gamer.tv Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 My daughter is coming up to 18 months old and in that time, I’ve managed to play through a number of games but find that my time playing is dictated by the following: She’s asleep I’m not shattered from life There aren’t any daily jobs to finish (tidying, cleaning etc). My wife and I haven’t planned on watching/doing anything else No work to prep for the following week For me, that either means I can get in maybe an hour in an evening every so often, or the odd weekend stretch. Definitely gone are the days of playing Halo 3 online for 6 hours at a time. How about you? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paperclyp Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 I have a 3 year old and a 1 year old. My only opportunities really are: 1. nap time on weekends 2. After they go to sleep at night and as you said those times are then dependent on hey is our house a disaster (yes it is), have I prepared stuff for lunch, do my wife and I wanna hang out, etc. The 3 year old will watch me play a few games that I find appropriate, but only for short bursts (Pokémon, animal crossing type stuff). I miss those long stretches of time to play, but I find I really value them more when I get them (I have to work weekends occasionally so I’ll have a day off during the week with the kids at daycare, once in a while the grandparents will take them for the day). I also obv love spending time with my kids and I remind myself that even though they can be exhausting, this is a relatively short phase and eventually they’re gonna be more independent and I’ll probably want less free time and for them to be more interested in spending time with me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarkStar189 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 I don't think I did much serious gaming during the day when my kids were 1yr-6yr. Now that they are 8 and 10yrs old, it is possible for me to get a random hour in once in a while during the day. Otherwise since my wife is usually passed out by 9pm, I play from 9-11:30pm. I've long forgotten what it feels like to have more than 2 or 3 hours of uninterrupted free time at once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Biggie Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Imagine having to find time for yourself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XxEvil AshxX Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Ugh, kids. I have a cat that wants attention from time to time and that's annoying enough. I might die alone and be cremated by the city but at least I don't have to share my gaming time. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Yea my time dedicated to games have decreased. The times I can squeeze in gaming is similar to your list. She has a lot of play dates/activities now (she is 2 1/2) where only one parent needs to go so I usually can get a few hours to myself. I don’t really miss gaming though. She is a cute little bugger so I enjoy spending as much time with her as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
best3444 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 26 minutes ago, XxEvil AshxX said: Ugh, kids. I have a cat that wants attention from time to time and that's annoying enough. I might die alone and be cremated by the city but at least I don't have to share my gaming time. Same exact situation especially with the cat 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chakoo Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 I was going crazy for the first 4 months and begging my wife to let me at least have 1h once a week to play something (she did but it's kind of crazy I had no free time that I had to ask for help so I could). Since then, the baby is now 5 months old, we've actually be able to successfully sleep train her and I'm usually able to game for 1h-2h 1-3 times a week providing I don't have work to catch up on or the wife doesn't want to watch something together. I feel like this is how it's gonna be for a number of years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
number305 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 My experience is that it gets worse. My kids are preteen - and they want to play games. So sometimes I play with them, or I read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HardAct Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 I have 4 kids so pretty much after their grown and out of the house, lol Um....NOT JOKING Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShreddieMercury Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 My wife and I just had a baby girl last November. So far my gaming time has certainly decreased, but it actually makes me more diligent about what I'm playing and when. And it helps that I'm really not interested in most new games, so I'm satisfied playing a lot of older and more arcade oriented stuff that I can jump into quickly, and that tend to be much shorter. I will usually play in the evening when she falls asleep. My wife and I also rotate the bedtime routine, so I get some time on my "off" nights. Even if I didn't have a baby, I can't imagine playing shitty live service games that are designed to waste your time anyway. The only game I'm looking forward to this year is Bomb Rush Cyberfunk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chakoo Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 Bite size arcade games (especially actual arcade games) FTW !! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShreddieMercury Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 28 minutes ago, chakoo said: Bite size arcade games (especially actual arcade games) FTW !! I've been almost exclusively playing my Dreamcast and having a total blast. I can squeeze in a few rounds of Soul Calibur or Virtua Tennis and feel satisfied in a way that I'm not with longer, denser games. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xbob42 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 My daughter's 8 next month so between school, sleep and playing with her friends I've got plenty of gaming time during my free time. She's still pretty clingy for attention but she no longer wants to be played with 24/7 like when she was 3-4. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost_MH Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 When my son was just old enough to hold his head upright, I played some nice and colorful games with him pinched under my arm. Switch was and still is a great way to get some games in while the kids are watching Sesame Street or Gabby's Dollhouse or whatever. My two oldest have their own Switch Lites, but my oldest still prefers watching me play games when he has the time. My 3yo also shit talks every minute of gameplay. "Why didn't you catch that Pokemon? You're such a loser." "The monster keeps killing you. Can't you play better?" That does limit the games I can play during the day. I'll normally keep the more violent games to after my kids are in bed, asleep. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
best3444 Posted March 9, 2022 Share Posted March 9, 2022 1 hour ago, ShreddieMercuryRising said: I've been almost exclusively playing my Dreamcast and having a total blast. I can squeeze in a few rounds of Soul Calibur or Virtua Tennis and feel satisfied in a way that I'm not with longer, denser games. Nothing wrong playing those classics 👌 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 10, 2022 Share Posted March 10, 2022 I play whenever I want, generally. But I’ve mostly been a late evening gamer anyway and most of my multiplayer gaming is with other dads, so after 9pm is pretty common. My kids are 15/12/10 and are all gamers themselves, so they often are playing games in the evening as well after dinner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Posted March 10, 2022 Share Posted March 10, 2022 This topic hits me right in the gut. My kids are 2 and 3. Probably the most difficult part of being a parent is not being able to game when I want (Ok. Not really). For awhile, I was playing short games in bite-sized chunks. If I wake up before the kids, I can sneak a little time in. Nap times on Sunday and Monday after I straighten up the house. The rest of the week is a bit trickier. Sometimes they occupy themselves for an hour or so and I fire up the Switch, but after about 20 minutes, I start to feel guilty about it. My son entertains himself moreso than my daughter, so I do sometimes give her my phone for YouTube. That can buy me a long time, but again, I feel guilty. PC gaming, though, is almost out of the question right now. No matter what they're doing, as soon as I sit on that computer chair, they're all over me. Like I said, I was playing shorter games, just so I had a chance to finish them, but I recently started Dragon Quest 11. I'm really enjoying it and looking forward to finishing it around Christmas time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BloodyHell Posted March 11, 2022 Share Posted March 11, 2022 When my son was young, I was still serving in the military, so my only gaming was when I had time to spend with friends or whatever. By the time I got out, he was starting to play games (he absolutely loved the Wii when he was a kid), and I was able to play more. During the ps2 era, I really only made time to play when a game I was really excited for came out, like FFXII, Metal Gear Solid, and Zone of the Enders which stick out in my mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GameDadGrant Posted March 11, 2022 Share Posted March 11, 2022 When they were younger, games were played when they were napping or down for the night. Or if they were preoccupied with themselves and didn't need supervision, I'd break into some gaming time. Nowadays it's practically only after they go to bed. Unless we're playing a game together. I also sneak in gaming time while "watching TV together" with my wife. I'll game and she'll be watching the show. Hey, it's *technically* spending time together! It helps that I primarily play on handheld systems, so I can basically play whenever I suddenly have unexpected free time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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