I’ve been having some thoughts lately that I would have believed crazy just a few years ago. I’m starting to think it might be time to move on from my PS5 and triple A gaming as a whole. I’ve had a PlayStation from the PS2 all the way to the latest generation of consoles. I remember fondly time spent roaming the lands of Fallout 4 or getting lost in the great Naughty Dog games Uncharted and the Last of Us. I was giddy beyond belief when Uncharted 4 came out in 2016 and after a recent replay it still holds up. I’m noticing as I’m getting older that gaming isn’t providing me that same excitement like it used to, and I can’t remember the last time I got lost in a game after Last of Us 2 came out.
I’m wondering if it’s time to pawn the PS5 and move on.
I think the main motivation that is killing my drive is the direction the gaming industry is heading. I was a big Madden fan for alot of years, but now EA has effectively killed that franchise with their unwillingness to invest or inovate. Other games now feel like they are becoming like that and selling out to just get you locked into a subscription model with their game (gta online with their recent subscription comes to mind).
Recently I’ve been cutting out subscriptions in my life as I feel it is better to own rather than effectively rent media. Netflix and Spotify are now raising their prices and looking back, I could have just bought the movies I liked and found another way to stream tv. It’s clear these companies just want to take the power away from you and keep you paying forever for the same content.
I look at my PlayStation and I just see a big subscription box. The games don’t even do it for me much anymore. I’ve been finding the games that do excite me are the small indies like Firewatch in the past and Dredge which I have heard great things about. If I want to play indies, a PS5 feels like a bit of overkill for that. I could get my on my Switch and a laptop. Maybe even a steam deck would be a worthy trade in.
Anyway, I wanted to get others thoughts as it sort of depresses me to think about moving on from a system that I’ve had since childhood, but it also feel like it’s time for a change.
Who cares what you play the games on. I built myself a decent pc a few years ago just to play Duke Nukem 3d some more. If you’re burnt out, just stop playing. If you dislike “triple eh…” games just play something else. Or play something older. Or something completely out of your safe zone. Play a genre you’d never touch otherwise.
If you need the cash, sell it. If you don’t, then why trade it in to buy something that does the same in a different form factor. But don’t sell something just because it’s too good for the job. A Porsche can still bring you to work.