I wish sleep wasn't so appealing now.

I think you'll come to realize that it isn't your attention span but rather the amount of mental energy you have left after working a 9 to 5 for 5 days a week

Bruh, I'm 33 and I started playing Subnautica for the first time a few weeks ago only to realize that in the first day I accidentally played for 10 hours. You just need to find the right game for you to revitalize your interest in gaming. Whatever that game may be!

For me, the attention span isn't the problem. I have been going on DOS2 and Factorio benders over the last couple years. For me, it's about making sure that I don't have some niggling anxiety in the back of my mind ruining my concentration. Got chores done? Dinner prepped? Laundry done? Animals fed? Game time baybee.

You just gotta find the right game. I discovered Satisfactory last year and had to uninstall it after a few eeks because I was staying up till 2am playing. I am 40.

Fun fact. I was 2 years older than Bart when the Simpsons started on the Tracy Ulman show and now I'm over a decade older than Marge and Homer.

I need a nap.

I'm 46 and I do 4-6 hour seshes. Step yo game up, foo

"What the fuck, a tutorial? I'm done."

For me it's less the attention span thing and more the lack of time

There's a million things I gave to worry about all pulling me in every direction at the same time

Plus now that my ADHD is actually being addressed it's way easier to find time for things

This is how I felt until I played Valheim and BG3. I think my preferred genres have just shifted. I need something I can relax and play at my own pace. I use to only play competitive shooters, where I needed to be "on" the whole game. Now I can only play a shooter for about an hour before my mind starts to drift and I lose interest.

Permanently Deleted

Swap the shitty snacks out for something healthier and maybe you’ll have more stamina to play

I’m 41 years old, and I can’t pay attention to video games for more than about half an hour.

Unless I’m smoking pot, in which case I can play video games all day.

Exercise and a proper diet will help.

I've put over 400 hours into vanilla terraria and recently started the calamity mod, first day I put like 6 hours into it.

I don't play every day, I just don't have the time/energy. But when I do I try to make it count.

That being said, we used to play Edward forty hands and try to beat ocarina of time in a single evening, usually staying up until dawn despite the copious alcohol.

I'm not the stallion I used to be, but even an old horse has something to prove.

The most realistic part is that you can't afford name brand chips as an adult.

If your only issue is that modern games suck, rather than A) Being too exhausted after work, B) Having social media-induced attention deficit, C) Being overwhelmed with other responsibilities or anxiety, or D) Simply just not having enough time, you just have to find games that are actually good. Not AAA grindfests that aim at keeping you glued to the screen getting collectibles for 80 hours, but games that are actually trying to provide you with a worthwhile experience.

Some suggestions: Subnautica, Outer Wilds (not The Outer Worlds), Disco Elysium, Pathologic 2 (mind you, this one is extremely stressful, it's a masterpiece but most people will not enjoy it), The Forgotten City, Hades and Omori.

That hurts.

I think that's the fault of games rather than me.

A lot of games are the same generic open world bollocks and it's honestly just exhausting.

Trying to learn how to play a Final Fantasy game in your late thirties is like trying to learn brain surgery on a worm. I don't know how I had the patience for any of that shit back in the day.

Back when I was a kid I could play games for hours and hours. Now that I'm 38 I can play video games for hours and hours.

No wonder Homer couldn't beat Bart at video boxing.

There's a bit of a hump you get over, though. I've been recently doing some long franchise-wide marathons and once I got into the groove it was surprisingly nostalgic. It recaptured that feeling of coming back from school and just playing games until I got called for dinner.

I do understand that when I lose that flow I REALLY lose that flow. Not sure if it's age or distractions or what. All I'm saying is you can get it back and it does feel good when you manage it.

I feel this way pretty often, but then I open Factorio again and the night turns to day quickly.

Also me: will watch an 8 hour stream on twitch

Perhaps you select the wrong games. I kinda stopped gaming for some years. More than an hour was exhausting and most of the games are really boring. Then i rememberd how i loved transport Tycoon and got ottd again. Tanked LOTS of hours into that game. Half a year later i stumbled over factorio again. I bought it in beta and disliked it. Lots or ottd players followup with factorio, so i gave it another try and DAMN iam hooked. Played 60h in the last few weeks, mostly 1-2h hours per day. Its crazy.

When I get into something I'm doing in SWTOR, I can play for a LOOONG time.

Also the fact that you feel like you should be more responsible and doing something else. That’s what eats away at me in the adulthood/fatherhood

If retirement homes don't have videogames when I'm old, I'll lobby for voluntary euthanasia. Aging is a straight negative. Arguments about it making life meaningful are copium. I can have a meaningful life of gratitude without my body falling apart.

The steam deck is nice for this. It's am absolute slayer of backlogs.

Then the Gamer spirit must have died.

N64 Goldeneye was peak gaming

Yup. Haven't really gamed much since my 20s which was half a lifetime ago now.

Five hours straight...

off topic kinda: op, what's your favorite game platform (yes it can be arcade)

skill issue