It’s over.
After almost five months, I just cannot do it. I’m not going to be able to complete “The List.” It’s just gotten to be too painful.
A couple of days ago, Jason from Unfethered Blather (Not reading it? You should be.) left a comment here that summed up perfectly one of the feelings I have evolved towards in completing my games.
I am trying to either finish all of my games or at least play enough of every game that I can honestly feel like I’ve gotten something out of it.
I went back to my chart and calculated based upon reviews and FAQs how much time out would take me to complete “The List.” It came to roughly two and one half months—straight through. I then figured for the insane normalcy that is my life and it came to almost a year and a month just to finish them. Uh, I think it just became a job. What Jason said should probably be true. In the back of my mind all this time I had been doing a quick assessment of what games I had gotten enough playtime and enjoyment out of. That led to two things:
- I had a lot of games I that I had gotten enough enjoyment from playing. They had to go.
- I am not a responsible gamer. Some games I paid a premium for and not played a whole lot.
The second item is something that I want to focus on over the next couple of weeks. Being a person with a limited budget, how can I be a more responsible gamer. What are some guidelines I can follow so I don’t just blow good, hard-earned money on crap? There’s just too much to choose from in the digital entertainment industry, and it’s probably high time I start being “adult” about it. I’m actually thinking of starting a series called, appropriately enough, “Being A Responsible Gamer.” I’ve certainly thought about it enough over the last five months.
All too often, I think gamers in general, are the worst fad followers in the world. We move from game to game and release to release. Of course, it’s no help that the developers and retail industry make it possible to purchase games before they are released. No, don’t get it on release day. Get the satisfaction that you get it ASAP. Very rarely, if ever, have you known a game not to be available. Most are very easy to find. (Yes, there are some exceptions. I recently tried to find Puzzle Quest for the DS as a birthday gift.)
I would like to address issues of money, time, quantity, morality (yes, there is such a thing), kids, and even quality in the upcoming weeks. Now, it’s just time for a gaming clearance at our household. “The List” will still be around, it’ll just be much smaller.