As you get older, and you get more responsibilities, time for gaming shrinks. That’s just a fact. That doesn’t necessarily mean you play games less, just that opportunities to play are less likely to present themselves. How do you handle that? How do you find time for games?
I knew one guy who basically didn’t sleep. He would wait until his wife and children went to bed and then just play for hours. There are also couple who seem to live separate lives. One watches TV while the other plays games in the opposite room.
My question is: how do you find time for games in a busy schedule? I’ve often struggled, but I’ve found that weekends tend to be the time when I play games the most. Or when my wife takes a trip to Melbourne. Those are the times when I just hunker in and marathon one game or another.
How about you? How do you find the time?
Comments
59 responses to “Tell Us Dammit: When Do You Play Games?”
It’s hard to fit them into my busy schedule…
😀
I can’t even say that with a straight face.
I play games whenever I need to escape from reality, which is always. XD
Usually in the evening. But this week it’s been too hot in Victoria to play anything
I do the separate lives thing a bit, I’ll play while she watches TV. She likes watching things I don’t so I play ‘my games’ while she watches ‘her shows’
Often after dinner we will play ‘our games’ which is mostly things she doesn’t mind watching. And generally she gets to play ‘her games’ when I’m at work as she only works part time.
I don’t currently have kids so any time after work and chores is potential game time
unfortunately i can only play games on saturday nights if im home, because i leave for work at 4am and dont get home till 10pm… no time 🙁
being a grown up sux
jobs amazing, just hours suck (oncall 24/7)
Basically 10pm till ???
And sometimes child appropriate games during the day on the weekend.
This is me also.
I might find a couple of hours in the evening, once a week. Mostly I play on weekends though. Once I’ve gotten home from work, made dinner, washed up, done a load of washing, etc I might have two hours before bed, and that’s probably going to be occupied by my wife watching something on TV, so mostly I sit at the PC and browse stuff. I could put my headphones on and play something on the PC but then I’m not spending time with her.
That last sentence made me cry. 🙁
yep, same here. those words are all too true. the struggle of being with a non-gaming partner.
I feel your pain, and your support group is always here if you need us.
Yeah, if you sit next to them while watching tv, even if you’re not interacting, it’s spending time, but not if you’re on the computer. Easy solution: Get them to play games with you! hahaha, yeah, no. If only.
I had my computer in the living room for a while (years ago), and played while she watched TV – just had to make sure to make the appropriate grunt of acknowledgement when she said something. 😛
We usually do play games together, or more correctly she plays and I watch. She does encourage me to play while she watches from time to time but sometimes I’m not in the mood to play, or I only want to play something I know she will find boring to watch (even though she loves games in general).
Lately we’ve been rewatching a lot of old TV shows so I’m just cranky because she’s been burning through Dawson’s Creek which I have zero interest in but I am still expected to pay attention to. Once she’s done with that, things should return to more normal.
Right after we got the Xbone for instance every night was consumed with sharing Forza or Just Dance or watching each over play play Dead Rising 3. Last night on the other hand she was tired and went to bed early so I was able to finish the Year of the Snake DLC for Sleeping Dogs (which is one of those games I love but she finds boring).
What I do is I sit there and play my 3DS or Wii U and it counts. The secret is being close by.
Oh yeah, I used to get “that” sentence. Between work and bike riding, we weren’t spending any time together. Then I bought her a Nexus 7 and now she spends more time on that than I do on gaming!
@Matthew K… I feel you bro…
OMG, are you…me?
After the kids are asleep – or – if we’ve been watching tv – after the missus falls asleep on the couch. Otherwise I set goals to complete jobs (self-employed) and then take a day off to do nothing but gaming.
If you’re really into a game, there’s ALWAYS time for it imo. Usually it’s around 9 to 11pm on weeknights for me. I can’t seem to find time on weekends for some reason.
Quite often, I play my 3DS, DS or PSP on the train to/from work as well.
I work from 8am till 6pm, then it’s Daddy-duties until 9pm. Once the kids are asleep, I work some more (either on a second job, or on game development) until about 1am.
Maybe once a week (sometimes twice!), I forgo the second part of my working day (from 9pm-1am) and spend that time either watching a movie while browsing the net, or playing a game, either on PC, or going to bed and playing on 3DS.
Weekends are great, because even though I’m on Daddy-duties until 9pm like normal, lately I’ve been playing a lot of Super Mario 3d World with my kids, so it’s game time AND daddy time! WIN!
So that’s maybe 4-8 hours during the week at night, plus 1-3 hours on the weekend with my kids. Wow, writing it out like that, I guess I get more game time than I thought I did. Awesome!
I am about to step up and have a third child though, so I’m not sure how much that will effect my night work/game time. Can’t be as hard as the jump from 0 to 1, or from 1 to 2 though (can it?)
Sometimes on weekends. Generally not at all though, unless GF is away. She’s currently away for 3 months so Steam is now keeping my bed warm.
usually of an evening after work if I’m not too mentally exhausted and mostly all of Saturdays until my eyes hurt and my nose bleeds
When the blood in my veins needs to be pumped!
Why play games when I can complain about games on the Internet!
Basically. Because this is something you can do while working or watching TV.
Im like that. gaming usually starts from 9-10 pm onwards. kid in bed. wife almost there. game time baby!
Any ‘me time’ happens in this time period each day. between work and family thats the only time i get for video work gaming or any of that stuff.
Generally I squeeze it into the evening about 10 – midnight during the week (not necessarily every night). Sometimes squeeze a bit more in on the weekends, either playing a bit in the afternoon or playing later into the night. That’s using the big TV out in the lounge room, anyway… I squeeze the odd 15-30 minute session in on the Vita here and there in addition to that.
Usualy 1-2 hours a night. If the planets allign a little more on the weekend.
Usually only in the evenings. My 3.5 year old daughter demands too much attention when I’m at home so even on weekends I only really get to play after she’s gone to bed, usually sometime between 8-11pm (unless you count playing mind-numbing Dora the Explorer and Lalaloopsy games…). I may try to be sneaky and get some gaming in while she is occupied with something else but it usually doesn’t last long. During the week I get home from work fairly late so by the time I have dinner and spend time with my wife it’s usually around 9 or later by the time I can fit some gaming in.
I often play games on my tablet while on the train, does that count?
Morning Commute – Between 610am and 750am (Bus/Train transfer included)
Afternoon Commute – Between 407pm and 600pm (Train/Train and Train/Bus transfer included)
The Vita gets a massive workout!
After that, time is fleeting, hopefully the kids will asleep by 9pm… but then i’ll be helping either prepare for tomorrow, cleaning up dinner, watching TV shows and all that stuff… but I guess if games were played, it would be between 930pm to midnight…
I run a business, work full time, and ride Mountain Bike competitions which requires lots of training….. When my wife reads a book by herself, it’s game on.
It’s been a struggle adapting from student life to working life. 7 years after graduating and I still struggle with it. I’d be playing games and watching Simpsons DVDs over and over when I was a student (I did actually go to uni as well). Now, it’s a case of housework, cooking, making sure I interact with the missus & housemates before sitting down for maybe an hour, two if lucky, in front of the PC each day. Weekends depends on social situations. Something almost always comes up to get in the way of 10 hours of straight gaming. It helps though that the other half has gotten into gaming as well in the last year or two.
Answering the question then, the hour or two before bed. Weekends I’ll stay up a bit later and follow the football in England, but time is at a premium these days 🙁
Used to watch a disc of classic Simpsons AND their audio commentaries in a day…miss those uni days 🙁
Mostly on the bus on the way to/from work the 3DS gets a workout. I have a 1 year old, so I spend time with him when I get home til my wife feeds him before bed. At that point I do some tidying then head to the gym! I’ll occassionaly game on the 3DS again while on a stationary bike, depending on my routine for the night.
The big thing my wife and I do though is on the weekends. I make it a goal to take the kiddo out for a few hours, usually to do some shopping or see great-grandparents/other rellies and this gives my wife some time to herself. She does the same for me, usually on Sundays, and I get a few hours of uninterrupted gaming time. ‘Tis bliss. Gives me a chance to get stuck in to a few of the more involved titles rather than playing Hearthstone or other low time-constrainty things.
During a busy working week I play maybe a few hours at best in the evening. As hard as it is to believe, my wife comes first and I love her more than gamez! I know…..*gags*
If she’s out on the weekend or away on business, I hunker down and soak up a session.
If we are hanging out together we do the ‘separate thing’, but call it ‘intimate solitude’. We’re in the same space as each other but doing different things or a me in my man-cave and she’s in the living room. Either way, I chuck on my headphones and boot-up and she will read, work or watch Gossip Girl.
THIS IS THE WORST QUESTION EVER WHY ARE YOU MAKING US THINK ABOUT OUR SHITTY GROWN-UP LIVES WHERE WE WANT TO PLAY GAMES BUT INSTEAD HAVE TO WORK AND DO CHORES AND HAVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH WIVES AND CHILDREN.
*sob*
I mean, I love my family and all, but the other stuff? I’d much rather be playing games 🙁
I’ve usually got the lounge to myself by 10pm, so I’ll either fire up console then, or noodle about on PC or laptop while absorbing pro-cycling coverage… rarely sleep before 1am.
Child friendly games on the weekend (usually NFS and skylanders with my son) otherwise usually get up at 5am each morning for an hour of game play before work.
This is largely what I do, although I get 2 hours in the morning (5am-7am), then another 40 minutes or so at work on the Vita, and in the evenings from about 8pm-10pm.
Weekdays: on the train to work (Vita) when I can easily get a seat; then after about 8pm when I’ve got my son (1yo) in bed.
Weekends: first thing in the morning if I’m lucky and no one else wakes up; during my son’s naps; after 8pm again.
Occasionally if I’m lucky I can play a game while my son plays nicely in the lounge room. Usually though I get fed up with having to stop him doing things he isn’t allowed to or if he decides he wants to press buttons on my controller.
Sadly PC gaming is limited to after 8pm, so I’m more often on a console lately.
Usually from 8 till 10. After that I watch a show as my brain goes from being tired from work to just dead.
I have been forced to become a night owl these days… After baby goes to bed is when my secret gaming life comes about.
I take annual leave to play games.
Otherwise, at this stage usually after I put my daughter to sleep so about 9pm onwards
I play games when I feel like it. Easy!
When does the mood usually strike?
When I’m busy with other things 🙁
But seriously, probably just after work, usually. Or all day weekends. All dependent on whether there’s any games I actually want to play, of course.
Whenever I can really. Usually a couple hours at around 5pm after work, before dinner. Then some more late; about 11pm onwards.
At the moment I’m working 5 days, 7 nights a week, so very little. But usually from 11pm after work until about 3am because I have to get up at 7am for work again. I really should just be sleeping 😛
On school nights I play my 3DS or Vita on the way to and from work, then the PS3 between 9 and 11pm. Weekends are usually a mix of afternoons and evenings/late nights. Generally it’s whenever I have time, energy and motivation which happens a lot less than it used to these days.
Weeknights: I try to squeeze in an hour if I’m lucky (and have the energy) once everyone else is counting sheep.
Friday nights: my wife has her weekly ‘girls night out’ so once I’ve put the bub down to sleep I’m usually parked on the couch with a good game and a couple beers from about 6pm – 9pm or whenever she gets home.
Weekends: Whenever I can… (read: whenever Mrs jedi_timmy isn’t around and the padawan is asleep.) The pause button has become my best friend in this regard.
Most nights from about 10-1am- then usually ALL weekend.
Usually when the fam is asleep. But when Dark Souls II comes out, there’s going to be no time that isn’t gaming time. NO TIME.
5:30PM – Midnight. Essentially when I’m not working, sleeping or spending time with the significant other.
I… can’t remember.
Juggling the gaming and life is a tricky one that depends on a lot of factors (married with a 2-year old boy).
During the week, it’s generally after all the usual routine stuff is done, which is around 8-8:30. AND provided she has other things to do. Normally get to bed by 10:30-11 depending on work the next day. On average I’d say I get 2 nights a week for roughly 2 maybe 2.5 hours.
On weekends, I’ll most likely game whilst the rug rat is down for his afternoon nap, and she heads out to have some time on her own (read: spend money), which lasts a couple of hours. If she hangs around the house though, chances are I’m receiving the proverbial healthy dose of the ball ache whinge about chores, that I suspect most of the married men who frequent this site are subjected to.
Wives; You can’t beat ’em…. Well, not in any legal sense of the fashion, but that’s for another forum…
I was with you all the way until “If she hangs around the house though, chances are I’m receiving the proverbial healthy dose of the ball ache whinge about chores, that I suspect most of the married men who frequent this site are subjected to.” Lucky for me the DVR has about 400gb of her shows waiting to be watched, so while she does that I squeeze in some gaming 🙂
Indeed lucky for you! My one’s not into things like “Revenge” “Sex in the City” or whatever other classic chick shows are out there… She’ll watch things like Master Chef, Australia’s Got Talent, X-Factor, etc., but they’re seasonal and don’t get aired anywhere near as much as I would like. I just realized that my comments aren’t portraying me as a very happily married man… lol, but I am – I just wish I had time for more gaming….
Well i am lucky, or you could say my partner is lucky, as I game too. We have his and her gaming rooms. I game when I feel like it, but i am also a heavy reader so usually go through short phases of just reading or gaming.
+1 – SO is a heavy reader in between her uni studies. I play from essentially 6-10 most nights (still a WoW raider, so 9 hours a week is mandatory) weekends when she is at work…. my poor eyes…
I’d say on average I get 35-40 hours a week of gaming…. No kids _yet_ all my mates say that baby#1 is a shock got about another year or so…
“Closet Gaming” Begins when she falls asleep between the hours of 9.30 and midnight.
Usually it’s anytime I possibly can, but of late, it’s been mostly between 6:30am and 7:30am, then I leave for work. Playtime after work varies from day to day depending on what’s going on. Weekends it tends to be from whenever I wake up, til 10am, then it’s Adventure Time! Then back to gaming again!
These horror stories are making me sad. The gf is just as much of a gamer as I am, just on pc rather than console. Works out pretty well. Work different hours so its usually easy for me to get in some time on the pc.
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