IGN article: Why Don't We Finish More Games?

i would hope, because the grinding in them has effectively made me try about 3 RPG's within the last decade.

 

With me it's a choice which I've recently come to. I don't have to finish the game if I don't want to. I think I first made that choice with Brutal Legend

Prior to that I would finish each game I played

 

This pretty much sums it up for me. If a game fucks me off I don't feel bad about dropping it. Why would I play it if I don't enjoy it? I've spent too much of my life playing average games and I certainly don't regret not playing them to conclusion.

 

I just own A LOT more games than I did 10 years ago.

 

I try (intend) to play all my games. But I've played less than 10%...

Also, when this happens is frustating:

But I try to start it again, tough.

This is also true:

And less time to play them.

 

I'm the exact opposite. I hated and still hate Halo multiplayer. It's garbage.
Riddled with game breaking bugs and glitches. Not to mention all the modders that plagued Halo 2 online and Halo 1 PC online.

The only reason to play Halo IMO is for the fantastic Universe the single player is set in and the amazing music.

And this is speaking from more than 1000 hours playing Halo multiplayer and a ton playing single player

 

So what, after 800 hours you still weren't sure?

Obviously it held some appeal for you.

 

Halo 3 had no glitches. No super jumps, no BXR, no double shot, no super lunging...any Halo 3 glitches discovered tended to be related to forge.

 

Well no, it just took that much to finally get tired of all the bull crap.

I put up with all of it for so LONG. Telling myself that it didn't matter . That I could look past it all.

In the end I couldn't. It's stupid. It wasn't fun anymore. People ruined it. As they do everything else. (If you have ever played MGO then you know what I mean)
The community was terrible on both platforms.
Sometimes i'll pop the game in my PC to see if anyone has ever changed. And it hasn't. It's surprisingly sad. It's like these people never grow up or Mature. And finding decent people to play with is so increasingly scarce that it's not even worth the effort.

 

This article actually made me kind of determined to beat one game this week. So i picked up my GBA and decided that Megaman X4 is going to be my first game i finished (on easy) in probably 7 years.
I am rather far, 6 hours into the game, (i also feel a sleep playing it last night so most likely actual gameplay 2-3. I finished stopping Ragnarök, now i am going into the mainframe?

 

Too true. I think its not important to play through every game, as there are a great many out there which are just not worth it.

Same here, maybe not finish one this week but I am certainly going to finish the next game I get into. If a game is good its definitely worth putting in the effort to finish as the reword of accomplishment at the end is a nice feeling.

 

This doesn't make any sense. I see no reason to suspect you're lying about hating Halo at some point but no-one plays a game for 1000+ hours if they hated it the whole time.
1000+ hours is an incredible amount of time and if it took you until that point to figure out you didn't like it you must surely have had hundreds of hours worth of good times. I am not a fan of the multiplayer in Halo, I much prefer the likes of Rainbow Six Vegas and GRAW, but to each their own and from what you've said it seems you got incredible value out of Halo.

In response to the the thread title; there are lots of reasons why people no longer finish as many games as they once did. We had less disposable income when we were younger and, coupled with the fact the Internet is constantly making it easier to find bargains, most of us likely play more games than we ever did.

I have never been someone who feels the need to finish a game in order to get enjoyment out of it. I spent many hours on games with no win-state such as Football Manager (and Championship Manager before that) and countless more hours on games like Colonization which I adored regardless of whether I completed the "storyline" or not.

I am perfectly happy playing a GTA game just to drive around in nice cars, listen to the radio, or amuse myself by starting gunfights with police officers. I am even happier playing Fallout 3/New Vegas where I can spend hours exploring and hunting monsters/humans.

As a writer of short stories I definitely appreciate an engaging narrative and clever dialogue but when I think of all the games I have played my favourites are the ones I enjoyed without feeling the urge to complete them; in fact, if I'm enjoying a game I'll often find ways to make the experience last as long as possible because I don't want it to end.

 

Too many good games so little time as an adult.
I find I need to be very picky just to filter down to the 1 or 2 games Ill play though and any one time. Even then it can take weeks or months...
If I pay full price I finish the game on normal. If buy it cheap or used I ll
Play it on easy or cheat through it.
There are more than 20+ games id like to play through now.
Have all the systems and that makes it even harder.
I have over a thousand real games plus 5000+ boots and 99% of most rom sets.
I don’t know what way to go sometimes...


For some games I wish there was just a video of game play highlights and the full story.

Video game movies of just the real game would be cool.

 

Well, if that's true, you are missing a lot of good games because of this "concept".

I keep track of all the games I buy, with price paid and stuff, but the price level really don't interfere in my enjoyment.
Actually, is a bit good if you could find a great game for less...

 

Since I started to reduce my collection I am finishing more games. Coincidence?

 

Meh, that article has too much BS 'facts'

Games more expensive? shit, were these douches around during the 16bit? what about when any decent PC was $2500?

Adjusted by inflation we have some of the best prices ever, and not only VGs but eletronics and computers in general.

Cars on the other hand are way more expensive, today a base compact costs what a loaded fullsize sedan was 12 years ago.

Me? I rarely leave a game, and if I do its because its just too boring and repetitive to play all the way to the end.