Game Theory
Every few years my computer hardware purchases line up with the ever-increasing requirements of PC games. My new MacBook Pro, as it turns out, has more than enough juice to run the latest and greatest in 3D distractions. I couldn’t think of a better reason to try Boot Camp, so several days ago I loaded up Windows XP SP2 and dove into a few recent games.
It turns out that there’s a reason I haven’t been a regular (that is, daily or bi-daily) gamer since I was about 11: games kinda bore me. Or, if they don’t actively bore me, I feel like my time has been frittered away after the fact.
The godly power bestowed on me in Black & White 2 couldn’t keep me engaged. Navigating derilict buildings and getting in fistfights with psychotic junkies in Condemned was only fun for a few minutes. The hair-raising tenor of F.E.A.R. couldn’t get me over the fact that I was walking through level after Doom-derivitave level, blowing away identical soldiers like it was 1993.
For all the production value and cinematics of the games I tried the experience just couldn’t captivate me. When I’ve really enjoyed gaming in the last few years it’s been as a social activity: Soul Caliber 2 tournaments in the dorm room or playing through all of Halo 2 in cooperative mode with a friend. Yes, buddies tried to get me into MMORPGs like World of Warcraft, but “virtually social” just isn’t the same as social-social. PCs don’t seem terribly conducive to the type of gaming I enjoy.
Though a game console is a typical bachelor purchase, in my case it’s an investment I wouldn’t bother making unless I had a significant other who’d enjoy an evening in conquering virtual enemies in two-player mode. Gaming, for me, is all about shared experience and healthy competition.
Needless to say, I wiped Windows XP off my MacBook. Boot Camp worked flawlessly both coming and going. Henceforth, my multi-OS needs will be met by Parallels Workstation while I wait for a Mac version of VMware. Not that I frequently find myself in need of Windows. Ugh.
I intend to put my reclaimed free time and hard drive space to better, DJ-related uses.