NPD Releases Depressing Statistic, Game-Boy Cries Reading Truth
The NPD group gives us some interesting factoids now and then. Top sellers, percentages of M-rated games sold, various age demographics, etc. Today's random "Huh, that's interesting" statistic is that roughly 11% have at least one game sitting on their shelf in a virginal, unwrapped state. Doesn't this seem like it's just a little bit too high of a number? I know that my gaming appetite is frequently bigger than the time I have to offer my favorite hobby, but surely not everyone can be a big of a mess as I am. That pesky little thing called "life" gets in the way too often, leaving me little time to return to Super Mario Galaxy to wrap up my collection of stars, or drive around GTA4's Liberty City for some hard to find achievements, or even get around to my own personal "pile of shame" filled with games I have yet to play (Hi there, Assassin's Creed!).
Very recently I've begun to take drastic measures to remedy the situation. Even with the little time that I'm able to reserve for myself, I try to set realistic goals. I'm now happy with beating games but leaving my game save at 92% completed. I no longer feel the shame of "Easy" mode. Sometimes it's ok to just stop playing a game when it stops being fun (Hi there, Ninja Gaiden Sigma!). In an effort to make progress on games that allow co-op progression, I try to encourage Mrs. Game-Boy to join in multiplayer more often. So far these little changes have really helped out and let me let go of games that were beginning to feel like work, wrap up the ones worth playing, and move onto the next big title.
Any other "one in ten" gamers try anything similar to make your way to and through those untouched games? What's worked for you?
[Survey: 11 Percent Of Gamers Own Unopened Games] via 1up
Game-Boy
Posted to Video Games on 30 October 2008
· Comments (6)
Other stuff like this: lazy gamer, npd group, sadness, shame
Yeah, I still havent beaten the Halo 3 campaign. Lost Planet has been gathering dust for nearly a year (saved at like half an hour's worth of gameplay). And Soul Calibur 4 just isnt that interesting outside of playing the multiplayer against friends.
For like 2 months I had Mass Effect saved at 60%. Finally, I decided that I won't hunt down every side mission I got and just finish the main storyline. In the end I beat the game at level 49, and then I saw that beating it at 50 was an achievement (not sure about the numbers but it was something like that). I don't think I learned anything in the end, I still play through the side-quests first on an rpg.
I have like....atleast 20 games still shrinkwrapped. Eitehr cause they are shit or because they are worth mucho dinero ^_^
I still have Pokemon Pearl shrinkwrapped, because I decided to play Diamond first. I may eventually get around to playing it.
I find renting games rather than buying them helps, you don't have the vague guilt of buying something and seldom using it if it's not staring at you from the shelf, and since you've got less access to games you're less tempted to switch between them; letting you complete more of the ones that you really want to play.
I pulled a total nerd. I put every title we own into a spreadsheet and added a column for COMPLETED checkmarks. I told the bf that we couldn't buy any new games until we had checked off the COMPLETED column in full.
Yeah, that lasted maybe a week.
I'm not surprised. Think about the "average" game player (as opposed to gamer). They receive gifts from grandma or see a game discounted to $10 at Target and pick it up--but these aren't really games they were all that interested in. 11% really isn't that high.
For me, as a gamer who loves to play but rarely has the time, I buy LOTS of games when I see them at that $10-15 mark (reading CheapAssGamer doesn't help!). I'd say that I probably have a good 12-15 games that I've never opened and a much larger ~60-70 games that I've bought and popped in a system just once, intending to play later. Bear in mind this is over a good 10 year period--I just never sell games off.