It’s been about two years since I last played games on the PC. At the time, I was overwhelmed with the amount of Steam games I had sitting there unplayed, yet at the same time I felt hindered by a gaming setup that I couldn’t upgrade. I also had issues with the “portability” of the machine, which actually amounted to heating issues and a 2 hour battery life.

I’m back. I caved in and purchased a new machine for the sake of simple gaming, something to take me away from the couch and the $60/month investment on console games. After one week, I gotta say…it’s working out so far.

So much to catch up on, but I’ve actually been able to contain my excitement and keep things to a minimum.

First off, I reactivated my old WoW subscription and playing through the content with co-workers. I’m not allowing it to overwhelm my life…which is good. It’s a nice distraction from FFXIV, which is a really good game…but there is the social aspect with people I know who actually play the game.

I’m mixed on WoW so far. I have always loved the story and the art style. Yet it seems like much of the earlier content that I was familiar with is now put aside, forcing the player to rush through those early-level stages.

This is both good and bad…I don’t see the same old stuff from 5 years ago, nor do I have to deal with so much “Kill 6 Rapters, Find 12 boarskins” quests. Yet at the same time I’m skipping through areas that used to be very populated. I’ll play for an hour or two in Ashenvale or something and not see a single person as they all hang out in Stormwind or other areas.

I played a bit of Elite Dangerous. That game is great…except I feel a bit let down by the mission quality. It seems like the primary means of advancing in the game is just hanging out by a navpoint in front of a star and waiting for something to happen. There’s other elements such as exploration and trade…but for a beginner sitting in a newbie Sidewinder I feel a bit underwhelmed?

Also picked up American Truck Simulator and having a huge blast with the game. I’m excited about the possibilities of DLC (a plus for once?). The game starts off with California and a free Nevada DLC, Arizona will be coming out soon and will also be free. Rumor has it that Utah and the Pacific Northwest is next. This is awesome, and hopefully in a couple of years from now I can do a cross-country trip, or re-enact trips I made a few years ago (like the fantastic North Carolina to Seattle trip).

If there’s a bright light to PC gaming is that I can actually cut back on gaming costs. Steam sales are frequent, and with MMO’s (both free to play and monthly fees), I can enjoy a wealth of content for a small fraction of the price. If I want to upgrade, it’s simply swapping one part for another.

This weekend I hope to do a bit more gaming. I’ll stick with a few of the ones I like for now…play a round of World of Tanks…play a couple dungeons on WoW or FFXIV. That sorta thing…