Monitor with Title and subtitle. Made by me in paint!
I log online to play some games and get invited by a friend to play a game, I accept and we're at the party menu. After a long day I am ready to play! "Hang on, I need to do something before we queue up". Hearing this is nothing to worry about, I use the time to mess around with my setup or equipment for the match. "Okay, I'm back!" Cool! Now we can start the matc- "I forgot I need to do something else. BrB!" Okay, no problem. In my haste to play I forget tasks I should've done earlier aswell...
10 minutes later
I have tweaked my setup to near perfection and have scrolled through every bit of information about items or character lore. I begin to wonder if my friend is fighting off an alien invasion or got lost in a trench somewhere. "Hey! I am almost done with this thing. Then we can play." I respond but they've already left the computer. Well it can't be much longer can it?
another 15 minutes later
I begin contemplating starting a match by myself just because I am ready to play. Couldn't my friend have messaged me after he was done with his forgotten activity or perhaps given me a time frame so I could play a match or two while he did his task instead of waiting at the menu for him?
Finally I hear the microphone unmute. Could he be done? "Sorry man, I gotta go! But I'll be back online in a few hours. Peace!" -Exits voice chat-
... What the hell? I waited almost 30 minutes just to get ghosted?! This ridiculous situation has happened to me more recently this year than in previous years and I decided I needed to better spend my time in the 'Waiting Menu' beyond messing with game setups and tweaking my character. I have several items next to my desk that offer me entertainment during these 'wait times'.
Screenshot from 'Project Zomboid' used to demonstrate
I keep a book near my desk and see how many pages I can read before my friend comes back, I think the record is four chapters of a Sci-fi book before he returned.
Screenshot from 'New World' used to demonstrate
I also have a C harmonica and some drum sticks that I practice with when I feel more creative. I am trying to figure out how to bend the harmonica notes for that jazzy/blues sound but despite me trying different techniques, no luck!
Screenshot from 'Fallout 76' used to demonstrate
Besides that though, when I am drained from the day I just relax in the chair. I've actually fallen asleep once or twice only to get a wake up call from my friend saying he's finally ready to play.
The moral of the story is: Always have something to entertain you while waiting for a group member to be ready. It seems redundant to have objects nearby to entertain yourself while waiting to play a game meant to entertain but at least it feels like the wait time wasn't 'wasted'. I feel like I should get after my friends for not respecting our time together to play and for making me wait for so long recently but without their long 'Away from Keyboard' sessions, I wouldn't have had the idea or time to make this post!
That's right! This post was inspired by these 'AFK' moments. I wrote this post and gathered the photos from other games while waiting for my friend to come back from whatever activity he is doing now. I seriously hope this isn't the new thing for the year. Otherwise I may have to start declining his invites so I can actually play some games!
Hopefully he comes back soon.
Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed this post.
Happy Gaming!
Which I desperately want to do