Re: Strategy on the Decline

Rin Stowleigh wrote:

 Supposedly the sweet spot for game buyers is between 18 and 38.
 Think about how that demographic has changed from 30-40 years ago.
 The pandemic put a serious dent in the level of learning / brain
stimulation for school kids while that was going on, and even before
that their brains were being manipulated and diluted by social media
algorithms.  To them, gaming is pokemon on the phone, not
Civilization.
 Then you have the folks 38+ who have played so many shit games they
paid for and regretted, then subsequently were flooded with free games
that they can't find time to play, that sitting at the computer for
hours in a typical turn based strategy is the last thing they're
interested in wasting their life doing.
 There is probably a nostalgia audience for strategy games, but they
aren't likely to spend a lot of money or be eager early adopters.
 When team based tactical first person multiplayer shooters emerged and
I started playing with organized teams, I realized that the level of
planning, overall strategy, and tactics that were available in that
genre not only satisfied but overshadowed everything I originally
liked about strategy games like Civilization, or Empire on the Atari
ST, Ancient art of War and AAoW at Sea, etc.  There was just no
comparison.
 But consoles changed the multiplayer shooter landscape.  And speaking
of consoles, that in itself probably didn't help the fate of the
strategy genre, which is typically not as well suited to a game
controller as a mouse/keyboard.
 Today, a lot of the kids who would have gotten interested or even
addicted to strategy games are probably too distracted by teen girls
shaking their tits and ass on tik tok to notice much of anything else.

That shows that "teen girls" are just as desperate as any guy.  I can load up facebook any time and watch five different half-nude girls shake it.  Girls just want to dance.
Another theory about strategy games is Civ VI was a flop.  I can't even play it without shutting down my computer afterwards because of the keyboard lights.  Also, too much emphasis on cultural advancements. It's not transparent; you can't see under the hood to know if your culture shit is helping.  I don't think Civ VI or Dawn of War II were very good games.  I would go all the way back to Civ IV for my strategy fix, except unfortunately Achievements aren't implemented on Steam.  It feels like playing with zero rewards.  The fact is, my computer, which I bought last year, is getting old.  Magic:TG Arena overheated my system and funky artifacts started showing up, like mana costs cascading all over the screen.  I'd rather play Balatro, which is cunningly coded, released in 2024 yet still no need to engage the fan.  I can wear my headphones but when it gets that hot things fuck up.  Balatro shows that some developers care about overheating, something that is caused by a great deal of electricity passing through the computer whether it be for graphics or fancy Creative Labs Soundblasting.  I realize that as far as Alienwares go this is a low end computer, but I shouldn't have to pay twice the price just to get in the door.  I can't really imagine that all my peers are throwing down $3200 for their gaming machines.  What I did recently was to order a PS4 with Elden Ring and Dark Souls III.  My good mood dropped a bit when I saw that many other people were buying PS4 cooling units in combination with this.  If consoles are overheating too, where are we going?  Sorry if it seems like I prate on this subject, but I want my voice to be heard.  I don't want to play some shit if it requires maximum fan speed.  I know they can do it, but kids these days fall over backwards for eye candy.  I'm content with the graphics in Dominions V, but I loaded it up and my friend said, "let's play something with better graphics."  If you play enough games like I have, I think you will realize that graphics are only a means to an end.   I'm here for strategic/role-playing/action content and I just don't understand the focus on graphics without bound.  I've heard it said, "in a few years the graphics will look real."  Who gives a shit?  The graphics look real enough to me in World of Warcraft cut scenes.  That was fifteen yrs ago.
It's a horror story.  Say I come up with $3200 to buy the top end Alienware.  I bet I'd still have to deal with lots of overheating.  What I'd like to do is break my computer over someone's head and get in the news, where it says that my computer was too hot and drove me mad.  I was appalled when I got this one home and Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous was used to fry an egg.  When is this shit going to stop?  I bought too many computers in the 90s just to keep up.  My parents lost some faith in me when I liquidated my stock portfolio to buy just another computer.  And it's still happening!
In retrospect, my advice to computer owners is to avoid incremental upgrades.  Save some money to get the top end computer or to build one instead of numerous minor upgrades.  I know I'm saving for that $3200 machine.
One good thing I can say about my Alienware is that games don't slow down.  It keeps trucking through them even when it's on fire.