[[2026 Games]] Getting older is…ass in a lot of ways, I’m not gonna lie. My body hurts in ways I didn’t think possible and that I can’t seem to prevent. I’m forgetful, needing reminders to get anything done. I have to pay taxes which are seemingly being used to systemically dismantle the country I live in, as opposed to like, fixing potholes on the road or anything useful. I have no time for anything, and as you can see, I’m jaded and unable to be mindful without a lot of effort. But for all of those issues, there’s one big benefit that makes age worthwhile, which is that I’m smarter now. Or at least, I’d like to think I am. Being smarter means that I’m smarter about the media I experience, and in particular, the media I go back to that I enjoyed as a kid. This is becoming extra obvious in games that I “played” back in the day, thinking I knew what I was doing, and realizing that wasn’t close to being the case. In the **Tales of** series, I used to mash, then hit an arte at the end of a combo. Now I know that you can chain a combo into a normal arte into an astral arte into an ultimate attack, maximizing your damage output and looking cool as hell. In games like **Final Fantasy Tactics**, I would simply vibe. That was fine, but now I’m able to build interesting synergies and class combos, thanks to the benefit of reading tooltips and understanding how the game design sausage is made, to an extent. I think that last part is key. In general, my understanding of game design over the years has made me more jaded in a lot of ways, to be sure. It’s hard not to be when the industry continues to [crumble in front of my eyes](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-02-19/sony-is-shutting-down-the-playstation-studio-bluepoint?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc3MTUyNzAyNiwiZXhwIjoxNzcyMTMxODI2LCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUQVBZWlBLR0lGUFkwMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiJCMUVBQkI5NjQ2QUM0REZFQTJBRkI4MjI1MzgyQTJFQSJ9.utABYnI4m_K6kqNqybZarBQ9T5WW_aWCH6NI3kt8Q64). But it’s also led me to rediscover an appreciation for the cleverness of the gmes that I”m nostalgic for now. Recontexualizing them into something new. And I think that’s neat and cool. Have you experienced this in the media you enjoy? Lemme know.