Last night I felt old.

I have a group of high school guys that hang out with me on Wednesday nights. This group gets together to play video games and eat pizza. We normally play Halo 3 and Super Smash Brothers Brawl, but I wanted to change it up so things don't get too boring for the guys.

Last night I decided to break out my NES and my Super Nintendo. I figured, since they are into games they probably would be a bit interested in the old school. Boy was I wrong.

Every time I tried to persuade the guys to come and play Super Mario Kart or Mortal Kombat, I got nothing but complaints.

"Dude! These graphics are horrible! Look how lame these characters fight."

"I guess this Mario Kart started it all, but you can't even throw the turtle shell behind you."

"I don't want to play Ninja Gaiden. It seems pretty lame."

I was a little bit ticked. Don't these guys appreciate some old school? I suppose not. I can't blame them. Some of it is pretty dated compared to the new.

It might be time to start a game night for some older gamers that would love playing some of the old stuff. I mean I have bins of these games in my house. They should get some use other than me playing them.

My wife picked me up a used copy of Age of Empires II Gold edition that includes Age of Empires II, the conquerors expansion and the strategy guides for both. Total cost: $5. I'm pretty pumped. I was gonna use my gift card to pay for a new copy at EBgames, but now don't have to. How exciting!!! What a wonderful wife I have.

Gas prices have reached a point where I'm considering cutting my video game budget. Right now it is $3.09 a gallon in the Northern Kentucky, Cincinnati are and only getting higher. My wife and I are getting ready to trade in our SUV for a mini-van to save on our gas, but money is still going to be tight. I spend a fair amount of money on video games even though I only buy used games. I know there will probably be a pretty good sale going on at GameStop this labor day weekend, but can I really spend my hard earned money on a bunch of games I probably won't play all that often? I collect more than I play and this may change the course of my buying. I will have to look at only collecting games that are really dirt cheap or really good quality games that I would play someday. But how can I cut my budget? I love collecting games. I really enjoy getting a good deal on a bunch of games to add to my collection. The better solution is to figure out a way to increase my income. I guess it is time to really get motivated with some small business ideas I've got in the hopper and do a lot of praying.

Maybe I'm getting old, but the next gen video game systems are getting really expensive for me. I could just be cheap, but I could buy a whole new computer for the price of the new system bundles. Don't get me wrong, the packages are a good deal for all the items you get with it, but i think all this will drive me further to be a classic game collector and player. I love being on the cutting edge, but my budget just won't allow it. There are so many good video game systems and games out there as well as other technology to be buying, but I need to provide for my family as well. Awwwww! I guess I need to get my side business stuff a crankin' so that I can continue keeping up to date.

Well Sony has released there latest update for the PSP. Wow! I could actually see myself trying to get a hold of one of these in the near future. Sony is really doing a lot to combine a lot of functionality in the PSP. I can surf the web, play my MP3's, watch a movie or TV show, play video games, and lots more. This seems to becoming the ultimate traveling device for those of us who hit the road quite frequently, but have no desire to lug around a computer or large piece of hardware to play video games on. I'll have to look into it, but if they rent movies for the PSP at the local Hollywood Video, it could be the icing on the cake. My biggest problem is how cheap I am about shelling out money for high priced items. I mean the Xbox 360 is right around the corner as well as the PS3. Oh, the decisions. My other hang back seems to be the burned out pixels on the PSP. How big is the problem really? That will be my next little item to research. Now if they could only add a cell phone feature and a daily organizer to this.

Yea!!!

Today I finished entering in all of my Sega Dreamcast Games into my collection. I also got all of the Dreamcast games i'm going to sell separated from my personal collection. This may not sound like that big of a deal, but for me i've been putting it off for a while. Now i can sell these games and get some cash to buy some other games for my collection.

Wahoo!

A very interesting question as of late for me. I've been playing on Xbox live and people send me friend requests, but i don't seem to know why. Have I done a really good job when playing a game? Do i have a neat gamertag? Am i just another person to add to your list? Maybe i'm a little different, but in life, i choose my friends very carefully. I've been trying to see how that plays out in a cyber world. I think i would prefer to be very selective in the people i associate myself with. I don't believe it is because i am some cyber snob, but because i truly wish to connect with people on a genuine level. When playing Halo 2 i'd like people that i would have fun playing a few rounds with or playing well as a team. Here on Gamespot, i'd like to be able to converse with people who have similar interests in gaming as well as life. I really don't care if my level goes up quickly based on my friends list. If people are on my list that i don't communicate with, then are they really friends? For now i will be looking for a few Gamespot friends who are interested in collecting NES games. It would be fun to hear about how excited other people are when they get a hold of a few more games to add to their collection. I know i'm always wanting to share with someone other than my wife. As far as halo 2 goes, i think when i peak level wise, i will be looking for a few people that are in the same boat and we can play together. My advice to the masses is to get to know your fellow gamers out there.

Tonight I had a chance to enter the ranks of Halo 2 players on xbox live. Being a newbie i decided to ask a few questions and was chided right away for being a loser and an idiot for not already know the answer to my own question. How friendly is the xbox live community? There are the few individuals who desire to curse and swear at you during the game, but I had an individual ask me to join his friends list. I agreed. I view myself as a pretty nice guy and who am i to deny a request to be somebody's friend. Aren't we all looking for friends out there?

I do want to say that i was not as impressed with the communicating feature as i thought i would be. Maybe i need a little more time or maybe i need a few more friends to converse with. We shall see. Send me a friend request if you like. I'd love to game with you.

I'm back!!!

My wife bought me Halo 2 and Doom 3 for my birthday to get me excited about gaming again. I have an awesome wife!
Last night I jumped on Xbox live and did some gaming. I think i might have found my niche for this time of my life. It's nice to be able to jump onto live, play a few games with other people w/o having to gather up some friends and then be done a half hour later. I think this is exactly what I'm looking for. I'm trying to get a hold of as many xbox live games as possible that I might enjoy playing with other people. If you have something you really like, leave a comment.

Can a video game enthusiast get tired of playing video games? Does one lose excitement in gaming?

These are questions I'm asking myself as of late. I have plenty of games to choose from and a variety of systems to play them from, but all of them seem to feel like work to play. Am i getting old? Has my outlook on life and my priorities changed?

I used to relish the idea of playing any and all games. My only goal was to beat as many games as i possibly could. My friends would call me the video game master, because it would take me little or no time at all to master a game or beat them at their own game of choice. I guess I just don't have the time i used to have to put into a game. I'm trying to cram in a half hour here and a half hour there and that could definately be the problem, or maybe i have too many choices and need to narrow the field. Whatever it may be, I feel as though I've changed some how. It depresses me some. I am a avid collector of NES games and lately that seems pointless. Is it time to pursue a new interest? Should i be taking my life in a totally different direction? I once thought that I had to change my priorities and get back into gaming, but I'm not sure that is the correct option. Time will only tell.

I'll keep you all posted as to how life will unfold.

A Gamer in Dilema