I’ve been playing WoW since Vanilla. I was a high schooler when it came out. I’m a grown man with a family now. I was a main tank/raid leader back in Cata as a DK and I haven’t tanked much since then. I’m trying to get back into the groove. Tonight I did a follower dungeon as a tank to try and get back in the swing. I got Cinderbrew Meadery. I killed the first boss and had to walk away to make a homemade pizza for the family (I have a great recipe, the crust ROCKS).
I came back just before I got logged out for inactivity and the screen showed my character in stark contrast with Brewmaster Aldryr dead on the ground. It was a really weird feeling. He’s a pixelated, cartoon goofball but seeing that word DEAD really got me. I’m getting older and I have a little girl that I love with all my heart. It feels so different than when I was an immature teenager/early 20s guy celebrating the death of another jerk in BWD or Kara.
It actually made me stop for a second. Don’t get me wrong, I know it’s a video game and it’s not going to stop me from playing. It was just a strange moment. Getting older is weird. Mostly good, but once in a while… something feels really weird.
I’m in nearly the same situation you are. Started in late Burning Crusade, left at the beginning of MoP.
I came back late Dragonflight, after some college friends let me know they’ve all decided to play again. We lost touch- so its been a good way to socialize, as my social life is pretty non-existant now.
I’ve been catching up doing all the old raid content solo to get transmogs- and I had a similar thought as I am wiping out these raids with one button.
I was always extremely into the lore when I played before, coming from an RP server… and I couldn’t help but think of the virtual genocide I was comitting…
I’m there with ya, and, unfortunately, the middle-age years can be some of the unhappiest, in general. Try not to let it get you down too much. It’s good to reflect on the ephemerality of life and the humility that goes with it, but it’s like dancing on the greased edge of a dark pit. One slip and you’ll have a hard time getting out.
Depending on your belief system, though, that’s a fairly common remedy to the ennui of inevitable oblivion (or whatever exists thereafter). Take some time for introspection and find what it means to you, just… tread carefully!
Death has always been such an otherworldly concept to me.
I’m a big fan of true crime documentaries. Been watching them most of my life. I’ve heard of hundreds of deaths of people who were too young and undeserving of it. Yet it’s never made me jaded. I still dwell on it a lot, how someone can be here one moment and gone the next. Every day I see stories in the news of people dying from car crashes, shootings, or other one-off tragedies. It’s an eye-opener.
Never take life for granted. You aren’t promised tomorrow. Hug your loved ones a little tighter tonight.
(A little deeper than I had intended to get on the forums. )
)