NO IDEA. I’M STILL A GAMER AT 26!

DILAN PATEL (FOUNDER & CHIEF EDITOR @ DIL)

31ST AUGUST 2005

After a dizzying theme park trip, we returned to the hotel, for the final night of our family holiday. To seek solace from the stifling heat, I immediately searched for my Game Boy Advance SP. Rummaging through luggage, I finally located it. Already installed, was the game of all games; Pokémon Ruby.

I vowed that I’d at least match my brother’s natural flair for problem-solving. He’d already bagged Groudon, the game’s rare mascot, subsequently passing the edition down after his completion. And, like a heartbroken gym junkie, my Machop was due to become Machoke. I entered the cartridge, switching on the gadget, with hope. Its iconic introductory sound drew me into a twilight of digital solitude.

MORNING

We were late and typically brown. Throughout the night, I’d evolved Combusken to Blaziken, Taillow to Swellow, Vulpix to Ninetales, and Machop to Machamp. Rayquaza, the dark green flying dragon, was within reach. My slumberous eyes embodied the drudgery of numerous map circuits before dawn. Had I known such weariness would prove to be ironic, I’d have dozed off much earlier. Breakfast — check. Packing — (sort of) check. Hours later, we were gliding over the ocean like Generation III Pelipper.

London. A storm and the torment of a lost umbrella. Home, a haven for recharging and securing trainer prestige, was close. Heading South, we basked in the depression of September’s beginning and discussions of December. Something wasn’t right, and so, I checked my belongings.

To my dismay, Pokémon Ruby, and its saved data, was missing.

MOURNING

A part of me died in that moment.

26 AND STILL A GAMER

As of today, I’m still attached to video games and the memories they’ve spawned. Friday Fifa sessions would involve my first cousin and I cursing over headset, animated by cans of Coke Zero. Easter would welcome an intense Nuketown 24/7 weekend on Call of Duty: Black Ops. Despite its charm, I’m overwhelmed by guilt each time I start my PS5. Why? Are baseless myths to blame?

Gaming surpasses music and cinema as the highest-grossing entertainment industry across the globe. It encourages individuals, of any background, to connect, communicate, and share ideas. Without gaming as an escape, I’d have certainly bombed my GCSEs and A-Levels. Also, try telling Japanese ‘Gamer Grandma’, Hamako Mori, to drop the controller. At 90 years of age, Mori is the oldest-ever gaming YouTuber, earning a Guinness World Record for the fact. In 1981, she began with an Epoch Cassette Vision. Presently, her channel boasts over 500,000 subscribers, keen to see her engrossed.

FIFA 74

If I live to be 75, I’ll be purchasing Fifa 74. Being too old for gaming is one thing. Feeling too old is another. As the former owner of 4 systems (Game Boy Advance SP, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo Wii, and PlayStation 3), I regard the challenge of gaming as a vital avenue for personal development.

GAMING: HOW OLD IS TOO OLD?