking about games instead of playing them"
As a child I didn't have access to video games. Now as an adult I managed to have access to consoles and games and so I can say that today I play a lot more than I used to. However, over the last few years I've been enjoying games with turn-based combat more, which says a lot.
I game almost the same as i used too. However I buy less games now. To many just don’t interest me and launch broken. I do have 900 hours into Diablo 4. Which is only a 1 year old game. Diablo is a top 3 all time IP for me tho so i might have that many hours into it even if i did buy more games. So i am more selective in what i play but the hours are mostly the same. Maybe down a bit.
Less, quite a bit less. Children and responsibilities is the main part of the equation. Still get about 1 hour each day, so I fully enjoy the time I got, but quite a lot of games I'd like to try I know I won't, but it's all right
Having a job and other things competing for your free time will do that.
Slowed down when we had kids. Went back to normal when we became empty nesters. My wife plays with me and we both enjoy it more than TV.
@NEStalgia damn if that ain’t the truth
Less now. During Covid it jumped right up, but now I struggle to get even a couple hours a week, work, being a parent having a new partner is all time consuming
It always depends. When I was a kid and teenager, there were times I wasn't even allowed to play because of the exams. When I became an adult, I refrain from playing if I had important things to do, like study or work. I don't play addictive games or long games if I can't dedicate much time to playing them at that moment.
Since I'm a kid, I try to only play one adventure at a time, I mean, a game with a narrative, so any racing, puzzle or sports game is excluded. This is to enjoy more the game and not feeling overwhelmed. When I deserve a break or small vacation, I dedicate more time to playing games, but if I think I don't deserve it or I have things to do, I'm not really enjoying it because of guilt. I have been managing my gaming time well all my life, but I think that I play more now than when I was a kid and teenager. I play more games, for longer, and I've also become a better player.
EDIT: I don't know about you, but I had few games. I remember playing Super Mario 64 over and over, with 120 stars, erasing files after the fourth time to start over. 🤣
Much less, not because I don’t wanna play but life’s responsibilities get in the way. I game maybe an hour a day after the kids are asleep.
Definitely same… I play for about 2 hours a day.
of course less, less time than as an example in the 360 period, if most people have children a permanent job then you get that , I just have less time i love gaming , xbox it is just less time
I definitely play a lot more than I used to. I’ve always played games, but I largely stopped, when I was in my 20-30’s as I was going out way too much
Now I’m in my 50’s, I can usually fit in a couple of hours a day, sometimes more, sometimes less. It depends how work is, and what my family is up to / wants to do.
No way around it, once you have kids game time becomes a rare thing.
I do not play games as much as I used to, simply because - I suspect much like most other people - I can no longer find the time. The perils of getting older.
I work, though not as many hours as some, and have other responsibilities. Like everybody else. But no children, though.
What free time I have, is now divided between gaming, reading, or watching a film. But I suppose the positive side is that this does make me value my free time much more.
But also, the games I play have changed. I now play rpgs and adventure games much more than I used to. I guess I want to be involved in a story, rather than just a quick action fix.
The two games I have played most this year are Hogwarts Legacy, and Avatar Frontiers of Pandora. Looking forward to Dragon Age 4, and Black Myth Wukong.
In my mid-50s now. I thought I would slow down, but I probably play more than ever (defo more than I should!)
Most of the time I can be found playing PC games - mainly Grand Strategies and city builders. For action games, it is the XSX or PS5.
I'll likely be a sad old 60-something gamer
@Isca
I am over 50 as well, and I can tell you I probably have more time to play than ever before. After my kids moved out I converted one of their bedrooms into a game room. It's like my midlife crisis sports car.
I'd say the same or more or less depending. Too many mechanics, consoles and ideas for me to research to not keep gaming and find new things in this medium I enjoy.
Because I collect (besides getting GT1 & 2 later, I've been actively collecting since 2017 because PS4/Xbox One wasn't really doing it for me even besides certain games but even besides collecting always been playing games not really stopped even besides getting into EDM or Anime in 2014/2015 period so I've expanded my gaming and my music/tv areas over time by genre or medium) I'm actively playing more because I can find/buy more than just play whatever new comes or replay something (which I do from time to time).
So I'm actively branching out to different genres then I used to. Hack n slashes (sure had played Legend of Spyro but didn't dive deep into them)/Visual Novels (sure had played Metropolismania but was into city builders/tycoon games then visual novels)/Tactics RPGs (played chess or other board games but not that into them)/Arcade racers (other than kart racers not fake vehicle aka Burnout or Flatout or licensed car arcade style racing games really and different angles many had presented them or just licensed advergaming/one make racing games either) and probably others I branched out to as never experienced them before so current gen and old gen I have bought up games of consoles I never had, and have branched out to anything interesting those than just my usual.
Sure I buy up the 7th gen shooters I missed out on, sure some major 1st/3rd parties I never experienced, sure other racing sims or not as much kart racers, any platformers, or action adventure games.
Besides the odd prior Rhythm Heaven and some rhythm games or some party games/minigame collections.
I got into turn based RPGs briefly but didn't connect with them much.
Sometimes I take breaks from other consoles, other games, read books, watch shows, it varies.
My game consumption has increased if anything. Ive never had such a huge backlog.
However, much to my bemusement, I turn 60 in a few weeks and its very clear to me that reactions are not what they were. I never used to struggle with more challenging titles, but more often than not Im turning down the difficulty if I can.
So yeah, my consumption is high, buy my ability has slowed as Ive grown older...
That's not a simple question; When I was younger, games were simpler and shorter. They didn't demand your time nearly as much. On top of that, when I was a teen, pagers were barely even a thing-- no internet, no cell phones. So if you wanted to socialize, you had to actually GO OUT AND SOCIALIZE. So I wasn't home as much. Gaming was done in small chunks here or there. Sometimes we'd get some friends together and have some NBA Jam tournaments or Bomberman 2 sessions. Maybe rotate through on some Street Fighter 2. But it was always just "something else to do" and never a core focus.
I have more disposable income as an adult, so I can afford to splurge whenever the Steam or Console sales come around. My backlog is gigantic, but honestly, yeah my gaming has slowed down considerably, in the sense that I don't beat games as quickly as I used to. I game in spurts of an hour or so, instead of the all-night marathons I did in my teens/early 20's once the Playstation and Xbox rolled around.
I have challenges in my job and life every day, I'm not looking to be challenged in my gaming. That's my wind-down. My relaxation. So while I do enjoy Souls-likes and multiplayer shooters, I rarely finish them or put significant time into them. And if there's an Easy or Story mode to an RPG, I'll choose it every time.
@Titntin Completely OT, but that reminds me, did you ever get around to trying GT7 in VR?
Not that PSVR2 isn't dead as a doornail, but still...
Being in my mid 40s with children and an exec level job, my available time for games greatly diminished. Its been a trend though for the past 30 years. (Hard to even fathom that the SNES/Genesis era was nearing its end 30 years ago)
I used to play like it was a full time job in my teens and early 20s, then it dipped to be more like 10-20 hours a week, then it dropped again in my 30s to under 10 a week. Now Im lucky if I get 5 hours a week, so have to make the most of it.
On the bright side, I can see a return when I hit my 60s and retire.....
@NEStalgia I bottled it mate! The mate who kept threatening to bring it round hasnt done so, and I've not pressed him to do so.
Every now and again he remembers and says he will, but given how ill I got before, im pretty happy hes not done so. Hes an old stoner, so Im relient on him not remembering.
Its the one thing I know Im missing out on though... I know Id love it, I might just not recover for a while!
@Titntin LOL, a shame, but understandable! Meanwhile I'm so addicted to VR, and the writing's been on the wall so long for PSVR, that I'm going to have to go back to PC to get into PCVR where the good stuff is. Couldn't help but think of your experience reading reviews for Dirt Rally 2 VR and DCS World combat flight sim, lol. Apparently you don't just need solid VR legs, you need to be a VR cephalopod for those!
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