I mentioned my desire for a Goodreads-type site for games. The reason was that I would love a way to track progress across multiple games. I’d also like a “what I’m playing” shelf. At any given time, I’m working through two or three different games at the same time. I’d like some kind of visual representation of it all.
I’ve said multiple times that I never want gaming to become a chore (it is supposed to be a game after all), but I also recognize the need to have some kind of organization. I want to prioritize my gaming time (which is in short supply after work time, family time, daddy time and hubby time). So this year I decided I’d make a list, something tangible that I could check off items as I go along (I am a unrepentant list-maker [teudeux.com being one of my favorite sites]). So I think I’ll make and keep track of a list.
As Will mentioned as he was going through his 2010 Fun Game of the Year, he played a lot of games from 2009. For me, it looks like I’ll be playing a lot of 2010 games this year. I hope to finish:
Red Dead Redemption
Final Fantasy XIII
Shadow Broker (Mass Effect 2 DLC)
Dead Space
Super Mario Galaxy 2
I’d also like to play:
Just Cause 2
Pac-man CE DX
Super Meat Boy
Comic Jumper
Limbo
Dead Rising Case West
Darksiders
Blur
Alan Wake
All that in addition to some PC games (MMOs and all) and all the new 2011 releases that will certainly strike my fancy (which we’ll talk about soon). Yep, I’m going to need to make that list.
And of course there’s no way I’m going to be able to play all of these. So I really think this also means that I need to be more discriminate in my gaming choices. I can’t slog through something because I feel like I need to “finish it.” This is something that worries me about FFXIII. I’m already about five hours in and the thought of, “it gets good around thirty hours in,” makes me nervous.
So I guess I’m just going to have to man up and say “this game is no fun.” Put it back in the case and move on.
But all these games look so good.
2009 was a year that saw me really delving into the backlog and not only did I spend a lot of time playing games like FO3 and Persona 4, I also worked on a lot of my PS2 library that had been languishing. I’d be lying if I didn’t say that it was one of the more satisfying periods in gaming that I’ve had of late. I loved clearing out the backlog and actually playing these games that had set me back so much money.
While there are lots of games this year that interest me, I’m also feeling more like using the first half of the year to try to clean up the backlog again. Lord knows I have enough to work on… I’m just getting tired of driving home and thinking about the games I’d like to play but never getting the chance to play them… or being so scattered that I can’t focus on the games that I want to play and end up farting around with more Angry Birds…
Wow, all the way back to the PS2! That’s getting serious about the backlog.
I definitely seem to be more thinking about games than actually playing them. I’m in the same farting around boat, too. I need to focus!
I’ve had a new rule for almost a year now. If I don’t complete a game in 6 months from purchase, I sell it.
It has been a great plan. I basically get my play out of it and a good ratio of money back.
I finished more games in 2010 than any other year, however. I’ve also been a wiser judge of what I’ll complete.
Meaning, I played more but spent less—a LOT less of what I budgeted for video game entertainment.
(Yeah. I actually budget gaming.)
Budgeting is a BIG part of my gaming but it does help to keep me in check.
I like the idea of the 6-month rule. I have long since given up on the idea that I could play everything when it came out. Not a chance. Now I can concentrate on a few releases as soon as they drop (Portal 2, Diablo 3) and take the rest of the games in stride, getting to them when I get to them.