I Have Achieved Mediocrity

    Back in the 90s, I used to play video games somewhat frequently.  I didn't always complete the game, but I liked playing them.  I mean, I didn't really have much else to do for the second half of the decade.  Once I opened my store and had to move due to flooding, I had a lot less time to play.  So, for almost ten years, I stopped playing, save for the occasional online game while waiting for a car appointment to finish.  That was all before I finally got my own computer.  Now, I seem to be playing more than ever, just not the same type of games.  They are mostly short ones, where I can play for awhile and stop, as opposed to the longer ones I used to play that would take hours and hours just to finish.  Although, I must say that those few games I was able to get to an ending didn't always take that long.  Sure, I could get close, but I would stumble on the last few parts.  Other times, I could achieve the basic ending, but I wasn't able to get every little goal and it would frustrate me that I couldn't get the full experience.  Aside for a standard solitaire game that I downloaded, I only play three games competitively.  Currently, SongPop 2 is the one I'm improving in the most.  After I was able to play it again on Mac, after a seven month absence or so, new features had been added, including a set of goals (daily, weekly, monthly, and now even an overarching global one) for players to accomplish to earn more in-game prizes.  For instance, if a guess three songs correctly by an artist in a day, a get points.  When I get enough points, I get a bonus.  I get more points by watching an ad for fifteen seconds.  Yeah, not fun, but useful.  Unfortunately, many of the goals involve playing against my set list of opponents, many of whom are not helpful.  Some haven't been playing with me for months, and I'm going to be forced to trim some of these slackers and get new ones.  I also managed to finish the last of the in-game achievements, playing fifty matches against one player in a week.  All I got was a badge, but at least I finished the last achievement. Before you ask, it was against the free player that I feel is computer generated that every new player gets when they start, the one who never improves their scores, but always seem to play the same categories you do, even when it was only once for a challenge.  Also, the fifty games are technically twenty-five reciprocal  matches, so it isn't as many games as you might think.  The next game I've been playing a lot is Candy Crush Saga through Facebook.  I am nearing Rank 200 and quickly nearing level 12,000.  On the one hand, I am accomplishing so many in-game goals and challenges that I'm racking up super scores.  On the other, I end up burning through my stockpiles of supplies.  I used to have almost two thousand of one tool before I started to play more competitively.  Now, it is somewhere between seven and six hundred.  At least I have a technique where I can stockpile some supplies easily, but that could change at any moment, especially since I'm nearing the end of the game.  Even with new levels every week, I could race through up to thirty on a great run.  Many bonuses depend on winning levels for the first time.  With fewer levels, I have fewer opportunities to improve.  The last game I play frequently, also via Facebook, is Golf Clash.  To be honest, while I love the game, I think I may have reached my limit.  I know what to do and how to play well, but my fingers, brain, supplies, and internet connection don't always line up so I can win consistently.  I help others with my knowledge and experience, but that isn't translating into wins.  I guess what they say might be true.  "Those who can, do.  Those who can't, teach."  I hate that saying, but I am reaching the point where it might be best just to take a day to just go through everything in a blaze of glory just to see how far I could go, leaving me in jeopardy if I fail.  I play a few other games, but nothing to competitive. Basically, I just play to get the daily bonuses and stop when the time runs out on them.  The fact that some of these Facebook games aren't getting all of the same features as the stand-alone versions make it less worthwhile to play these.  It's not fair that I'm not getting the same experience, but it does mean that I play some games less than fifteen minutes per day, total, for multiple sessions.  Now, if I only had something better to do with my time.