Hmm… I think it’s definitely a spectrum. Even arcade games have stories. It’s not what drives them, but they still do.

When you start considering something like Bandersnatch, the spectrum gets even wider.

I try them often, but haven’t had much luck finding a favorite other than Crimzon Clover. Nex Machina and Furi got close, but not quite.

Some experiences were nice, but not replayable, which ruled them out as a favorite for me, like Hyper Light Drifter.

Some I had some fun with, but took issue with some of the design choices, like Dead Cells and Hollow Knight.

Some I outright did not enjoy at all like Hades or Stardew Valley.

Most recent indie game that got close for me was Kill Knight.

What are some of your favorite indies?

Oh, absolutely. It probably has a lot to do with falling out of favor with current design and monetization trends, I agree.

Some of the games I’ve been playing for years: Guilty Gear, Under Night In-Birth, Bayonetta, The Wonderful 101, Crimzon Clover, Smash TV, and Catherine.

Which games do you keep going back to?

I love that you’re having a different experience! This is exactly why I posted about this: I have found that my taste in almost everything else has become broader as I aged, so I was wondering what’s the deal with my uncharacteristically narrow taste in video games.

Sadly, I tried most of the games on your list, and found out they’re not for me. I’ll try the rest though! Thank you for taking the time to list them.

I’m mainly into fighting games (Guilty Gear, Under Night), action games (Bayonetta, God Gand), and shmups (Crimzon Clover, Ketsui)

I’ll occasionally like an Atlus game (Catherine) or a Zachtronics game (Shenzhen I/O) but that’s about it.

What are your favorites?

Ah, man, I feel the same. I like some indie titles, but haven’t run into anything I could add to my favorites except Crimzon Clover World EXplosion. Nex Machina and Furi got really close too.

What are some of your favorites?

Not to rain on that particular advice—it may actually work for others, I obviously do not know—but I did try that at some point, and got bored really quickly.

For anyone who hasn’t tried it, I recommend doing it just to find out if you feel or notice anything interesting.

I think I agree: it definitely has more to do with knowing what one likes than being jaded.

Hypothetically, if the market is full of games like Monster Hunter, or borrow a lot of ideas from it, would you still not be interested in most games?

That’s so sweet bonding with your dad over that game. May you retain that memory forever ❤️

I’m with you. The concept of gaming as a disposable medium never really worked for me either. The idea of going through my wishlist like it’s a watchlist—beating a game only to move on to the next was just never really for me.

If I don’t think a game is built to be organically replayable, I’ll probably just lose interest in buying it.

I mainly play fighting games, action games, and shmups. There’s the occasional Atlus/Zachtronics game, but that’s it.

I should probably have clarified in my post: I’m not bored of my favorite games. Part of the reason I love them is I find them infinitely replayable.

I just wonder why my taste in games is aggressively narrow, is all.

Does it not feel weird sometimes to be disconnected from the gaming zeitgeist? Like, we can obviously still follow news and whatnot, but I’m particularly talking about having no significant emotional investment in contemporary releases—in other words: being disconnected from the hype of announcements and release cycles.

I know people consider this a blessing in this age of hyper-consumerism, but there’s a communal aspect to it that I like, and it often feels odd to not be part of it.