Ageing Gamer Top Tip

OK, time to take stock. I've been writing this blog for over two months now and thought I would jot down a few brief comments upon my favourite game genres.

As an ageing gamer I obviously don't have the same amount of time to invest in gaming as a child gamer - family commitments and work bite deep into the time that I really should be spending gaming. As a result (and as any regular reader may have noticed), I'm always impatient to get to grips with a new game so that I can get on with the serious business of enjoying playing it. This particularly makes strategy games, once my favourite genre, problematic to play. Current strategy games are so complex that they can take an age to learn, a problem exacerbated by the modern practice of saving a few pennies by not including a full manual with the product. Why, reading the manual used to be the best bit!

Right, so what games have I enjoyed? Well, apart from Flight Simulator (which, it can be argued, is not a game) the FPSs have stood out, particularly Far Cry 2 and, of course, Half Life 2. There is nothing quite like being able to jump straight in and blast away whenever I have a free moment. OK, I may miss some of the nuances of these games, but who cares when you're enjoying yourself getting rid of the pent-up stresses of the day?

So, that's my top tip for any ageing gamer out there: get yourself a straightforward FPS and kick some ass. You can always pretend that that boss you're shooting is really your boss...

As for myself, I'm going to ignore my own advice, as the next game on my to-buy list is Hearts of Iron 3. I'm a glutton for punishment: