Dust Gatherers

[RedCoyote]

So this morning I finally finished a game that has been nagging at me for 10+ years. A game that is considered by many in the gaming community (and I now consider myself among those in agreement) as one of the quintessential pieces of evidence whenever someone would ask if video games could be considered art. Sometimes there are critically acclaimed games that you pass up because you're not a fan of the genre or you don't/didn't own the system or maybe it just slipped by you somehow, some way (especially with the rise of independent games in the last 5 years in particular), but sometimes there are those you just know you'd love, but for one reason or another, you never found the time for. I'd like to know more about what games those are for y'all? I called this thread dust gatherers because I am guilty of purchasing games an letting them languish on my shelf. The guilt springs from the fact that I dropped hard earned money on something just to display a plastic case. Worse still, I'm neglecting to give the game what it wants! It wants to be played! Somebody, somewhere could be enjoying this, and here I am just letting it gather dust.

Maybe y'all don't feel the same things I do when I buy something only to not then go out and enjoy it. Sometimes not even giving it any time whatsoever! But I'm sure anyone can relate to the dilemma at least. I'll bet Steam has kicked this feeling into overload at times.

Anyway, the game I finished this morning was Ico, and I was so glad to finally get the full experience of it under my belt. Sure, a touch repetitive at times (though it's hard to fault a ~7-8 hour game at best with repetition). The controls could be a bit clunky, too. But, man, if there was ever a game that was an experience, you'd be hard pressed to find many better examples. As I mentioned, I've probably owned Ico for over ten years. I don't remember when I first picked it up, but I know I found it in a bargin bin somewhere and wanted very much to give it a chance. I did, shortly after purchasing it, and found myself stopping very shortly into the game. Given the time period, I may have picked up Vice City around that time and poured many hours into that. I was also heavy into Starcraft for a long while. Anyway, the point is I stopped playing it and have always regretted doing so. About a year ago I was given the PS3 remastered edition for Christmas, and I just now got around to saying, "Ten years is long enough!" I'm so happy I invested the time into it. I actually started it right back up the second it was over and started playing it again because I enjoyed the experience so much. Afterwards, I'll move onto Shadow of the Colossus as I've heard probably about a 2:1 ratio over the years that SotC is arguably better in many respects.

But what are some games you guys have purchased or procured that you really regret having not given attention to? Maybe you played it a bit but stopped for some reason. Maybe you lost it and haven't picked it up again. Maybe you haven't even taken the wrapper off (at least with Ico I actually opened it up an played it, my current record holder for game that hasn't been opened is Max Payne 2... a game I got not long after beating and loving the first one, yet now it sits unplayed and unopened and will probably remain that way until I take the time to buy or pirate it for the PC as I no longer have my PS2 and my fat, backward compatible PS3 died last year).

[CooLDoG]

Alpha Centauri is a game that I have had sitting on my hard disk for literally years now. I remember when I first got it (not at time of release but several years after) I played one game of it and I remember thinking, "holy balls this game is sooo good." But for some reason I never got around to playing any more than one game. I really want to try and play at least a few more games of. I am still in wonder of the world that the game created with all of the technological quotes it read off.