Backlog woes

After finally playing Tomb Raider to the end I realised it is rather nice to actually finish a game.

After a longer stint with unemployment I signed a contract for a new job today, to start in a couple of weeks.

I therefore have this final opportunity to play for ~2-3 hours in the middle of the day, after gym and before picking up kids at kindergarten, in addition to the precious hours in the evenings.

Then I took a look at my steam, origin, gamersgate and gog library and sighed.
(larger games)

Deus Ex:HR-directors cut (loved it, but is it worth it to play the DC version?)
Bioshock 2
Bioshock Infinite
Crysis (with warhead, wars etc)
Dishonored
Skyrim (still have hardly touched the main story and not dragonborn at all)
Eve Online (dont think I dare touch that without gloves and a thong)
Fallout: New Vegas (and FO3 somewhere)
Left 4 dead 2
Metro 2033
Everything with X2, X3
KOTOR
Witcher 2
LA Noire
CK2

Dragon age 2 (Stoped playing in disgust when some qunari swooped in like modern day paratroopers, but hey, maybe they won't do that the next time? )
Far Cry 2 (loved the setting and atmosphere, but why, oh why the respawning idiots?)

Then there is a bunch of other smaller games and old crack like BG2EE and Planescape Torment

OR is there some new game I definitely need to buy and add to the collection of playing later…

its easier to buy than play.
Opinions, thoughts
or should I just pour myself a glass of wine and go back to restarting CIV V

C

OffT
You now when you have been mentally preparing for something, like a second interview on a position that could really change your fortune and then the Lord of Chaos makes a visit?
Late phone call, improvised meeting with the american head honcho on a lightning visit colliding with a closed kindergarten, snowstorm and two daughters, 5 and 3.5 , lets call them terrier and bulldog. Well, I got a signed contract out of it, but I'm rather tired now

Trying to play and finish games within an allotted time is rarely a fruitful endeavor in my experience - but then again, I'm odd when I'm under pressure to enjoy something

I've played them all - so I can recommend something easily, but can you mention what you're in the mood for?

It's much easier if you have some idea of what KIND of experience you're looking for.

As for you "situation" - I sympathise

Depends what you're in the mood for. Also, what are you looking for length-wise? Would you prefer to play something that you can finish before you start that new job?

Personally, I would highly recommend Bioshock Infinite and Dishonored. Each of those could probably be finished in about a week with that much gaming time.

FO3 and FO:NV are both great, but you won't finish either of them in a couple of weeks on that schedule unless you skip a lot of the optional content. Same with Skyrim obviously.

The Witcher 2 is also really good, and is a lot shorter than the other RPGs mentioned. I assume you've already played The Witcher?

thanks for the replies!

Just put two rather tired girls to bed (after the adventures of today) and have set myself up for some immersive entertainment.

Id think I like something with a good story, its easier for me to continue to play a game if I'm hooked and want to see it unfold.
Gorgeous or interesting environments is a big plus, immersion is the name of the game.

Is it necessary to play bioshock 2 before Bioshock infinite to get the most out of it?
Bioshock Infinite and Dishonored are both top choices.

I played Witcher and started to play witcher 2 when it came out but got sidetracked (that and that I sucked at the combat )

Id prefer to start something that I can finish in preferably less then 40 hours (I have these serious completionist tendencies, took me 46 hours to play DX:HR)

C

Bioshock 2 and BI are more or less completely unrelated. There are minor references to the Bioshock universe - but that's more about the first game.

Of all the games mentioned, I think Bioshock Infinite is king when it comes to story and delivery. It's also quite pretty.

But be warned that it's also a rather traditional shooter with a lot of pew-pew.

If you just want to focus on story, I'd set it on easy difficulty and ignore the gunplay as much as you can.

Dishonored is a fine stealth game with an average story. I think it's overrated, but it would be fair to mention that I hated the art style.

I think BI took me around 16-18 hours - and I played on hard and took my time.

Originally Posted by Crilloan
Id prefer to start something that I can finish in preferably less then 40 hours (I have these serious completionist tendencies, took me 46 hours to play DX:HR)

I would definitely go with BI or Dishonored then. Both games have the interesting environments and immersion you're looking for. Dishonored is a little more open, but BI has the better story.

According to Steam, I played Bioshock Infinite for exactly 40 hours. That number does seem a little high though, so I might have left it running for a while at one point. I'd put the actual playthough time at closer to 30 hours.

Originally Posted by JDR13
FO3 and FO:NV are both great, but you won't finish either of them in a couple of weeks on that schedule unless you skip a lot of the optional content. Same with Skyrim obviously.

Depends on the player's playstyle. I finished FO3 in a weekend, but that's because I'm not an explorer. I go for the main quest, and may explore things I see on my way to the main quest objective, but I don't go out of the way to see the butterflies. So I think I played like 16 hours or something.

Originally Posted by wolfing
Depends on the player's playstyle. I finished FO3 in a weekend, but that's because I'm not an explorer. I go for the main quest, and may explore things I see on my way to the main quest objective, but I don't go out of the way to see the butterflies. So I think I played like 16 hours or something.

Originally Posted by Crilloan
(I have these serious completionist tendencies, took me 46 hours to play DX:HR)

…

Originally Posted by JDR13
…

Oh, in that case, do NOT play the Fallouts! or Skyrim for that matter.

A side note, there's a patch available for The Witcher 2 that deal with, among many other things, the bunny-hop combat.

Well, got me started on Bioshock infinite. Bringing back memories of the first game.

I like it so far, playing on medium and actually pondering about increasing the difficulty. Except for those fire guys, those put me in a world of hurt.
I have settings on very high, but I'm not overly impressed by textures. Still beautiful if a bit cartoony.

Now, some questions.
1. Saves
is there no way to save the game when you want or am I having a dumb period?

2. Weapons
I like that you can't walk around with an arsenal, but I have serious trouble deciding about what weapons to stick to. Seems that it would be most efficient to use two types and put your limited money on refining those pieces.
Been using the pistol mostly and tried out the shotgun, carbine and machine gun. Advice appreciated.

C

Originally Posted by Crilloan
is there no way to save the game when you want or am I having a dumb period?

Nope. The save system in BI is a joke, and it's one of the few things that really disappointed me about the game.

As far as the weapons, I found them to be pretty well balanced for the most part, and you'll continue to find newer weapons as you progress through the game. It's just a matter of preference really.

Originally Posted by Crilloan
Well, got me started on Bioshock infinite. Bringing back memories of the first game.

I like it so far, playing on medium and actually pondering about increasing the difficulty. Except for those fire guys, those put me in a world of hurt.
I have settings on very high, but I'm not overly impressed by textures. Still beautiful if a bit cartoony.

Now, some questions.
1. Saves
is there no way to save the game when you want or am I having a dumb period?

2. Weapons
I like that you can't walk around with an arsenal, but I have serious trouble deciding about what weapons to stick to. Seems that it would be most efficient to use two types and put your limited money on refining those pieces.
Been using the pistol mostly and tried out the shotgun, carbine and machine gun. Advice appreciated.

C

I favored the Sniper Rifle for most of the game, and I've actually forgotten my secondary weapon. Carbine, I think.

Save system is indeed crap. I would have played on 1999 - but without quick save - it was just too painfully frustrating, and not in a good way.

I'm playing it now too (got it this month in my PS3 with my PS+ subscription, best subscription of anything I've ever had!). I try to use mostly machine gun but I do run low on ammo a lot so that's when I use the 2nd weapon which tends to be either the railgun or the RPG.

Bioshock Infinite is a good one. Yeah, the save system is really terrible and they had to take a chainsaw to their ambitions but it works out in the end. It's probably the best use of music in a video game that I've ever heard, too.

Thank you all for the input, finished the original campaign now. Not sure if I should continue with the first buried at sea DLC or not.

Perfect size for a storybound shooter
really good use of music
interesting design and art style.
good story, a bit hyped at the time (well, definition of good for me is that I would have liked it to continue for a bit longer :-) and wanted more at the end )
Some of the weapons I just used only once, some never, but the satisfaction of a shotgun at close range or blowing enemy heads of with a sniper rifle never gets old.
(well, the hand cannon were extensively used as well)

My only minor quibble, no save function?!?
I have a life, I have a family. I want to be able to close down the game when I want! ( or when my significant other wants to). Not have to replay 45 minutes of curious exploration.
would be interesting if there were any official word on why?

Good times anyway!

C

backlog=-1

BI pushed last gen console hardware to the very limit, and it's possible that keeping savegame related states in memory like Bioshock 1 and 2 wasn't possible.

They might never admit that, but I tend to believe that's the reason.

Another reason could be a misguided desire to stick with an archaic design choice intended to artificially extend lifetime of the game as well as the level of tension.

It can work, but I think it was a bad fit for this game.

Congrats on shrinking the backlog. Avoid the humble bundle at all costs.

Originally Posted by Crilloan
Thank you all for the input, finished the original campaign now. Not sure if I should continue with the first buried at sea DLC or not.

Personally, I'm waiting for Burial at Sea: Episode 2 before playing them both.

Yeah, I'm holding off until March as well - where the second episode is supposed to come out.

I might even replay the original game, but probably on easy