I haven’t always been one for New Year’s resolutions. I’ve often felt that if you want to improve yourself or set a personal goal, there shouldn’t need to be a specific point in the year that dictates that for you. A few years ago, however, I was asked if there was anything important I wanted to accomplish once the calendar flipped. Thinking back to my school days and the lessons I learned on SMART goals, I decided I had the perfect one. I committed to trying a McDonald’s Big Mac for the first time.
Specific? Absolutely, there’s only one Big Mac. Measurable? I’d say so. Either I eat it or I don’t. Achievable and Realistic? I can only dream so big! And with a whole year ahead of me I felt the Timing wouldn’t be a problem. Well, I’m happy to report that I accomplished my goal and I learned two valuable lessons.
First, Big Macs are just okay. Honestly, they’re not even that big! Pretty tasty, sure, but if your name includes the word big, there should be no questioning your size. It’s also mostly bun, but I digress…
Lesson number two (and the more important one) was that resolutions can and should be fun! Sure, it might be good to start exercising or stop scrolling social media so much, but no one ever sticks to a resolution that feels like a chore. Why do that to yourself?
There will be no boring, self-improvement resolutions here, that’s for sure. Positive vibes only!
My 6 Gaming Resolutions for 2024
These are the goals I’m looking forward to this year.
1. Be More Willing To Give Short Games a Try.
Typically I feel like if I’m going to pull the trigger on spending money for a game, it better provide a substantial return on investment. For the most part, that means I want a meaty game that’s going to keep me entertained for dozens of hours like Zelda or a dense RPG. I’ll often look up information on how long a game takes to help me decide whether or not it’s worth getting into.
The problem with that mindset is not only am I missing out on shorter games in general, but I could probably also finish three or four—or even five—in the time it takes me to get through a lengthy adventure title. This year, I’ve got my eyes on games like Limbo, Inside, A Short Hike, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, and plenty more that I’ve passed on over the years. The prices for most of these great indie titles a couple years out from release are less than a movie ticket. If I can get a few hours out of each of them, that feels like an efficient use of time and money!
2. Don’t Buy Stuff Just Because It’s On Sale.
While I do want to play those shorter games and start breezing through some gems, my goal is still to keep the backlog in check as much as possible. One of my biggest problems is that, much like customers at Christmas Tree Shops, I just love a bargain.
Browsing the Nintendo eShop and adding discounted games to my wishlist is almost as fun as actually buying and playing them! Had I heard of Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion before I started perusing the latest online deals? Absolutely not. But it’s over 60% off! I can’t say no!
Ahem, that stops now. I’m going to be responsible and get through what I’ve already bought before I add more to the list. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to suffer through unrewarding or downright bad experiences…
3. Don’t Be Afraid To Quit on a Game.
I’m a little bit old school when it comes to media consumption. I own a lot of DVDs, CDs and vinyl records. I even still buy music through iTunes on a regular basis (if you’ve got any unused gift cards, hit me up). When I can, I’ll prioritize buying the physical copy of a video game over getting the digital version. I love to see the boxes on the shelf with the artwork on display. Something about having a tangible collection has always been more fun for me than sorting through icons on a screen.
Possibly the most important piece of having a physical copy, though, is that the games retain value. I don’t plan to sell classic games from my collection, but it’s nice to have the option. And if I get something that doesn’t click with me, it’s easy to part with.
The same can’t be said for my digital purchases. Those icons sit on my Switch home screen staring at me day after day, asking when I’m going to come back. If there’s a game I don’t enjoy, but it’s stuck on my console, I feel a responsibility to finish it one way or another. Removing the download is one solution, but I’ll still know I failed and wasted my money. The thing is, that guilt isn’t helping to bring me any closer to the finish line. If anything, it’s just preventing me from moving on and finding my next great game. This year I’m quitting bad and boring games and I’m not looking back (sorry, Super Mario Bros. Wonder).
4. Play Some Old Stuff.
When it comes to backlog, I mentioned on episode 3 of the Punished Podcast that mine started in earnest during the PS3 era. By the end of the lifecycle, I was picking up games for pennies at my local GameStop. And not bad games, either. Award-winning titles like God of War III, Red Dead Redemption, and Skyrim — they’re classics!
I had to have them, even though I didn’t know when I’d have the time to actually play them. I didn’t then, but I might now. It’s 2024 and the new release calendar looks iffy, so I say there’s no time like the present! No need to search high and low for the next great game, I’ve got about 15 on my shelf that are waiting to be played.
5. Try a Few Kickass Metroidvanias.
For the longest time as an adult, I ignored the entire “Metroidvania” genre as a whole. Some of my earliest gaming memories included aimlessly wandering around in the original Metroid and restarting from the beginning of the game over and over because I kept dying. I wasn’t any good at it and I had absolutely no idea where to go or what to do. What’s fun about that? As it turns out, everything.
Over the past couple of years, my time with Metroid Dread and Hollow Knight completely changed my idea of what those types of games can offer. The feeling of being completely lost and powerless just adds to the challenge and makes finding the next key or ability or secret that much sweeter. The good news for me is that since I spent the better part of 30 years actively avoiding Metroidvanias, I’ve got a pretty decent selection of games in the catalog! Titles like The Messenger and Ender Lilies have been highly recommended to me and the brand-new Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown looks like a damn good start to 2024. Or as I’m calling it, the Year of Metroidvanias!
6. Buy an Official Wavebird Controller.
Talk about achievable! I could probably do this before I even finish writing this paragraph. When I was a kid, having a Wavebird GameCube Controller seemed like the height of luxury. Any time you’d go to a friend’s house and witness the cutting-edge wireless technology, you couldn’t help but “ooo” and “ahh.”
As an adult man, I still don’t really understand how it works (I guess I don’t really understand wired controllers either), but at least I can probably afford one. It does continue to feel like a bit of a luxury, given its primary function will be allowing me to sit 7 feet away from my TV instead of 6 feet, but it’s either that or pay Nintendo $60 for a game I already have when Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is re-released later this year.
Cheers!
Here’s to 2024 and playing more and better video games! I hope you manage to accomplish all the goals you set for yourself this year. And if you don’t, you can always pretend you didn’t make any silly resolutions in the first place (personally, I’ll be having this piece scrubbed from the internet in approximately 340 days just in case).
Good luck!
