Weirdly enough, I find this the most unusual response so far. Not weird as in "you're a weirdo", but it's just a position that most dramatically differs from not only my own, but represents a definite single end of the spectrum. As in no-one can replay games less than you. You are the literal end of the spectrum.

I feel like I have to ask, are you sure, are you sure you're not forgetting some games you must have replayed at some point? But you're so resolute in your words that I feel trepidation for asking, as though merely asking would somehow invade your sense of relaxation. Is it that you are one of the few blessed people to have been born with a virtually photographic memory & so not even the passage of time can make a replay seem like almost a new game? Or are you simply so flooded with more games than you could ever play, and have been for most of your life, that its more a case of never getting the opportunity that arises from the many dry patches the industry regularly delivers?

I don't have a single problem with people sharing their personal journey thru life and I don't have a problem with you disparaging him but not sure why unless he got under your skin some how.

I think trying to figure out what motivates people at certain points of their life (guessing) is pointless but that is just me talking. I think he was just being honest that is all. I am sixty and sometimes I feel the same way.

AS far as replaying games, its hard enough any more to find time for one playthru but I did replay Gothic one and Outcast.

I am actually in pretty much the same boat. While I finish almost every game and I am also doing Let's Play Videos which give a strong motivation to do so (would suck to only have half a playthrough on youtube), I don't replay anything. If I replayed any game, that was while I was as a kid or that was a game I played back in the 90s and I want to make a Let's Play for now.

But I also never re-read any book and the movies I watched twice or more are less than a dozen.

There is just too much new stuff out there to bother with replaying known stuff. In addition there is neither a challenge or much learning involved if you replay anything.

I'm just as curious as lackblogger why some people don't replay games. No other intention, just really curious, not trying to be intrusive or anything.

So, regardless of whether you enjoyed the game or not, you have no urge to revisit it, ever?

Quite fascinating because..

I get an urge to revisit games I didn't enjoy previously, especially if these are generally well-received by others - people's taste can change over time, and I already own the game, so why not?

I discovered the joy of NWN1 this way. I really disliked the original campaign and the 2 official expansions, henchmen system and just the general look of the game/engine. A few years later, I decided to give HotU another go, and really enjoyed it. Eventually, I ended up discovering gems like The Aielund Saga.

And of course, I love going back to games I enjoy - I seem to have very particular taste in games so it is difficult to find the game I really love, so why not savor it? Over time, some games become unplayable as technology advances and no longer support the old games.

@Kordanor IIRC didn't you say you really love RimWorld? I think this game doesn't really have any ending (unless you decide to go with escape this planet by building spaceship or something) but if you have multiple saves, isn't it essentially same as replaying the game since the game mechanic doesn't change for each saves? Even if you don't have multiple saves, if you have hundreds of hours in this game, you are basically experiencing same content over and over again.

Well, if I didn't enjoy it - I certainly don't feel like revisiting it :)

But, as with all things that involve human beings - it's not really a rational concept.

That doesn't mean I won't try to rationalize it, though.

I think it comes down to subjective preferences and basic stuff like human habits and addiction.

We so quickly fall into patterns, I find.

For instance, I've read Lord of the Rings maybe 20 times. But I don't sit down to read it (or listen to it) because I want to re-experience the story so much as simply feel comfortable with something that I love, that is familiar.

In a way, the fact that I don't have to engage with it and I don't really need to pay that much attention to enjoy it - because I already know what it is - means it's much easier to digest.

Also, take Alien - the movie. I've watched that literally hundreds of times.

But if we're talking about REALLY watching it - and paying full attention to the story - then it's probably more like ten times.

For games, it's a different thing.

I don't play games for "comfort" reasons - and I'm much more addicted to the discovery process than anything else.

For me, the first few hours of a new (good) game are always the most interesting. Well, almost always.

I also tend to consume what I like very, very quickly.

Thinking back, I was always the guy who got sick of boardgame X or multiplayer game Y before my friends. I was always looking for something new, because I'm addicted to that sort of thing.

In games, I love evolution and I love fresh takes on familiar concepts.

So, for the most part, I would consider replaying the same game over and over completely counterproductive to what I actually want - which is a fresh experience.

Of course, some games are designed for repetition - and I can grind and loot-hunt with the best of them.

But there's always a point where I feel like I've seen what's there - even if I love the game - and that tends to happen faster with me, than most other people I know.

Even for games I fall completely in love with, like Diablo and World of Warcraft - I was out much sooner than my friends and guildmates. I ended up playing WoW for a long time, but most of that time was for the habit and the social experience rather than the game itself. I was out of it in terms of the discovery process after a few months, truth be told.

I just can't stay interested once I've experienced the "heart" of a game - and I couldn't tell you why that is. I can only say that I exhaust the discovery process in most games very, very quickly.

I wish I didn't sometimes.

Gothic I - 3 times, I should replay this :))
Gothic II - 5 times
Witcher 1 - 2 times
Witcher 2 - 2 times
Withcer 3 - finished it twice, restarted again and played like half of it another 4 times but real life will not let me finish it and when I get back to it.. I feel like starting it over to catch up lolz

In my case, it's … I'll call it … "lack of resilience towards hindrances in RPGs". I can't make up a better term for that, but as soon as I find something hindering my progress or fun, I give up very soon.

Somnetimes, I even restart the game, hoping that the next try will solve things. Sometimes, it does not, and then the game gets abandoned.

Which has also something to do with the formula of "every one has a different definition of 'fun'".

For example, I restarted Gothic 1 three times. Then I thought it was too hard for me, and I abondoned it. Others will call me "a whiner" for that.
And because I decided that this kind of game setting just isn't my taste, I didn't even start Gothic 2 & 3.

I have a hard time going back to old games especially real old games that I played nonstop til 3 or 4 in the morning. I remember playing Kaboom over and over and over but the thought of it today just horrifies me.
Funny, there is this video museum about an hour away that I have been thinking of visiting with hundreds of old games(mostly arcade) and revisit what possessed me to become so addicted and relive old memories.

Exactly the point Watson! So that searching, that exploring,that new discovery is what drives you. For me it is not only in games but in life. We are in sort of a prison on earth and in our bodies with many limitations but I think overcoming ourself is the biggest mountain to climb.

The question for me was why am I like this? Why do I even go outside when so many people only venture forth because they have too? Why do I travel around the world constantly(never for business) and love discovering different cultures then mine? Seeing the world thru different eyes helps a bit but the issue is still mine.
Inside me I know that this life and world is not enough to satisfy me. I make do but I know better now. More money, more food,more toys,more partners,etc,it doesn't matter.

Doing for others and volunteering, raising a bunch of children, figuring out answers to problems and solving them(or not) has helped define me and given me some peace but I know that the restlessness is within me and it will never go away and it isn't always a bad thing.

Interesting responses - thanks all :)

Probably Might and Magic 3: Isles of Terra. I was stuck with a 386 for many years, until Win98 was out, as one of my two primary computers (the other being the Mighty and Immortal Commodore 64). Beyond that, I still routinely go back to both Terra and M&M World of Xeen for regular runs.

Those are great CRPGs! :)

In fact, I think MM3-5 are on par with MM6-8.

It's a bit early to say, but Arcanum seems like one I will revisit a few times. Kingmaker too, for sure, as it's sort of like a new Baldur's Gate to me, and I've played BG through about 3 or 4 times now.

Hmm, there are a ton that I've started multiple times, but only completed once (I think Oblivion holds the record for me having created at least 10 different characters, with only my first character having finished the game). As far as games completed…

cRPGs

Morrowind (4 -5 times)
Gothic 2 (3 times)
Arcanum (3 times)
Witcher 1 (3 times)

jRPGs

Final Fantasy VI (20-30 times, usually once a year)
Final Fantasy VII (5-7 times)

It is simply about the lack of time, which is the same as it not having a high enough priority.
There are a number of things in life, I don’t have a lot of time for. I simply have too many activities I have to, or want to do and gaming is just one of them. Gaming is in the want to section, but not at the highest priority. There are several more important things for me than gaming, so weeks and sometimes months can pass without me even touching a game. When I do start gaming, I spent about 2 hours a day on it for a number of weeks and then move on to something else.
Unfortunately the games I really like are usually long and as a result I hardly finish any of them. And as there are so many games I still want to play, I don’t even consider replaying any as it would mean I get to play even less games I have not played before.

Well, thanks for keeping this CRPG madhouse going, then. ;)

It is constant source of work :)
I even spent time again yesterday to try and figure out what it is that slows the site down at irregular intervals and made another step towards improvement. I know more know than I knew before that…..

Gothic 2.

Yeah, ummm, Wiz8.

8 wins, 6 Rifts, 32 Arnikas, 150+ Monestaries.

I play my RPGs completionist, so Wiz8 can take some time. Put a fair bit of time into MM7 replays, too. Generally don't replay RPGs much but the character development and party interaction made those two games complete gems.