u/Prestigious_Knee_88

Been gaming for around 15 years now. Grew up on TF2 and COD with childhood friends. Some of my best memories have been staying up late, cracking dumb jokes, and just being able to chill with people like me.

Fast forward to today. I’m 23 now and recently moved to a new city for work, and it’s weird how much harder gaming socially has become. The people I usually game with are busy building their own lives now. We still talk, but getting everyone online at the same time feels impossible.

I figured I’d try meeting new people online to game with on weekends, but honestly… it’s been rough. A lot of people are either super toxic, completely indifferent, or you just don’t click at all. And even when I do find someone chill through Discord/LFG apps, the whole thing feels weirdly transactional. Like everyone’s just cycling through temporary teammates instead of actually building friendships. I'm meeting tons of people, there's just very little actual connection.

Anyone else feeling this as they get older? If so, what are y’all doing about it? Have you actually found good communities/friends online recently, or is this just what gaming culture turns into after you grow up?

Context: I've been gaming for around 15 years now. I grew up playing TF2 and COD with childhood friends, and honestly some of my best memories came from those nights staying up late, joking around, and just feeling connected to people.

I’m 23 now and recently moved to a new city for work, and I didn’t expect how hard it would become to recreate that kind of connection. My old friends are all busy building their own lives now, so even though we still care about each other, getting everyone online together almost never happens anymore.

Problem: I tried meeting new people online through Discords and LFG groups thinking it’d be easy since gaming is such a social hobby, but it’s felt surprisingly empty. A lot of interactions feel temporary or transactional — like everyone’s just looking for teammates for the night rather than actual friendships. Even when people are nice, there’s rarely any real connection that sticks.

I guess I’m realizing I miss the feeling of naturally belonging somewhere socially, and I’m wondering if other people in their 20s have experienced this too. For any gamers on this reddit, have y'all experienced this problem? What has your experience been and how have you made genuine friendships while gaming?

Been gaming for around 15 years now. Grew up on TF2 and COD with childhood friends. Some of my best memories have been staying up late, cracking dumb jokes, and just being able to chill with people like me.

Fast forward to today. I’m 23 now and recently moved to a new city for work, and it’s weird how much harder gaming socially has become. The people I usually game with are busy building their own lives now. We still talk, but getting everyone online at the same time feels impossible.

I figured I’d try meeting new people online to game with on weekends, but honestly… it’s been rough. A lot of people are either super toxic, completely indifferent, or you just don’t click at all. And even when I do find someone chill through Discord/LFG apps, the whole thing feels weirdly transactional. Like everyone’s just cycling through temporary teammates instead of actually building friendships. I'm meeting tons of people, there's just very little actual connection.

Anyone else feeling this as they get older? If so, what are y’all doing about it? Have you actually found good communities/friends online recently, or is this just what gaming culture turns into after you grow up?

Been gaming for around 15 years now. Grew up on TF2 and COD with childhood friends. Some of my best memories have been staying up late, cracking dumb jokes, and just being able to chill with people like me.

Fast forward to today. I’m 23 now and recently moved to a new city for work, and it’s weird how much harder gaming socially has become. The people I usually game with are busy building their own lives now. We still talk, but getting everyone online at the same time feels impossible.

I figured I’d try meeting new people online to game with on weekends, but honestly… it’s been rough. A lot of people are either super toxic, completely indifferent, or you just don’t click at all. And even when I do find someone chill through Discord/LFG apps, the whole thing feels weirdly transactional. Like everyone’s just cycling through temporary teammates instead of actually building friendships. I'm meeting tons of people, there's just very little actual connection.

Anyone else feeling this as they get older? If so, what are y’all doing about it? Have you actually found good communities/friends online recently, or is this just what gaming culture turns into after you grow up?

Been gaming for around 15 years now. Grew up on TF2 and COD with childhood friends. Some of my best memories have been staying up late, cracking dumb jokes, and just being able to chill with people like me.

Fast forward to today. I’m 23 now and recently moved to a new city for work, and it’s weird how much harder gaming socially has become. The people I usually game with are busy building their own lives now. We still talk, but getting everyone online at the same time feels impossible.

I figured I’d try meeting new people online to game with on weekends, but honestly… it’s been rough. A lot of people are either super toxic, completely indifferent, or you just don’t click at all. And even when I do find someone chill through Discord/LFG apps, the whole thing feels weirdly transactional. Like everyone’s just cycling through temporary teammates instead of actually building friendships. I'm meeting tons of people, there's just very little actual connection.

Anyone else feeling this as they get older? If so, what are y’all doing about it? Have you actually found good communities/friends online recently, or is this just what gaming culture turns into after you grow up?

Been gaming for around 15 years now. Grew up on TF2 and COD with childhood friends. Some of my best memories have been staying up late, cracking dumb jokes, and just being able to chill with people like me.

Fast forward to today. I’m 23 now and recently moved to a new city for work, and it’s weird how much harder gaming socially has become. The people I usually game with are busy building their own lives now. We still talk, but getting everyone online at the same time feels impossible.

I figured I’d try meeting new people online to game with on weekends, but honestly… it’s been rough. A lot of people are either super toxic, completely indifferent, or you just don’t click at all. And even when I do find someone chill through Discord/LFG apps, the whole thing feels weirdly transactional. Like everyone’s just cycling through temporary teammates instead of actually building friendships. I'm meeting tons of people, there's just very little actual connection.

Anyone else feeling this as they get older? If so, what are y’all doing about it? Have you actually found good communities/friends online recently, or is this just what gaming culture turns into after you grow up?