You don’t want me to let you know how a lot the pandemic has modified our habits. Remote working could have been a blessing in disguise on some degree, but it surely’s arduous to disclaim that over the previous two years, it’s been slowly consuming away on the line between our private {and professional} lives.
Don’t get me improper – you’ll by no means discover me complaining about not having to spend a number of hours a day commuting to and from the workplace. Nonetheless, regardless of this, working from dwelling has utterly destroyed my want to go anyplace close to my gaming setup anymore.
I nonetheless play video video games, however with every passing day, I’ve discovered it far more comforting curling up on the couch with a previous-gen console moderately than spending my night’s gaming on the similar desk the place I work eight hours a day.
Ditching my gaming PC
I assembled my trusty gaming PC shortly after ending college. Since then, it’s been with me by way of thick and skinny, even going by way of a couple of CPU, GPU and motherboard upgrades all through the years. This similar gaming rig now sits by my work setup at dwelling the place I’ve spent nearly all of the pandemic working from.
My gaming rig continued to be an vital a part of my life all through college and the early levels of my skilled profession as a communications marketing consultant. Even all through the pandemic, my PC helped me energy by way of 2020 and allowed me to get pleasure from a few of the best games of 2021 whereas in lockdown.
Nevertheless, I’ve solely lately realized that the extra I felt exhausted and burnt out at work, the much less time I wished to spend gaming at a desk. I perceive that working and gaming are wildly totally different actions – and in my case includes having two separate PCs – however I simply couldn’t get previous the truth that there I used to be glued to a pc on the similar precise chair and desk.
At first, I puzzled whether or not or not I had outgrown video video games – as if. I nonetheless felt a eager for gaming, even when the considered sitting at my gaming PC made me a tad sick. I initially turned to Twitch streams to try to reside vicariously by way of numerous gaming content material creators, but it surely simply wasn’t the identical.
That’s once I had a lightbulb second – I nonetheless haven’t been capable of nab a new-gen console just like the PS5 or the Xbox Series X, however I did have my dusty original PS4, which I made a decision to arrange in my front room as far-off from my work desk as bodily doable. This answer labored a deal with.
In fact, an eight-year-old console may by no means compete with a mean mid-range gaming PC by way of {hardware} specs and graphic capabilities. However I by no means appeared to care – even with the occasional FPS stutters apart, I used to be capable of breeze by way of new releases like Resident Evil Village and Mass Effect Legendary Edition with minimal points.
I’ll nevertheless admit that consoles will possible by no means be capable of fairly deal with PCs by way of having a comparable choice of video games to select from. Even making an allowance for Xbox Game Pass in addition to rumors that PlayStation could also be creating its personal gaming subscription service, the flexibility of computer systems will all the time imply that PC customers can have entry to a greater variety of video games than their console counterparts. Personally, every time this grew to become a difficulty, I merely swiped my companion’s Nintendo Switch every time the temper for extra informal gaming struck.
Is there an answer?
Whereas I’ve switched to console gaming in the intervening time, I undoubtedly don’t see it being a everlasting change. At the same time as my PC continues to gather mud, I nonetheless imagine I’ll return to it sooner or later as quickly as my endurance for distant working stops carrying considerably skinny. Within the meantime, within the occasion that you end up in an identical scenario, I’ve put collectively some doable options that haven’t fully labored for myself, however very nicely could do for you.
First off – and I admit this may occasionally not seem to be a viable answer for these dwelling in a tiny London flat like myself – it might be price fascinated about separating your gaming rig away out of your workspace in case you have the area to take action. Shifting your gaming setup over to a spare room, hooking it as much as your TV and even simply transferring it to a different desk could make a world of distinction in serving to you mentally separate your workspace out of your place of leisure. If this appears like an inexpensive plan, now we have a round-up of the best cheap gaming desks accessible proper now.
If transferring your gaming PC away out of your present desk simply isn’t doable, there might be another issues that you could possibly do to alter the best way you concentrate on your workspace. Making a aware effort to kind more healthy working habits labored for me on a couple of event. For instance, this could embody issues like taking small breaks all through the day or blocking out time for a brief noon stroll every time your work schedule permits.
One other trick is to cease your self from consuming lunch in entrance of your work laptop computer, however that’s only a good life tip usually. Basically, the purpose right here is to reduce the period of time you spend at your desk as a lot as doable to be sure you have the vitality to sport later.
Having a dependable group of PC gamer mates might help convey again your motivation to sport too. You’ll even be much less more likely to flake for those who schedule common gaming classes all through the week.