why most people don't finish video games

Yup. I play a game for a couple of nights. Put it down, can't come back to it for a week or 2, then I can't remember what I was doing, how to play it etc, it's a chore rather than a bit of fun.
 
The reason I don't finish games is that there are simply too many great games to be played! I still haven't finished ME2, because I am trying to finish Witcher 1 so that I can buy Witcher 2, meanwhile I love playing quake live but also love playing BC2, I'm also playing a lot of killing floor etc and am half way though Oblivion before Skyrim comes out. Life is tough! :(
 
Only reason I don't complete them is...
I have 138 games on Steam, I don't have time to complete then due to playing League Of Legends.
 
It's all to do with the story and plot of the games for me,

I recently finished ME2 and really enjoyed what was going to happen next etc, So it kept me coming back. Duke Nukem though I've got pretty close to the end I feel but really cba with it as it's got such a poor plot and it's like a constant grind.

When the Assasins Creed games come out I can't put them down because I want to know what happens next, even if some of the game play is repetitive.

A lot of games are poorly thought out and have a poor plot behind them now I feel.
 
Age of the average gamer is increasing. Does it look like there was a spike in popularity of games that stuck with only one generation?

I rarely finish, I actually want them to be short to get it over and done with before it becomes a chore rather than enjoyment.
 
It depends on the game I finished mas effect 2 in a few dyas with DLC and it was like 40hrs+. But I loved the game so much I just played non -stop.

LAst night I played football manager from 5pm until 4am lmao.


On the other hand I have had games maybe with lenght times 6-20hrs? that I have not completed. I guess they didnt excite me enough..So its all down to the game.

Eg. I have had saboteur, ssasins credd borhterhood, ref faction guerilla wars, Saints row 2, Metro 2033, Bayonetta etc...so many games I have uncompleted. YEt I played Fm2011 for 11 hours striaght last night. I could complete most off these games if I played 11 hours non stop.
 
Another factor is online gmaing.

Its hard to commit time to complete single player games when I can easily play my mates at fifa online or play BFBC2 or MW or L$d etc..online.

Playing online doesnt ''complete'' games but its a lot off addictive gaming time.

If there was no online/multiplyaer I think Id complete much more SP games.
 
I'll complete it if the game keeps me interested. So the game....has to be good.

Many games these days are not good all the way through so I get bored and uninstall it and throw the disc at someone's face.

Valve games have the tendency to always get completed...I wonder why.
 
Sin_Chase said:
30 hours is not a lot of time to invest in a game you might play over the course of 6 months. It's not like you NEED to complete it as fast as possible.
Click to expand...

Yeah I agree. When I give a recommendation for a game, boxset of a series or something, I tend to get a "I don't have the time" reply. It's not like a race that you have to finish it in 2 weeks. If it takes 1 year then so be it :D The simple fact is people generally don't finish games because the game is crap and repetitive.
 
Ham said:
Definitely this
Click to expand...

Or there is a hard boss/level they keep trying but cant beat and end up giving up.

Liek Demons Souls that game seemed to have potential but I for one could not be bothered with the no checkpionts and dieing having to repeat the last 20-40mins game over again...ywannnn
 
Nerusy said:
Age of the average gamer is increasing. Does it look like there was a spike in popularity of games that stuck with only one generation?

I rarely finish, I actually want them to be short to get it over and done with before it becomes a chore rather than enjoyment.
Click to expand...

This is what I pondered, if 'our' generation was that of the pc gamers, we spiked at the start of the millenium, and we're still playing 10 years later, thus the average age increases by ten years.
Everyone else founf texting, then facebooking, and eventuallyntwittering, and never got into gaming.
 
Deific said:
I don't believe the average gamer is age 37 at all tbh
Click to expand...

Why not? Around 15 years ago I remember reading that the average age of a PC gamer was about 30, it stands to reason that it has gone up as more and more people who have grown up with gaming as a mainstream entertainment form would continue it.

In my office the vast majority of people are in their 30s or early 40s and plenty talk about gaming.

However I think the perception may be that gamers are younger because younger people probably game for longer. So for example the average gamer age may be 37, but if you weighted that by number of hours spent gaming a week I suspect the average age per hour of gaming would be lower.

Anyway lots of valid points made in this thread as to why people don't complete games, I think the key factors are:

1) Gamers are getting older and thus getting richer, combined with a fall in the price of games in real terms. We can afford to buy more games so we don't feel like we need to get full value out of every one we buy.
2) Online gaming sucks up a fair amount of gaming time.
3) Online activities in general suck up time; 15-20 years ago being sat at a PC meant singleplayer gaming, not surfing and social networks. Basically if you were sat around at home seeking solo entertainment you had a choice of watching terrestrial tv or playing games.
 
I've got two kids, a full time job, but I still love long games, providing they're not stretched out unnecessarily.

I've played over 200 hours of Oblivion for example. When I get addicted to a game I get really addicted to it.

But I find difficulty spikes are the biggest barrier to completing games for me. I'll happily play a game for hours, then come up against an insanely difficult piece of gameplay. If I can't find a solution myself, or one via the internet I tend to abandon the game and come back later. It's not unusual for me to leave a game for months or even a year, then come back to it and beat it.

The second main reason I might not complete a game is that it just doesn't grab me - Far Cry 2 is an example. Played it for a couple of hours, got bored, and have no interest in playing it again.
 
I think that last point is in part due to the fact that we don't fell like we need to get full value out of games we buy any more. I mean if you think back to when you were a child, chances are you couldn't go out and buy any games you wanted, you had to save up and so when you bought a game, you made sure you put a decent amount of effort into it. Whereas now, if a game doesn't grab you in the first hour or so, you don't bother coming back to it, you just buy something else.
 
Ravenger said:
But I find difficulty spikes are the biggest barrier to completing games for me. I'll happily play a game for hours, then come up against an insanely difficult piece of gameplay. If I can't find a solution myself, or one via the internet I tend to abandon the game and come back later. It's not unusual for me to leave a game for months or even a year, then come back to it and beat it.
Click to expand...

Snap.

In Batman AA I have come up against Bane, haven't touched it since, despite playing solidly up to that point without a break. I know that I'll complete it at some point, just not now.
 
Aww I missed Samantha. Your name has been changed back to Neil OP

More on topic now. People may tend to sometimes need to startover in a game. This isn't something they don't want to do so they won't play it simples.
 
Good subject Neil :)

I'm 39, have been gaming since my first spectrum in 1983. I have a PC, PS3 and XBOX and numerous games. Lately it dawned on me I was only completing games for completion sake rather than enjoyment or achievement. Getting 100% on Forza 3 for instance is a chore for me despite my love of driving and driving games, whereas clocking Manic Miner was a buzz.

I think I'm jaded. There's nothing at the moment that appeals to me or gives me that buzz that I'm looking for. I think the search for the buzz is what keeps me playing.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom