160+ hours. Uncommitted Gamers Anonymous

[eggdog14]

I have a problem.
That's the first step right? admitting it. Well i admit it: i have some commitment issues.
I have this chronic inability to follow through, to finish games.

I did a rough calculation in my head and i figured, were i to beat every game i own before buying another, it would take more than 160 hours. I've got some serious work to do.

Here are some more notable violators:

Halo 3 - 2nd level
Assassin's Creed - 5th level
Oblivion - roughly 1/2 the main quest (others pretty complete aswell tho)
Mass Effect - 1/3
Ghost Recon - 1/5
Rainbow 6 - 1/2 (and i managed to FINISH the original Tom Clancy novel, WTF)
Twilight Princess - like 60 hours left. Balls.


Those are from the current generation, though it's worth mentioning that i've never beaten a Halo game, and Ninja Gaiden Black got so FUCKING HARD playing it became a detriment to my self-esteem.

Why is this? I can't seem to FINISH games. One pattern i noticed was this:

-I got bioshock, LOVED it, then halo 3 came.

-Played Halo 3, (thought) i loved it, until Orange Box.

-Beat Half-Life2 while Halo 3 gathers dust in the corner.


I've since returned to bioshock, and it now ranks among my top games. However, even games i love with a passion may go unbeaten, SSX3 for Xbox, the Zelda(s), Ninja Gaiden, GTA, Mario,

Please, someone tell me they have this problem to, Maybe we could start a support group or something.

HELP!

 

[Fangface74]

It's a good point, these days I have to make an active decision to finish a game I'm enjoying before dribbling over the next DX10, phong shaded, shallow as fuck blaster. But it's kind of nice during the dry spots when nothing is out and you can dig into the back catalogue, possibly having a rig that actually runs the stuff now!

 

[NickyT]

Well for me it's really the game. If it has good and not to difficult campaign I'll see it through. But myself I usually just jump right on multiplayer. But it doesn't matter if you beat a game or not but if you had fun with it. That's what I play for...fun. Even if it lasts only a little bit.

 

[Credge]

I think the fact that you can't stay engaged in a game is a sign of one of two things:

1. Games really aren't as interesting as they once were.

2. You have ADHD.

 

[stompy]

You have ADHD.

This hypothesis has merit. Maybe you need some Ritalin?

On a more serious note, I sorta go through what you go through, where I just can't play the game. This'll go away with time. Your problem, though, needs concentration and willpower. And stop buying new games. That's all you need to do. Eventually, bordom will make you finish your old games.

- A procrastinator

 

[boyitsme95]

Try a rotation. Play one game for an hour, then another, then another, and get back to the first one and start over.
Hour 1: Oblivion
Hour 2: Zelda
Hour 3: The Orange Box
Etc. Etc.

 

[bobraj]

Maybe you are buying too many big games all at the same time. I have to ration out my games because I simply don't have enough time to play them. I only bought Bioshock this week because of time constraints even though it was at the top of my wanted list but I know that I will now play through the whole game and get the most enjoyment from the money I spent.

And if you never get round to ever finishing some of your games, then SEND SOME MY WAY! I know I will be able to give them a loving home.

 

[smallharmlesskitten]

really hmmm...

i dont have the same problem really

okay maybe i do

i get up to certain point, then give up for a while and play something else then go back and attempt to finish the first one

in fact the only game i have ever finished on the first playthough was my newest game

Dirge of Cerberus

 

[silentbob150]

I used to have exactly the same problem up until the beginning of this year. My games were piling up and practically none of them were actually complete, so I gave myself a swift slap and ordered myself in as nasty a tone as I could muster to go back through them and get them finished.

Since then, I've done Halo 3, The Orange Box, Mass Effect and Final Fantasy X. Unfortunately, due to some really good deals in nearby games shops, I still have Final Fantasy XII, MGS 1, 2 & 3, Okami, Kingdom Hearts, ICO and Shadow of the Colossus to go (not at all helped by watching Reign Over Me last night). I think I need to figure out some way to slow down time ... Maybe via the strategic application of treacle.

 

[thebobmaster_v1legacy]

really hmmm...

i dont have the same problem really

okay maybe i do

i get up to certain point, then give up for a while and play something else then go back and attempt to finish the first one

in fact the only game i have ever finished on the first playthough was my newest game



Dirge of Cerberus

Sorry to hear about that.

 

[ThaBenMan]

Oh man, at least finish Mass Effect. That's the best game in that list. It just gets better and better as you go too.

I understand you though, man. I do the same thing. I think I can make a pretty short list of the games I've completely beaten:

Fallout 1 & 2
Baldur's Gate 1 & 2
Mass Effect
Portal
Beyond Good & Evil

And that's all she wrote. So don't sweat it.

 

[eggdog14]

Oddly enough the first game i ever beat was the original Rainbow Six, which at the time was quite hard.

Oh and i'm hooked on bioshock right now, the story keeps me going.
Too bad some forum dbags gave away, you know. . . the plot.

And stop buying new games.

Point taken, but April 29th will be here shortly, decisions. . . decisions. . .

 

[thefreemarket]

i have the same problem but i really have no problem with it... My bane was Splinter Cell. I was in love at first play with the whole series. But i didn't finish a single one. Is a thrill to be in Sam Fischer's shoes, but i guess they were too big to fill for me. i'll just catch up on the story in the next installment..

 

[Rolling Thunder]

Games I've finished:

MGS 1,2 and 3
Command and Conquer, Command and conquer RA: 1 and 2
FF7, 10, 10-2
Company of Heroes, Opposing fronts campaign games (but not the original campaign)
GTA: VC, SA and III.
Killzone
BLACK
Soviet Strike
A few more, but the memory cells just aren't cooperating. And there are many more I have not completed.

Personally I think the root of the problem lies that, as we get older we accrue more commitments: Exams, sports, jobs, lovers, inland revenue, driving, children (thouhg not always in that order) and we simply do not have the time to sit through the harder or less well-designed sections of games....

 

[WingedFortress]

I can't say I've ever had this problem. If anything, I'm annoyed at how short games end up being for me. Rarely will a main story last me more than 12 hours, and I can put that kind of time into a game in a day or two. The list of games I own, but havent beaten to my satisfaction, is fairly short.
Psychonauts, Condemned 2(I am on the last level though, I just kind of lost interest after the story went south), Rainbow Six Vegas, and Army of Two. I never beat army of two, mainly because I was disappointed with the mediocrity of it all, and refused to play with anyone but a friend. Unfortunately for me, most of my friends didnt want to play it at all.

 

[eggdog14]

If anything, I'm annoyed at how short games end up being for me. Rarely will a main story last me more than 12 hours

This is very true, Gears of War was pathetically short. As was COD, but i can forgive that because the levels were so carefully crafted.

Anyone remember Doom3? 20+ mutherfucking hours of shitty corridor shooting. WINNER.

 

[Ophiuchus]

I'm guilty of this too.

Despite my love for all things Final Fantasy, I've never actually finished any of them - not because I've got bored of them, no, just simply because I get to a point where I'm happy wandering around the map and being able to do whatever I want. By the time I get to thinking "I should probably finish this at some point", I've forgotten where I was up to and what I'm supposed to do next.

Also, I've ploughed over 100 hours into Oblivion so far. Given that I've finished the main quest, I suppose I've technically 'beaten the game' but since most of that 100+ hours in-game time could best be described as 'puttering about', there's still a ton to do. Which I probably won't, thanks to the imminent arrival of Rock Band.

That said, I did finish Bioshock and intend to replay it at some point for the other ending.