How does cultural zeitgeist impact your enjoyment of a game’s release?

In the past two months alone, we’ve been spoiled by three high-quality, long-awaited entries in decades-old video game series — first Tears of the Kingdom, then Diablo 4, and most recently, Final Fantasy 16. What’s more, each of these games offers an immense amount of content, all of it in an almost entirely different vein. With big-name game releases like these, it’s really easy to get caught up in the excitement and let the zeitgeist of the moment wisp you away. Frankly, I used to love being one of those to get caught up in a storm of excited tweets and interactions with random internet folk who were enjoying the same thing I was.

I say “used to” because I’ve significantly decreased my time on social media over the course of the year — largely for my own mental well-being — and I have to admit, the release of each of these three titles has felt… different.

I don’t want to say it’s been a worse experience, because frankly, there’s been something really nice about taking these games at my own pace without worrying about accidentally scrolling past a major spoiler on, like, Day 2 of a game’s release. But still, there’s an element of all that excitement I really do miss. I don’t think I’d prefer to go back; however, I think the past few major releases have made me realize the importance of seeking out ways to supplement that old feeling of getting swept up in the excitement of it all (e.g., Reddit, Discord).

It’s a weird feeling, especially having grown up on gaming excitement almost entirely devoid of this same level of interaction, but it’s one I’ve been feeling lately all the same. Maybe I’m alone (or just old), maybe I’m not! Whatever the case, I’m curious about all of you — is the cultural zeitgeist of a game release an important factor in your enjoyment? Do you not care at all? Somewhere in between? Shout your excitement (or lack thereof) in the comments!