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Cohh on 05 February 2024
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I got into gaming in the '90s with the NES at home.

Loved console gaming from the '90s till 2007, had a blast with Zelda, Kingdom Hearts, Tekken 3, Gran Turismo, Spyro, and stuff.

From 2006 to 2012, I was more into PC gaming, mainly 'cause of World of Warcraft. That first WoW experience is unforgettable.

But 2007-2015 was a tough time for me with consoles. Wasn't a fan of the PS3/360/Wii/DS era. Nintendo consoles just didn't do it for me. They felt too "casual" (might not be the right word, but that's how it felt). The Wii Remote and the DS's dual screens weren't my thing. And they seemed outdated and kind of gimmicky to me. I wish they focus on traditional controlers instead of trying to introduce pseudo innovations. Wii games looked like PS2 games with too much aliasing, and I wasn't into the Zelda or Mario games then. Tried Mario Galaxy, Zelda Twilight, and Skyward Sword but never finished them. The DS didn't seem old, but its 3D focus made the games look bad to me, a big letdown after the GBA and GameCube. To me the Wiimote and the ds screen didn't bring anything really interesting.
The start of this gen on Ps3/360 was all about FPS games, which I'm not into, along with super casual games like Guitar Hero, Nintendogs, and Wii Sports. Felt like the industry was just pumping out FPS games with a dull grey/brown filter. Couldn't stand COD, Halo, Resistance, Killzone, etc. Other games also didn't impress me much (like Final Fantasy, Heavenly Sword, Uncharted 1, GTA IV), and aliasing was a huge annoyance.

Almost dropped console gaming then and leaned more on PC. Mass Effect was the only console game that really wowed me at that time.

Things got better in the later PS3 days. The Japanese gaming scene seemed to catch up, and we got cool titles like Uncharted 2/3, Tekken Tag 2, Last of Us, GTA5, etc.

But I really got back into console gaming with the PS4 and Switch. FPS wasn't as dominant anymore. Loved the mix of games, better balance between Japanese and Western stuff. The 2015-2022 period was great.

Now, I think I might be heading into my favorite gaming era. Despite folks saying gaming's slowing down, I see it the other way. The last few years have been amazing, with so many great, deep games coming out quick. Gaming seems to be speeding up since 2022, with tech jumps. AI in dialogues and graphics seem also promising and already having important effects of lightning and stuff. Like, Tekken 8's leap from Tekken 7 feels bigger than from Tekken 5 to Tekken 7. We've seen awesome games in a short span like Baldur's Gate, Elden Ring, Ragnarok, Zelda, and more. Plus, there's so much variety now. Feels like even niche genres have plenty of choices. Gaming is also more affordable (though that might be changing). With Steam, Game Pass, Amazon, and second-hand deals, finding good prices feels easier than back in the day.
In my country a PS2 games at release would cost around 100 CHF, PS3 games 100-110 (at least during the first part of PS3 life cycle) and now a Ps5 costs 79 CHF at release.