Are there any gamers that are non-finishers?

I am talking about gamers who start the game but always never finishes. I am one of them. I am ashamed to admit but I never really any finished any game, just start on it and somewhere in the middle, just never follow through. I think the last game I officially finished was the warioware microgames lol

Definitely me! More so now than what I was like when I was younger though – nowadays I’m notorious for abandoning a game after only a short time, and not necessarily because I’m bored with it or because the game is awful – usually it’s just because I simply do not have the time or drive to devote to playing a game over an extended period. Except FFXIV that is. 😉

yes definitely time is the constraint. Plus when new games come out, I tend to abandon the old one and start with new. I never really played FF but I am now working on finishing Bravely Default one day at at time lol.

I’m kind of the opposite actually – if I start a game, then I *have* to finish it. I might leave it for a while if I’m not getting into it, but I’ll almost always return and finish it at some point. There’s only been a handfuil of games that I’ve played but not finished this generation.

Dead Island (I actually enjoyed it immensely, but it was so repetitive, that I just had to stop), Project Slypheed (I was always a huge fan of space combat games, but this one left me cold) and Two Worlds (atrocious voice acting and all round mediocrity made it one of the few games I have ever simply thrown away – I couldn’t bear to even have it in my house a minute longer!)

I’m from the 8-bit era of gaming, when everything was on cassette. Having to wait 10-15 minutes for games to even load up, breeds an iron will and endless patience! I have no problem settling in for the long haul – completing a game will take as long as it takes. I consider it my duty to myself to complete all the games I buy, because then whether I think the game was good or bad, I can at least say that I got my money’s worth out of it.

I can be like this with certain games. As others have said, it’s not that I dislike the game or anything, just… there’s not enough drive in me to complete it. For instance, I bought Kirby Mass Attack a couple years ago; played through the first few levels and didn’t pick it up again until recently.
For me, it’s either get completely obsessed and finish the game within a few days or just leave it to rot for several years. I’m terrible. orz

Like Vrykolas, I’m a gamer from the old 8 Bit era… Commodore 64, Atari 2600, Vectrex etc… so I guess I do have some modicrum of patience. However I will admit, that in recent era’s of gaming (namely PSX onwards), I have tended to start a lot of games… and then don’t finish them.

My backlog of unfinished games is rather substantial… Super Nintendo, Gamecube, Megadrive, Sega Saturn, Dreamcast, Neo Geo, PSX, PS2, PS3, Xbox, Xbox 360… I have games from all of those systems I’ve started and yet to finish. Though, I’m going to TRY to complete games on my PS4 and Wii U.

Sadly, with all the games coming this year (and with how many I have on preorder), this’ll be a tall order to do…

Guilty
My problem is that as a Christian i struggle with the guilt [ violence and profanity ]
I’m lured by the action and storyline [ and the score ]
being not very proficient the difficulty puts me off too a lot of the time
sorry to say my patience isn’t a strong point either
probably have observation skills lacking somewhat as many a time i cannot see where the enemy fire is coming from until it is too late
i tend to panic under pressure too
Now you are all gonna exploit my weaknesses lol :autobots:

The thing that newer gamers might not realize is quite how hard games used to be in the 8-bit era. It was actually fairly rare to complete games back then, because of a combination of dodgy controls, awkward (or often non-existent) save functions, frequent crashing, limited lives and continues, as well as utterly punishing difficulty. Even back then, I tried hard to finish games, but I don’t think I finished even a quarter of my games from back then. It was a *major* victory for your gaming skills if you finished games back then. I lost count of how many hours I spent sitting in front of my Spectrum 128K, trying to work out how to make progress in various text adventure games, trying to figure out exactly how the game wanted me to phrase ‘Unfasten Seatbelt’ or ‘Open – the – fricking – DOOR!’

But it did breed in me a desire to succeed, and beat the odds, which I’ve kept to this day. This goes hand in hand with the coin operated arcades that have mostly died out these days too. It was a ritual for when I went on days out with my family to try and find at least 1 arcade and do as well as I could on old classics like Star Wars (the one where you were sitting in the cockpit to control it), Gauntlet, Operation Wolf, Rolling Thunder, Space Harrier etc etc. This was before most people had easy access or were too young to afford much in the way of home computer/console games, so these trips to the arcades had a lot riding on them. The longer I could survive, the more progress I could make for my money, it was a real test to get just a small taste of gaming.

So that’s where I’m coming from. I never really lost my desire to get the most out of a game. To try and beat it to prove to myself that I could do it, because it was so rare to ever beat an arcade game or an 8-bit game. Of course games are easier now, but I still remember the days when I’d wonder what the later levels of various games even looked like, and promise myself that someday I’d be good enough to see them. This was before the internet obviously. I mean, this has me really nostalgic for those days now – gaming back then was full of difficulties, and obviously the games can’t compare on a technical level, but the sheer difficulty and just how new and exciting it all was, for both developers starting out on seeing what was and wasn’t possible and gamers playing all of it – it was a great time, and I really miss it.

But I digress. Basically, I still try to make every last pence I spent count, like I’m still back in those arcades!

Being born in ’89 only allowed me a brief stint with the 8-bit era. We had a NES until I was about 5, when it quit working. Most of the games we had for it were not all that challenging though, relatively speaking – the hardest game I completed was Bubble Bobble when I was about 4 or 5. But I beat it because it was fun, and I beat it multiple times. Mario 3, Duck Tales and Kid Icarus (if it didn’t freeze) I replayed numerous times for the same reason. Of the games I didn’t beat, like Mike Tyson’s Punch Out and Kung Fu, weren’t really that fun, so I gave up on them.

Every game we owned on succeeding systems I beat, if not fully completed, partly because, yeah they were easier after the NES, but also because I had a say in the selection of games we got unlike our NES library, so I enjoyed all of them. We weren’t exactly rich though, so I had to make do with what I had, so I completed and replayed them multiple times.

Today, or I should say the past 3 years, after I quit Runescape (don’t ask, just sayin’), I started to branch out and basically play catch-up with the sixth, and eventually seventh generation. I discovered some new favorites, like the Xeno series but also some duds that I’ll probably never complete, like Valhalla Knights: Eldar Saga. That game in particular is just so poorly made, I can’t bring myself to continue it. There are some others that I started out liking, but got bored with like Donkey Kong Country Returns and Sudeki. I have also abandoned some games before even finishing the tutorial… Kingdoms of Amalur, for example, which I picked back up and am now enjoying immensely. Or I’m addicted… Or both.

Now, my worst habit nowadays though is that I’m a total quitter. I could go down a very long list of games I’ve played the past three years that I’ve dropped because I reached a point I cannot overcome, or I suddenly lost a lot of progress. I can’t help that I’m such a pessimist, but it also goes back to what I was saying before. Having to retread a lot is more discouraging the less fun the game is. Several of them I picked back up and finished, but usually after long periods of time.
Tales of Graces is my latest "problem" because I feel like the game is tedious after 30 hours and the story seems to be getting worse the further I progress. My motivtion to continue dwindled because of that already, but then I go and die like an idiot from a real dick move the game pulled, and have to fight 2 annoying bosses over again. I don’t know when, or if, I can pick the game back up after that.

Or maybe my quitterness (it’s a word, dammit) stems from the fact that I’m finding it more and more trying just to enjoy games and have fun. The same can be said for other activities besides gaming too – I used to write and draw a lot, but now I can barely get started. Life is just not the same anymore.

Or maybe Runescape turned me into a bitter quitter. Yeah, I’m gonna blame Runescape. Just sayin’

This tends to happen a LOT now for me.

It’s that whole adult/kid crap.
When I was a kid I couldn’t afford many games, so I beat the hell out of the ones I had.
But now that I’m an adult, I have the money for many games, but lack the time to play them.

>>

I admit that I find all this quite disturbing. Each to their own, and I don’t claim to know everyone’s circumstances, nor do I have any mandate or right *whatsoever* to judge people. But I can express my worry at where these attitudes might send the games industry (if indeed it isn’t already heading inevitably there). I already consider games to be far too short and far too easy these days, so the idea that people still aren’t finishing most of their games, is really quite alarming. Because (and again, this is just a personal opinion and worry), I feel it will lead to ever more smaller games, and see the death of the big titles.

The thing I find hard to understand is how its even possible to quit before the end of modern games. I get the whole lack of time thing, but modern games are exceptionally short. You can beat practically all modern action games in less than 10 hours. Even for the most time-strapped ‘all systems go’ amongst us, who accomplish hundreds of tasks every minute in this multitasking modern age, that’s not really very long, is it?

There’s 2 ways to look at this – either the industry will decide the way forward is to make richer, more involving games that will make people want, nay *need* to spend more time with them and want to finish and thoroughly explore them over a lengthy period. Its not entirely out of the realm of possibility if you consider that even in this ADD era, people (at least claimed) to have put hundreds of hours into Skyrim. But I fear that the industry has no track record of being smart, and has form instead for being utterly lazy and greedy. So instead these trends could see more and more (or maybe I say *even* more) remakes, sequels with heavily reused assets, smaller and smaller games, free to play microtransation heavy games etc etc etc.

The old days are gone and they will not return – I know this. But when I look at the state of modern gaming, and the lack of attachment to modern games (which has become quite a bit concern as I understand it), then I really worry for this industry, and where its going. I can’t help but feel that if modern games were better and had more depth that people wouldn’t be discarding them and moving on so easily. Perhaps I’m just a relic, stuck in my ways and refusing to move with the times.

‘Oh arr, I’s remember when it were all just fields. Reet grand so it were…’

Frankly that’s almost certainly true of me, regardless of if any of what I’ve said here comes to pass 😀 I just know that I really don’t like where this is heading. I can’t see how people ditching games that are already too short and easy, can possibly be read as something healthy about this industry, and the quality and worth of its games. Again, only each individual knows their time limits, why and how often they do this with games etc. There is no judging of anyone on this from me – I’m just saying that I personally wish it wasn’t like this.

I totally understand what you’re saying, and I have considered the fact that I may be part of dedicated/hardcore gamers’ ‘problem’. I am one of those that must be having fun or be really engaged with a game to see it through to the end because the games I enjoy most typically fall in the 40-70 hour range. That is a long time, if you ask me. Time constraints are generally less of a problem for me than most people my age (because I’m antisocial and hate humans, just sayin’), but they’re still there. 40 hours is still a long game in my eyes. I will sometimes think to myself after the ~30-hour mark "Are we there yet?" because it’s very rare to find a game that stays fresh that long. And when it’s no longer engaging, and the going gets rough, it’s hard to want to continue because I start to feel like I’m wasting my time and should be playing something better instead. I like experience, exploration and creativity over challenge, competition and abnegation. It’s just who I am.

Going back to my Runescape days, this seems kind of contradictory though, because I was a skills addict who would actively grind or do other mundane tasks repeatedly all day long. I had a different mentality back then, I guess…

I should also mention that the past 2 years have been some of the worst in my life (not including my gaming life of course), and I had a rough transition into (real) adulthood. It becomes a lot harder to escape when things like that are constantly on the mind, and that’s my main reason I still play games these days- to escape. A lot of games I’ve gotten just can’t seem to do that for me.

In regards to the whole gaming industry thing… yeah, what can you do? That’s how all business works in this world nowadays, and the gaming industry is no exception. However, we should be thankful we still have our niches of creativity amongst all the horseshit that’s plastered all over the media.

Like I said, this isn’t judging anyone, and I don’t want you to think I’m branding you (or anyone) as ‘part of the problem’ or anything like that. This is simply the modern way of doing things – I don’t begrudge it to people, and I’m not blind to the fact that modern life gives us conveniences and technological improvements that have improved everyone’s lives. I’m just trying to be honest about what I think – i.e that in games, TV, literature, games, music etc the modern way of thinking and catering to that mindset has been (IMO) disastrous for quality, depth and richness of meaning, longevity etc etc. I’m the one not getting with the times! I just don’t see that as bad thing, when the times are like this.

And hey, nobody is suggesting that people play games when they’ve stopped enjoying them. As I said, I think the games industry could do itself and its customers a power of good, by going back to the drawing board and saying ‘Instead of assuming people will only care about this for 10 seconds then move on, let’s try and make something they will – that they *must* care about). The games being made nowadays are so disposable and forgettable (not that they lack quality, mind you), that there simply isn’t any point in playing them very long. Recycled ideas, stories, no real depth of any kind – my only real point was that things must be *particularly* bad if even the short and hand holding intensive games we get now, still can’t hold people’s attention long enough to finish them.

But I still have faith that with the right games, with products that actually *matter*, that people still have the capacity to appreciate such things. Its just that they keep getting blitzed by the media telling them they don’t feel that way anymore.

I know you are not trying to brand or judge anyone, I am the one branding myself, like I said, and it’s crossed my mind before this whole conversation ever happened (I probably should have made that more clear). I get angry at myself when I look at my collection of games and see just how many of them I haven’t finished.
I actually agree with your first paragraph, that modern convenience, etc. and the mindset it breeds has influenced the gaming industry in a very negative way. At least, in the AAA industry, though there are certainly exceptions every now and then. We still see a lot of enrichment coming out of the little guys, and I don’t think that will be going away any time soon. Gaming is entertainment to some, a distraction to some, but a lifestyle to others. And those in the latter will also never go away. There are smart developers and pubishers out there who know this, I’m sure.

Or maybe I’m wrong, and just have a miguided optimism coming from the very positive experiences I’ve had in my little niche comfort zone, since like 90% of my games are Japanese and single player only. My experience with AAA titles is minimal, to say the least. Lol…

Anyway, after participating in this topic, I feel like it is a very important one for any video game community to have. I may try starting this in another forum. Just sayin’

Do I have to feel bad when I admit to not have liked the last installment of Thief Series? I really tried to finish it, but… hell. It’s just no fun at all. Even though I still want to know how it’s going to end up, it’s so frustrating that this will be one of the first games that gets uninstalled unfinished.

If you’re not enjoying a game, it’s kind of assbackwards to force yourself to complete it. The point of games, after all, despite the fact that some of us take them so seriously, is to have fun. If you’re not having fun, or at least being engaged in some capacity, then maybe the game doesn’t deserve to be completed by you after all.
Different strokes for different folks, to be clich� about it.
Thief in particular is one you are definitely not alone on- reception was very mixed. If you bought it new, the only thing you should feel bad for is your wallet, just sayin’

One game I am struggling with is Radiant Historia for the DS. It’s a JRPG with time-travel that’s used to manipulate parts of the story. This is a very highly praised game, but to me, it’s tedious as fuck- when I’m not going back and forth between points on a branching storyline that somehow affect each other (yeah, suspension of disbelief) by completing vanilla JRPG story quests and side quests, I’m grinding random battles just to beat the next boss who otherwise wipes the floor with me before I can even start an offensive. Even though I’d love to see how the story pans out because that was the game’s highest praised point, I just can’t. I’m 6 hours into the game, which sounds like a short time, but I’m not even halfway through chapter 1. It just doesn’t feel worth it, even while playing on my breaks at work with nothing else to do, I reached a point where I’d rather just put it away.

JRPGs are an awkward fit in today’s world. They have a tradition of being very slow early on and that’s just not the way of the world now. Gamers demand that their games be incredible and action packed *immediately*, but JRPGs typically take their time, building the story up at a measured pace to try and tell a really epic story. Its completely contrary to what modern gamers expect, so the genre has suffered.

Even games which try to streamline such openings and cut out the ‘opening hours when nothing really happens’ get criticized. Persona 4 basically automates the entire first hour or so, focusing entirely on dense storytelling and is barely interactive, which led people to accuse it of not even really being a game at all. The Final Fantasy 13 games meanwhile have a ‘Things are happening! Hell no, we’re not to tell you what, unless you feel like reading all this text tucked away in the menu!)

RPGs of all stripes, west and east have been struggling with their intros recently. Most developers are now of the mind that a short intro that quickly (even if completely unrealistically) gets the ball rolling, is the best solution. They even seem willing to risk putting in intros that are actively bad, if it gets the gamer to a point where they can take charge and start playing the game on their own terms quickly – because that’s what people want. But such an approach is obviously not viable if you are planning to make the story a core priority – so most developers (sadly) don’t do that anymore.

Basically, story is dying out. Its all about gameplay these days, even in RPGs.

I try to finish but it really depends on the game, if it’s not insanely frustrating and I’m able to I finish, but sometimes I just dont have the motivation to finish, especially if I dont get into the game very deeply. I love all kinds of games but with my library I have a hard time deciding which to play and how long I want to commit to them. Most games I don’t finish simply because I don’t have the reflexes to beat them though which is why I like JRPGs being more turn based, although I do enjoy the more actiony ones more at first (they tend to get tiresome after a while).

not me. game i play, stays in the system until i finish it.
exception: since im a collector, i tend to buy games en masse, including games i either know what they are about, or have played before. so when i buy them they stay in my anti-evertyhing bunker never to see the light of day ever again.
i havent played a single sports game for dreamcast, excluding certain racers. same for the saturn, sega cdx (because thats what i play them on, as well as genesis games despite owning all gen and cd models).

Too many games, so little time… 🙁

Man, would I love to be in your position! I can’t find anything to play this year! 😀

Some games are rather mediocre and ‘meh’… those I loose interest in rather rapidly (Case in point I’m looking at Destiny here). So far this year, only one game has my interest enough and that’s Warriors Orochi 3 Ultimate. Maybe in November when Dragon Age Inquisition comes out (amongst others), I’ll stick games out longer… but now… meh

I can’t imagine anything more depressing than if Dragon Age: Inquisition is so bad that I don’t want to finish it. I can’t even conceive of how dismayed that would make me!

Seriously, that game had better be absolutely amazing, or this year might as well not even have happened (in terms of video games anyway). This has been the worst year for gaming I can remember -somehow managing to be much worse than last year, which I didn’t think was even possible, given how dire 2013 was.

But its September now, and I’ve still bought practically nothing all year. So never mind about finishing games – hell give me some games that I feel like starting!

There are four games coming next month which have my interest Vrykolas: NAtURAL DOCtRINE, Sleeping Dogs Definitive Edition, Samurai Warriors 4 10th Anniversary Anime Edition and Lord of the Fallen… then in November ugh… My social life will be gone completely to games…

My whole year’s hopes rest on The Evil Within, Dragon Age: Inquisition and Dreamfall: Chapters.

If those games don’t deliver, then f**k this year.

I feel like next year is going to be better, at least for me. I’m looking forward to Zelda U and Xenoblade Chronicles X, the latter being a huge influence in my decision to get a Wii U. Very curious about No Man’s Sky and Ys VIII, plus what’s in store for the PS4 in general (basically how soon it gets support from smaller Japanese developers), but it’s too early to buy one still.

This year I only have 3 games on my list. Hyrule Warriors on Friday, and Fairy Fencer F if the store has it. The third is Smash Bros. U, which I’m still ‘eh’ about, but my brother wants to play it with me.

Next year can’t help but be better. Mind you, that’s what I said last year…

I still finish a lot of the games i play but it’s too easy drop a game nowdays because of how many of them i have. Some games i come back later on (even after years) after getting stuck but usually when the game starts to feel troublesome i drop it because i don’t have feel like trying and failing a section million times like i used to. I remember for instance playing Conker on the original xbox and the god damn surfing section took maybe even much as 30-50 tries before i was able to beat it.

There’s no way i would keep repeating a section that many times anymore.