I find that a lot of the time what prevented me from enjoying video games was a sense of obligation, especially if I had a backlog. Ever since I got game pass I have basically allowed myself to start and stop games whenever I please. I just follow my gut. And let me tell you, my enjoyment has skyrocketed. Now, after a few years of doing that, I picked up BG3 and that massive flame has returned in an incredible way. I say this as somebody in their 30s with children and a full-time job. I really know what you mean by responsibilities clouding your enjoyment. But if you just stop treating games like an obligation and only play what you want when you are really in the mood instead of carving out time and forcing yourself to do it (especially particular games) it is remarkable the difference it will make.
What’s bonkers is that you can play it on so many platforms. They’re dropping it natively for Mac OS next month even, if you can believe it.
I’ve been playing on GeForce now via Steam and it has been a remarkable experience. It feels like I’m playing locally in a way xCloud can’t reach yet. I also tried it on my deck for the first time last night and it plays pretty dang well. I get about 35fps and the battery is ripping through (I got like 1hr45min), but they optimized it well, it looks pretty good, and frankly 30+fps is perfectly fine for such a slow, methodical game. People get way too precious about 60fps.
I find that a lot of the time what prevented me from enjoying video games was a sense of obligation, especially if I had a backlog. Ever since I got game pass I have basically allowed myself to start and stop games whenever I please. I just follow my gut. And let me tell you, my enjoyment has skyrocketed. Now, after a few years of doing that, I picked up BG3 and that massive flame has returned in an incredible way. I say this as somebody in their 30s with children and a full-time job. I really know what you mean by responsibilities clouding your enjoyment. But if you just stop treating games like an obligation and only play what you want when you are really in the mood instead of carving out time and forcing yourself to do it (especially particular games) it is remarkable the difference it will make.

What platform are you playing BG3 on? I was thinking about trying it.
What’s bonkers is that you can play it on so many platforms. They’re dropping it natively for Mac OS next month even, if you can believe it.
I’ve been playing on GeForce now via Steam and it has been a remarkable experience. It feels like I’m playing locally in a way xCloud can’t reach yet. I also tried it on my deck for the first time last night and it plays pretty dang well. I get about 35fps and the battery is ripping through (I got like 1hr45min), but they optimized it well, it looks pretty good, and frankly 30+fps is perfectly fine for such a slow, methodical game. People get way too precious about 60fps.