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24

Just Say No

February 9, 2022 by Tim


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Andhaka
Andhaka
1 year ago

That is the way.

Michael Bulmer
Michael Bulmer
1 year ago
Reply to  Andhaka

This is the way

TomB
TomB
1 year ago
Reply to  Andhaka

In reality, the backlog is actually the way. The funniest part of this to me is how it plays to something all of us that are parents have probably done and some of us might recognize: We try to avoid something we experienced in our lives and we’ve chosen to never let our kids have to experienced… only to find out later the kid has had different, but still unpleasant experiences because of that choice. The reality is that every parent will make mistakes (as all humans do) and every parent will try to save a kid from the stuff… Read more »

Dodgy
Dodgy
1 year ago

When abouts was his birthday? Because we might be on to something here. Was it laziness, lack of dedication, different priorities? Or did he really want to savor the game, complete it to it’s fullest, really take it in?

You need to be careful here Tim. A side effect of his way of upbringing is that you may create someone who rushes games. Who skips all the side quests just to finish a game and therefor misses most of the details and it’s nuances.

Vincent Price
Vincent Price
1 year ago
Reply to  Dodgy

Is it worse to only play the critical path, or to be an achievement hunter?

Last edited 1 year ago by Vincent Price
Chibby
Chibby
1 year ago
Reply to  Vincent Price

Yes.

TomB
TomB
1 year ago
Reply to  Dodgy

This is the age old quandary : Is it more about the journey or more about the place you get to at the end? A lot of us growing up being goal driven and thought it was all about the endpoint; It was your focus for a long time, but you didn’t stop to appreciate the scenery and to have other things catch your eye along the way and open you up to new opportunities. Then you get enough of these milestones and targeted goals achieved, you realized what you lost along the way. And of course, if you were… Read more »

Kasaix
Kasaix
1 year ago

There’s still games from the DS, PSP, and PS3 I haven’t finished. Or started. *sobs* God I need help.

Paulo
Paulo
1 year ago
Reply to  Kasaix

You’re ok, I still have SNES games on my backlog…

Doris the Magic Sausage Roll
Doris the Magic Sausage Roll
1 year ago
Reply to  Paulo

I’m still planning to get back to finishing Manic Mansion on the C64

Chris Baker
Chris Baker
1 year ago

Shinobi on the Game Gear :o(

Alex Pendragon
Alex Pendragon
1 year ago
Reply to  Chris Baker

My dad gave me all his old Coleco and Atari games. Someday I’m gonna play them…

TomB
TomB
1 year ago
Reply to  Chris Baker

Shinobi is one of the few I ever got to the end in.

Sometimes the wanting is more sweet than the having.

Ellion
Ellion
1 year ago
Reply to  Kasaix

Suffering in Steam backlog…

Gonfrask
Gonfrask
1 year ago

*Looking at the mountain of unfinished warhammer projects*

Don’t know what he is talking about…

Dodgy
Dodgy
1 year ago
Reply to  Gonfrask

Same here. But that is because I take the “collecting” part of the hobby very seriously. That and that I have a pre-AOS night goblin army consisting of close to 1000 models…

nealithi
nealithi
1 year ago
Reply to  Gonfrask

*Looks at my father’s three rooms of scale plastic models. Then to my stacks of boxes of miniatures from different games.*
Yeah I don’t have a clue either.

Tev
Tev
1 year ago
Reply to  nealithi

Are you my child from the future?

TomB
TomB
1 year ago
Reply to  nealithi

Models were the thing far enough back. I remember doing a lousy paint job on my U.S. CVN Enterprise with all of its little plastic planes. But I loved that model. I still have at least one big box of unfinished models I haven’t touched in decades because I did them with my grandad. After he died, something went out of it and I can’t touch them anymore.

TomB
TomB
1 year ago
Reply to  Gonfrask

About 400-500 unpainted minis, about 60 unbuilt or unpainted vehicles… and that’s only in the scifi section where I have about 2500 figures painted. Of course, I haven’t bought any in years because there just isn’t the time and space now that I have a family.

Freddie
Freddie
1 year ago

Tough, yet fair.

John Swift
John Swift
1 year ago

OMG. I carfully scrolled down on this one to try and not spoil whatever crazy thing you made it about and I’m glad I did.

GCo
GCo
1 year ago

This hits so close home it almost ain’t funny. Almost.

Eldest Gruff
Eldest Gruff
1 year ago

I’ve lost track of how many amazing, fantastic, highly rated games that I own, which I’ve never even had time to try yet, but bought simply because they were on sale.

And how many games are in my backlog because I stopped one game “just to try that new game” and got completely sidetracked and never returned.

It was easier when I was a kid and didn’t have any income. I had to stretch each game out for as long as I could. Now my biggest constraint is time.

Last edited 1 year ago by Eldest Gruff
Jonathan
Jonathan
1 year ago
Reply to  Eldest Gruff

I know that feeling all too well. I have over a thousand games in my backlog, and I don’t have time to play them. Maybe after I retire…if I ever get the chance.

Esselon
Esselon
1 year ago
Reply to  Eldest Gruff

Yeah I used to pick games when I was a kid based on how much content I could get out of them. Was a big fan of sprawling RPGs for that reason. It’s the opposite these days, I bought The Witcher III a while ago, played it for an entire 8 hour plane ride and realized I’d basically done nothing.

Eldest Gruff
Eldest Gruff
1 year ago

Also – as Tim’s emotions get wilder and wilder, the moustache grows.

Soon, all will be ‘stache.

Casra
Casra
1 year ago

If a game is good enough, you’ll play it through. If it is not, you will not. Once you realize it is not you who has failed, but rather the game that let you down, then you will conquer the “Backlog”.
Until that time, it will gnaw at your soul, and relish in your agony.

Last edited 1 year ago by Casra
Soag
Soag
1 year ago
Reply to  Casra

There’s a huge flaw in that reasoning I can clearly see.
What about the titles you bought, but never launched? Haven’t even installed/downloaded?
Plus, from a psychological point of view it seems like a pretty good example of denial.

Casra
Casra
1 year ago
Reply to  Soag

Hmm, well I never buy/DL a game until I have the time to play it, so I guess in that particular case, it is in fact on you for setting the fail table.

robloughrey
robloughrey
1 year ago
Reply to  Soag

Lo someone has failed to note the grandiose language and thinks that reason and logic are to be applied like liniment to a festering wound.

Soag
Soag
1 year ago
Reply to  robloughrey

I’m not a native speaker, could you simplify and explain what you meant, please?

Adun
Adun
1 year ago

Second frame: “and I now I can’t stop” I think is a typo…

Pal87
Pal87
1 year ago

I play games that have no end.

Problem solved.

lechuckGL
lechuckGL
1 year ago

Let’s not forget the Steam/Epic-Sale-Mania: is this game free or cheaper than a candy bar? I’ll add it to my game library, maybe play it for 10 minutes, and never touch it again.

Michael L Livote
Michael L Livote
1 year ago

But, but….Steam Summer Sale…..*sobs*…..

El_
El_
1 year ago

Ah, yes. “The Backlog of Shame”. I know it all too well..

Last edited 1 year ago by El_
Ziegfried
Ziegfried
1 year ago

Oh, c’mon Tim, you just don’t want to pay full price on launch, right? 😀

TheHalfBoy
TheHalfBoy
1 year ago
Reply to  Ziegfried

Bold of you to assume that a Switch game would ever not be full price!

Kaitensatsuma
Kaitensatsuma
1 year ago

I’ve just finished Witcher 3, after 3 years of putting it off after doing 80% of the main quest line and all the side quests.

I have to finish Tales of Vesperia, I’m pretty sure I’ve got about 20 hours left on that one.

I just lose motivation when I’m near the end.

Scott
Scott
1 year ago
Reply to  Kaitensatsuma

I was so very bummed when I finished Witcher 3’s second DLC and came to the realization that it really was over. I have not enjoyed a game’s story that much in a loooooooooong time, and the fact that the Blood and Wine DLC was INCREDIBLE definitely did not help with the subsequent withdrawal.

James Rye
James Rye
1 year ago

I honestly wonder if I will be ever able to play all of my backlog games…

DeusFever
DeusFever
1 year ago

On PlayStation, every backlog title will end up “free” on PlayStation+. It hurts like an elbow to the stomach.

pgok
pgok
1 year ago

I feel like I might hold a record for not finishing a game. I have (literally) never finished the main quest in Skyrim, even after hundreds of hours played, and no DLC. Why? Because I want to “finish” a sandbox game, and “Oooh, you need me to save your chicken in the next town over? Say no more! Alduin can wait.” and also “You know, I’ve spent a lot of time as a sharpshooting mage, maybe I should try to be a heavy hitter instead.” 50 hours later “And I’ve progressed into a sharpshooting mage again…” Please no spoilers. I’m… Read more »

Eldest Gruff
Eldest Gruff
1 year ago
Reply to  pgok

Legends state that Alduin was slain not by sword, nor arrow, nor flaming glyph, but by sheer boredom, as he scried the Dovahkiin for nigh-on three hundred hours: gathering the Stones of Barenziah, stealing knick-knacks from random NPCs homes for the Thieves Guild, working to create a college for bards, and more.

His last words were a curse to an unknown Aedra, Tohd’oward, as the Dovahkiin’s exploration of a random cave stuck him in Blackreach for the umpteenth time.

Esselon
Esselon
1 year ago
Reply to  pgok

I was super excited for Skyrim, then I played it and realized how few ways there actually are to play the game. I started a new game and decided to focus on the main storyline. They do a piss poor job of making the main plot feel more interesting than any of the other side plotlines.

darkening
darkening
1 year ago
Reply to  pgok

This, but morrowind for me. Being able to custom craft your own spells and create all sorts of crazy effects and light shows was a good time.

Not that Brian
Not that Brian
1 year ago

I feel this so so much.

Luigi’s mansion must take a backseat to Arceus however. I’m sorry Luigi, but pokemon…

Robin Sizemore
Robin Sizemore
1 year ago

I’m okay with the games I didn’t finish, either because I decided I didn’t care for them or they got too hard. But I do have a large backlog of things that never even got a fair try.

Brenton
Brenton
1 year ago

I was always really good at finishing games and not starting new ones until I had completed what I was playing. I was playing Majoras Mask, and had picked up Windwaker to play after. Also grabbed a couple high-rated games as well to play because they looked different then regular marque games.

Then I tried out World of Warcraft.

I still haven’t finished Majora’s Mask, or even started the other games. They’re gathering dust.

James
James
1 year ago
Reply to  Brenton

RIP. This was me too until I found Dota (Dota 1 at the time, now Dota 2). I played and finished Doom 1, Heretic, Starcraft, Diablo, Warcraft I, Warcraft II, Half-Life, Half-Life 2, S.T.A.L.K.E.R and the sequels. But since Dota, haven’t played any other game.
That said I will be trying the next S.T.A.L.K.E.R when it comes out though. And I’m still waiting for Half-Life 3…

Last edited 1 year ago by James
Namefield
Namefield
1 year ago

It’s okay to miss out on bought games if you’re already getting what you wanted from the games you have. Must consume it all is only a Borg directive. You’ll automatically rob yourself of a lot of quality time that any good game has to offer if you plan to just rush through it to complete your “played that one” list. Thousands of backlogs can’t be wrong on this.

foducool
foducool
1 year ago

good parenting lmao

Muppet
Muppet
1 year ago

Nothing wrong with a solid backlog. Lets you play whatever you want, whenever you want. And if you don’t ever finish some game, just don’t worry about it, no one else will judge nor care.

faaresemo
faaresemo
1 year ago

I mean, technically the new games you don’t start are added to the backlog whether you’ve begun them or not. The couple of still sealed games I have on my shelf are testament to that.

Ultimately new gamers are being born into the world with a pre-established backlog. They’ll never get through it all. I feel bad for them not being able to pick things up as they released like my age group got to do

Jesse
Jesse
1 year ago

Ironically after beating Halo: Infinite I realized I had a couple months before Horizon Forbidden West, and I finally played through The Wolf Among Us. I don’t really have a backlog, but that one had sat in my Xbox cloud storage for a few years. What I enjoy more is getting into a game after the sequel has already come out, because then you can just keep playing after finishing the first one. I played Yakuza 0 on furlough in 2020, which lead me right into Yakuza Kiwami 1 and 2 (then I skipped a few and played Yakuza 6).… Read more »

James
James
1 year ago

I LOVE the post and facial expression of dad in the background. The whole joke is perfectly delivered in the last panel – both picture and wording – beautiful.

Last edited 1 year ago by James
noonecareswhoiam
noonecareswhoiam
1 year ago

Naw man, play a game because it’s fun, not because you want to beat it. If it stops being fun, move onto something else that’s fun. Who cares if you beat it or not

Ryan Mahood
Ryan Mahood
1 year ago

Is it just me or is Tim’s mustache starting towards that of Evil Villian territory?

James K
James K
1 year ago
Reply to  Ryan Mahood

Snidely Whiplash territory!

Esselon
Esselon
1 year ago

I’ve moved more the opposite way as I’ve gotten older. I play a game until I don’t want to play it anymore. They’re a hobby and if the effort put in isn’t worth the fun I get out I’ moving on.

Snowfae
Snowfae
1 year ago

800+ games on Steam alone… ;-; And thats not counting my Xbox Games Pass, PS4, or Switch libraries or the games I have on Epic. You’re a good man Tim, a good father… ;-;

Crestlinger
Crestlinger
1 year ago

The first game company to publicly exorcise itself of NFT practices and instead incentivize people Finishing their backlogs is going to be Rich. An example: if steam sees you have 100 games downloaded and if you can show you finished half of them you get a 40% discount on your next purchase.

Soag
Soag
1 year ago

I admit it’s a problem of mine as well, but one I’m actively battling. If I can suggest something it would be what I’m doing right now. I believe somewhere in the 3rd quarter of last year I made a commitment to clean up that backlog and the goal is to erase it completely. By the end of last year I made an addition to it: games I paid for have a priority, all the freebies, no matter how good they are, have to wait patiently in line and no new titles are to be bought (yes, Dying Light 2,… Read more »

Last edited 1 year ago by Soag
GreatNate
GreatNate
1 year ago

This is how I have a backlog of like 800 games on steam. The backlog keeps growing. I’ve been tempted to do that steam randomizer site to pick a random game and at least play an hour of it.

Kevin Greenbaum
Kevin Greenbaum
1 year ago

Unfortunately I have a number of games I haven’t started yet that I own, but I am working on 4 or 5 at a time, currently Resident Evil Village, Metroid Dread, Pokémon BD and Assassin’s Creed Syndicate (I’m depressed at how far behind I am with that series).

southpawfrenzy
southpawfrenzy
1 year ago

I see it more as investing in my retirement. Because in 30 years I might be able to afford and purchase a GPU that will play today’s games, and I’ll have the time to play them!

Last edited 1 year ago by southpawfrenzy
Dom
Dom
1 year ago

Tim, you have a hole in the back of your throat in panel 1.

Dom
Dom
1 year ago

Even If I lived for eternity, I’d never finish my backlog. 😂

Psybite
Psybite
1 year ago

Haha I thought he wanted to buy into a CCG or purchase a Warhammer model until I reached the last panel.