Support NeoGAF

[RoadHazard]

The only thing I've noticed is that my hands feel a bit cramped after using the DualSense for a few hours. Never had that issue with the DS4, I think the DualSense just doesn't fit my hands quite as well.

Also the same issue when playing the Switch portable, but I don't really think this is an age thing. It's just an uncomfortable console thing.

I'm not 40 yet though.

 

[Beer Baelly]

 

[Beechos]

Lol it doesn’t even need to be loading screens for me, I have clips from RDR2 where I’ve hit the video capture after falling asleep during a longer ride and woke up hearing Arthur screaming as he fly like a drunk superman through the air crashing into some tree or house

Ive done that too lol going from point A to point B in open world games i would fall asleep mid trip. Skillwise i think im still there beat cuphead and celeste not too long ago. Like alot of people juggling work and a family its very hard to find the time and energy to play. Im up at 5am and everyone is asleep by 10pm so that starts my little window to play.

 

[SlimySnake]

I'm in my mid 30s and i have had some wrist pain after some long sessions.

I don't play competitive games anymore but had no trouble keeping up with people in modern warfare last year. I also destroyed everyone in black ops 3 and battlefield 1 a few years ago. Mp games are more about learning the maps and spawns anyway.

 

[VeganElduderino]

I'll be 40 in exactly 11 days , my body would be in better shape if i stopped drinking so much beer! I love my beer and playing videogames.

 

[wolywood]

Lol it doesn’t even need to be loading screens for me, I have clips from RDR2 where I’ve hit the video capture after falling asleep during a longer ride and woke up hearing Arthur screaming as he fly like a drunk superman through the air crashing into some tree or house

37 and I find myself frequently falling asleep mid game (having a 10 month old is a major contributing factor). The other night I conked out in the middle of a Cyberpunk conversation and woke up 30 minutes later with Dex DeShawn standing over "me" looking concerned and repeating "Uh.....Mr V? You ok?"

 

[Jsisto]

35 here. Not exactly an old man but I can say on the physical front, I have definitely started to feel age creeping up on me over the last few years. However, since getting into progressive body weight exercises a couple years ago(and sticking to a consistent workout schedule)all the little aches and pains I experienced have mostly gone away, and I am in better shape than I ever was. Again, I’m 35 and I’m sure it’ll get worse, but i know I’m echoing what others have already said, if gaming is causing you physical pain, it very likely can be easily fixed with a lifestyle change unless you have a known physical disability. Aside from that, yeah….I really don’t care about 100 perfecting games anymore and I a way more selective with what I decide to invest my gaming time in.

 

[RainblowDash]

I'm 34 and I definitely don't do 6+ hour sessions anymore as my back would start to hurt.

 

[Ron Mexico]

I'm 41 and will absolutely co-sign all the talk about what having a good chair can do.

I noticed more as I now work from home and my home office also had all my gaming stuff and a shitty gaming chair just started to take its toll.

The Steelcase Leap v2 wasn't cheap but holy hell does it make a difference in terms of comfort.

As for the games themselves, I attribute it more to changing tastes than anything.

 

[Tiamat2san]

45,
i had several bone fractures in my life , like a lot…and vibrations are causing me real pain at the point I need to turn them off sometimes.
My eye sight has changed for the worst.
Reflexes are slower now.
My patience has gone missing for harder games since a few years now.

but I still love gaming, it’s just different now.
I binge games like TV series.

 

[ValiantTraveler]

I’m only 30 so I’m not really supposed to speak about this but whatever. It never occurred to me you could have wrist or thumb issues because of playing, but then again I never played more than 3 hours straight. I don’t have the best reflexes but that must be because I haven’t played that many action games in my life. Having practiced martial arts for years I can tell I have pretty good reflexes in real life, I often catch objects that are about to fall. I could use a better chair than the one I have but I use a cushion that keeps my back relaxed. While I’ve had severe back pain issues before it doesn’t hurt while gaming these days. Overall I’ve been working out consistently for over a decade to prevent my otherwise weak and ill body from getting worse.

 

[rofif]

I’m only 30 so I’m not really supposed to speak about this but whatever. It never occurred to me you could have wrist or thumb issues because of playing, but then again I never played more than 3 hours straight. I don’t have the best reflexes but that must be because I haven’t played that many action games in my life. Having practiced martial arts for years I can tell I have pretty good reflexes in real life, I often catch objects that are about to fall. I could use a better chair than the one I have but I use a cushion that keeps my back relaxed. While I’ve had severe back pain issues before it doesn’t hurt while gaming these days. Overall I’ve been working out consistently for over a decade to prevent my otherwise weak and ill body from getting worse.

Yeah mouse and keyboard use is a bitch. Especially mouse.
Gaming with a controller is "healthier" let's say. It is agronomical after all

 

[Shwing]

51yr old here - been gaming since the late 1970s
Health has taken a big nose dive in recent years, thankfully hasn't affected my enjoyment of gaming. Defo notice slower reactions though, but also being a wise gaming old-timer has its benefits in certain games

 

[Matsuchezz]

i am a few weeks away of turning 42. I do not have much time to game. But i have never been a competitive gamer. I like to play games a really love in the hardest setting. I am loving returnal it took me some time to get good i am on biome 4 and i have reached the boss hyperion. I think i will beat it over the weekend when i have plenty of time to play in the afternoon. Next up is ratchet and clank and little nightmares 2.

 

[//DEVIL//]

For me, the biggest issue is lack of patience as I age.

I used to be able to replay a level over and over to get good when I was a kid. Now I rage quit after one death.

This plus the fact If the game has so much shit in the menu or lots of reading, I stop playing the game. or if the game has no proper story for me to be interested in investment hours in the game.

the latest example is the new ratchet and clank. I love the game and I do want to finish it. it has some story to it too. but for some reason, I do not have the power to finish it. every time I wanna game, I turn on the PC / PS5 and end up playing couple of online matches with a friend and call it a day.

Death stranding was 10$ the other day on Epic store. Fuck yeah bought the game. amazing graphics and music... played past the tutorial and I actually loved what I played ( 1 hour around ? ) .. then never turned it on again.

being close to 40 years ( this oct) and having 2 kids ( one of them is 4 months old ) isn't really an easy task.

plus full time job, responsibilities. etc.

 

[MrS]

 

[Ceadeus]

I think my reaction time is still pretty good. That might be genetic though as my dad was drag racing well into his 60s.

For the rest its more about time and patience. No time and less patience.

For phyiscal things I dont notice much. As long as I dont sit on the hard floor for hours

Oh ! There you go now we know more about one of our moderators

 

[Dragon_Rocks]

40+. Mainly I don't have the same patience to git gud as I had earlier. I used to finish all the difficult games on the hardest difficulty like NG series on Master Ninja, all Soulsborne game, most action games on hardest setting and get platinum trophy etc. but not anymore. I played Sekiro and gave up on the optional Owl Father fight in the Hirata estate. I can go back, practice and finish the fight and finish the game but I don't have the patience nor time anymore. Other things in life taking too much time now so not as much left for gaming. So mostly stick to normal/easy difficulty to just experience the game and its plot/story.

 

[_Ex_]

n/m

 

[Shubh_C63]

I'm 34 and I definitely don't do 6+ hour sessions anymore as my back would start to hurt.

I will be 30 in 5 months and during long sessions loading screens is my jam.
No really every loading screen, I gotta get up flex, do few pushups and pullups. I wish I had started this when I was 24.

 

[Rayderism]

At 53, I think I'm still decent at gaming. Biggest detriment to my gaming ability happened 30 years ago when I lost an eye in an accident. It was most noticeable in shmups.....I can't track all the action on the screen as well with only one eye like I could with two.

 

[Solarstrike]

After reading these posts, never in my life have I felt so "not alone". Really only thought my brothers and myself were the only dudes our age (45-50) who still game. It's just awesome to read some of these. Gaming is a great thing. Keeps the mind thinking, reactive, and in tune except if you play those dumbass Souls-like games then consider yourself a fcking vegetable and get off my lawn.

 

[chorizosausage#3774]

Well, at least no one has said they haven't seen their cock for 5 years.

I think RPG's are done for me, I started a new game on skyrim and I just do not have the patience.

 

[NorthernSword]

I'll be 42 in a few weeks. I think that being active in general helps all things including gaming. I train karate, BJJ and weight/mobility almost 2X daily. 4-6 days a week. I think continuing to play hard and fast games will keep your skills up. I can blast through Doom Eternal, DLCs and Master levels on Ultra Nightmare regularly. I can still react in fighting games and action games as well. Just like working out, if you play easier games you will be accustomed to them and your skills will drop. And my back and hands are good from lots of exercise and trying to eat decently.

 

[assurdum]

Reaction times slowing.
My most hated gaming mechanic now is timed based anything.
gaming difficulty hardly ever adjusts timing.
Even the old Portal games are guilty.
A puzzle game with a push a button to open a door then have to do daring sequence of portal placements and jumps before door shuts.
I can eventually kill a a games Boss monster even if tou make it some stupid bullet sponge.
But games with tight timings get deleted with grumbled dismissive headshake of well I was enjoying it till that timed thing ruined it for me.

I understand the feeling. I'm playing Darksiders 3 on ps5 and it's full of platform sessions based to the reaction times. I lose my mind trying to switch to an elemental power, hit the platform then reswitch another elemental power, give an other hit to it and run on the platform before the elemental effect vanishing. I always confuse the right button combination of the elemental attack for the fuck sake.

 

[Turnip Truck]

I'm in my mid 50's and can remember when that upstart pong started taking attention away from the pinball machines. I can't say I've noticed any real difference in my gaming abilities or interest. Lack of time as others have mentioned is an issue at times with a busy career and life, but I think that makes me savor my gaming time all the more. I've never been much into competitive gaming, so most of my games are offline RPGs which aren't as demanding in terms of reaction time.

 

[nemiroff]

I'm many decades old, but I do keep in shape, and my reaction time is pretty damn good, reflected by all these years of gaming I guess (like the article also suggests; practice will make a difference).

https://www.justpark.com/creative/reaction-time-test/ (I kept getting "you're not a human on this one.., kinda odd)

https://humanbenchmark.com/tests/reactiontime (Mostly ~185 ms on this one, some in the 170s, some in the 190s)

 

[DonkeyPunchJr]

Sometimes I overdo it with the Viagra and end up with priapism. I find that watching this video will eliminate any erection almost instantly:

 

[BobbyColtrane]

I know most people aren't sports gamers, but some of the guys in this thread might get a kick out of this -

When my younger son was around 9, he got really into the NBA like I am and started playing NBA2K. It wasn't long before he was bragging about how good he was, and it wasn't much longer before he started saying he could beat me haha.

I'm not a competitive gamer anymore, but I'm halfway decent at 2K. My real advantage is that I am a huge San Antonio Spurs fan in real life, and thats the only team I ever play with - since the original 2K.

For our showdown he loaded up a custom team with all the best players - LeBron, Kevin Durant, Curry etc. and then asked what team I was going to use.

You know, to take my beating.

"The Spurs."

"Which one?" (there are several different historic teams that have won championships)

"The regular ones"

"The regular Spurs? Against my team??"

Now if you know anything about the NBA, you know that the Spurs had a core of three players for about 15 years. So I played with versions of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili for like 15 years going back to NBA 2K2 or 2K3.

I'm going to cut it short here, but I beat him by 30 points and he went to pieces as LeBron, Durant, Curry etc were helpless against the pedestrian Spurs; no longer a top team but I knew exactly what all 3 players could and couldnt do haha.

The best part was the pic I snapped as the game was ending -

Spoiler

 

[dcx4610]

I guess I'm lucky. I haven't noticed any decline in reflexes or issues with mobility.

The big change for me has been how I approach games. Especially when I go back and play older games. In something like Ninja Turtles on the NES as a kid, I'm killing every enemy in sight. As an adult, I'm avoiding enemies and just doing what I need to do to get through a level.

Also, no more getting every heart in Zelda or every star in Mario. A lot of stuff feels like time sinks and just doesn't feel important to me anymore.

 

[crozier]

What I’m struggling with the most is concentration. Yeah my reflexes are slower, but I just find myself bored lately. Not sure if it’s me outgrowing games, the type of games, or those bloody trophies I insist on earning, but something is poo-pooing my game time. I suspect it’s aging somehow, though. I can’t play anything more than an hour or so without needing a break.

 

[recursive]

my poop was all solid the other day,
wtf is happening to my body?

You are not getting enough beer in it.

 

[PumpkinPie]

The nerves in my hands are damaged through my job, which means sometimes I have to lay my xbone controller flat and use it like an arcade stick. I can't grip it for very long.

 

[DavidGzz]

Lifting is the fountain of youth so I do pretty well. I don't get any aches or pains from playing videogames only from lifting on rare occasions.

 

[Dave_at_Home]

What I’m struggling with the most is concentration. Yeah my reflexes are slower, but I just find myself bored lately. Not sure if it’s me outgrowing games, the type of games, or those bloody trophies I insist on earning, but something is poo-pooing my game time. I suspect it’s aging somehow, though. I can’t play anything more than an hour or so without needing a break.

The only way I'm gaming is if it absolutely grabs my attention. It's hard to give my time to merely good games anymore. I don't think my reflexes have degraded that much, it's just that I don't find myself caring. I haven't gotten into an online FPS in years. I just don't care.

 

[recursive]

Lifting is the fountain of youth so I do pretty well. I don't get any aches or pains from playing videogames only from lifting on rare occasions.

I agree with this. My big problem is that even though I lift and run regularly I find it still tough to counteract the 10+ hrs I sit at my desk for my job. When i sit for gaming it just feels like shit and pushes me to just go do something on my feet instead.

 

[DavidGzz]

I agree with this. My big problem is that even though I lift and run regularly I find it still tough to counteract the 10+ hrs I sit at my desk for my job. When i sit for gaming it just feels like shit and pushes me to just go do something on my feet instead.

I'm fortunate to be able to use a recumbent bike at my desk job. Also there is a lot of down time so I can also game a little if I want. I also use a bike at my standing desk at home lol. Makes me feel way less guilty about gaming for hours. Of course, I also lift for 1.5 to 2 hours a day. People at work call me a vampire cause I look young for being 40 in a month.

 

[Knightime_X]

I've done many deathless runs on nes games.
I have no problem using cheats / easy mode whenever I feel like it.

When I'm in the mood for a challenge I'll play a challenging game.

The only genre I continue to remain sharp in is the fighting genre but only with very few games.

I'm old. Lol

 

[Sublyme]

I'm 42. Overall I feel the same I did 20 years ago. Like others have said, Time is biggest hurdle now. With that being said I have found myself playing games on an easier difficulty so I can get through them without taking forever with time I no longer have. I still love a good challenge but some times life tells me to not devote that much to gaming.

This.

Tend to find I'm tempted to drop the difficulty in single player games that are dragging, whereas when I was younger I would never have considered it.

Saying that, I recently discovered the Soulsborne series. They'd never appealed to me but I picked up Demon's Souls remake when I got my PS5, and loved it so much I got the platinum and have since started playing through the DS trilogy. It's been a long time since I've been so invested in games as I am in this series - the 'just one more go' mentality ended up with me eventually turning it off at 4am the other night, and outside of Destiny raids it's been a long while since I've completely lost track of time while gaming like that.

So tl;dr - as I get older I'm only prepared to put the effort in to master certain games that appeal strongly to me, whereas games I enjoy less I'm happy to blast through on easier difficulties just to see the story through.

 

[KeepYourHeart1989]

I always find it funny how these reports (they pop up every once in a while) makes us think like after a certain age we're just gonna crumble into dust or whatever. My reflexes are fine. I don't play competitively, so it's not like it bothers me I don't have a split-second reaction. I can still play Dark Souls and Ikaruga and Contra Hard Corps just fine, so no worries by me. Challenges like Sans in Undertale required me most to get used to the pattern rather than having lightning reflexes. Most games don't require such a sudden reaction like a competitive fighting game, a bullet hell or a MOBA require from you.

We're fine. If anything, I feel like my real life reflexes have gotten better with age. So I'm not complaining.

(Except for Nemesis in RE3 Remake on Nightmare/Inferno with no post-game items. Fuck that asshole. First time in years I had to give in at a final boss, it was just fucking ridiculous, as ANY mistake would kill you. After many and many hours, had to resort to the resistance coins...)

 

[Evil Calvin]

Dig Dug, Ms. Pac Man, Pitfall and Donkey Kong Jr.

Beat that!

 

[Cockles & Whelks]

I suppose new learning mechanisms. Fortnite has been a challenge (I'm 50). Combat side no problem, but learning the building was like learning a new language. I still suck, but I'm getting better. As noted by everyone else, patience. I've less time for games when the poor mechanics creep in. I was enjoying Fallout 76 until the levelling enemies became too annoying and I had to rage delete.

 

[Thirty7ven]

Multiplayer shooters are a no go, filled with energizer bunnies and I don’t have the will to put up with it.

 

[Jimmy_liv]

I'm 45 a and over the years I've had some repetitive strain on my thumbs and tension in my shoulder for a few years.
My reaction times are much slower but.... For the most part I've not been hugely effected.

I have been to the doc with my thumb at one point and they just looked at me like I was stupid tbh.

 

[laynelane]

I've always had an issue where I game for hours at a time - all though the night, for example. I tend to not notice time passing which wasn't too much of an issue when I was younger but now can result in stiffness and pain if I don't remember to take breaks here and there. I'm not sure about reflexes, but I don't play multiplayer games/shooters and don't have any problems with the more challenging games I like playing so far.

 

[Little Chicken]

I'm in my mid 30s and i have had some wrist pain after some long sessions.

 

[Fare thee well]

All my friends in their 20s (because gamer discords comprise a huge range of ages) do a lot better than I think I could with games like Apex, League of Legends, Battlefield, etc. I watch them make like a 5-10 k/d consistently . That used to be me with ye old Tom Clancy games, Halo 1-3, and old platformer games. Boy even in my 30s I notice a huge skill dropoff for myself. That or those style of games don't interest me anymore as much as some calming grand adventure where I can slowly sink my roots in. Idk. Last thing I did was competitive mmorpg gvgs. And tbh, I don't think I can perform like that anymore, as much as the memories were good.

 

[Dr. Kitty Muffins]

I prefer SRPGs so I haven't noticed anything as I have gotten older.

 

[buenoblue]

45 here and I'm still pretty good. I'm champ 2 in rocket league and get to division 1 every year in seasons online on fifa. I am very active though. I play football (soccer) twice a week and work out pretty much daily. I also have a manual job making car interiors. I think keeping physically active definitely helps. I do get hand pain on occasion that I never got 10 years ago though.

 

[Intoxicate]

Lucky me. I wasn’t allowed to own a NES or SNES neither a GameBoy. I loved Tetris and Super Mario Bros, but wasn’t very good playing at my friends house. Wasn’t too much into PC gaming since live happened. Bought all the PS2 3 4s and XBox 360, but couldn’t get into shooting. These days turning 40 I still play my Tetris 99 and Mario games on my rusty SN30 Pro (SNES style controller) and don’t get any issues. Even beatin games which I didn’t (savestates etc.).great time to be alive, I’m mainly worried gaming is focusing on more realism than fun to push buttons.