@mookysam stepping out of the comfort zone is definitely the way to go 😄 Elden Ring was the first real game of that kind i'd played, like I've played games with boss fights etc, and in the past they have frustrated me at times, but Elden Ring taught me to not care about failing in games as you never truly lose anything that you cant get back, and you gain experience and have fun on the way. The exploration and lack of long run backs really helps, and you can just go off in any direction you want if you do come to a temporary dead end in one section.
I think the comfort zone locks us out of great games because one or two game types is only going to have a fraction of the great games available. I'd never have played Elden Ring (urgh, hard) or Baldur's Gate 3 (urgh, turn based) in the past, but they are two of my all time favourite game experiences since trying more variations of the fantasy genre. And it was only The Witcher 3 that really got me into the fantasy genre in games, and at the time that was a big leap out of my comfort zone too 😁
Digital ain't so bad either, if you pair vouchers and PS Stars you might even get better value over time on new game releases (especially if you don't usually sell games once you are done anyway) and then just wait for sales for stuff you're happy waiting for while backlog clearing. AC games got me well into digital, as everything from UBI ends up at about £8 at some point 😁 and I've definitely paid much less on new games than I would have for the physical editions day one.
My New Years gaming resolution is to not buy ANY games in 2024!
I have more than enough in my backlog across my PS5 PS Plus Essential monthly games plus some I have bought on my Series X.
I had the new FF7 part 2 pre-ordered but got that refunded the other day as I really hate the battle system in the first part so I literally have nothing new for this year at all now.
I decided on this as I was constantly looking at games across both platforms for sales, performance and benefits/drawbacks of each and ended up buying the same games on PS5 and Xbox a few times!
Lately though I find that games just dont entertain and keep me interested as much anymore but I must admit I feel a huge weight off my shoulders not worrying about looking for or finding games to buy.
@Walrus_Slapper any time gaming isn't feeling as appealing, or there is nothing you are interested in right now, that is definitely the best chance to go back and find great games you have missed out on. Great games are usually always great, no matter when they released, so you might find yourself falling in love with something from the back catalogue or from a sale if you knowingly missed some classics (even ones that you might not think fit in with games you enjoy)
Are there any great games, universal acclaim, or cult hits that you have missed that might be worth a try?
I know for me, when I've been in game slumps I've gone back to find things I'd never usually have played because of one factor, but know I'm interested in in other ways. Kingdom Come: Deliverence, was on example. I didn't know what to play, I love historical fiction, but really couldn't see myself playing and First Person games, but I went for it, and loved it right away for its absolutely new take to RPG and games, in where it spits in the face of game and action tropes and sticks closer to a more real life way of playing in terms of its systems and ways of tackling quests.
But there's been loads of games I've gone back to that have rekindled my interest in gaming as a whole, the Uncharted series (where i played 4 on release because of how good it looked) but it was much later I went back to play the others when I had nothing else that interested me.
There is so much good stuff out there already so hopefully you find that spark 😄
@Ravix Yeah, with Soulslikes it was mostly that I'd been put off by the difficulty. I watched a friend play Nioh some years ago and it almost swore me off the genre for good! 😂 The thing that changed my mind was watching them play the Demon's Souls remake, which I thought looked amazing. I haven't played that, but Elden Ring looks like it has a lot of elements I'll enjoy, as well as there always being something else to do. I'm probably better at games than I give myself credit for. I enjoy Metroidvanias, which usually have a degree of challenge built into the combat and have also completed and enjoyed hack 'n slash and "stylish action" games. I agree that apprehension of stepping out of our comfort zones can lock us out of great experiences. I've explored more genres over the past few years and it's always a pleasant surprise when I turn out to really like something, or if it even becomes a firm favourite.
Digital is fine if it's cheaper. The exercise is more about encouraging me to appreciate and explore my backlog and buy fewer games. I guess I still have a tiny little bit of that geriatric millennial mindset when it comes to having something tangible on the shelf, but that's evaporated more and more over the years to the point I don't really care. Discs are glorified unlocks and manuals went away a long time ago.
My first resolution is being ever so slightly challenged at the moment with the arrival of Persona 3 Reload. It's still my favourite of the “new”Persona games, but given I won’t finish it in time for Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will wait!
1. Buy PS5 Fat machine within April - June 2024.
2. Play more my Switch games.
3. Repair my PSP 3000.
4. Purchasing 12 Switch games in total within this year.
5. Buy another PS4 Slim with 2TB HDD installed.
Q1 2024 is in the books. We’re 25% of the way through the year. Good time to check in —
Gaming Resolutions for 2024
1. Play GOTY candidate titles from previous years that I missed.
Play 3 from 2023
This would include choosing from: Baldur’s Gate 3, Spider-Man 2, Resident Evil 4 Remake, Dead Space Remake, Cocoon, Lies of P, Alan Wake 2, Street Fighter 6
Play 2 from 2022
This would include choosing from: God of War Ragnarok, Horizon Forbidden West, Elden Ring, A Plague Tale Requiem, Trails from Zero, Cult of the Lamb, Sifu, Sonic Frontiers, Tunic, The Last of Us Part 1, COD Modern Warfare 2
Play 1 from 2021
This would include choosing from: Hades, Resident Evil Villiage, Hitman 3, Psychonauts 2, It Takes Two, Guilty Gear Strive, Life is Strange True Colors, Nier Replicant, Deathloop
Progress so far:
I have 1/3 for 2023 (Spider-Man 2 in progress), 1/2 for 2022 (APT: Requiem done ✅), and 0/1 for 2021.
2. Achieve 5 platinum trophies
Off to a bad start. 0/5 so far. I’m only a couple trophies shy for the APT: R platinum, but not sure when/if I’ll go back.
3. Do something multiplayer
Nope.
4. Play at least 3 remasters or remakes
Nope.
5. Retry 2 games that I gave up on
Nope.
Well, it could be worse, I guess. It’s been a rough start to the year for me, gaming-wise. Still plenty of time to get some of these things done though.
@Th3solution
re Playing 3 x GOTY nominations from 2023... allow me to highly recommend "Cocoon" - which I used as a pallete-cleanser after Baldurs 3 .
Cocoon is an excellent and unique puzzler, centered on the bizarre mechanic of carrying different 'universes' on your back (in the form of large spheres) and then jumping in/out of said universes to puzzle your way through the landscapes in hand....
It is a short playthrough, ~8-10hrs, and does a great balancing act in being genuinely challenging but never overly difficult/obtuse.
Also - it is a very easy platinum, no missables, and you can 'rewind' the game post-completion to quickly mop up any missing collectables.
In regards to playing 1 x 2021 GOTY contender... got to be Hades right?!
@CJD87 Thanks for the recommendation. I know another from 2023 I plan on is BG3, so I do need a good candidate for the third. I was leaning RE4 vs DS Remake, but I’ll definitely consider Cocoon.
And yes, for 2021’s game I have Hades as the likely target. But LiS True Colors, Nier Replicant are in the mix too, depending on mood. Unfortunately It TakesTwo… well, takes two, and I don’t have a co-op partner readily accessible. I had a friend who had some interest but the timing never worked out and the game dropped off PS Plus, so I haven’t seriously considered it recently.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
1) Resist the siren song of alluring sales and new releases as much as possible. I'm sure I'll still grab new games, but I'd very much like it to be heavily lopsided in favor of backlogged games played this year.
No new game purchases this year. Also no sale purchases. I have bought a couple of unbelievably cheap bundles for Steam games I wanted (and I don't count those, because unlike sale deals, bundles deals often don't repeat), but I'm sticking to this extremely well.
1) Resist the siren song of alluring sales and new releases as much as possible. I'm sure I'll still grab new games, but I'd very much like it to be heavily lopsided in favor of backlogged games played this year.
No new game purchases this year. Also no sale purchases. I have bought a couple of unbelievably cheap bundles for Steam games I wanted (and I don't count those, because unlike sale deals, bundles deals often don't repeat), but I'm sticking to this extremely well.
@Th3solution 🤣 aye I don’t think that I could be any more succinct tbh… and welcome aboard, we’re glad to have ya 😁.
So as far as the old George Forman Grill goes, i’ve got bits and pieces left to do on:
Splinter Cell: Blacklist Rage
I am keen to get through the following:
Brutal Legend Remember Me Enslaved: Odyssey to the West Star Wars: The Force Unleashed Spec Ops: The Line The Saboteur Castlevania: Lords of Shadow Alpha Protocol Deadly Premonition Dead Space Dead Space 2 Dead Space 3 Deus Ex: Human Revolution Asura’s Wrath X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Then I do have some stragglers left over that I’m probably willing to cull like:
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed 2 Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 Sleeping Dogs (as I’ve already played the PS4 version) Just Cause 2 (as I’ve already played it through a few times on an old profile)
… and I am torn on a few too I suppose 🤔:
The Tomb Raider HD Classics Collection The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena
Going through them I actually had a fair few more than I thought 😅… ahh well maybe I’ll manage to get them all done before the PS6… maybe 😉.
Not a bad start to the year for me tbh… I’ve cleared 5 PS3 games from the backlog (Back to the Future, Wolverine, Spec Ops: The Line, Splinter Cell: Blacklist and Asura’s Wrath) and made decent progress on a few others (Brutal Legend, Rage and Red Faction: Armageddon).
On top of that, I’ve also managed to get some PS4 and PS5 games done (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Assassins Creed 3 Remastered, Nioh 2 and Just Cause 4) and at least one Telltale game per month also (The Walking Dead season 1, The Walking Dead A New Frontier and The Walking Dead the final season).
I don’t wanna speak too soon but I might actually clear my PS3 backlog this year 🤞
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