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[bPod]

No more collector's edition with statue - quality is complete sh!t

 

[Shalashaska161]

I'm kinda doing the same thing OP, though I'm more just trying to cut down than stopping completely. I'm trying to save money so I can realistically move out in the next few months and buying games I'll never play (even if they're cheap) is counter-productive to that. I've already kinda started by trying to control myself during the Steam Sale. Only $20 and 3 purchases so far, so I think I'm doing alright.

 

[loosus]

Some of us have enough disposable income that dropping a few bucks on a game I *might* want to play later or one that's a steal (say BOGO or B2G1 sales) isn't a huge deal. I have Bayonetta still in shrink wrap for just this reason..

And? I could afford to buy games I'm not going to immediately play, too. Having that ability makes it NO LESS STUPID. This is fucking stupid, and the fact that anybody is trying to rationalize it makes that much more stupid.

 

[Guevara]

I probably could get by on 4 new games next year, not none. That would be enough to catch up. I don't buy more than 12 games retail games a year, the digital dl games are the real problem.

 

[comedy bomb]

I have a large back log. My solution is to quit sitting on my ass reading Gaf and spend more time sitting on my ass playing games.

I feel I can still buy games, work through most of the backlog, and buy a Wii U on my birthday in Jan 2013.

 

[LosDaddie]

ME3 and Halo 4 are the only new games I plan on buying next year. I have about 6 games in my backlog and I hope to clear out 2 games before ME3 drops early next year.

And? I could afford to buy games I'm not going to immediately play, too. Having that ability makes it NO LESS STUPID. This is fucking stupid, and the fact that anybody is trying to rationalize it makes that much more stupid.

Well said. Having a massive backlog, regardless of sales or not, is wasteful. The only time I have a backlog is after GameStop's B2G1 sale, which I immediately start working on after I buy them. That's why I only plan on buying 2 games next year. I'll be clearing out my backlog the rest of the year. I hope to have it cleared out before Halo4 so I can play it nonstop on XBL

 

[Manmademan]

And? I could afford to buy games I'm not going to immediately play, too. Having that ability makes it NO LESS STUPID. This is fucking stupid, and the fact that anybody is trying to rationalize it makes that much more stupid.

so, buying a game you're on the fence about when it's 50% or 75% off to save money is stupid now? Picking up a game for free (as in BOGO, or B2G1) is stupid now?

having 1 or 2 games in your backlog if you're serious about the hobby is pretty normal. having 100+ games is not.

 

[Javier]

As a 3DS owner, there's no way I could hold on buying a single game next year. It's simply not possible.

Good luck to you, though.

 

[G-Fex]

I'm really going to try not buying new modern games and rather purchase classic games for my old systems

 

[Figboy79]

I bought less games this year than I did last year because of my growing backlog, and now I'm slowly chipping away at them during my 2 weeks off of work.

So far, I've cleared Deus Ex: Human Revolution, Portal 2, and Alice: Madness Returns. I'm currently working on Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (which I should be beating soon), and moving on to LA Noire, Dead Space 2, and bunch of others.

I resolved to my wife that I wouldn't buy any new games until I beat the majority of my backlog.

I also have a shit ton of PSN games I've purchased/downloaded this year thanks to a lot of good PS+ deals.

My 360 is still broken, so the games I have for that will have to wait until I get it fixed/get a new one.

I wish you the best of luck in refraining from buying new games next year. I can't make that resolution (quite a few good games I'm looking forward to, as well a lot of games that released this year that I passed on because of budgeting/resolve to not buy a bunch of games this year), but I certainly aim to buy less.

 

[Lumpy Onion]

As a 3DS owner, there's no way I could hold on buying a single game next year. It's simply not possible.

Good luck to you, though.

First thing that popped into my mind too. Aside from FF XIII-2 it's gonna be a whole lot of 3DS stuff for sure.

 

[Maleficence]

Yeeeeah not gonna happen. I could never do this.

A month? sure. 2 months? Probably

A fucking year? Madness

 

[KennyLinder]

No game purchasing for me until I've Platinum'd Dark Souls, and "finished" Zelda SS, Batman AC, and Ghost Recon 3DS.

 

[George Claw M.D.]

The longer you're actually able to hold-out, the bigger your return binge will be. You'll see a bunch of games that you missed-out on, and at the bargain prices they will have dropped to, you'll buy all the games that you avoided, all that time.

 

[thestopsign]

With everything I just bought on the Steam Sale/GOG, I could definitely uphold that. At least until next Christmas, and the next Steam Sale.

 

[jaundicejuice]

I resolve to buy some games, play some games and have fun when I've got the time to fritter away. That's about it.

 

[kodt]

This reminds me of the time I decided to play through my Steam backlog alphabetically.

I didn't even make it to B before I decided just to play what I felt like playing.

Then came Dark Souls and Skyrim.

 

[CecilRousso]

Can´t see the problem with buying new games despite a backlog. There are always games coming out that you rank higher than others. The problem are all these games you buy just because of the price. If you 200 such games, you are doing something wrong and wasting money, no matter how much disposable income you think you have.

Sure, play what you want and buy want you want. It sounds good, but money wasting is still money wasting.

 

[Littlegator]

Way I figure it, my backlog is just an investment for retirement.

Imagine how many games we'll need to catch up on in 60 years. :O

 

[randomkid]

Picking up a game for free (as in BOGO, or B2G1) is stupid now?

B1G1 can be pretty great if you pick the right games at the right time. B2G1 is almost always a scam though. Even if you're maximizing savings with $60 games and assuming no tax, it comes out to $40 a game. Almost all games will drop to far less than $40 within the year.

Also you're not gonna play all 3 games at once or even near each other unless they're pretty short. Better to just wait and purchase individually when you're ready to play.

 

[stonedwal]

It'll be harder for you than it used to be because games are basically released all year now. It used to be that games came out in March and Q4, now there's at least one big release every month.

Money's tight next year, so I was looking at capping myself at one new release per month for the year. I have a gigantic backlog, so there's no shortage of stuff to play, but 12 games for the year at least gives me the opportunity to snap up anything I find interesting. If I don't buy a game one month, I can use that purchase going forward, however, a game will count no matter how cheap it is. I have already committed to Mass Effect 3 and Resident Evil: Revelations. I want Soulcalibur V, but I think I'm going to have to leave it. Birthday/Christmas gifts are exempt from the count.

No more collector's edition with statue - quality is complete sh!t

Yeah - I am done with stupid huge CEs with statues. Gears 3 and Skyrim take up way too much space, and cost too much for what they were. I recently found out my parents are selling their house and moving into a high rise in a year or two, so I have had to move all of the stuff I had stored in my old bedroom into my rental house (a process that saw me spend 4 days of my Christmas break on the road driving through the bland Australian countryside - over 3200km of banality). My rule is that anything bigger than the Soulcalibur V Collector's Edition is off limits.

 

[HP_Wuvcraft]

I'm only going to buy during sales, and cheap. And when I'm certain my employment will last.

 

[vaelic]

So I have always been one to build up huge backlogs (compulsive collector/shopper with a good amount of disposable income, a very understanding wife, and not a lot of free time will do that).

In the past I could always sell my collection of games and wipe the slate (and my conscious) clean, however with digital distribution (Steam, Xbox Games on Demand & Live Arcade, PSN, etc.) this has become a lot more difficult.

Hold on to your seats but I have nearly 200 games that I own digitally but have not played. I decided that this stops now! I will not buy a new game until either I finish 40 games off that list or the years ends.

Anybody in on this with me?

PS - I am debating a possible Bioshock Infinite exception. Would this exception undermind my whole resolution?

How about donating some money to charity next time? They'll get better use of your money

 

[Deadstar]

So I have always been one to build up huge backlogs (compulsive collector/shopper with a good amount of disposable income, a very understanding wife, and not a lot of free time will do that).

In the past I could always sell my collection of games and wipe the slate (and my conscious) clean, however with digital distribution (Steam, Xbox Games on Demand & Live Arcade, PSN, etc.) this has become a lot more difficult.

Hold on to your seats but I have nearly 200 games that I own digitally but have not played. I decided that this stops now! I will not buy a new game until either I finish 40 games off that list or the years ends.

Anybody in on this with me?

PS - I am debating a possible Bioshock Infinite exception. Would this exception undermind my whole resolution?

Why would you play them? The fun is collecting them all.

 

[rohlfinator]

You have my sword. I've whittled down my backlog a bit over the fall, but all the pay-what-you-want indie bundles this winter have filled it back up again. So this will be a good opportunity to take a good bite out of it. 2012 isn't exciting me all that much in terms of big games anyway.

If you're a steam junkie, load up $100 onto steam as credit at the beginning on the year, and allow that to be the only money you spend on games that year. At least then you won't be tempted to break your resolution if amazing awesome game you've been waiting for happened to be on sale for $5 one weekend.

I like this idea. Although I don't feel like giving Valve a $100 interest-free loan though. Maybe I'll do $25 every three months or something like that.

I've been wanting to dabble in indie development, so I'm also going to give myself an "out" if I manage to finally make the effort to make a game that I'm not embarrassed to release to the public.

 

[Deified Data]

Exceptions are the beginning of failure.

This.

I'm at least buying Kingdoms of Amalur in 2012, so no, I'm not resolving to do this.

 

[SafeinSound]

Only game for me that is a def buy for 2012 right now is Bioshock Infinite...and that doesn't come out till the end of the year? So, I MIGHT be able to make it through most of the year. Probably not though.

 

[Tain]

I like playing the games I want to play too much to do something like this. :|

 

[rohlfinator]

Only game for me that is a def buy for 2012 right now is Bioshock Infinite...and that doesn't come out till the end of the year?

Same here, which is the only reason I'm going to commit to this.

I know there will probably be a handful of random indie games that pop up out of nowhere, which is why I'm giving myself a cushion. But other than that I think I can manage this.

 

[subversus]

ok, I hereby promise that by 10th of January I'm done with buying games until the next Christmas sale. I make an exception for games that friends will persuade me to buy to play in multiplayer.

If I buy a game for myself only during this time I'm lying, stupid, weak-willed piece of shit. If I show up in some thread discussing a game that I'm playing and which I bought for myself only (any SP only game for example) everyone can call me out on this post.

 

[Dr Frasier Crane]

I'm doing this with two exceptions:

a) I've had Final Fantasty XIII-2 Crystal Edition on pre-order for months. That will be allowed through the barricade.
b) For my birthday my girlfriend will be allowed to buy me 1 (one) single 3DS game as I have only Ocarina at the moment and should be finished by then.

Otherwise it's nothing else for me. Hopefully I'll build up enough lag that I can enjoy games late at 1/3 of the price.

 

[Pai Pai Master]

I can't go that far, but I'm going to try my best to keep myself from paying full price for any games. Vita launch titles and Diablo III will be the only exceptions.

I tried that this year and did really good up until the October/November rush. I bought like every big PS3 game that came out day 1 then found myself completely overwhelmed by games that were selling for $30 a pop a few weeks after release. Lesson learned. There are really only a couple of games confirmed for next year that I would be dying for on day-one and I'll force myself to wait for those until I know I have the time to devote to them.

No more $60 games that I don't even start playing seriously for a few weeks.

 

[Dr Frasier Crane]

I've subscribed to the thread and will update through the year. I cancelled my (in my mind) pre-order for a 3G Vita also so will be going proper cold turkey.

Between Steam, PSN, Xbox Live and GBC VC on the 3DS I've got more than a years worth on DD alone, let alone including physical games.

I will be strong.

I will be firm.

I will have more money.

I will have no backlog.

 

[BobsRevenge]

My problem is I'm currently in the middle of playing a bunch of games and I end up starting new ones anyways!

Games I'm currently in the middle of playing.

• Homefront (game sucks, but it's going to be beaten)
• Serious Sam 3
• Alice: Madness Returns
• Hard Reset
• Vanquish
• Enslaved
• Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
• Singularity
• DE:HR The Missing Link
• Defense Grid expansion
• Battlefield 3 (at my parent's place)

And yet, I still end up playing games like Dwarfs!? and Mafia 2 (beat the main storyline again last week).

I also started OpFlash: Red River, but this game is absolutely horrendous so far and I might not go back to it at all, and I liked Dragon Rising. sigh

 

[bPod]

After some consideration, I've come up with more gaming resolutions...

+ Not to fall into the hype
+ Buy games only on sale
+ No more ridiculous editions - cannot stress this enough

 

[antispin]

My resolution is not to buy games/consoles/gadgets between Jan and October. Mobile phones would be the exception.

 

[Dr. Acid Avatar]

PS - I am debating a possible Bioshock Infinite exception. Would this exception undermind my whole resolution?

It wouldn't undermine your operation. It just changes from No Games in 2012 to One Game in 2012.

 

[Sqorgar]

This is a stupid idea, especially if you continue to visit GAF. Just set a budget and plan ahead. Ask yourself if you need each game right now and whether waiting would be beneficial, and answer honestly.

Personally, I stopped keeping a backlog. Too depressing. I use the bubble-up approach. When I read something about a game that makes me want to check it out (like a sequel coming out, a remake, a LTTP thread, or a thread about the best JRPGs featuring male characters who couldn't be mistaken as women, etc) then I throw it in the pile for the next month. I play what I can and what I feel like at the time. The games that stay interesting and stay relevant tend to bubble up in my backlog and get multiple chances to be played.

 

[Ivan A Nguyen]

I will be taking the no games purchase in 2012 pledge. I just pre-ordered my ME3 collector's edition though Amazon so it counts as 2011 and I don't have to make exceptions. Anything really cool in 2012 can wait till June, when I have a birthday.

 

[brandonh83]

I was going to make a thread about my big 2012 resolution, but found this thread and decided it wasn't needed. So I'll share; namely,

I am fucking done with trophies and achievements.

I just don't give a shit anymore. I've found that I have been enjoying games less and less because I obsess over getting the T&A's rather than just playing games and having fun with them. After getting the Platinum on Final Fantasy XIII, I realized how much time I wasted and how much fun I did not have killing like 10,000 turtles just to get a couple of goddamn Platinum Ignots. The very fact that I went through with that confirmed that I have various problems, some mental.

These things are a waste of time and in my opinion go a really long way toward actually sucking the fun out of a game. Now, certainly, like anything it can be okay in moderation: if I play through (and enjoy!) a game without actually going for them, but end up with a great deal of them and the remaining ones aren't going to be a huge ordeal, sure, I might go for them. But I am finished sinking so much time into a game that I don't even necessarily want to be playing just so that I can appease the completionist whore in me. When I get a new game I should not feel the need to check out the list and see what I should be doing in order to get them. From here on out, I am going to start playing games again the way that they should be played rather than pandering to a developer that says I need to win 10,000 matches just to get a BLING on the screen, or be responsible for giant turtle genocide just so that I can upgrade a couple of weapons-- that I would not have given two fucks otherwise about if a trophy or achievement weren't attached to it.

I initiated this movement by creating a new PSN account and nuking my prior one from orbit. It was the only way to be sure.
Speaking of! I have a new PSN handle, so add me: firerises83. You will find that, to my delight, my trophy level is currently at 1.

 

[Pachinko]

This is a sound idea that will never end up working because there will always be new games to buy, new movies to watch and other hobbies as well as work will always get in the way of spending all of your time getting caught up.

You could lessen the blow and make it an easier goal to achieve by simply denying yourself a new game until you finish ______ game in your backlog.

You want mass effect 3 ? well you have to finish deus ex and arkham city first. Want Ninja gaiden 3 ? better make sure any other action games you own are finished, want bioshock infinite ? better polish off a couple shooters first.

You set the goal much lower off the get go this way and the goal is also clearer- finish X game instead of finish everything. There's less then a 0% chance you'll finish everything in your backlog in a year, and this goes for almost anyone, Unless you are physically incapable of buying new stuff you will find a way.

 

[Phreaker]

I am fucking done with trophies and achievements.

These things are a waste of time and in my opinion go a really long way toward actually sucking the fun out of a game.

I think Nintendo made the same argument for not having them. Personally, I'll play the game for fun then take a look at the achievements. If some seam easy or fun I'll try to get them. If some sound like a waste of time or not fun I don't bother.

 

[KrawlMan]

As a 3DS owner, there's no way I could hold on buying a single game next year. It's simply not possible.

Good luck to you, though.

Yep. Having just picked up the 3DS, and with Wii U not too far off there's no way this is happening. I already plan on picking up RE:Revelations, Diablo 3 and Mass Effect 3, and that's just first quarter (I think?).

 

[The Bookerman]

I just bought Chrono Cross on the PSN store, with the intent of finishing it... Ruh Oh!

I hope I can finally understand the f*ck** battle system.

 

[TheApatheticOne]

With my current backlog, my goal is for every 2 games I finish, Ill allow myself to buy 1 new game.

That said, I need to really get on it, because I have Kingdom of Amalar, Asura's Wrath, Resident Evil Revelations, and Naruto Generations preordered. : /

 

[Omikaru]

I have three lists on my backlog: 'Games I'd really like to play', 'Games I kind of want to play' and 'Games I really don't want to play' (the last one is mostly residual games from bundles and gifts I'm not hugely keen on).

And basically I operate on these rules.

- Play whatever game I'd like, preferably in the order of preference I set out in the categories.
- For every five games I'd really like to play, I'm allowed to buy and play a new game.
- For every three games I kind of want to play, I'm allowed to buy and play a new game.
- For every game I don't want to play, I'm allowed to buy and play a new game.
- I don't have to complete the game if I don't like it, I just have to be "finished" with it. That involves giving it a fair shake, and putting good time into it (unless it's excruciatingly bad, in which case I can simply write it off and not have it count at all).
- New games to buy can be topped up (so I can play a bunch of backlog games over the summer, and not buy anything new, and then use those topped up new games to get new pickups during the Fall release time).
- There are no exceptions. If I haven't cleared a sufficient amount of my backlog in time for BioShock Infinite, tough titties; I play some other games until I've cleared enough to justify it.
- DLC does not count as a game purchase.

Normally I'd be worried about sales, but I've pretty much bought every game I'm going to want in Steam sales that's out right now, so I'm going to clear this backlog out before I even consider moving on. Maybe by time I've cleared this backlog, there'll be a whole bunch of games I've waited to get in sales and I'll rebuild the backlog again.

 

[BobsRevenge]

I think Nintendo made the same argument for not having them. Personally, I'll play the game for fun then take a look at the achievements. If some seam easy or fun I'll try to get them. If some sound like a waste of time or not fun I don't bother.

Then why is SSMB:B basically force you to get achievements to unlock most of the content?

 

[iNvid02]

yeah im gonna put myself down for this, just looking at my backlog but also the way which prices drop in UK retail as well as the patches and bug fixes needed at launch makes it hard to justify buying day one.

 

[DoomGyver]

You know, I could probably do this. Maybe allow a single game purchase and that's it.

 

[ULTROS!]

My resolutions aren't much:

- Complete the Dragon Quest Zenithia trilogy (IV, V - done, VI - in the process).
- Complete the Sonic 2D sextology (Sonic 1, Sonic 2 - done, Sonic 3, S&K, Sonic CD - done, maybe Sonic 4)