Am I the only one who gets to the final act in videogames and stops playing them because of anxiety over being done with them? I've actually finished so few of the videogames I've ever played. Usually only if I know there is a NG+
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I end up finishing them, but I always drag out the ending as long as possible by completing side quests I didn't care about initially, looting and leveling up more gear, etc
When The Witcher 3 ended, I just sat and stared at my monitor for a solid 5 minutes cause I was upset lol
I also do this. The ending never seems as exciting as playing the game, and there’s a certain type of melancholy that comes with the ending of a good experience.
Baldurs Gate 3 is probably the closest I got to finishing a game and not finishing it. So much stuff unraveled for me in ways I did not intend or expect and I got too sad that I wasnt able to save everyone or get the outcome I worked super hard for
I don't do this with games but with TV shows I do this alot. Especially if it's on going series I won't watch the last episode of a season until the new one is out.
I've only done this with Cyberpunk 2077. I've got maybe 500 hours in it, multiple playthroughs, never finished it because i know theres no good ending.
nah, i'm more a play-for-five-minutes-get-bored-return-and-100%-five-years-later kinda person tbh.
fr tho i did kinda get that with Deltarune my first time through but more bc I was worried I was spoiling the full experience of the game by completing it too quickly
I did that with Dragon Age Inquisition years ago, and to this day I keep telling myself that I'll come back some day to finish it (no, I won't). And I feel guilty about it somehow?
I do that all the time. I don't like when a game ends, it makes me feel anxious too. I also dislike the revelation that happens at the end especially when an antagonist reveal its plan just before the fight.. I love open ended stories, which is very rare for a game.
I dont know why but its so funny that i just ended a game that kinda had that thematic, you know of the anxiety of knowing that things are gonna end one day and that you should let go of that anxiety even if it sucks.
I dunno its kinda ironic seeing your post, but i dont blame you
Definitely not the only one. I finally overcame this but it took me quite some time. There's always a small part of me that feels empty inside when I finish a game or a show, but I'm happy I can do that now.
I have the same problem. Either I stop playing because I don’t want them to be over or I binge them, get burnt out and never finish. I have so many unfinished games/shows because of it.
I've never let it stop me finishing a game, but I completely get this. I've sat despondent after a few games, gutted that I'll never get to experience them for the first time again.
im the opposite i struggle with restarting before i finish the first act/areas due to anxiety about whats the come and fomo, especially if theres classes and decisions X_X
I rarely finish video games either! I grew up when video games didn't have endings, and the fun came simply from playing them and trying to beat your older scores. For me to Finish a game, I have to explicitly decide that's the reason I'm playing it, and most of the time I can't be bothered.
And dang, now that I'm thinking about it, this might be why I rarely play modern video games at all. They *want* you to finish them, to progress through the stages until there's nothing left to do. I don't get Better at them, I just unlock more abilities I don't know how to use.
But yeah, I've been working on finishing Link's Awakening DX on my gameboy since the late 90s and still haven't gotten there. And refusing to play another Zelda game seriously until I do.
i used to do this, but I started streaming awhile back and that broke me of the habit since I felt I had to beat them for the viewers. i no longer stream but am managing to keep beating games, at least more than before
This happened with me on Cyberpunk 2077. I clocked in on 68 hours till I realized I was approaching the final act and Keanu was telling me if there was anyone I wanted to call before we storm Arasaka Tower.
I haven’t done this with games but I do this all the time with podcasts and books. Usually with games I’m ready to finish and move on to something else by that point
I've done nearly everything in Tears of the Kingdom, but never even went into the castle, except to get some Korok seeds. Yes, i have collected all 1000 korok seeds just to play the game more, but never even attempted to finish the game
I felt this way playing FFXV. I was anxious to finish because the story had me completely enthralled, but it was well worth it. I've replayed it a bunch since, too.
I stopped playing Tears of the Kingdom because I started getting anxiety about rescuing Zelda before I fought Ganon, and just recently found out it's a problem that might take care of itself.
I feel the same way a bit, at least on my second save file, which is the one I want to continue and finish. The first one I have is almost done, but I did the generic marry Scarlett decision instead of someone else. It’s not a bad choice per say, just too generic if you ask me, or almost anyone.
It’s been a problem for me in many forms of these styles of rpgs. Fire Emblem being the worst offender for me. So much so that I pretty much hate three houses and won’t go back to it, or touch it with a ten foot pole.
I'd rather have the Three Houses problem of "too many options but a somewhat satisfying conclusion" compared to Engages "somehow too many and too little and not remotely worth it conclusion"
Yeah I get that, my problem I think stems from the multiple pathways thing the game has being a real mess for me mentally. That and some head canons can be a real pain for me as well. Also the first half of the game is a slog and a half no matter what route you play.
I wish I didn’t relate to this lol. Eventually I go through and finish games, but it takes far longer than it should because I don’t want it to stop and know I may not go back to them once I finish them
Funny, I often catch myself rushing a little when the end is in sight, because I'm kind of excited for the finale. But I do get the feeling of emptiness when a grand adventure is over for good. I often load an older save and do all the side content then.
Literally me, unless I’m doing multiplayer with someone else and feel obligated to finish the game with them. So many games I’ve put down 93% complete.
Well there are dozens of endings for that game. Ideally you would finish it multiple times to see them all. Personally I think I did get a bad ending because I didn't commit hard enough to any one side.
I do this with loads of stuff I consume, shows, books, games. it’s always stuff I get very invested in so the idea of being done with it sucks, so I end up just stalling before either finishing it, or forgetting and moving onto something else, which has happened too many times.
Wow yes actually, didn’t think anyone else did this. I let DBZ Kakarot sit on my switch unattended for months right when I got to the start of the Buu saga
I get game exhaustion before the end and start to worry I’ve missed loads of hidden stuff. Finishing a game is never satisfying for me, it’s more like, “Is that it? Have I actually finished or have I made some huge error following the storyline?” It’s why I love Fortnite. 20 minutes it’s all over!
Most of the games I’ve played are at this point. I have so much fun with the journey I get this intense bittersweet feeling near the end. I just stop. I don’t want the journey to end.
I just beat Bayonetta 1 for the first time after having had played most of it 4 years ago.
I always end up restarting a playthrough because I'm positive this will be the time I actually make different decisions & create a different ending (I'll be right about this at some point in the "near" future)
I totally feel you when the game happens to be super good, but when it starts feeling like it drags out and repeats itself I rush for the ending and put it down and I have the hardest time finishing it.
2 examples of this was how I went out of my way to 100% Skyrim, but I rushed fallout 4.
Gotta be a term for this. I got to the final fight in ToTK and then just procrastinated, fannied about doing side quests and collectibles because I didn’t want it to be over
for me it's achievements. on my favourite story-rich games i dislike getting every achievement because it feels like i'm officially done with it. i could happily replay it a thousand times without getting the final achievement, however!
Heh fair enough, I know some people don't like a good story to end, especially when they've grown to love the characters. It would be like saying goodbye. But I personally just can't leave it alone wondering how it ends.
I usually don’t finish because my interest tapers off. But I will say for some genres, like RPGs, when I get a build or party in a perfect spot I do get sad at the end because I don’t get to see my party be awesome for very long.
Did this with Nier Automata and it's been so long now (years actually) that I might as well restart the game because the emotional highs I had when playing it needs to be made fresh again so the ending can hit me hard in the feels.
Partially anxiety, partially falling off midway through the end game grind.
I have vivid memories of trying to reach the queen of triple triad in FF8 and going deep in the optional dungeon of Onimusha 3 to fully upgrade weapons, but can't tell whether I actually saw the ending myself or not.
I got to the last boss of both Elden Ring and Shadow of Erdtree and never bothered killing either boss because I just can't be arsed. The game's done and I've beaten every other boss so I don't see the point.
I'm kind of the opposite I have trouble sticking with the early parts of a game but the closer to the end I get the more I lock in because i love the feeling of completion. Especially if the story is gripping me.
Holy shit yes I have memories of serious gaming for 22 years now and I don't think I've finished ten games. But I've put hundreds of hours into all my games that I love.
As I've gotten older I've found that most action video games are designed to weed out older players by making winning essentially impossible unless you have teen or pre-teen reflexes. That's why I've switched to strategy games with essentially no actual end to the game play.
Good, I'm not alone! I have more than a few JRPGs that I never finished but got right up to the last act. I think Persona 5, I stopped right before the last mission after playing it for like 100 hours plus.
I did finish Elden Ring several times, Armored Core and Metal Gear Solid. But those had robust NG+ to play. JRPGs are definitely the number 1 victim of me not finishing them. I never finished FF7 even though I got to the last dungeon/cave thingy. I was just like yup. This is good enough.
I was on the fence about playing Metaphor for awhile, but in the end after seeing some of the mechanics and designs it wasn't quiiiite enough to pull me in. Plus it reminded me that I haven't played enough into the various SMT games I have. I've been playing Unicorn Overlord and Triangle Strategy
I currently have five different games sitting at the second-to-last boss installed that I keep opening, hesitating, and closing for this exact reason. I end up only finishing them so that I can uninstall and free up space for the next thing. I don't want to see the fantasy end.
Yes, I do this. I like to finish all the side quests, then when I get to the end I will start a new game. Once I've played the new one a bit, I usually go back and beat the old one, though.
I tell myself you can't buy another new one until the old one is beat.
It's worked!
I think in 17 different playthroughs I've completed skyrims main story 1 time 😂, dlc multiple times but I can't bring myself to end Skyrim even though I know it's not the end 😂
Same. I get that feeling of dread in particular when I'm coming to the end of a JRPG. It's just a feeling that builds up and I usually bounce from it for about a week before getting it done.
I'm the opposite. I'm the most anxious at the beginning of a game, because I've just slapped down my hard-earned money on something that my quickly reveal itself to not be any fun or not be worth my time. The further along I get the more I know I'm enjoying it and the more I rush to finish it.
SAME. happened to me with Tears of the Kingdom. I felt so down after finishing BOTW that i stopped playing tears of the kingdom when i was close to ending it.
I do the same thing, I tried to play all the way through the witcher 3 and never actually finished it until this year, me and my buddy were playing borderlands 3 co-op together and came back to it a year later to find out we were actually only like 2 quests away from the very end of the game.
I got to the final boss in Sekiro, spent 14 (yes 14🤣🤣) hours trying unsuccessfully to beat it and gave up - sometimes it’s for the best to just walk away 🤣🤣🤣
Less “anxiety over being done” and more “suddenly obsessed with maxing levels and equipment and completing every side quest then getting distracted by something else and forgetting about the game for three years”, but yeah.
I don't get anxiety because I don't wanna finish a game, but rather I get anxiety because I stop a game in the middle of it and get afraid to pick it up again? But it still ends in me not finishing games-
It's a plague...
I've started Library of Ruina! But I've yet to finish it for that reason.
At least with Lob Corp (same developers) it's super easy to pick back up after a long leave due to its gameplay + it's easy to re-read cutscenes but it's still a bitch
^ ^''
Oh no you can! I'm just saying it's easy to re-read the text and such. Plus it's a game where you restart a lot because plot reasons, but you can absolutely skip text!
Am bad at explaining things
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OMG STOP I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE!!!! my brother used to get so mad at me for it 😭 i have sooooooo many games where i get to end and just never pick it back up again
That's why I love the Fallout games. I don't have to beat them, I just keep playing, keep knocking out quests, and keep building. Add more mods, rinse, repeat. Haven't beaten it in years - just played it.
As a kid my parents would only rent games, so I never had time to finish any of them. The sad result is I still can barely make it to the end of most games. One thing that's helped me is focusing on 1 game I want to beat at a time, and using the motivation of other games to power through it.
I grew up without a lot of money so I was incentivized to live in those worlds as much as possible and not finish the stories. I played Baldur's Gate 2 on release more than 12 times without finishing. For the 20th anniversary I completed it. It made me sad.
So many times. I will start a new game and try and make that my completion save if I have to. Even if a game still goes on after the ending, or will take you before the final mission, I still won't do it.
Nope, it's a thing I regularly do myself. I know I'm close to the end and then I stop because my brain doesn't want it to end. I get the same way during my re-reads of the Wheel of Time too.
Yes, I used to do this. I eventually switched to live service style games, I think subconsciously, to avoid this. Now it's so ingrained I simply do not buy or start single player games because all I can think is, it will end.
idk if this is the same, but i was dreading bg3 being over. i fell in love with the companions and i was getting such "last day of school" vibes...so whenever i'd hit baldur's gate, i just restarted from scratch. i have 5 separate playthroughs, and i only finished 1 😅
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When The Witcher 3 ended, I just sat and stared at my monitor for a solid 5 minutes cause I was upset lol
fr tho i did kinda get that with Deltarune my first time through but more bc I was worried I was spoiling the full experience of the game by completing it too quickly
I dunno its kinda ironic seeing your post, but i dont blame you
I just beat Bayonetta 1 for the first time after having had played most of it 4 years ago.
2 examples of this was how I went out of my way to 100% Skyrim, but I rushed fallout 4.
It's like finishing a book. If you've got pages left, anything can happen! But once you've finished, that's it. There's no more
I sorta feel that a book or videogame 'dies' when you finish it, if that makes sense
Breath of the Wild took me a long time, until I felt like I did enough to make the world feel objectiveless
As for Tears of the Kingdom, I didn't want it to be over so soon.
I have vivid memories of trying to reach the queen of triple triad in FF8 and going deep in the optional dungeon of Onimusha 3 to fully upgrade weapons, but can't tell whether I actually saw the ending myself or not.
I know the game loads back up before the end, but I just don't wanna see how it all plays out.
I tell myself you can't buy another new one until the old one is beat.
It's worked!
I've started Library of Ruina! But I've yet to finish it for that reason.
At least with Lob Corp (same developers) it's super easy to pick back up after a long leave due to its gameplay + it's easy to re-read cutscenes but it's still a bitch
^ ^''
Am bad at explaining things
^ ^''
Tried to replay it recently, stopped playing as soon as Arthur started coughing too much 😭😭😭