Folks,there aresomany incredible games out there right now. I know that’s been a cliche about this hobby since maybe 1997, but for the love of God, it’s only April and we’ve already received some all-time greats withMonster Hunter Wilds,Blue Prince, andClair Obscur: Expedition 33. Not to mention remasters likeOblivionandSuikodenand the fact that, in a little over a month, we’re getting an entirely newNintendoconsole with an entirely new open-worldMario Kartgame.
I shouldn’t be relieved that the launch lineup for the console I want is light, but here I am, happy as a goose chasing people in a park, because I know at least there are only two or three ‘must-play’ games coming immediately. I am freaking drowning. And it’s my fault. Because I really need to stop trying to stuff in every good game. I need to stop right now.
There Are Just Too Many Video Games
To be clear, the problem isn’t that there are too many good games as if that’s sort of some bad thing for the world. I’m glad there are a lot of good games out there! I’m glad I can spend20 hours pretending to be a pirate in Hawaii. I’m excited I canspend 30 hours exploring the Living Lands. It’s good, actually, I canspend 50 hours building and re-building museums. It’s just, you know, that all equals 100 hours for three games and, if anything, I’m shaving off some time to be polite.
Sure, not all of my favorite releases this year take dozens of hours. But when there are also dozens of great titles that takejust a fewhours, that itself also adds up. And shoving it together, one after the other, while not completing nearly everything, is probably not the luxurious experience enhancer I want it to be. I’m losing out on goodness by trying to do a complete 2025 run on greatness.
It’s like I’m at a fancy buffet at a fancy hotel. Lots to eat and drink! Everything on offer is high quality! There are no wrong choices! But, from another angle, when you’re a broken person, that feels likeeverythingis the wrong choice. No matter what I’m choosing to focus on, it means I’mnotfocusing on something else good. Yes, I could satisfy myself with just the endless steak in this metaphor, but then I’m losing out on the never ending pasta.
I could try to just go with both - seems reasonable - but then I see they’ve got all-you-can-eat omelets. I’m trying too hard to shove them all on my plate and they’re running into each other. This all sounds gross, but writing this paragraph only made me hungry so you can see why I’m the problem at the center of this.
I Need To Play Every Video Game Ever
On the other hand, the buffet analogy is pretty spot on because, withGame Passand PlayStation Plus, most of the out-of-nowhere Game of the Year contestants were and are instantly available for free. At least ‘free’ in the sense that I’m paying for a subscription service so they’re not free at all in any way but I feel guilty like they are.
It creates this fun little whirlwind in my head where I’m like, “These games don’t cost anything, you should grab them and give them a shot!” and also, “You’re paying for this service, you better grabeverythingin here and squeeze your money’s worth out!” Oh no, that just reminded me I’ve got a fullAtomfallrun that I’ve left behind. Dammit! Maybe afterDoom: The Dark Ages. What’s probably best is if I play a lot of each, but not nearly enough to complete or appreciate any of them. Yes, that’s what I’ll do.
It’s FOMO, and not even social FOMO where I’m doing it so I can fit in with people. I can’t emphasize enough just how few friends I have. Rather, I know that all of these games areso goodthat I want to play all of them. By wanting the full experience of so many things, I end up getting none of the full experience of anything. By trying to game out how I play my games and by lying to myself about how long ‘just a little diversion’ into another RPG will take and just how little I’ll remember when I get back.
It turns out that even the most detailed journals and quest logs can’t remind you of everything that happened over the course of a very long fictional journey you semi-abandoned months ago. I wish things were different, but here we are. And, hey, I’ve been considering finally starting a play ofKingdom Come: Deliverance 2! It sounds amazing! I’ve got no time to finish it! I’m still not done with most of the other stuff! Great idea!
It’s For The Greater Good
The thing is, I like supporting games. I don’t mean that cynically. This might be unique to me as a person because I’m so different and everything, but I like finding new things I enjoy. I appreciate when - even if downloaded on Game Pass - my participation has helped a developer succeed. If I want more games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, it helps to be part of that early massive wave who shout to the rooftops about it.
And I do want more games like Expedition 33. Except that, you know, I still need tofinishExpedition 33 and I just found out that GOG re-released the PC version of Breath of Fire 4 with full support for modern systems. Probably should get that, too, because I like what they’re doing over there with games preservation. You see how these problems add up? You see what I’m doing to myself?
I’vementioned this problem with Steam sales. I want too much. I get too much and I’m the only one who suffers for my financial idiocy. I come from a family of hoarders. But this is less about spending money than it is just my desperation to enjoyeverything. There is so much quality. And there are lots of great games that aren’t even in my general area of interest. If I cared more about multiplayer shooters in any way outside of how much I suck at them, I’d be even more screwed.
But for the things I do love, I need to stop trying to stuff in every good game. I need to focus up. It’s great there are so many great games. But I need to finishSplit Fiction. I need to get to the end ofAvowed. I need to get past just the earliest of ‘endings’ in Blue Prince. I need to take a breath and enjoy this quality rather than running from experience to experience, taking on all the work with barely any of the satisfaction.
In a year in which every game is Game of the Year, maybe it would do my limited brain good to just fully experienceoneof those instead of trying to scarf downallof them.
