08-16-2023, 06:04 PM
Same for me: Gaming on Friday nights, with face-to-face groups, that concept largely much went away during the pandemic. Sunday evening Discord or Skype gaming has increased substantially, though, and the concept is clearly here to stay.
Traditional gaming - especially RPGs, with the extremely extensive time investment they require - just simply doesn't sync too well with an active lifestyle, with non-gamer partners, and generally, with the modern concept of "“no spare time, no free time - all you got is life time". Now, digital gaming, with no local displacement, no driving, no cleaning the house, no guests potentially limiting your family's other weekend endeavors, and with lower costs for gaming material -- that's all just very convenient in comparison to the Matthewmercerian ideal of what makes a proper face-to-face game, these days.
Personally, I game in person about once or twice per annual quarter - and that, counting in stuff like boardgames, minis etc. Now, digital gaming via Discord, or, general, digital RPG-related get-togethers, that tends to happen about once per month because it's easy to set up, because it's global, and because it's reasonably "lofi" to fit in with most schedules.
...Sure it's not the same thing, and I miss this thing of just hanging out every second weekend and hunting orcs together.
Now, luckily, digital gaming is not as hard to love as I thought it would be. Especially as we see the technology maturing towards stuff like "Tabletown", which at least promises to be a quantum leap from the rather clunky affairs that you get involved with via Roll20, Owlbear Rodeo, etc. I think there is a future there. Even if the past was better. 
Traditional gaming - especially RPGs, with the extremely extensive time investment they require - just simply doesn't sync too well with an active lifestyle, with non-gamer partners, and generally, with the modern concept of "“no spare time, no free time - all you got is life time". Now, digital gaming, with no local displacement, no driving, no cleaning the house, no guests potentially limiting your family's other weekend endeavors, and with lower costs for gaming material -- that's all just very convenient in comparison to the Matthewmercerian ideal of what makes a proper face-to-face game, these days.
Personally, I game in person about once or twice per annual quarter - and that, counting in stuff like boardgames, minis etc. Now, digital gaming via Discord, or, general, digital RPG-related get-togethers, that tends to happen about once per month because it's easy to set up, because it's global, and because it's reasonably "lofi" to fit in with most schedules.
...Sure it's not the same thing, and I miss this thing of just hanging out every second weekend and hunting orcs together.
Now, luckily, digital gaming is not as hard to love as I thought it would be. Especially as we see the technology maturing towards stuff like "Tabletown", which at least promises to be a quantum leap from the rather clunky affairs that you get involved with via Roll20, Owlbear Rodeo, etc. I think there is a future there. Even if the past was better.