It’s 2021, and it’s time to look ahead to everything coming up in our lives. A lot can happen in a year, as we’ve all seen in the most dramatic ways possible through 2020.
As we navigate what’s next for all of us on the outside, I must continue engaging with games, gamers, and gaming. The three Gs of my bizarre career choice. I’m not generally one for making resolutions, since I feel like self-improvement is a year-round goal.
But when it comes to more trivial, fun stuff like videogames, that’s a fine place for these kinds of thought exercises!
My 2021 Gaming Resolutions
So for 2021, I’m thinking about what I want to accomplish, not in life or my career but in the ways in which I engage with games. COVID made games as strange a space as any last year, and that weirdness could very well get more complicated in 2021.
But the work continues for better or worse, and in terms of games this space is about as “back to normal” as it can get for now. So for now, with a few exceptions, my resolutions are going to reflect that pseudonormalcy.
Organize My Junk
Yeah, I’m basically talking about cleaning my room. But in a really specific, focused way. I’ve introduced more than just two new consoles into my gaming setup in 2020. I’ve continued a collecting habit, which includes new retro games, physical releases, and even other new platforms (yeah I’m in on the unauthorized handheld scene, deal with it).
Basically, I have a lot of cords, components, and consoles everywhere and it’s getting out of hand. In 2021 I really want to straighten things out with my gaming Stuff, finding new ways to keep things tidy and organized, and maybe spruce up things like my office space to help rein in my collection to something less packratty.
Forget About The Backlog
For a few years now, I’ve been concerned about the dreaded Backlog, the pile of unpaid and unbeaten games that so many of us are familiar with. It’s an unavoidable reality in our age of bundles and flash sales. In 2020 I beat several more games than usual, making one game at a time a “Project” and focusing on that in my downtime.
But as it turns out, approaching my free time in that way was pretty stressful! After trying and failing to dash through Persona 5 Royal over the holiday break, I realized that perhaps that’s the wrong approach. It just feels better to chip at more than one game at once, even if it feels unfocused and “unproductive.”
But having fun in your free time shouldn’t be about productivity. I’ll still strive to see credits in my games, but I won’t be brute forcing it anymore.
Build The Brand
Yeah, this is corny, but it’s also pretty serious. I’ve been playing games for work-related purposes for a decade now, and I’m pretty small-time. But I have rad credits and I think I’m at least kinda smart, but I keep to myself too often. 2021 is going to be a year of self-promotion self-improvement.
I want to be more ambitious with my work in games, and that includes figuring out how to get my name out there more. I could do videos, or do a podcast, or something else I haven’t thought of yet! We’ll see how it goes.
Read a Freakin’ Book
I spent most of my free time in 2019 and 2020 on games. This was also kind of a rough patch in my life, and I hyper-focused on what was easy and felt “productive.” But doubling down onto one form of media isn’t good if you’re calling yourself a professional critic and trying to get better.
I need to go back to reading books, and by “books” I mean novels that ask questions and offer new perspectives I haven’t seen yet. Basically, I need to do more push-ups with my brain.
Kill The Guilty Pleasure Mindset
I’ve been calling myself the Commandant of Anime at Prima Games, due to my interest in JRPGs and work history at places like Shonen Jump and Siliconera. But it’s always been kind of an ironic thing, my relationship with anime. But that needs to change.
I need to be more sincere about my interests, and that includes channeling my attraction to anime and number-grinding into something more positive. The phrase “Guilty Pleasure” shouldn’t exist, because it holds people back. Including myself! Anyway catch me yelling about Musou and Nippon Ichi in ways I haven’t before in 2021.
I haven’t had a solid winter break in a few years now, and the one I got to close out 2020 was more helpful than I thought it was!
I have new goals and aspirations, and in ways that tie into my gaming hobby and career. It may be fluff to write about new year resolutions on a videogames website, but there are always opportunities to do more with less. Anyway, let’s get it done this year, readers. Make it happen in 2021.
