Gaming release schedules versus the time poor

I don't care if any new games come out in the next six months - I'm not buying any more.  I know, that's a pretty outlandish statement for someone who runs a gaming blog, but it's my goal.  In my quest to actually finish some of the games I do own, I plan to blast my way through them; finishing as many as possible, while also obtaining as many achievements as I can.

But there's more to it then just that; you see, with the growing success of "subscription" gaming (i.e. your Season Passes and Elite memberships, etc), certain games actually demand your attention beyond the historically short time span it would normally take to clock the game, and try out it's online component.

That's right - now games, such as Gears of War 3, come with Season Passes that give you a years worth of new game addon's to keep you entertained.  Just recently, we had the release of "RAAM's Shadow" addon, a whopping 2 Gigabytes of extra campaign missions and new multiplayer characters (oh, and new achievements, can't forget them!).

Even with games like Modern Warfare 3, it seems the publishers are not content to just take your money for the initial purchase price of the physical game - they want to make sure you play it year round (for an additional charge, of course); taking part in ranked tournaments, and participate in clan challenges using the Call of Duty Elite service.  Heck, they even want you to take time out from gaming so that you can watch other people game, via Elite TV - it looks like gaming certainly is getting "big".

A Modern Warfare 3 tournament - Source: Wikimedia Commons

In addition, it seems developers and publishers alike are pursuing more active features in games beyond its initial release date - such as double XP sessions, or special holiday quirks or bonuses in multiplayer.  At time of writing this article, Epic was counting down the days until Christmas by giving Gears of War 3 players a special multiplayer game session every day; complete with the ability to skin your weapons with a mint or candy-cane theme.

For the time rich, perhaps the purchasing of new games regularly might be acceptable, while still allowing one to enjoy many of the games addon's and subscription services.  However, at my age and my particular life situation - gaming is something that I can only fit in occasionally between work and spending time with my partner (not to mention hanging out with friends and family).

Now that games are starting to demand more dedication year round, it means individual games will take up much more effort and time; there will be no more "beat-game/get-new-game" scenario.  For developers, could that have the unintended consequence of forcing us to play one game longer, meaning we won't go out and purchase any more?  Or is that exactly what they want - meaning they don't have to expend much effort coming up with new IP; allowing them to simply "ride" their successful games for as long as possible?

In any case, I have my game collection, I should really start digging into it.

A mid-game Crisis?

I suppose it should be obvious that with the latest slew of games to hit the market, it is nearly impossible for a rabid gamer to get through them all - let alone tend to a blog site that demands eternal attention.  That is why I find myself here right now, attempting to show that my thoughts are still with PlayStrat, despite my last post being published several months ago.

So what have I been up to?  To be honest - on the gaming front, I haven't strayed too far from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.  The ease and speed with which one can jump into an online match contributed to it eating up several days of my life (despite a lot of that spent swearing at the TV.  I now remember why I disabled my voice communication).

However, I have also sunk my teeth into Skyrim; an absolutely beautiful game that lets me play the way I want to.  For me, that means hacking and slashing everything in sight - I haven't even bothered to touch the spell casting aspect of the game, save for the healing spell to keep my character fighting fit.  There's nothing quite like that moment when you look up after venturing a little too far into uncharted areas, and see a great big dragon swirling - sizing up it's next morsel (I.e. you, the player).

I suppose I should feel guilty then, and a little bit ashamed, to report that I haven't even started up Assassin's Creed Revelations; nor have I even considered purchasing Battlefield 3.  I never finished L.A. Noire, and I only just ploughed my way through Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare.

I guess at this point, I might be asking myself how I can consider myself a true gamer, and more importantly - how I can contribute to a blog site when I seemingly lack the required knowledge of some of this years biggest blockbuster games, and am still playing games from one to two years ago.  But hey, that's what seems to happen when you have a full-time, non-gaming job (grrr).

Indeed, over the last few months I even managed to get out of town a few times; check out the sights of the natural world.  Sure, Skyrim has some of the most beautiful vista's ever rendered within a video-game; however, it's got nothing on the things available in our country's great outdoors.

It's good to get away from the games sometimes, and it's certainly not a terrible thing if one hasn't tried a game considered by many to be the best of the best (such as the love given almost unanimously to Battlefield 3).  Having said that though, I do wish to try some of these big titles eventually, and will most likely be singing their praises here when I do.

So was this rant just to justify my time away from PlayStrat?  In a sense, I guess - yes.  And it's not meant to belittle those who do play obscene hours of gaming.  Heck, I still rack up several hours a day gaming, when I should probably be doing something else (like taking out the garbage).  I guess what I am trying to say, is that my absence has hopefully given me a bit of a chance to feel refreshed, and perhaps be able to write a more meaningful, more personal gaming blog.  I guess I will see how it pans out. 

Oh, and sorry Gears of War 3; I will get back to you when I prestige one more time in MW3... hopefully...