Will You Still Be a Gamer in 30 Years?

"Mom, grandma and grandpa won't let me have a turn!"

Imagine it's 30 years from now. You have the life you want — or at least one that's relatively comfortable and happy. Based on your preferences, you can be single or married, have a dozen kids or none at all, live in a place where the weather is warm all year or at the South Pole…whatever you like.

Now, try to answer this question honestly: Are video games a part of that life?

I've seen this question phrased different ways on video-game message boards many times. Almost unanimously, users respond, "I'll be gaming until they pry the controller from my cold, dead, slightly carpal-tunneled hands." Once a gamer, always a gamer, right?

As I said in one of my previous Bitmob articles, I don't play as much as I used to. Chalk my waning interest in the hobby up to getting older (and the responsibilities that come with it). I can only vouch for myself, but judging from the comments on my previous article, many people — including some of the Bitmob staff — feel the same way I do. This trend makes me wonder if most of us will outgrow video games at some point in our lives.

I realize some people will most certainly continue blasting space aliens well into their golden years. Hell, some of the fogies on the Bitmob staff (sorry, fogies) have been at it for more than 30 years already. But magazines paid (or still pay) those guys to write about games: Most of us won't be so lucky.

Not to be a party pooper, but here are a few thing that might prevent you from gaming from now until you croak:

• Gaming is an expensive hobby, and it's likely it will only become more expensive with every passing console generation.

• The amount of money you spend on bills often grows as you age, leaving you with less unallocated cash lying around.

• The number of responsibilities seems to grow, too, leaving you with less free time.

These are only a few potential impediments to lifelong gaming; many more exist — say for instance, your physical health. Not everyone will manage to hold on to their favorite hobby until long after they've become eligible for a senior-citizen discount. At what point do the rest of us throw in the Mario-themed towel and give up gaming altogether?

Think about it: Are you more enthusiastic about video games than when you were a kid? Do you play games as often as you did 10 years ago?

I'm guessing many of you will answer "no" to both of those questions. (If you answered "yes" and "more often, dumbass!" then let me know in the comments.)

Do you think I'm on to something? Or do you think you'll always be a gamer? Will our priorities shift away from video games as we age? Or will the medium grow with us and become as indispensable as film, music, or literature?