Foreword

2024 started with a bang and one of the things I promised myself to accomplish during this year was to get through my infinite backlog and start completing games. That sounds like a simple feat but it really isn’t, as change always requires someone to apply an opposing force to habits.

Change is bad, being always the same is even worse

Everything should be perpetually in motion, not even mountains sit completely still

This is the first thing I repeat myself everyday, and this is the path where I’m leading my life. Habits are hard to overcome, and gaming habits are often underestimated in addition to that, due to the entire playing videogames thing being generally addressed as a “waste of time”. Yeah, it is possible to use that time and do something completely different (i.e. being a volunteer, a first responder, etc.), I’m no one to argue with this. But it is also possible to use that time to heal yourself, both your mind and your spirit, as you can’t help anyone if you can’t help yourself first.

The journey, the destination

I have a past as a binge-gamer, meaning I’d play any game for a few hours, then get interested in another, and so on and on. My 1000+ games backlog is a memento of my past and my behavior. Gaming-wise, I feel like I’ve accomplished nothing on the past 30 years. Yikes, writing this makes me feeling so shallow (and kinda old, you know).

Traveling with your mind

I love reading, I always have 3-5 books on my nightstand I’m reading at the same time as it helps my mind traveling far, widening my horizons, getting to know new things and concepts. It never happened I enjoyed a book and abandoned it after a few chapters. Why, I thought, videogames should be any different compared to books? They both have characters you love or hate, they both describe a world you already know or make you think about an imaginary setting, they both make you learn something and widen your horizons. And let’s be honest, most of the time when you get to the last chapter you feel like getting ready to say goodbye to an old and dear friend.

The goal

As I stated before in the foreword, the main goal of this entire journey will be to immerse myself in more videogames (with some focus on narrative ones) throughout this year, and complete them. Playing, with the concept of self-healing and overcoming bad habits. Playing to get better and to be better. Different concepts, I know, but same starting point.

Getting inspired by these few words or calling me a 40-years-old-loser is completely up to you. Whichever the results, I wish you to have a good spiritual path.