Weekend Question: Have you made a dent in your backlog?

[PCG Jody]

I ask the PCG staff a regular Weekend Question and post the answers on the site. If you'd like to throw in an answer here, I'll squeeze the best into the finished article!

This week's question is: Have you made a dent in your backlog? It's a pretty good time for it. Nobody's socializing, and several new games have been delayed. Have you used this relatively quiet period to knock a few games off the Pile of Shame? And how many games do you have in your backlog these days anyway? Le us know!

 

[Frindis]

My backlog is so full that when I reach inside, it bites my hand! On a more serious note, I have been playing mostly Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, Diablo 3, and Warzone for the last week. Oh, and a tiny bit of surviv.io while waiting in the Warzone lobby for next match to start. I also just reinstalled Lord of The Rings Online and will be participating in the upcoming 13th-anniversary event.

 

[Hveðrungr]

I don't have much of a backlog since starting my infamous spreadsheet. I have made time for some games I'd picked up more recently though: All Walls Must Fall; Star Trek Bridge Crew; The Council; and Tomb Raider (2013).

 

[SWard]

That spreadsheet belongs on a pedestal somewhere

 

[Sarafan]

I have a huge RPG backlog. I'm a fan of this genre and there was a lot of noteworthy RPGs in the past years which I didn't have time to play. This includes Pathfinder: Kingmaker and Divinity Original Sin 2 unfortunately. These are still waiting for their time. Right now I'm playing Shadowrun: Hong Kong. During these hard times I've already managed to finish my biggest shame from the pile - Icewind Dale 2. Next on the list is probably Divinity Original Sin 2. Given the great reviews the game received, I have high hopes that it'll be better than the first one. RPGs are very time consuming, so I'm expecting to pour 100 hours or so into this one. It's not easy to find so much time under normal conditions.

 

[Don Alosi]

Absolutely!
I usually try to finish a game unsuccesfully while buying two or more every given month, but this time around I've managed to reach the Division 2's endgame while only buying Sea of Thieves and Anthem! Only 230 231 games to go!

 

[Oussebon]

To fight the backlog, we must understand the backlog. We can ill-afford another Humble Bundle Purchase.
(Starship Troopers)

Despite the bonus gaming time (for better or worse) we all find ourselves with, a lot of people's backlogs will likely have grown - due to all the free games given away as much as extra spending. Just Cause 4 on Epic just this week. Track the latest on @Frindis's Free Games List (now For The King).

I can't help but feel games libraries are the modern equivalent of the collections of books you used to build up (perhaps you still do). Acquiring a good book being at least as much out of admiration and respect, as having any realistic plan to actually read it.

As for my hefty games backlog, it depends if we're talking sheer numbers, gaming time-required, or price/value. I too have been using a spreadsheet to survey the field - too many game client libraries. Not sure if resorting to spreadsheets says more about people who are gamers or the state of the game industry's DRM, mind.

--

Numbers wise my backlog has definitely grown - both due to indiscriminate freebie acquisition and also as I expect I'll get this month's Humble Choice (Hitman 2, Gris, and more). Whereas I've "only" managed to polish off Wolfenstein Youngblood, Far Cry 5, and FC: New Dawn too since March.

However, those are relatively big titles in terms of time required. And they were expensive, representing months' worth of my average game spending. And I technically played through both Far Crys twice as I did a coop campaign alongside a full solo campaign on each.

So: I've knocked out some of my AAAs and I've completed more £'s worth of games than I've spent. I feel like that's progress.

I'm prioritising coop games, so may do The Division 2 next.

The other 1200-odd titles are just gonna have to wait their turn. Sorry Rise of the Tomb Raider - it's still not your time

 

[Johnway]

Despite the outbreak its business as usual so my massive list of unplayed games remains just as large as before if not larger. After getting burned several times buying games when they could be much cheaper (Division 2 i'm looking at you), i promised myself to be more price conscious and buy games when they are at rock bottom prices to minimize expenditure and work on my backlog (i have games i acquired 3 years ago that i haven't even played!).

So much for that plan. In 2019 i counted at least 39 games on steam,. Over a quarter of a way through 2020 and i have got 24 games. Most coming from bundles, freebies, gifts or i have bought at a dirt cheap price. Lets not count the epic store or my handhled console collection of games that i haven't finished...

 

[Frindis]

I can't help but feel games libraries are the modern equivalent of the collections of books you used to build up (perhaps you still do). Acquiring a good book being at least as much out of admiration and respect, as having any realistic plan to actually read it.

Indeed it is! Still building up my collection of books, mostly digital now. I am a bit better with not overflowing my Pocketbook Lux 4 with too many books, so I probably have around 200 or so on it. Right now I am reading Whispers by Dean Koontz and will follow that up with an Ernest Hemingway classic: The Old Man and The Sea. The PL4 is very nice to read from and it takes just about whatever format you like. Oh, and a really cool thing is that you can see the book cover of the book you are reading on the front display, even if the display is turned off. Not sure how they managed to implement that, but it is really cool!

 

[Oussebon]

you can see the book cover of the book you are reading on the front display, even if the display is turned off. Not sure how they managed to implement that, but it is really cool!

Samsung have a similar technology but they called it OLED burn-in

 

[Krud]

I wouldn't call it a dent so much as a scratch. I started over with Pillars of Eternity, as it had been years since I last played it and couldn't remember a lot of the plot points. I just remembered feeling stuck at a point where my character was far too weak for what quests I still had available to me, which I couldn't use to get XP to level my character so that I wouldn't be too weak for the quests. I've started replaying it in... ::covers face in shame::... STORY MODE. ::minor chord:: ::lightning strike:: ::audience boos::

Seriously though, it is a much more relaxing playthrough in Story Mode, and parts that I previously had to just walk away from, I can now get through in a matter of minutes, vs. the up to an hour (or just death) before. Sure, I could use this time to "git gud" at the game, but I have other games to get to, and honestly at this point I just want to play through the plot so I can move on to PoE2eadfire, which I plan to play "properly."

Beyond that, though, I'm getting "caught up" on some TV shows and reading books. And writing. And just trying not to succumb to cabin fever (which adversely impacts my ability to enjoy gaming and other things.)

 

[jpishgar]

I *so* have.

I finished out Stellaris: Federations as a lovely empathic hive mind that took out more than it's fair share of fallen empires before retreating en masse to the L-cluster and pretending not to notice The Contingency. (Rant forthcoming on the Stellaris "Victory" screen as anti-climactic ennui-inducing.)

And now I'm on the last legs of Mount & Blade 2: Bannerlord. Which, though it's in awful rough shape, is still quite fun. I just managed to secure my own independent kingdom, and provided I get my fix taking out at least one of the Imperial factions, I'll be moving on to either Dungeons & Dragons Online, Satisfactory's most recent update, RimWorld for that royal dlc, or GreedFall.

 

[RustyLinks]

My backlog is... well, like space really.. it's BIG!

In between playing favourites and new purchases I try to cycle through my backlog, playing a mission, act, scene, chapter, whatever from each in alphabetical order - one game a day. I start with Steam, then Epic, GOG, Origin, and then UPlay (although GOG 2.0 might change that) before going back to the start. It takes me EIGHT MONTHS to cycle through once. Then Epic go and throw new free games at me, Steam has sales, new games come out... unless I actually win millions on a lottery and retire to become a digital hermit somewhere I feel like I will be cursed to spend eternity playing games and never reaching the end.... wait, that sound good actually.

 

[Firehawk0073]

I have the problem alot of people have... for every game I finish on Steam I get 2 more elsewhere. I am making a small dent... just finished Pony Island. It sounded dumb when I got it as a freebie, but it turned out to be a real gem.

 

[I Will Haunt You]

I have not even made a dent in my frontlog in the last couple of weeks.

 

[Zloth]

Frontlog? Is that your wish list, @I Will Haunt You ?

 

[I Will Haunt You]

@Zloth For me that's the games that I actually play regularly or ones at the top my want to play first list. Either the newest hot game title you recently got (like Resident Evil 3 for me) or one or more of your old stand-by games yuo return to often that are just easier to get in and out of without effort.. My stand by games are easy loop type gameplay like MMOs or The Division 2.

 

[Pifanjr]

As a parent, the quarantine has left me with even less time to play games, as I have to use my evenings and weekends to catch up on the work I don't get to while taking care of my kid during the day.

Coupled with what Oussebon mentioned about games being given away for free my backlog has only grown.

 

[Inspireless Llama]

In the past 4 months I've finished 5 games, which is 5 games more I usually finish in a year. Currently playing one that I hope to finish soon ish, but it's longer than I expected haha.

 

[StingingVelvet]

I've been playing Pathfinder: Kingmaker the whole quarantine and I guess that's a dent in my backlog since I've got several CRPGs I haven't gotten to (Pillars 2, Underrail and Divinity 2 being the others). It's solid, but the timer and kingdom management stuff is annoying so it's near the bottom of the CRPG resurgence for me.

I don't have much of an FPS backlog, I'm good at keeping up with those since they're shorter. Point and click adventures and strategy... not sure I'll ever catch up, it's hard to choose those over a new RPG/FPS.

 

[McStabStab]

Trying to get to the center of the galaxy (Euclid) in No Man’s Sky. I have a long way to go.

 

[Tycobbn]

Never. I know what I like and it's hard to move on

 

[Smashmambo]

Playing Far Cry: Primal I got for free ages back and taking advantage of the World of Warcraft 100% XP buff. Full heirlooms, warmode and a splash of ten lands potion, man those first fifty levels are just gone.

 

[Zloth]

Well, I was catching up. Then all the DLC for XCOM 2 went on sale and now I've suddenly stuck another play-through of that into my plans.

 

[rsharkman]

Not only have I not made a dent in it, but I have also made it longer. By my calculations, I should finish all the games by mid-century.