2015: My Year in Gaming Review
This may very well be my last blog post this year. I’m going to be road tripping down south to spend Christmas and New Years with family and friends, and I don’t foresee myself finding time to put down any major writing.
In fact, I’m going to avoid it and take some time off. I’ve been pretty consistent with my blogging, even though I haven’t blogged every day. I’d say that the amount of writing I’ve produced has been pretty comfortable in a casual sort of way. Hopefully you’ve enjoyed reading it.
So what’s happened in 2015?
One MMO to Rule Them All
This has been the year of one MMO. Namely, FFXIV.
Similar to 2014, FFXIV has demanded most of my online gaming time and staved away other MMOs. Part of this is due to the nature of the subscription game. Part of this is due to the efforts to foster a Free Company and a community that I wanted to be a part of.
Heavensward was a welcome expansion with many enjoyable new features. Though I struggled to decide what to do with Zuri for a while, I did push Tai to end game, got him fairly well equipped and even did some light raiding on him. For a player who was always largely casual, honestly, I have been playing quite a bit! I even tried to hook up with other bloggers on Cactaur, but playing three (or four) characters on the time that I have isn’t too viable.
Though I picked up WildStar and ESO during their conversions and sales, I’ve hardly made progress in either of them. That’s not because they are bad games… I just think that I’ve set roots down on Midgardsormr in FFXIV, I’ve made friends there, and it’s the game that Syn seems to be addicted to (even more than me).
I still have tons of things to do in FFXIV with leveling new classes, crafting, gathering and gearing up. I honestly don’t see this changing in 2016.
Survival Games
The other big trend for me is multi-player survival games. I play these with my Zombie Hunting Troop… things like 7D2D, ARK and occasionally H1Z1 (yes, I know it’s an MMO, but I play it like a team survival game).
This started back in 2014 with 7D2D, and it’s a trend that I enjoy. I’ve also explored single-player survival games like Salt, which I really like. I think the whole survival-crafting genre is a good fit for me.
Single Player Games
I’ve noticed that though I don’t pick up other MMOs lately, when I need something new, I’ve been turning to single player Steam games. While I still haven’t broken down my Steam backlog all that much, it’s helpful. I also keep discovering new games that I really enjoy such as Cities Skylines, Kingdom, Child of Light, and Darkest Dungeon.
Wii U
I also picked up a Wii U this year and have been sampling many new (and old games) on the system. I’d like to put more time into the Wii U since I have games such as Mario Maker, Super Smash Bros, Mario Kart and Xenoblade Chronicles X that need playing. I’m hoping to find some time this holiday with friends.
For 2016
Going into 2016, I can’t foresee a lot changing. FFXIV will still probably be my MMO of choice. I may poke around in beta games like Project Gorgon and Shards Online. I still see plenty of zombie and dino survival in the future.
But really, what I want to focus on most isn’t gaming at all. I’ve put a lot of free time into FFXIV and end game goals. This is fine and it’s gotten me a lot of things that I want in game. However, what I really need to focus on is IRL.
The biggest goals I want to set this year is for my personal health. My health isn’t terrible, but I’m not getting any younger. And, I’m sad to admit, that I’m probably more out of shape now than I have ever been. Part of this is gaming habits. Part of this is poor eating and life habits.
In 2016, I need to drastically turn things around. This probably means more moderation and time management. I’m lazy by default and I need to break myself from just flopping down to play stuff after a long day of sitting in front of a computer at work.
So, my biggest goal isn’t end game gear, crafting leveling or anything like that. I want to live a healthier lifestyle and have fun doing it.
Who’s with me?