Love Thy Backlog (Love Your Backlog 2023)

February 10, 2023DaNamesX4 Comments

It is that time of the year everyone! Kim from Later Levels is back with Love Your Backlog Month! Thank you Kim for what is becoming one of my favorite holidays now. Since it is the namesake of my blog, you can probably guess that I have a very steep backlog in my collection. You would guess right since my gaming time has been reduced, but my collecting habit has never stopped. That is kind of a lie since I am reaching the point where I almost have all of the old games that I have been seeking (just the really expensive ones left).

I had to crunch the numbers yet again and made sure that I was as close to accurate. I have officially decided that I am not responsible for finishing any games that Kat has or bought since I did not purchase them myself. This helps take the edge off somethings and drastically brings my number down (even though I want that 1000+ badge…). This year’s grand total of unfinished games in my backlog is…

664!

It is a smaller number from last year! Removing the filler really helped. Since I like working with spreadsheets, I broke down every system that I own and recounted every finished and unfinished game for each. I also started taking liberties when it comes to multiple copies of a game that is either on another console or just a remaster/rerelease of an older game. I have decided that if I have finished it on one console, then I have finished every other version of it, unless it is a completely different game (story changes, mechanics). For example, I own Mega Man X on multiple systems (I love Mega Man X). Since I have finished the game once, I am counting every rerelease of the game as finished as well since it is the same game. This cleans things up a lot since there is no need for me to go out of my way to finish the game again but just on a different system. It also saves me time to play other games.

I am proud that my Game Boy collection is complete since the only one I haven’t played belongs to Kat. The numbers were looking good until I got to my Switch and PC collection. I was expecting my PC backlog to be huge, but I honestly forgot that I have some games since they are not on Steam. The Switch backlog took me by surprise until I realized that that number comes mostly from all the collection packs that are available for the system. The Switch is the perfect little system to bundle a bunch of old games on, and that is where the inflation comes from. The worst offender is the Sega Genesis Classics that has over 50 games in it. If I knew Nintendo was going to add Genesis games to their online service, I probably would not have gotten this pack. I should get around to playing the two games that I own on Wii U virtual console to complete that collection. I am also tempted to not buy or finish anymore GameCube or PSP games just so I can keep it perfectly balanced.

With some of that out of the way, it is time for the Q&A section of this post. I will try my best to not repeat my answers from previous years.

A Game You Are Eager To Play, But Haven’t Yet Started

So many choices, but I think I will have to go with Pandora’s Tower on the Nintendo Wii. We all know the story about Operation Rainfall which helped bring Xenoblade Chronicles, The Last Story, & Pandora’s Tower over to the west. Out of those games, Pandora’s Tower is the only one that I haven’t played. I got it for Christmas a couple of years ago, but I have yet to sit down and play it. I don’t know the reason for this, except maybe I’m just lazy and don’t feel like hooking up my Wii. Will I get around to playing it this year? Maybe?

A Game You’ve Started Several Times But Haven’t Yet Finished

This is a fun question since I recently attempted to play it again a few months ago. That game is Final Fantasy XV.

I’ve had this game since it released on day one. I remember coming home from work excited to play this. During my first playthrough, I got as far as Chapter 2, and then stopped playing. It wasn’t because I wasn’t having a good time, but Kat wanted to play the game as well. So in order not to spoil each other, we would take turns playing to reach where the other one left off. If you are asking why we didn’t just pass the controller to each other, it is because we have different styles of playing games. While I wonder and do the things that I want to do, Kat will complete everything that she can before moving on to the next part. I think this is where things fell off. It also didn’t help that we both got distracted by other games that came out later like Tales of Berseria and Horizon Zero Dawn.

We decided to get a second copy of the game and play side by side when Kat upgraded to her PS4 Pro, but we never got around to it until last year. We stopped playing again because we were getting exhausted from doing all of the side quests to the point where almost ten hours in we still hadn’t progressed much in the main story. With Final Fantasy XVI coming soon, one of us will have to sit down and finish it (which most likely will be me since I want to finish all the mainline games).

The Oldest Game In Terms Of Release Date

I said Super Mario 64 the previous year, but that was inaccurate at the time. The correct answer was Pac-Man on the Game Boy, but I now have something even older than that. The Final Fantasy Adventure was released in September 1990, beating Pac-Man for the Game Boy by one year. This game marks the beginning of the SaGa franchise that Square has been reintroducing to the west for some time now. I have been digging into the SaGa franchise over the past year, but haven’t gone back as far as Romancing SaGa. At some point I would like to do an overview of the series and talk about why the series isn’t as popular as some of Square’s other RPGs.

The Most Recent Addition To Your Library

The last game that I got was the 20th anniversary edition of Final Fantasy II on the PSP. I found a copy of Final Fantasy for the PSP last year, but could never come across the second game in any of the stores I visit. Final Fantasy II may be one of the least popular titles in the series, but I actually enjoy it for what it is. It has flaws, but the music and scenario left an impression on me when I first played it years ago. Honestly, I just want to see if I can still use the Teleport spell to carry to the final boss again.

The Game Which Has Spent The Most Time On Your Backlog

I think it is the same answer as last time (Super Mario 64), so instead I will pick the game on my purchase tracker. All the way back in 2015, I bought Grand Theft Auto 5 for the PS3. I am not the type to play the story mode of a GTA title. I normally just goof around in the world and make up my own objectives as I go. Kat and I played online often when we were long-distance dating at the time. Good memories. Any who, this is the oldest from when I started recording, so it will remain old until I get around to that story mode.

The Person Responsible For You Adding The Most Entries To Your Backlog, Due To Their Good Recommendations

No one really influences my decision when purchasing games. I tend to just decide for myself if I am interested in playing something. The internet helps with this since I stay away from most things that are highly talked about (I wish Tears of the Kingdom would interest me). When I look at my PC list however, I will have to blame my friend E for the behemoth of a backlog that it is. He is the one who helped me build my first gaming PC, so it is completely his fault that I have so many unfinished games. He will recommend games that we can try out together and I will give it a try until something else would come up that he would want me to try. I’ve enjoyed his recommendations, but it is hard to finish one game when we keep jumping all over the place or can’t find time to play games in the evening. Even so, without his recommendations I wouldn’t be interested in some games like Total War, Borderlands, or Divinity.

As for what I want to do for Maybe in March, maybe I should do the story mode for GTA5. Knowing me, I doubt that will happen. I do however want to finish another GBA game since technically they have all been in my backlog longer than GTA5. Which one will that be? I guess you will just have to wait and see (I still need to figure it out).

That’s all I got. Thanks again Kim for hosting this event and I will see you all next month (or sooner since I have other things to write and talk about)!

Real Neat Blog Award the First!

March 24, 2020DaNamesX5 Comments

I have been nominated for my very first Real Neat Blog Award. That is really neat!

I have to thank Jelly Puff for nominating me! Jelly runs a great blog where she shares her travels, feelings, and gaming hobbies. Follow her along as she knows how to canvas her emotions with her writing.

The Rules

Display the Award Logo. Check!
Thank the blogger who nominated you and post a link to their blog. Check!
Answer the questions of the one who nominated you.
Nominate 7-10 bloggers.
Ask them seven questions.

Jelly’s Questions:

What’s your favorite book? If you don’t have one, what is a piece of literature that you’d recommend for me to read and why?

My favorite book (and possibly series) is Redwall by Brain Jacques. My fourth grade teacher introduce me to this series and I have loved them ever since. Jacques knows how to set you into the world by detailing each area vividly and giving each race their own dialect. It amazed me at the time that it made sense that different cultures and races would speak differently from one another, and Jacques pulls it off so well for young readers. I have not read all of the books in the series (slowly working on obtaining them all) but it is a series that I differently want to read to my kids.

If you only got to play one game for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?

That is a tough one, but if I had to choose it would be Monster Hunter World. There is so much content packed in this game with more on the way. While I do prefer areas and content in Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, my hands are not what they used to be anymore with the claw hand. I also have friends that could help with completing some of the achievements in the game and try to obtain all weapons and armor in the game.

Where’s the next place you’d like to travel to and what are the reasons?

Around this time next week, I was suppose to travel to Japan for the first time. With the state of the world right now, we obviously had to postpone it. My wife had been watching a lot of travel blogs, and she loved looking at the ones about Tokyo Disney. She is a huge Disney fan and she hopes to one day visit all of the parks. We choose Japan because we both obviously want to go, but there is more to do in the area than just Disney. We were planning on spending a day or two roaming around the different cities and trying out all the food (that look appetizing). We still plan on going later this year hopefully when things start to die down a bit.

How do you like your coffee or tea?

I like a dark roost coffee blend with a little cream (french vanilla) and sugar.

For tea, I am a southern boy and I like it iced and sweet!

Do you have any allergies?

I have no known allergies except for a few exceptions:

Regular Milk: Regular milk gives me an upset stomach, but things made with milk does not bother me. It’s strange, but I cannot consider myself lactose intolerant when it is just regular milk that messes me up.

The Marinara Pasta from Pizza Hut: This is the strange one. I am not allergic to any other type of marinara nor any pizza from Pizza Hut. It is just the pasta that sends me into hives. I discovered this by eating an entire dish by myself. The next thing I know my entire body is covered in hives and I want the itchiness to stop. Worst situation I had gotten into in my entire life.

Are you a morning lark or a night owl?

I have definitely become a morning lark. I work eight to five almost everyday and have become use to waking up early in the morning. I also feel better in the morning doing things rather at night when I’m worrying when I should go to bed. My body is not use to staying up pass 11pm most nights, but there are times that I can ignore it and continue on.

Who’s that artist or band you have on endless repeat when you’re looking for something to listen to?

I have various artist that I listen to since my go to music is video game soundtracks. There is always a soundtrack out there that fits the mood that I am feeling. If I had to pick a favorite composer it would have to be Nobou Uematsu without a doubt. His music made me realize how artful video game music can be (despite my music teachers telling me that it was not :/). I love listening to orchestral arrangement of video games and I have been lucky to see The Legend of Zelda: Symphony of the Goddesses when they were touring.

For non video game music, I enjoy brass bands. We have a local group called No BS Brass Band and their music is excellent. If you care for a listen to their music, I left a link to their Spotify page here.

And that is it for my Q&A. Thank you again Jelly for the fun questions! Now it is my turn! I nominate the following bloggers for a Real Neat Blog Award:

Kelly from Why We Play Games

Larissa from Games (and Other Bits) // Musings and Thoughts

Gaming Omnivore from Gaming Omnivore

Naithin from Time to Loot

Hobbit of Hyulre from It’s Dangerous To Go Alone

Ryan from Games With Coffee

Pix1001 from Shoot the Rookie

And here are my questions:

Yes or No?
Do you experience any aches or pains in your body?
If you could create a new type of sport, what would it be or similar to?
What is a game that is generally received as bad but is your guilty pleasure?
Do you prefer writing with a pencil, pen, or keyboard?
When was the last time something made you laugh so hard?
Do you play an instrument? If so what is it? If not, do you have an interest in learning how to play one?

Thanks for reading!

DanamesX

Secret Blogger Santa 2019!

December 25, 2019January 6, 2020DaNamesXLeave a comment

How’s it going everyone! This year I had the opportunity to participate in Secret Blogger Santa hosted by the lovely “Lightning” Ellen from Livid Lightning Thank you again for hosting this event! This is my first time doing this, so I hope I did everything correct.

My designated blogger I received was the up and coming Ry from Hobbits of Hyrule. Like me, he is new to the gaming blog scene and started his journey in August. Since then, he has produced thirty-six post and they have been enjoyable to read. Currently on his blog, he is documenting his journey in the Galar region by doing a nuzlocke run. He is currently six episodes in and things are starting to heat up. You can catch the first episode here! Other than that, Ry likes to talk about games that he has recently played and talk about them in a mini review like setting. He categorizes all of his post into New, Old, and Recent. I highly recommend his thoughts on Screencheat (a game I never heard of but very interested in now) and Breath of the Wild.

For my gift, I would like to present him with the Hero’s New Clothes from the Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker!

The idea behind this gift is that no matter where you go, or how you look, you are always wearing the clothes of a hero. I also think it is an appropriate gift since his blog revolves around the Legend of Zelda ascetic. Hopefully the clothes will make him feel like a hobbit and a hero at the same time. Plus its machine wash safe and dryer friendly!

I hope you enjoy the gift Ry and keep up the good work! Thank you again Ellen for hosting this event and I hope you all enjoy the holidays!