Gaming as a Dad

[samfoster]

Have a 2 y/o little boy and I get minimal time after 8:30pm to relax however I'm up at 5am for work every day. Usually end up falling asleep once he is put to bed after catching up on my phone for a bit.

I was really into my games before we had him, but nowadays I can't be arsed.

For example I recently played Civ 6 and enjoyed it but a few days on and the thought of learning all of the mechanics of the game is just overwhelming with the little time I have

Does anyone else get like this?? How do you satisfy your gaming itch?

 

[hypocrytes]

@samfoster Kid means I am playing single player games. Means the only thing that matters is "am I having fun?"

I just play till something is unfun, then hex edit (cheat engine), speed hack (cheat engine with mouse binds), mod, or WeMod my way past whatever I find unfun or a time waste mechanic.

I also use a Bluetooth controller with a phone mount. I use steam link on my phone, mount it on the controller, and play many steam games sitting here in the kids room (he's napping in my lap). I can still use cheat engine speed hacks by making secondary binds on the controller.

 

[calebk]

@hypocrytes Yep this is me. Getting through all my narrative-based games, puzzle games and turn based strategy games while I have an infant.

Cannot imagine ever playing a hyper competitive game like CS, DOTA, etc again. I'm glad for it too, friends would invite me to play with them and I hated the stress of it

 

[samfoster]

@calebk Any recommendations on games?

 

[calebk]

@samfoster Final fantasy series if you like JRPGs, although some of the more recent games arent turn based so that might be tricky. If you like puzzle games the Talos Principle 1+2 and The Witness are good. I'm currently replaying Valkyria Chronicles 1+4 as they're tactics-style games with turns.

If you like mysteries/visual novels the Danganronpa series is great.

 

[elyeon]

@hypocrytes Yeah, this. I've absolutely lost all tolerance for padding and time wasting. My time is precious, and if a game wants to waste it, I'll cheat, look for guides, or just uninstall. For me, the perfect game is single-player, and about 20 hours. Anything more than that has to be justified with quality content. I've sunk a lot of hours into Elden Ring as the father of a toddler, but I quit Outer Worlds about half way through and just read the story on Wikipedia, felt like I'd experienced enough of it.

 

[pensieve]

@samfoster Get a switch or a steam deck, being able to just put it down and pick right back where you were it's in my opinion invaluable for a dad.

Kids goes to sleep, might wake up in 2 hours, no problem do a gaming session, goes to take a nap, 30 min is just fine with those consoles.

 

[elizabethgould]

@samfoster I have a 11 month old. I have always been a PC gamer so I got myself a Legion Go handheld. It plays most games pretty well and if they are to demanding I can just stream them from my PC.
Recently I got the itch to play some older games so I modded my old gameboy SP with a new ips back lit screen, battery and shell. I have been playing some Mario and Pokemon games

https://imgur.com/a/CgxMWcH

 

[typicalchristian]

@samfoster It got better for me as my kid got older. Around 2yrs old was basically no gaming though unless wife was out with him and happened to find myself at home alone. I bought a ps5 around then to play games in the living room (more social than PC gaming and easier to be alert to the kids needs, generally easier to stop/start) and from then, my kid started playing, too. Now he is 4 and I don't really touch the ps5 because he plays it and thats totally ok with me! Now I play games on my PC and he plays console in the living room lol

 

[assuredcw]

@samfoster It's tough when they're tiny and need constant supervision. Now mine are a bit older I can actually game with them which is great fun. We have a Switch with a bunch of fun multiplayer games we can play as a family, mainly Mario Kart. We also have a Minecraft server I set up.

 

[calebk]

@samfoster Don't play any games that are multiplayer or require huge sessions.

I play games that I can stop immediately with no/minimal consequence.

I love the dark souls series but I won't be getting the elden ring dlc because I cannot have a boss fight or whatever where I can't immediately get up and take care of my kid if she needs me.

I started playing magic the gathering again too as a match is usually less than 15 min and if I have to go suddenly I can just concede.

 

[papilindo]

@samfoster Marvel Snap. Easy to play in bed and catch a few games here and there. Slay the Spire is great as well.

 

[samfoster]

@papilindo Thanks for the recommendation, I've been trying Marvel Snap and loving it!

 

[john11421]

@samfoster Play with him. My three year old loves playing games with me. We played star wars galactic battle ground for hours as early as 2 years old. He plays toddler games too, its fun to watch his hand eye coordination develop.

 

[samfoster]

@john11421 That sounds great! I'd love to be able to and will eventually get to this stage but we try to avoid screens as much as possible at the moment. He is overall a much happier child without them!

Becomes very possessive and moody when they are taken away from him, it's a choice that my wife and I both agree with, but hopefully he will be able to handle them a bit more in the near future

 

[john11421]

@samfoster Yea i get that. We routinely take it away from him and he throws temper tantrums. But they are short lived. Idk, me and my brothers played a shit ton of video games and watched a shit ton of tv as kids. We are all doctors (two surgeons, one scientist). My brothers actually attribute playing sega to their steady surgeon hands today. Anyways, i think its good to limit screen time, but my wife and my philosophy is that society today necessitates use of computers… so maybe its not too bad for him to have screen time.

 

[elyeon]

@samfoster Civ is a major investment. Just a single game can be twenty hours or so. I'd try some puzzle games like Talos Principle... You get a brain workout, but you can just tackle one or two puzzles, then shut it down.

 

[kmassi27]

@samfoster My limited amount of time made me much more okay with not completing games. I used to beat every game I had even when I wasn’t really liking it but now I can’t be arsed. Leaves time for the games you love, 90 hours into Elden Ring now lol

 

[meredithraven]

@samfoster I haven't really stopped games, but the lower amount of time and mental resources has meant that I am choosier about what games I play and how much I'm willing to invest in them. Mostly that means that if a game doesn't look like an instant must-play for me, I won't buy it, and if it stops being fun I won't hesitate to put it down and leave it unfinished.

 

[bigbody]

@samfoster You’ll start getting more time back for that. Just be a little patient!