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How does this happen? How can we have gone from writing a letter to Santa to top up our two-games-a-year allowance to causally splashing out the cash on new games every other day?
Whether it was the allure of cheap-as-chips Steam sales, the bite-sized pricing of attractive indies, or the ever growing library of âfreeâ PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold subscription titles, itâs not unheard of for gamers to have dozens of games theyâve never even played, let alone finished.
And so the so-called âGaming Pile of Shameâ was christened online â that stack of guilt-inducing games that seem like a great purchase at the time that now stare back pleadingly at you from your shelf every time your finger hovers over that âbuyâ button.
So, with most of the world in isolation, has there ever been a better time to tackle that pile? To vanquish the last boss on the road to gaming redemption? To allow you to buy a brand new game with the clear conscience of a fully defeated library?
Letâs face it â itâs now or never. Hereâs our top tips to beat your gaming pile of shame.
Gaming Pile of Shame: how to knock it down to size
Step 1: Stop buying new games!
Itâs the obvious first step. Just stop. Put that wallet away and cleanse your mind of your credit card numbers. Your gaming pile of shame will just keep growing if you keep adding more titles to it, and youâll be even worse than when it started.
If a sale kicks off, ask yourself: do I really want this game, and might it become even cheaper by the time I get around to playing it anyway? You may save yourself some money in the long run, though exceptions can be made in the case of games that may be heavily spoiler-filled. As a compromise, work a âone-in, one-outâ operation â you canât buy a new game unless you finish an old one first.
Step 2: Use HowLongToBeat.com
This is a great resource if youâre not sure where to start with that pile. HowLongToBeat.com is a crowd-sourced list of game lengths â players submit their completion times on âmain storyâ playthroughs, âmain story + extrasâ and âcompletionistâ runs, as well as giving an average on them all. Itâll give you an idea of what to expect on the length of a game before you start, though of course itâs not an exact art â everyone plays a game slightly differently. You can import your Steam PC gaming library list to automatically get a rundown on your entire catalogue, and thereâs an unofficial mobile app for the site, too.
[IMG alt="8187bc4653ddebaf7ff88872285abf94" width="690px" height="388px"]https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8187bc4653ddebaf7ff88872285abf94.jpg[/IMG]
Step 3. Start on the shorter ones
Once youâve been through HowLongToBeat and assessed your library, weâd recommend picking out a few of the shorter ones and hitting them first. Thereâs a sense of achievement knocking out a game like Firewatch or To The Moon in a few hours. Youâll be ticking a few easy ones off the list if you keep to walking simulators and the like, and youâll be able to get some momentum going.
Step 4. Dial back the multiplayer matches
For many, the Gaming Pile of Shame refers to single-player games with campaign or story modes. Multiplayer-focused titles can be mastered, but never really finished, so theyâre OK to dip in and out of without too much guilt attached. If youâre trying to get through that guilt pile, dial back your multiplayer allowance â as youâve only got a finite amount of play time to work with, and a good multiplayer game will always be there to revisit when the pile of shame has been worked through.
Step 5. Recruit a co-op buddy
Playing a game with a co-op campaign mode? If itâs felt like a bit of a slog in single-player, why not recruit a friend who also has the game? Youâll feel some comradeship, crack some jokes, and feel obligated to help them reach the end too. Everythingâs always more fun with a pal.
[IMG alt="YLimcLHzAuUmSgJPfpYpEX" width="690px" height="388px"]https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/YLimcLHzAuUmSgJPfpYpEX.jpg[/IMG]
Step 6. Kill your darlings
You bought it. You played it for five minutes. You didnât like it. Yes, it got 5-star reviews from all your favorite gaming publications. Yes, itâs the latest entry into a series youâve long loved. Yes, your friends herald it as the second coming. But if it isnât for you, donât force it â thereâs no shame in admitting that you just didnât like a game, rather than suffering through it. Get through your other games, then swap it for something you might like instead. Thatâs another one off the list, too.
Step 7. Donât fear the âEasyâ option
Unless youâre a Dark Souls masochist, most games have some sort of easy difficulty level option. If youâre struggling with a tough part of a game, or are looking forward to a title solely for its storytelling, consider dialling the difficulty level down. Itâs better to see all a game has to offer at a more leisurely pace than getting stuck in the first few hours of it.
Step 8. Give up on achievement chasing
100% beating a game is a rare and wondrous achievement. But many gamesâ achievement lists are ludicrous. Beat a game on every difficulty level? Pull off 100,000 perfect dodges? Blow up a million zombies with your bare hands? Donât bother â just do the bits of the game you enjoy, get to the end credits, and tick it off your list.
Step 9. Commit to two titles (and an on-the-go game)
Committing to games on your list is the key to finishing them. Jumping between two dozen wonât see you beating any of them. But variety is the spice of life, and different games can suit many different moods, scenarios and play session lengths. Rather than burning yourself out on just one game, pick two from very different genres that you can jump between as respite from the other, and a portable or mobile game for when youâre in bed or on-the-go. Youâll have a game for all seasons then.
Step 10. Have fun!
It goes without saying, this one, but you play games for fun! Donât look down upon your pile of shame like some mountain to be conquered, but a box of chocolates to be enjoyed. This is one of those rare occasions where the saying âitâs the taking part that countsâ isnât just an empty platitude. Whether you beat your pile or just give up entirely, that stack of discs and downloads will have hours of great memories waiting to be unlocked. Get stuck in!
[ul]
[li]The best games of 2020 so far[/li][/ul]
Continue readingâŚ
Whether it was the allure of cheap-as-chips Steam sales, the bite-sized pricing of attractive indies, or the ever growing library of âfreeâ PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold subscription titles, itâs not unheard of for gamers to have dozens of games theyâve never even played, let alone finished.
And so the so-called âGaming Pile of Shameâ was christened online â that stack of guilt-inducing games that seem like a great purchase at the time that now stare back pleadingly at you from your shelf every time your finger hovers over that âbuyâ button.
So, with most of the world in isolation, has there ever been a better time to tackle that pile? To vanquish the last boss on the road to gaming redemption? To allow you to buy a brand new game with the clear conscience of a fully defeated library?
Letâs face it â itâs now or never. Hereâs our top tips to beat your gaming pile of shame.
Gaming Pile of Shame: how to knock it down to size
Step 1: Stop buying new games!
Itâs the obvious first step. Just stop. Put that wallet away and cleanse your mind of your credit card numbers. Your gaming pile of shame will just keep growing if you keep adding more titles to it, and youâll be even worse than when it started.
If a sale kicks off, ask yourself: do I really want this game, and might it become even cheaper by the time I get around to playing it anyway? You may save yourself some money in the long run, though exceptions can be made in the case of games that may be heavily spoiler-filled. As a compromise, work a âone-in, one-outâ operation â you canât buy a new game unless you finish an old one first.
Step 2: Use HowLongToBeat.com
This is a great resource if youâre not sure where to start with that pile. HowLongToBeat.com is a crowd-sourced list of game lengths â players submit their completion times on âmain storyâ playthroughs, âmain story + extrasâ and âcompletionistâ runs, as well as giving an average on them all. Itâll give you an idea of what to expect on the length of a game before you start, though of course itâs not an exact art â everyone plays a game slightly differently. You can import your Steam PC gaming library list to automatically get a rundown on your entire catalogue, and thereâs an unofficial mobile app for the site, too.
[IMG alt="8187bc4653ddebaf7ff88872285abf94" width="690px" height="388px"]https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8187bc4653ddebaf7ff88872285abf94.jpg[/IMG]
Step 3. Start on the shorter ones
Once youâve been through HowLongToBeat and assessed your library, weâd recommend picking out a few of the shorter ones and hitting them first. Thereâs a sense of achievement knocking out a game like Firewatch or To The Moon in a few hours. Youâll be ticking a few easy ones off the list if you keep to walking simulators and the like, and youâll be able to get some momentum going.
Step 4. Dial back the multiplayer matches
For many, the Gaming Pile of Shame refers to single-player games with campaign or story modes. Multiplayer-focused titles can be mastered, but never really finished, so theyâre OK to dip in and out of without too much guilt attached. If youâre trying to get through that guilt pile, dial back your multiplayer allowance â as youâve only got a finite amount of play time to work with, and a good multiplayer game will always be there to revisit when the pile of shame has been worked through.
Step 5. Recruit a co-op buddy
Playing a game with a co-op campaign mode? If itâs felt like a bit of a slog in single-player, why not recruit a friend who also has the game? Youâll feel some comradeship, crack some jokes, and feel obligated to help them reach the end too. Everythingâs always more fun with a pal.
[IMG alt="YLimcLHzAuUmSgJPfpYpEX" width="690px" height="388px"]https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/YLimcLHzAuUmSgJPfpYpEX.jpg[/IMG]
Step 6. Kill your darlings
You bought it. You played it for five minutes. You didnât like it. Yes, it got 5-star reviews from all your favorite gaming publications. Yes, itâs the latest entry into a series youâve long loved. Yes, your friends herald it as the second coming. But if it isnât for you, donât force it â thereâs no shame in admitting that you just didnât like a game, rather than suffering through it. Get through your other games, then swap it for something you might like instead. Thatâs another one off the list, too.
Step 7. Donât fear the âEasyâ option
Unless youâre a Dark Souls masochist, most games have some sort of easy difficulty level option. If youâre struggling with a tough part of a game, or are looking forward to a title solely for its storytelling, consider dialling the difficulty level down. Itâs better to see all a game has to offer at a more leisurely pace than getting stuck in the first few hours of it.
Step 8. Give up on achievement chasing
100% beating a game is a rare and wondrous achievement. But many gamesâ achievement lists are ludicrous. Beat a game on every difficulty level? Pull off 100,000 perfect dodges? Blow up a million zombies with your bare hands? Donât bother â just do the bits of the game you enjoy, get to the end credits, and tick it off your list.
Step 9. Commit to two titles (and an on-the-go game)
Committing to games on your list is the key to finishing them. Jumping between two dozen wonât see you beating any of them. But variety is the spice of life, and different games can suit many different moods, scenarios and play session lengths. Rather than burning yourself out on just one game, pick two from very different genres that you can jump between as respite from the other, and a portable or mobile game for when youâre in bed or on-the-go. Youâll have a game for all seasons then.
Step 10. Have fun!
It goes without saying, this one, but you play games for fun! Donât look down upon your pile of shame like some mountain to be conquered, but a box of chocolates to be enjoyed. This is one of those rare occasions where the saying âitâs the taking part that countsâ isnât just an empty platitude. Whether you beat your pile or just give up entirely, that stack of discs and downloads will have hours of great memories waiting to be unlocked. Get stuck in!
[ul]
[li]The best games of 2020 so far[/li][/ul]
Continue readingâŚ