The Last Games You'd Play? 529
Rigor Morty asks: "I am an older man (44), an avid fan of video games, and I am faced with a problem; my hands are becoming arthritic as I get older. I fear I will soon have to completely give up the console games I have loved over the years. To that end, let me ask the Slashdot Nation — if you were going to give it up, what games would you insist on playing before you had to quit? I'm willing to make some effort to do this, and spend some cash; I will buy the new consoles if I need to, or try to find obscure titles."
zelda (Score:5, Interesting)
I've got happy memories which will last me a life time from these games, I feel happy recomending them.
Ms. Pacman (Score:3, Interesting)
-Charlie
P.S. You can probably play it with arthritic hands too, just modify the screw on joystick head and play it with your palm.
Re:Think outside the xbox. (Score:4, Interesting)
Or "Go". Easy to learn, difficult to master.
Arthiritic? At 44? (Score:5, Interesting)
Acupuncture (Score:2, Interesting)
Mouse replacements (Score:4, Interesting)
Consider a flight sim (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Me..? (Score:3, Interesting)
I'd play whatever I want, via emulators, with a user input device that doesn't aggravate my arthritis.
Re:What about the Wii? (Score:3, Interesting)
Fallout 1 and 2 (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:The first game you played? (Score:3, Interesting)
Ditto. And I'd have my wife wrap it and put it and the NES console (in original box) under the tree so I can scamper down the stairs all bleery eyed and shred it like I was 7 again... ah, good times.
But I don't think they make footie pajamas for folks my size... and if they do, well... that's just creepy.
But for the original poster - man get a Wii and play for the next decade, don't give up.
Dance Dance Revolution (Score:5, Interesting)
Descent!!! (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Think outside the xbox. (Score:4, Interesting)
Chess can be just as aggravating.
Re:Me..? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Me..? (Score:3, Interesting)
Solution (Score:3, Interesting)
On a more serious note, the Wii controller is very nice for a variety of games because it takes the focus off the hands, but I'm actually wondering if using a controller might actually have some therapeutic value for you. The drawback of most controllers is that the range of motion is, by design, made as small as possible, but with arthritis, what you actually want is fuller range of motion to articulate the joints as fully as possible.
Personally, I think moving to a Wii will be nice for you--and hey, what about games like Dance, Dance, Revolution, which is really great for fitness and does not require your hands at all? Also, I'd say get yourself into some kind of physical activity that uses your hands through a full range of motion. Keeping your hands active is the best way to fight off the effects of arthritis although, yes, it is painful. The alternative is a rapid decent into limited range of motion and a large amount of pain.
In combination with those measures, we're probably not that far from further control innovations like retinal tracking for targetting (Wii is already tracking your controller; it won't be long before we're watching head movement or even hand waving with a wristband). Wii is really paving the way for the entrance of these advancements in controllers, so the future is brighter than you may think! I think you will be able to happily play games for your entire life, if you take some preventative care steps now and ride the wave of technology innovations that are on the way.
Re:Think outside the xbox. (Score:3, Interesting)
Well yeah, that's kind of the poster's point. While he can still use his hands, he should try and do some stuff that needs 'em. Video games are for when you're stuck inside.
also, speaking as a person who paid extra for the opportunity to dive with sharks, It's not as dangerous as you'd think, and then you have the story. (the reason I paid extra is that you almost never see sharks while diving under normal circumstances. Similarly, you almost never see bears or coyotes when hiking in the woods under normal circumstances)
What's the point of being alive if all you do is watch other people LIVE.
Re:Dance Dance Revolution (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Dance Dance Revolution (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Think outside the xbox. (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Steel Battalion All The Way (Score:3, Interesting)
By switching to PC games she freed herself from having to hold the controller. Now she simply rests her hands on the mouse and keyboard to play.
The type of game also seems to matter as to how often she can play as does the weather. First Person Shooters (twitch games) aren't her thing. And that's perfectly understandable. Casual games with some automation to the gameplay seems to spark her interest the best.
It may not be that you need to give up gaming entirely. Perhaps just the platform may be the key.
Re:Me..? (Score:3, Interesting)
This way, I can play for a few minutes at a time, or get sucked in for an entire weekend now and again.
p.s. I don't have arthritis, but I do prefer a full-sized keyboard to a VG controller. I also assume that the ability to pause whenever you want is a plus.
p.p.s. You can borrow my Power Glove if you think it might feel better. It's not very accurate, but it is pretty bad.
Best Game Ever (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Invent a foot-peddle game (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Think outside the xbox. (Score:3, Interesting)
I guess maybe a better way of putting it is this: Go is easy to learn, but not at all fun until your skills have progressed to a certain level. You say that learning to count the endgame is part of learning the rules - that directly contradicts the "easy to learn" mantra because endgame counting is not easy. You can't have it both ways.
Perhaps specific instruction sets are difficult to understand, but an assembler pseudocode would hold the properties I desired. Ok, let's set that analogy aside. You know what else is easy to learn but difficult to master? Brainfuck [muppetlabs.com].