constantk

I would say more than 2 a year, but probably less than half. Time is a big factor. I've reached a point in my life where I no longer have any patience for recreational things I don't like (movies, books, games, etc.) If I'm not enjoying it, I stop and move on.

This is where I always jump in and say Ring of Red. Such a unique game with super interesting combat and an engaging story. Valkyria Chronicles did a similar thing thematically, but the mechanics were different. Sad that it didn't get a sequel.

The particular real-time combat mechanics that accompanied the tactical layer of Ring of Red (PS2). It was such a unique combination of moving lumbering mechs into and out of range for various attacks, loading cannons with special shells, and moving troops into the proper ranges to activate their abilities. So good.

@ginormous76: Have you tried disabling the 2K launcher? It's pretty easy to find a guide on how to do it and it supposedly dramatically improves the performance. It might help with crashing, too?

I'm also playing this right now on PC. I have about 16.5 hours in and haven't had a single crash. Speaking of curses, I hope I didn't just doom myself to having the same issue you are.

I use the old Her Story scale and quit playing a game when I'm satisfied. Challenges are enjoyable sometimes, but when they're not, I bounce. Life's too short to spend voluntarily unhappy.

Turns out the secret to getting PC players to buy consoles is saying "Buy a console!" over and over at them.

I'm trying to get back into FPS. I really like third-person action/shooters (Division, Gears, Fortnite, etc.) but the first-person perspective for whatever reason just doesn't do it for me anymore. I can't seem to get past the lack of situational awareness. I've got a few well-regarded single-player FPS campaigns lined up in my backlog I plan to try (Titanfall 2, DOOM (2016), DOOM Eternal and the recent Deus Ex games). Hopefully these catch my interest.

I haven't fallen prey to this myself, but between freebies on PC, Games with Gold, and a weakness for bundles (the contents of which I quickly forget), I've come very close many times. Look at it this way, you've supported the developer.

This has happened in so many different ways over the years it's tough to say...

If I had to choose, I think I like the iterate and refine method (note: this is not just spitting out a copy of the previous game). It doesn't prevent the new thing from happening in another game and I still know what I'm getting if I buy a new game in the same series.

To be honest, this sort of brings up the issue of series getting too stale or getting forced in different directions because the name makes money. Either way can be a huge problem for the IP and the industry as a whole. Just look at Call of Duty; any time they try something new they are criticized by a portion of the fanbase for not being true to the spirit of the series, yet when they "stay true" people get bored or say it's not as good as the previous iteration. It's a tough spot to be in, for sure.

@looterjennings: Those suggestions on time and games all sound good to me. As we discussed in the chat tonight, I'd be down for Path of Exile or the MW2 raid if we have enough interested.