Topic: Deciding what's next for your backlog

@Novamii I'm not entirely sure why I do it. It's been a life-long habit. I played FFVII probably six or seven times over the years, for example, but only once did I not quit right before the final dungeon lol.

Now I just like to play a game until I feel satisfied, and then I'll end it. Although I do 100% runs for certain games. For example, I've 100%ed all the 3D Mario games between 64 and Odyssey in recent years, sans Galaxy 2, mostly because it's still trapped on the Wii.

That said, I have noticed there tends to be a point where Iose interest for a while. After 80 hours in a game, I'm ready to move on. Did just that last year with Tears of the Kingdom, despite not having finished it. Something in my brain clicks off, and I just don't want to play it for a while. So I also have to plan around that.

@Novamii I've got a fairly big backlog across multiple systems so I definitely find I have a bit of 'choice paralysis' when picking something to play.

I try not to play more than one game on a system at any one time, and try not to play the same genre on multiple systems at the same time either. I tend to split the systems - A game on Switch, one on Xbox, a handheld (GB, GBA, 3DS, Game Gear etc.) and 'other' which is any non-current system (Old PC, PS2, PS3, Wii, Dreamcast etc.). I tried using a random number generator to pick my next game, but frequently found it would pick something that I wasn't in the mood to play, so ended up skipping it.

Currently I use a random list generator to pick a genre to play next - currently 'Puzzle' is next up, so if the next game I finish happens to be on Switch, I'll pick a puzzle game for Switch. I've been doing this for around 6months or so and it's working well - usually want to play at least one of the games I've got on the go on any particular day but if not, I usually just play Rocket League for a bit.

@dmcc0 Ooh, interesting idea. I could see that helping the lesser genres in my backlog having a chance in the spotlight. As it is, the vast majority of my games are RPGs, whereas I don't have nearly as many puzzle or action games. That sounds like a great way to make sure your selection isn't stacked in favor of one particular genre, despite how many you have. (I feel like a lot of us have a genre in our library like that.)

I like to play recent games first and work my way backwards, like 2023 games. However, I still give new game releases the top priority. It's not like my backlog is big by any stretch. I'm just terrible about playing evergreen games like Splatoon, Smash, and a life sim like Animal Crossing or Dreamlight Valley.

Mood is probably the biggest deciding factor while I'm here in an abundance of options. The next "next" could be minutes away depending on what I'm currently playing. If I'm not enjoying what I'm experiencing in that moment, I have no qualms about putting that down and playing something else. It takes something special for a game to have me dialed in from start to finish.

Although it is difficult to shake the slight oppression I always feel. I like to replay games frequently. While I'm currently playing Dragon Quest XI, I'm constantly thinking about replaying Lumines, Radiant Silvergun, TMNT: TiT, Super Castlevania IV, etc. At which point I have to remind myself that any time spent in those games is time not being spent in DQ XI.

Never mind that I usually hopscotch between half a dozen games at a time; lots of plate-spinning here.

Currently: Warframe, DQ XI, God Eater 3, Unicorn Overlord, Helldivers II, and Cytus Alpha.

@Magician

One of my favorite videos on the subject "A Misguided Guide to Finishing Your Gaming Backlog" by DarylTalksGames has a particular point that lines up perfectly with what you're saying. It's such a simple quote, but one that feels reassuring to hear: "I don't have to beat everything. That is a peace I'm allowing for myself." [...] "I'm also going to trust the fact that if I want to keep playing a game, I will, and if I don't that's completely kosher. Don't feel like everything you have to play needs to get finished if you aren't feeling it. Don't let sunk cost fallacy get to you. Shelve it and move on."

Honestly, it was this very video that inspired me to do this whole "restart" on my backlog to begin with. And while I wouldn't dare spoil what these two videos amount to, I highly urge anyone (Especially on this thread.) to give them a watch, or listen to them in the background if they haven't. I'm not normally the type to listen to these sorts of longer video-essays, I know most of us are busy and have other things to do. At the very least, I strongly encourage anyone who's even remotely interested on why we do this backlog thing to begin with, to give them a quick look. They're quite the engaging watch. (I'll leave the links for both parts below.)

Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nkgAlnDIPMU

Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuszSUI_qBY

Sometimes I more enjoy the thought of playing a certain game vs actually playing through it. That has led me to watch the sales and buy whatever I have been keeping my eye on, I don't really care if I'm late to the party in playing any game, outside of the staples like Zelda, Mario, Etc. More recently I have been trying to focus any of my free time on playing through older games that I missed, specifically the MGS Collection as I have never beaten the 1st 3 games, though I did beat MGS4 on the PS3 and loved it. So I've been alternating between MGS1 and MGS2, and am hoping to beat them both in the next few weeks before starting MGS3. I find that giving myself a specific goal is helpful and I'm better focused in selecting which game to play. I no longer commute, so my gaming time has significantly reduced since COVID hit, so playing through long RPGs is a challenge. I'm at the end of Xenoblade Chronicles and have been stuck for 2+ years...I'm under leveled and the difficulty spike is a challenge - and I do not want to grind. It'll probably mean beating it, eventually, on casual mode just to experience the end (and some day start #2). Fun topic, thanks for posting

I just say "Oh I should play this game later"

In terms of 'don't have to complete games' my personal goal is to spend at least 2 hours on any game I don't finish. It takes a while to get a good feel of a game, but after a couple hours sometimes you can say 'I have seen everything this game has to offer me personally and now I shall stop'. No reason to spend 20 hours on every $5 game or 150 hours on full price games unless you want to. That doesn't always even mean it's a bad game, it just might not be one you want to stay with for tons of hours.

The one problem with this for me personally is I often play a game for a couple or few hours and then stop and then think 'maybe I will come back later' and then come back 3 years later and have no memory of where I am or how to play the game.

Man people who are able to have a backlog are lucky imo

I look at the new releases I’m interested and try to fit stuff around those release dates. Choice paralysis does make it hard though one thing that has helped me is to not take Direct predictions into account.

For example, I’ve mentioned in the Direct thread about how I think there’d be an April Direct (April 10th being my specific prediction) but regarding the games I plan to play in April, I’m working on the assumption there is no Direct given working around Direct speculation last year and 2022 just resulted in me playing lots of MK8 Deluxe.

@OctolingKing13 Haha, yeah. It really is a first world problem isn't it? I'd be lying if I said a part of me didn't feel a little self conscious, I never mean it in a condescending way though. Everyone's situation is different, I'd never intend on being boastful.

@FishyS Agreed, it's important to give each game a fair shot, but know when to call things quits. I tried playing World's End Club a while back because I wanted to give it a fair shot. 2 hours is a good sweet spot. Ultimately though, I couldn't even bring myself to make it to that point. I just couldn't stand the game past a certain point. And that's just mentioning a game I didn't like, if we're talking games I did like (or "good" games) I've seen my share of those as well. I especially felt that way with Untitled Goose Game back in 2019. It's a cute game, the memes were funny, and you could tell it was made with love. I just found that after the first few opening bits, I kinda got my fix. The areas afterward just sort of felt same-y (More or less) Rather than finish the game and feel done with the whole "haha, funny goose" shtick, I rather opted to stop there and maybe give it a shot another day. Maybe playing it co-op with family or friends. No sense forcing yourself to play a game you're just not enjoying. ("If it's not fun, why bother?)

@Grumblevolcano I find Directs to be my primary motivation factor too. Thousand-Year Door is regarded as one of the best Mario games period. Perhaps even one of the best Nintendo RPGs. What better time to play the original and see why people love them so much? Another example, 3D Mario. At this point, whether you're sick of the topic or not, next-gen is getting closer day by day. And when there's next-gen, 3D Mario is not far behind. I've had a bit of a rocky relationship with Odyssey (I was going through tough times when it launched.) and I feel I ended up just not playing it at the right time. In hindsight, I probably should have just taken a break from gaming altogether. Now that I'm in a better headspace and next-gen around the corner, maybe I should give it another chance. And if things are more quiet (Like they are now.) I just view it as casual catch-up time. I've learned to appreciate that quiet time more, because lord knows we'll need some before the hype train gets rolling again.

I've always struggled with picking my next game. I typically go with the game thats short and sweet for the most part. But the issue I'm facing is that most of my backlog games are filled with 30+ hr experiences, so now there's that problem 🤔. It's always tough. I tend to play games as soon as they're out to ride the hype train. It's much easier than playing them years down the line honestly. That's just me though.

@NintendoByNature Too true, my library is filled with 100 hour long RPG's which is always daunting. They all look so good, but once I see those numbers on HowLongtoBeat, I feel a sense of dread. XD
Also, you're not alone on the whole recent games thing. Maybe it's got something to do with hype, or recent game bias or something. You're definitely onto something though. I played Three Houses right around launch, and I doubt I would have gotten anywhere near the ending had I played it now. (It's an amazing game, one of my favorites on the entire console, I just doubt I would have been able to commit to that long of a game as easily as it was right off the bat.)

I rarely buy day-1 games but when I do I definitely play them immediately. Peach Showtime for example which I already beat. My backlog is mainly previously wishlisted games which I grabbed on good sales. Unfortunately there are so many great sales that they can be hard to resist.

Really long games are definitely intimidating to start. For some reason Pokemon is an exception for me — I always barrel through 90 hours of those games even though 30 is hard for most games.

@FishyS I've always wondered if a game's "feel/vibe" is what contributes to how long a game feels. It's super weird, but it's something I've been wondering. Pokemon has always been super chill to me (Maybe just by associating it with chilling with my friends after school.) I could spend ages in those games and have it feel like nothing. No need to hurry to Victory Road. Whereas something like SMT has a far more dark and dire tone, with all of humanity hanging in the balance. Perhaps by association, it feels as though there's no time to waste. Could just be a "me thing" though.