I have a ton of games I want to play. Also, I have no games I want to play.

[ThreePi]

Does anyone else have this issue? Where you have a ton of games on your backlog, or on your wishlist and just get paralysis when trying to figure out what's next? For me, there really doesn't tend to be a ton of "no-brainer, must-play" games in a year. In 2020, that was Half-Life: Alyx and Yakuza 7. Cyberpunk was on that list, but all the middling impressions put that on the backburn until they sort their shit out, even though I preordered it, it's installed, and would take just a click to start playing it.

But even with only a few "must-play" games on my list, I still have no shortage of games that I'm relatively interested in. The problem is, I just don't know which one to pick, and I don't want to pick "wrong" and feel like I just wasted my time. So instead of playing something new that I might enjoy, I just go back to the old multiplayer shooters or whatever roguelike/survival game I might be into at the time. I'll easily retreat into a "known-quantity" than risk trying something new and being disappointed.

I have the same issue with TV/anime. Plenty of shows that I'm interested in watching, but I'll scroll through my queue and when nothing sticks out as something that I absolutely must-watch I end up just rewatching something that I liked and I know I'll enjoy again.

I guess it kind of just boils down to being lazy and indecisive, but was wondering if anyone else experiences the same thing and how to get out of the rut. (I know people will probably just say get over it and start something new.)

 

[NattyBo]

Yes!!! I call this Goldilocks syndrome. I have hundreds of games from old to new to play, and I notice whenever I finish a game or series, I struggle to find something "just right".

Usually I force myself to stop moping and find a quality game, but it can take a night or two of piddling around.

 

[Phantom_Snake]

Thisbis where I'm at right now. Decided I was just gonna go back to playing Metal Gear and Kingdom Hearts series.

 

[skeezx]

i don't think i properly "played" a game since 2015 or something. some i've finished or played through to near completion but i had to brute force it

i've just accepted this is the new reality. i'm not relegated to one or three snes carts a year mowing lawns or whatever i did back then

 

[t26]

Make a list of games you want to play and stick with it, don't move on until you are done or you give up on the game. If something interesting pops up, you can add it to top of the list, but as soon as you are done go back to the list. I cleared over 30 games doing this last year, and already finished 7 games this year

 

[SunshinePuppies]

When this happens to me I just give up and play a GaaS, further worsening the problem and digging deeper into the hole that my bad spending habits created.

 

[ThreePi]

Yes!!! I call this Goldilocks syndrome. I have hundreds of games from old to new to play, and I notice whenever I finish a game or series, I struggle to find something "just right".

Usually I force myself to stop moping and find a quality game, but it can take a night or two of piddling around.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, its the feeling like the next game I play needs to be as good or better than the one I just finished, and if I can't guarantee that, why bother? I'll just go back to playing Warzone or something to waste time.

 

[ciddative]

Midway through Hitman 3, Spidey:MM, and Metroid Prime Trilogy. Don't feel like playing any of them at the moment.

This is also on the common end of the "does anyone else have this issue" scale

 

[EggmaniMN]

I have a list of games "to play" and when one ends, I start up another one from that list and any progress made on any game on the list is good progress. The apprehension of not knowing what to play goes away after like 10 minutes of actually playing anything.

 

[Deleted member 8468]

Analysis paralysis.

I get it too sometimes. I've found trying not to pay so much attention to new releases and hype over settling for older games has helped somewhat.

 

[kurahador]

The issue for me has always been wanting to start a game. Once you get rid or reduce that "maybe later" attitude, you'll make progress.

 

[Surakian]

All the time. I have a stack of games I wanted to play to eventually sell. I just go back to playing Kingdom Hearts or Hades lol

 

[G_Shumi]

Yuuup. It's just like when you have a wardrobe full of clothes but "nothing to wear." It sucks but that's the backlog life.

 

[Petruccis Biceps]

I call it the Netflix queue syndrome. You have so much selection that you just can't decide and end up not wanting to play anything. This is why I wouldn't be a good fit for the game pass model. It's too overwhelming.

 

[CreepingFear]

Getting my first 4k 75 inch TV has helped, as well as fast loading with the new generation consoles SSD's. Cyberpunk made me realize that if I come across a game that feels like a chore, fuck it, I'll quit it and play a game that I enjoy playing. I quit Cyberpunk, played Miles Morales and now I'm on God of War 2018 with PS5 patch. I'll probably start playing Astro's Playroom after I finish God of War, since Astro is short, then start up Super Mario 3d World.

 

[MarvelousIntent]

Yeah, that's me. I've got nearly 200 games on my backlog, but here I am. Mostly lurking on Era instead of playing them.

 

[blame space]

wait you're supposed to play these things 😂

 

[k0fighter]

I have only been playing two games lately. The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match and WARZONE. I can't be bothered to unlock some of the guns I want to use in WARZONE because that'd mean having to play in normal Modern Warfare's multiplayer (I'd rather just be playing WARZONE). I have way too many games, I'd never be able to finish playing all my games if I lived to be 100.

 

[Aswitch]

Can't believe you really exposed me like that OP. Totally understand. There are some definite day 1 must play games (Monster Hunter, RE Village etc.) but games that i'm looking forward to, but kinda luke warm towards playing at release take me much longer to get around to even though I can make the time for them most of the time. I think the weight of commitment of some games' playtime also intimidates me as well because I know when I start something I plan to finish it and will play nothing else (unless i'm just totally not feeling it at all).

 

[Krombopulos_MK]

Yeah, I feel this. Something that has helped some is trying to go with my subjective gut whims and not the supposedly objective thing I "should" play. I have an unordered backlog that I'll look over and if anything strikes my eye I go with it. If I'm listening to a podcast or reading a thread that reminds me of something and gives me the itch to play it, I will. I have found this to be much more enjoyable than demanding myself to start/continue something I'm not feeling at the moment. Games aren't chores, they are for enjoyment, so if it isn't doing it for me for now why am I doing it?

As an example, I had started Valhalla and Hitman 3 (chasing an itch to see the most "next-gen" thing I could) when I heard Spiritfarer brought up in the GiantBomb GOTY podcast. I had an itch, downloaded it from Game Pass, and proceeded to be absolutely enthralled with it until I beat it. Wasn't sure what to play after that, so I booted up Tony Hawk again and finished THPS I because I was super into it again after having put it down a couple of months ago. Now I'm grinding Apex because that's what I'm feeling but starting to get back into Paper Mario which is also great.

My only guideline at this point is that I've bought enough games for a while and I need to give the ones I've purchased their fair shot. At least until there is one that is too good to pass up haha.

 

[InstantN00dles]

I feel like this a lot lately. The thought of playing something is more exciting than actually playing it. I have these games I want to play but when it's time to actually play I can't bring myself to start.

 

[m0therzer0]

This is why I only buy one game at a time and try to beat it before buying another.

 

[phant0m]

For me, there's just nothing out recently that I'm really itching for. The next big game I'm looking forward to is Outriders in April.

but, I never played DA: Origins and it's on sale for $7.50 this week, so I picked that up. First 2 hours have been great so far. Holds up well and can be run on a potato at this point

 

[catpurrcat]

Yeah but this is where stuff like streets of rage 4 and Hades come in handy. You can dump HOURS into those without relearning stuff and mull over what meaty game you really want to play next.

 

[Andrew J]

No, not me. If I'm not playing something current then I'm picking a set of games from my backlog according to a theme.

 

[Deleted member 2317]

Total opposite- not enough time to play the games I want to!

 

[wafflebrain]

Choice paralysis is a legit thing especially after buying a bunch of shit on sale...I'm guilty of this after many a Steam sale.

Some days this doesn't work for me if attention span is wonky but my advice is try shuffling between a few different games within a day or two, spend maybe 1-2 hours with one and then move onto another one. It helps to combat that choice paralysis and also give you an idea of which game is going to engage you the most.

My recent addiction like many is Valheim, I don't usually go much for grindy survival games but this one sets itself apart enough with the way the biomes and their unique enemies/resources interact with all the other systems to keep progression feeling fresh enough. At $20 and the amount of content available for an early access launch its one of the most insane values I've seen in gaming. There's definitely some jank but considering the amount of content available for an ea game the level of polish is still quite impressive.

Also if you may be fatigued from a certain type of game, say AAA action or rpg for example, try a palette cleanser by going in a much different direction, try an indie game that's more focused on pure gameplay over story, not that that needs to be a hard rule ofc. I personally find that to help whenever I can't get into a particular type of game, spending some time with something different enough from what I was playing last can give fresh perspective when going back to the other type of game.

 

[Razgriz417]

that was me in 2020, bought a bunch of games but with WFH i worked so many more hours that by the end of the day i didn't want to play anything and just wanted to veg out

 

[Djalminha]

It's supposed to be a hobby. If you don't feel like playing any particular game, maybe there's something more interesting and fulfilling that you could be doing with that time.

Also, a good trick for me was to switch from buying games I was interested in and wanted to play at some point to only buying games that I wanted to start playing right away. No matter how good the same is, you save money (and time and headaches) in the long run.

 

[Rosebud]

I have a huge backlog (like, hundreds) and only played Bloons Tower Defense in the last week.

 

[freikugeln]

It's not a job so why force yourself.

Maybe, you don't want or need to play something new. That 's not necessarily bad. I 'm like that with movies. While l will watch the occasional new film even if l would never do so again... I 'd be good. I have more than a dozen that l love and l'd just be content rewatching them or doing something else.

 

[Gelf]

It kicks in sometimes when I come to pick the next thing to play yes. It's a mix of choice paralysis and my general wariness of the early game experience in modern games particularly with heavy usage of none interactive elements and tutorials.

Once I pick something and it can be anything I usually settle in and have fun once over the early hump.

 

[ThorHammerstein]

I've often found that when I've got choice-paralysis, I play something I don't want to play, force myself to play for around 10 minutes, and usually in that time I snap out of it and realize something that I want to play. (Either that or I end up playing the game I didn't want to play and enjoy it for a bit or the whole thing.)

 

[Have a Nice Day]

I have a list of games "to play" and when one ends, I start up another one from that list and any progress made on any game on the list is good progress. The apprehension of not knowing what to play goes away after like 10 minutes of actually playing anything.

Click to shrink...

This is what I do myself but I only write down games that I really want to play, I also give priority to games from older systems over the newer ones.

And I don't necessarily follow that list to the letter, sometimes I just feel like playing a certain game that I haven't listed.

 

[DexMckinzie96]

I have a backlog of 30 games on my PS4 and I have played most of them. I am halfway through 15 games. The trick is to not make your backlog too big by only buying new games when you finish your current games. If you backlog is over 50 games up to 100 games it can be too overwhelming to play through each game. You just have to prioritise which games you are interested in playing first and work from there.

 

[reelbigeddy]

I don't think I've really touched my consoles this year, except to download GwG/PS Plus titles and then not play them. Happens to me a lot, I just spend more time on other hobbies or projects - tends to be cyclical and I know I'll get back to gaming eventually.

 

[Seijuro]

Currently trying to juggle 4 games at once (13 Sentinels, Ys IX, AC Valhalla and Crash 4). Everytime I sit down with one I think my time would be better spent with one of the others, and also thinking about my backlog in general. But it also depends, sometimes I'm just not in the mood to play at all and dpn't realize it after I started the game.

 

[storaføtter]

I struggle with the same thing but just started with playing shorter games instead. Allows me to think less of wasted time and what I should be playing instead. It is hard to be impressed and engrossed with any game.

 

[Xeteh]

This is why I only buy one game at a time and try to beat it before buying another.

Click to shrink...

... are you some kind of wizard?

 

[Kapryov]

Just load one up - anything - and see what happens. Worst case is you don't feel it and then turn it off. A few minutes down the drain is no big deal if you spend it otherwise being indecisive.

I accidentally selected Red Dead Redemption (1) recently, I was aiming for Sonic Mania IK guess I slipped or something. I ended up starting a new game there and played it for hours. Great game.

On a related note, I noticed the Series X has a "surprise me" option. I'm not sure if that suggests games already installed or game pass games in general though.

 

[Deleted member 29464]

I get the same thing. Sometimes it's because I don't feel like I'm in the right mood or mindset for a game. It's like I don't feel ready and I need to question whether I'm going to make the commitment now as even if I like a game, it's going to be a significant amount of time before I'm done with it.

I think my mental health can affect it a lot. There have been times when I've forced myself to start a game, to only drop it because I just wasn't in the mood. I may then return to them with more enthusiasm, start over, and end up enjoying them.

I try not to fight the choice paralysis now, instead trying to avoid sales and day one purchases unless I want to play that game in the moment.

 

[Jimbojim]

I feel like that sometimes

 

[Manmademan]

Does anyone else have this issue? Where you have a ton of games on your backlog, or on your wishlist and just get paralysis when trying to figure out what's next? For me, there really doesn't tend to be a ton of "no-brainer, must-play" games in a year. In 2020, that was Half-Life: Alyx and Yakuza 7. Cyberpunk was on that list, but all the middling impressions put that on the backburn until they sort their shit out, even though I preordered it, it's installed, and would take just a click to start playing it.

But even with only a few "must-play" games on my list, I still have no shortage of games that I'm relatively interested in. The problem is, I just don't know which one to pick, and I don't want to pick "wrong" and feel like I just wasted my time. So instead of playing something new that I might enjoy, I just go back to the old multiplayer shooters or whatever roguelike/survival game I might be into at the time. I'll easily retreat into a "known-quantity" than risk trying something new and being disappointed.

I have the same issue with TV/anime. Plenty of shows that I'm interested in watching, but I'll scroll through my queue and when nothing sticks out as something that I absolutely must-watch I end up just rewatching something that I liked and I know I'll enjoy again.

I guess it kind of just boils down to being lazy and indecisive, but was wondering if anyone else experiences the same thing and how to get out of the rut. (I know people will probably just say get over it and start something new.)

Click to shrink...

Analysis paralysis - Wikipedia

 

[J75]

Same issue here OP. I feel part of the reason for me is that my interest in this hobby is dwindling. Sometimes I don't feel like gaming at all and instead rather consume other hobbies from the passive media realm. I just need to learn how to stop buying so many games that are not getting played.

 

[Dr. Mario]

I call it the Netflix queue syndrome. You have so much selection that you just can't decide and end up not wanting to play anything. This is why I wouldn't be a good fit for the game pass model. It's too overwhelming.

Click to shrink...

I feel like it's actually working out the opposite for me when it comes to Game Pass. Before that I bought all these games and then I feel like I owe it to, I dunno, the opportunity cost of having spent that money, that I need to take a real stab at finishing the game. But all games take way too long and so beforehand I know I'm taking on a big task and I'm playing a game to relax I don't want to take on a big task, so I basically don't play it at all, or if I do start, I have this nagging feeling that I should continue even if I'm not having the best time. A sunk cost fallacy basically.

With gamepass I didn't pay for any game in particular and so I don't have a sense of duty to keep playing. I download and play a game anywhere from 10 minutes to twenty hours, and when I'm done I can just quit instantly.

 

[Trigonometrize]

I recently got out of this and have played around 8 games since the beginning of the year from start to completion. I have no explanation for what changed.

 

[Weltall Zero]

Does anyone else have this issue? Where you have a ton of games on your backlog, or on your wishlist and just get paralysis when trying to figure out what's next? For me, there really doesn't tend to be a ton of "no-brainer, must-play" games in a year. In 2020, that was Half-Life: Alyx and Yakuza 7. Cyberpunk was on that list, but all the middling impressions put that on the backburn until they sort their shit out, even though I preordered it, it's installed, and would take just a click to start playing it.

But even with only a few "must-play" games on my list, I still have no shortage of games that I'm relatively interested in. The problem is, I just don't know which one to pick, and I don't want to pick "wrong" and feel like I just wasted my time. So instead of playing something new that I might enjoy, I just go back to the old multiplayer shooters or whatever roguelike/survival game I might be into at the time. I'll easily retreat into a "known-quantity" than risk trying something new and being disappointed.

I have the same issue with TV/anime. Plenty of shows that I'm interested in watching, but I'll scroll through my queue and when nothing sticks out as something that I absolutely must-watch I end up just rewatching something that I liked and I know I'll enjoy again.

I guess it kind of just boils down to being lazy and indecisive, but was wondering if anyone else experiences the same thing and how to get out of the rut. (I know people will probably just say get over it and start something new.)

Click to shrink...

I know exactly what you mean. I have a million "must play" games like Resident Evil 2, Alien Isolation, Yakuza 0, Devil May Cry 5 and a plethora of indie games, but I end up booting Spelunky 2 or that damn Loop Hero demo. :P

 

[m0therzer0]

... are you some kind of wizard?

Click to shrink...

I wrote that and bought games from my local mom & pop game shop the next day. I'm weak!

 

[Man Called Aerodynamics]

Yeah I feel like this a lot. I'll spend all day at work daydreaming about 20 games I want to play, then when I get home... I don't want to play any of them right then.

 

[Multievolution]

I have dozens of games over the years that I never got around to playing or never finished, for me I don't get excited like I used to, there's also likely some part of me that doesn't like what's been coming out recently, as a general rule though I usually pick up at least one of them a year just to try it,