"Would" is not always indicative of the conditional, just like in English. Take this example: "I love me childhood, because I would play games with my father all the time." This usage of "would" denotes a period of activity not a conditional.

"I would play with my father if I were here." In this example, "would" is used conditionally, because it denotes a possibility, not a period of time.

In the French text, "would" is used in the former context and emphasizes the length of time, which is best captured in the French imperfect tense.