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I’ve been working from home for a long time now and, in addition to being over the hill and too exhausted from work and life in general, I’ve somewhat recently

I’ve been working from home for a long time now and, in addition to being over the hill and too exhausted from work and life in general, I’ve somewhat recently hit a wall with gaming where it feels too much like work (to game, I sit at the same desk, in the same office, just switch monitor and input to a different computer). It has really depressed the hell out of me. I had the good fortune of a friend selling the top end Deck for very cheap and I gotta say it reinvigorated gaming for me. I can simply go somewhere else in the house, plop down, and get right to it. The usual anxiety or exhaustion that prevents me from firing up my gaming PC is gone. I’m finding myself more motivated to try the plethora of older or lower spec games that have been languishing in my library that are actually really fun and easy to drop into casually, unlike the chain of disappointment that AAA gaming has become. I can put in a headphone and play something casual next to my partner if they’re doing something else, and they have appreciated that rather than me locking myself way for an entire day. I did try a Switch but the hardware and OS was too limited and closed off. The exclusives are largely uninteresting to me, and I don’t want to have to buy titles twice if I already have it and want to jump a title onto more powerful hardware (it’s nice that I can casually mess around with Baldur’s Gate 3 but if I’m really in the zone I can fire it up on PC to get buttery frame rates and full visual glory for deeper immersion). That’s the killer feature for me: helping me enjoy gaming again. Unfortunately, the right shoulder button stopped working and I had to send it in to be fixed. It should be back tomorrow and I cannot fucking wait. When’s the last time I’ve been excited about anything gaming related? As an aside: if you start working from home permanently or a long period of time, my unsolicited advice is to keep your workspace in a separate area from leisure if it’s possible, otherwise one will ruin the other. I was fine for _years_ in a combined office/den but around the time of the quarantine it flipped in my head and now it feels like I’m chained to my desk permanently.

squigz 3y ago
> I’ve been working from home for a long time now and, in addition to being over the hill and too exhausted from work and life in general, I’ve somewhat recently hit a wall with gaming where it feels too much like work (to game, I sit at the same desk, in the same office, just switch monitor and input to a different computer). It has really depressed the hell out of me. This is related to why a lot of people feel working from home is more stressful or distracting than not - there's no tangible "mode switch" from "being at home" to "working", and many people struggle with that. Advice I've often heard (and given) is to a) have a separate space for work vs play, and b) have a routine in the morning that switches you to "work mode" - i.e., don't just wake up in your PJs, make a coffee, and plop down at your work station. Quick Edit: I should have finished reading your comment :)
- sonicanatidae 3y ago
  I use a doorway as a mode switch. I have a spare bedroom that is setup as my home office. While I do not work from home daily, I do often do work after-hours, and assist from home now and then. When I walk into this room, I'm mentally at the office. When I exit it, I'm home again. YMMV.
  - yurishimo 3y ago
    This is infinitely more difficult if you live in a small space. It's likely not practical to have a home office AND a gaming room for your sick flight simulator setup, so they end up co-located. For me, I've largely switched to console gaming in the living room when I get the itch, but I'm a little sad I don't do it more.
    - sonicanatidae 3y ago
      I don't disagree. I do have the option, so I took it and it's worked great.
    - happymellon 3y ago
      I've personally switched back from console to PC gaming, even in the living room. The Deck was awesome and reinvigorated PC gaming, but building an AMD ITX system for the TV and sticking HoloISO on it for the same experience as the Deck has been great for couch co-op which has mostly been abandoned by consoles. Online co-op can now be satisfied with the TV and the Deck so we can still play together. Can't really do that easily with many consoles.
    - freetanga 3y ago
      I rent a small office (room, really) in a coworking site 5 mins away from home. It’s deductible for me, best decision in last year. That, and the Steam Deck for reasons listed above…
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
MisterBiggs 3y ago
> (to game, I sit at the same desk, in the same office, just switch monitor and input to a different computer). It has really depressed the hell out of me. Something that broke this cycle for me was steam remote play to my Apple TV in my living room.
- moribvndvs 3y ago
  Neat, I haven't tried this.

squigz 3y ago

> I’ve been working from home for a long time now and, in addition to being over the hill and too exhausted from work and life in general, I’ve somewhat recently hit a wall with gaming where it feels too much like work (to game, I sit at the same desk, in the same office, just switch monitor and input to a different computer). It has really depressed the hell out of me. This is related to why a lot of people feel working from home is more stressful or distracting than not - there's no tangible "mode switch" from "being at home" to "working", and many people struggle with that. Advice I've often heard (and given) is to a) have a separate space for work vs play, and b) have a routine in the morning that switches you to "work mode" - i.e., don't just wake up in your PJs, make a coffee, and plop down at your work station. Quick Edit: I should have finished reading your comment :)

sonicanatidae 3y ago
I use a doorway as a mode switch. I have a spare bedroom that is setup as my home office. While I do not work from home daily, I do often do work after-hours, and assist from home now and then. When I walk into this room, I'm mentally at the office. When I exit it, I'm home again. YMMV.
- yurishimo 3y ago
  This is infinitely more difficult if you live in a small space. It's likely not practical to have a home office AND a gaming room for your sick flight simulator setup, so they end up co-located. For me, I've largely switched to console gaming in the living room when I get the itch, but I'm a little sad I don't do it more.
  - sonicanatidae 3y ago
    I don't disagree. I do have the option, so I took it and it's worked great.
  - happymellon 3y ago
    I've personally switched back from console to PC gaming, even in the living room. The Deck was awesome and reinvigorated PC gaming, but building an AMD ITX system for the TV and sticking HoloISO on it for the same experience as the Deck has been great for couch co-op which has mostly been abandoned by consoles. Online co-op can now be satisfied with the TV and the Deck so we can still play together. Can't really do that easily with many consoles.
  - freetanga 3y ago
    I rent a small office (room, really) in a coworking site 5 mins away from home. It’s deductible for me, best decision in last year. That, and the Steam Deck for reasons listed above…
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]

MisterBiggs 3y ago

> (to game, I sit at the same desk, in the same office, just switch monitor and input to a different computer). It has really depressed the hell out of me. Something that broke this cycle for me was steam remote play to my Apple TV in my living room.

moribvndvs 3y ago
Neat, I haven't tried this.