I can't play games because I had too many! What to do?

[grilledmint]

For a few years I have had a problem with my gaming experience. I have so many games on my steam, on my old and emulation consoles, on switch so it’s too hard to pick what to play. I don’t like to start games just to drop them: I prefer, if I start a game, get at least to the main ending if I like it enough. And also I can’t play too many games at the same time - I need to immerse myself, so 2-3 at the time where 1-2 is simple and not story-focused (rogue-likes or puzzles for example). For these reasons, I usually just play some games I already played or too simple ones like tetris or similar. But I want to play new games! I have so many plans but it’s hard to start.

I forced myself to start one new game(tLoZ: Minish Cup) and after that I chose by myself the other one from this series(tLoZ: Link to the Past) because I felt that I want to play it right now. It was fun but after two games I’m struggle again (Do I wanna play similar Link’s Awakening or maybe 3D Zeldas like Majora Mask or Ocarina of Time? Or do I wanna take a break from Zelda games? Again, too many options) so just forcing myself doesn't feel as a solution. Besides, at the moment it felt like I played it only to get achievement but not for the process because I chose it forcibly.

Does anyone have the same problem? How to hack my brain to not have analysis paralysis? Do you have lists, use other services for backlogging? Maybe you do calendars or challenges? Or any kind of mind tricks? Please tell me your secret!

[Corrupted Unicorn]

Some gaming nights with my bf I like to "taste test" games in my collection, for a max of two hours a piece (the two hours comes from Steam's return policy, but I think in two hours you get a good impression on whether you'll like a game or not).

Of course, if the game turns out to be shorter or I don't vibe completely with it, I'm free to drop it and move onto the next.

So far I haven't found any "wow I need to complete/play more of this" games this way, but if I were I'd like to write that down on a list of games to revisit in the future 

This is my method  , feel free to adapt, tweak or take what works for you 

[zomboid]

I face the same problem honestly, eencroaching 200 games on steam and most of them are unplayned @_@ i haven't fixed my own problem but I did see a video series from someone who has hundreds of games in their library and spun a roulette ? wheel? of all their games, and whichever one landed they played for at least 2 hours like Unicorn said!

[grilledmint]

Some gaming nights with my bf I like to "taste test" games in my collection, for a max of two hours a piece

I have problem with having "unfinished" games and have urge to complete any game I started if it at least not terrible...but yeah, I think this behavior may be crucial for my situation and I should least how to let games go if they're not fun after 2 hours to play other one, which I'll enjoy more. I think I should make a list and try it, thanks!

i haven't fixed my own problem but I did see a video series from someone who has hundreds of games in their library and spun a roulette ? wheel? of all their games, and whichever one landed they played for at least 2 hours like Unicorn said!

Actually the wheel sounds fun! I think I can make a small one(5-10 titles), spin it and add new games in it instead of what was picked last time, so I'll keep it manageable. Play two hours and, if I have much fun, keep playing or drop/give it a chance next time if I feel potential but something is off at this moment. I wish you luck with this problem too!

[fablefound]

i've also done the "taste test" approach recently, and found it pretty nice for acquainting myself with what's in my library and helping me decide what i want to revisit. but even that gets kinda overstimulating...
so my latest approach is going, like, one console at a time if that makes sense? right now i'm working through all the stuff on my homebrewed dsi, and then i'll probably hit my homebrew 3ds, and then my switch, and then my laptop... all of it keeps me from doomscrolling so that's a win, and i imagine if i somehow get to the bottom of all of these consoles then i'll have found new stuff for some of them by that point. for example, i've  kinda played through all my big switch focuses (pokemon legends za and animal crossing new horizons) but when the time comes that i'm back to it in the console rotation, i'll probably finally grab hades 2 

[alexela64]

I have a problem like this. What I started doing is playing multiple games, but making sure that games could be delineated by categories, so that I could play one from each category at a time.

This has proven to be really helpful with my decision paralysis because I can just ask myself: what genre do I feel like playing? And on what platform?

On each platform, I have a kind of mental backlog of the "on deck" games based on their genre.

 For example, I feel like opening my 3ds. If I want to play something relaxing/mindless, I have picross, for puzzles I have Ace Attorney (i tend to only play one puzzle game at a time across all platforms), for an RPG I'm playing Persona Q, or if I want something fast paced I play Tetris (specifically Apotris).
On the other hand, if I'm itching to play a console game, I have DMC3 for fast-paced, Persona 4 for rpg, minecraft for relaxing.
Or, on my switch, I  have Dead Cells for fast-paced, Stardew for relaxing, and BOTW for an RPG.

For me these are prioritized by what I'd like to accomplish before I start a new game. I won't feel like I'm "done" with stardew valley until I've become a completionist, whereas with games like Pikmin it was more until I felt like it wasn't gratifying anymore.

I know this is kind of complicated but I hope it makes at least *some* sense.

[littlelum]

I actually use a website that is dedicated specifically for that, howlongtobeat. I only have about 40-50 games, so my problem isn't as bad as most, but it is very helpful in keeping track of what I have and which one I feel like playing next.

[Gnee]

I have far too many games across too many platforms- the main three consoles and PC. Not to mention my older systems. Honestly, I have no system for it. Using a backlog tool/site is just going to eat at my time. I just sort of play what enters my field of interest in my existing library and depending on my mood. I guess the only pattern is that, because of that, I tend to focus on one specific platform for a long time as I remember and notice the other games I have on it and think about playing them.

The nice thing is I mostly have anything for whatever mood I'm in, especially when emulation is added into the mix. I try not to worry about finishing games anymore if I don't really love them. I recently dropped Shining Force 3. I liked it... just not that much. Most of my units felt weak and had difficulty catching up, and enemies don't budge until you get close, which is kind of annoying. It's a game I wanted to play for a long time so it made me feel like a quitter after putting in time, but that's sunk cost fallacy at play.