The "Games Hoarders" dilemma.

Hi!

I have been out of the gaming world a while now, only peeking back in every now and then to replay Skyrim for the 43rd time before quitting 10 hours into a character, feeling apathetic and bored. Now, coming back with some fresh enthusiasm I was kind of paralyzed when I looked at my games library for the first time in a long while. See, while I haven't been playing a lot, I have been scouring GOG/Steam sales every now and then and added to my collection. Sounds like a great situation, right?

The only problem is that the games I saw on sale and thought: "Wow, that's a classic for only €4.99!" have now all amalgamated into a heaping pool of "Yeah I know this game is considered a classic but I don't feel like it". It's an odd feeling of procrastinating on the games I thought I would love to play.

So just wondering, have anyone else felt the feeling before and have you got any tips on where to start or what mentality I need to dive in with? (FYI, the library consists of 300+ games ranging from AAA to Indie, 90's to 2015-ish.)

:)

Seen this in a few backlog threads and never quite understood the issue personally.

Seems some just overthink a very basic premise, it's gaming. Why make choice so complicated.

Personally base what I play on mood and juggle between three at a time. As such I've never suffered from this overwhelming backlog mentality.

Dive-in without hesitation, if you're not enjoying the game? Give it up and play something else. If one just feels fatigued from a certain game, that's why I have two others to bounce back and forth from.

If one is managing Games as a chore? You're doing it wrong, it's a leisure of entertainment, and should be easily flexible.

I think it's also worth noting that quite a few should get out the habit of 'I have to beat this before playing something else' why? To be frank, if someone has been exhaustingly rebounding from a game for months. . chances are you are just not enjoying the experience. Ditch it like a bad habit and play more games catering your preference.

It really all comes down to personal preference. Just find what you like & enjoy it.

For me I find it is best to only buy games I really want to play and what I intend to play. My brother is bad for buying games and movies and not play or watch them. He buys them 'just to have them.' Not much point in that in my opinion. It's getting no more use sitting unplayed in your library than before you spent money on it.

Since you buy your games digitally. You get a free pass. You just have to make time for getting through the game backlog. Unless you overspend on games, You doing alright. Having a library of games is great. So just make the time for gaming.

I have somewhere around 1000 games combined digitally and physically but I don't have issues or guilt.
Gaming isn't a chore and if I'm not feeling it that day I just happily sit and watch Youtube and don't even worry about it.

I personally don't focus on one game though.

My list to go back and forth though is

Grim Dawn
Borderlands 2
God of War
The Witcher 3

@RSM-HQ: Yeah, I definitively feel like I am overthinking something pretty simple. I never realized it before but I guess I did approach it kind of as a chore, as if I needed to beat all the games I own or I'd feel bad for even having them. A big part of it might just be to let loose and ignore the "need" and focus on the "want".

@vagrantsnow: But that's where I feel a bit silly. Because I do really want to play them. I see something like System Shock 2 on sale on GOG, think to myself that that would be an amazing way to spend my weekend, but then when the weekend rolls around and I actually have the game on my hard drive I just can't get myself to play it. It sounds really weird even to me now when I put it into words hahah

Imagine what that is going to feel like when you subscribe to a streaming service for $20 a month and have access to over 1000 games at any time on any device

It's a problem, but I guess all you can do is try to stick to buying games you're most excited for.

What makes us happy changes too, so after a while you will get burnt out on stuff.

Hmm, while I agree liking more genres give moderation and variety. I do not fully agree with no longer enjoying genres of past years.

Personally find it more often than not my decline enjoying a familiar franchise/ genre is because it changed the identity into something I never really enjoyed.

For example when Resident Evil became a first person stealth game with extremely cinematic set-pieces. . I was checked out. Then when it went back to being; you know. . Resident Evil, with Remake 2. I was all in-again.

Currently like this with Tekken, T7 is streamlined garbage and has changed too much from previous entries.

I get evolving to the times, Resident Evil 4 did it really well if you ask me. As did Devil May Cry-DMC3. But sometimes they're clearly targeting a different audience.

@RSM-HQ: I guess I should clarify since I was kind of vague, but I mean you can't just keep playing the same game or doing whatever and not become bored. Eventually you have to do something else, and maybe come back to that thing later on. I didn't mean abandoning everything.

@Ovirew: As mentioned it's good to balance out and have variety.

Usually old favorites click for a reason though. Assuming the Gamer wasn't just engaged by something gimmicky like story, graphics, or physic engine.

In my experience, gaming is a bit like physical exercise; it can at times be hard to motivate oneself to get started, but once you get into it, it usually feels good and you feel refreshed afterwards.

So think of it as a healthy activity; mental exercise.

Some games start to feel pointless after a certain point - and at such times it's okay to switch to something else and maybe resume later or simply move on.

Also, playing the same game regularly can be more rewarding - if it's a good game then you will actually look forward to your daily session.

The hardest part is often just getting started.