How do you organize your game library?

[DaCosta]

Particularly on PC, where you have them spread out across a dozen shops. You have games on Steam, GOG, Origin, Battle.net, Humble Store. Hey, if you're feeling particularly out of the box you might even have some on Uplay, the Windows Store and Itch.io.

How do you keep track of all your games? Please don't tell me it's a Word document or Excel spreadsheet...

I feel like there are games I end up neglecting because they're not in the stores I use the most. I don't even remember which games I have on Origin, probably from some bundle years ago. There are even times where I considered buying a game on a sale just to remember that I actually already owned it elsewhere. And then there are games I don't even give a chance at all, like some experimental indies on Itch.io, because I don't want to add yet another store and library to the list to keep track of.

 

[SweetShark]

Ah! My favorite subject!!! How to List!!!
So....how I list the Videogames I Played you ask?

First I create files which each represent a Platform which I played the games. PC, DOS, PS3, PS2, Super Nintendo, N3DS, etc.
After that on each of these files I create files each represent a letter of Alphabet and one for symbols and numbers.
Finally I just take a picture of the game I played and intall it to the respectful title with a score I put for my taste. 10 for the best, 1 for the worst.

I hope I helped.

 

[Gethsemani_v1legacy]

I use like four gaming platforms (GoG, Steam, Origin, uPlay), so I just keep it all in my head. Generally speaking, my memory is good enough that I don't forget games that I want to play and I occasionally stop by the different platforms to see which games are there and if there's something that might catch my fancy at the moment.

 

[Kerg3927]

As an OCD completionist gamer, I really don't buy that many games - maybe a handful a year - and I only play one game at a time. When I start a game, it is always with the intention of finishing it and completing every quest/mission in the game at the highest difficulty setting. If the game ends up sucking, I discard it, and usually don't go back. If I didn't complete it on first try, it was probably for good reason.

Also, I know you said not to mention it, but I do have a spreadsheet. On it, I list every PC game I have completed, going back to Zork I in 1980. The list is currently up to 64 games. The spreadsheet also has a list of games that I am considering playing next, and a list of games that are in development that I will consider buying when they come out.

 

[pookie101]

on steam i spent 4 + hours organising my collection by genres that make sense to me along with a section for unplayable/not interested

 

[CaitSeith]

Most of the games I have it on Steam, and when I buy from other online stores, it's to play immediately. My Steam library, on the other hand, I have it organized in 5 categories (besides favorites): TO PLAY, CURRENTLY PLAYING, FINISHED, 100% COMPLETED, NOT INTERESTED.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

On shelves. I buy physical copies only. I do keep a folder for every console with .jpgs of the game covers though.

 

[BrawlMan]

For psychical copies, I go by console, publisher, and have it all in alphabetical order. Except for the console part. On my PS4, I have folders labeled Brawlers, Racing, Old-School FPS, and PSN favorites.

 

[Saelune]

Psh. I just use Steam, and GoG for games not on Steam.

Physical games though...I like organizing. I generally do alphabetically, but I tend to keep a series together. So I keep most "Dynasty Warriors" games together. So for my 360 games, it goes DW: Gundam, DW5 Empires, DW6, DW6 Empires (cause I keep each game in its "era"), DW Strikeforce (A DW6 "era" game), DW7, DW8, THEN Samurai Warriors 2, SW2 Empires, Warriors Orochi, Warriors Orochi 2.

Most games dont really mess with the alphabet organization like the various Warriors games though. And order of games > Alphabetical, should it matter.

 

[Tayh]

I've got my physical games and my GoG games.
If I want to check what I've got, I just check my games shelf or my gog collection.
Really not that complicated.

 

[necromanzer52]

I have them on shelves, separated by console and in alphabetical order. The only games i have on PC are on gog, and my memory's good enough that I don't generally forget what games I have. I don't go on wild spending sprees. I prefer to keep my backlog of unplayed games to a minimum, so I own maybe 200 games in total that I've gradually amassed over the course of the last 20 years.

 

[Fijiman]

I generally don't. For all of my console games I just have them in a stack that's kept in order of most recently played. I don't have the motive or space to organize them all in a proper fashion.

 

[Vigormortis]

I'm 'that' organizational heathen. You know the one.

I occasionally make a few categories on Steam and GoG, usually along the lines of things like: "Played" "Favorites" "Coop/Party/Lan" "Play Now" "Need to Play" and/or subcategories based on developer (if I have a LOT by the same dev) But really, it's just a jumble in the library of each respective client. Same goes for physical. The most I do is separate them out by console. After that it's just a pile of cases or cartridges in separate boxes.

Spoiler: And you know what?

 

[sanquin]

I keep things fairly organised. I have a map set to my taskbar with all my loose games in it. And I list them from most to least played, bottom to top. Game launchers like steam and such I keep at the very bottom of that list below the games, and I only launch them when I want to play a game on them.

Then again, I only have a few dozen games on my PC. If I had over 100, I would probably make separate maps. One for the games I play a lot, and one for the others. And I'd probably put the game launchers on my desktop at that point.

 

[Hawki]

I've tried categorizing physical games in different ways over the years, but right now, I've got all my physical games in two cupboards. Each are in piles sorted by platform, with each pile going in title order (A-Z). Each title is placed within chronological order of the series.

So, for instance, I've got a Halo pile that goes Halo Wars>Halo 3: ODST>Halo 3>Halo 4>Halo: Reach*, which is located in the middle of the overall Xbox 360 pile (actually about 2.5 piles in terms of height). Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 are in that order in the Xbox (original) pile, and Halo 5 is within the Xbox One pile.

*Place Reach at the end as per its epilogue, which takes place after Halo 4. Some of the chronological placements may look funny to some eyes.

 

[DaCosta]

I barely have to so I don't really think of it. Steam is already alphabetized, and my installed PS3/4 games are in order of install date, respectfully descending down/right from the most recent. I keep my physical copy cases in alphabetical order on a shelf for console and PC game cases are stacked randomly in a nook of my desk.

The rest of my installed PC games are so few that they fit as Start Menu shortcuts in one section. I sold all my other physical console games older than 7th gen, as I have nothing left to play them on anyways.

 

[krystalphoenix]

I keep mine simple on Steam.
There is a "Finished folder for games I am done with in some way, usually just the main story is done. There is a "Meh" folder for games I have tried and didn't like/given up on and then everything else is just in the open.

 

[Zhukov]

Um... I have a scrap of paper sticky-taped to the side of my PC tower with an incomplete scribbled list of games I intend to complete.

Beware my organisational prowess.

Also I use the Steam wishlist for games I want to buy when they go on sale. It sends you an email whenever one does, which is super handy.