Some sweet but dated memories come to mind when I think of the last time I played Call of Duty multiplayer regularly. I think of great times I had in nail-biting games of Sabotage and sweaty one-on-ones with friends on classic maps like Shipment and Rust. I think of my teenage friends and I trying to get a laugh out of lobbies full of strangers with celebrity impressions and bits we’d practiced in school. I think of moments of soul-destroying defeat at 2 a.m. on weekends.
It’s been about 15 years since those days, and much has changed. My time is more limited, and my interests outside of gaming have expanded considerably. Being twice the age I was when Modern Warfare 2 (no not that one or that one) was released, I’m a bit wiser and my hair much grayer. My taste in games has also evolved. Gone is my tolerance for toxic player communities. Age has sanded away my desire to stay competitive in twitchy online action. And I can’t bring myself to care about golden guns, colored camouflage, and prestige levels.
