Lately, it's always Bioware.

I have a large, potentially huge (kudos to anyone who gets that reference) pile of shame. Like, AMAZINGly big.

But, see, I'm also a bit of a collector, though not as much as I used to be. I have an RPG collection the likes of which you can't imagine, though I have managed to migrate as much it as possible to portable (laptop, DS, & PSP) formats.

Anyway, the point is that I've got a million unplayed games, and yet, I keep going back to Bioware games (though, the Witcher, which I haven't yet played through, is in there right now, too.) Lately, I've been ping-ponging between Dragon Age & Mass Effect.

Mass Effect is over two years old now. I played through it a few times on 360, then snagged it on PC when it was on sale on Steam for $10, and am now playing through that a second time in order to have a save w/ the latest DLC and w/ level 60 (which is only possible on a new game +).

Dragon Age, though...I just beat it over Thanksgiving! What the fuck am I doing playing this game again already?! I've got the Witcher to beat, not to mention a million older RPGs.

I just really love that game, I guess. And to be fair, it's been a pretty different game this time. I was a male human noble warrior in my first game, and now, I'm a female city elf rogue, and not only is the origin totally different, but I'm doing things in a slightly different order, and the character interactions are different because I'm playing a female character.

Really, though, I was the same way with Final Fantasy VII, then Resident Evil 2, then KotOR, and a handful of other games. I just get really into certain games, and while I still do play through new games, these games just call me back again & again.

I was kinda chuckling to myself about this last night, as I was making short work of the Fade section of Dragon Age, and doing so much more quickly and confidently than I was in my first playthrough. I realized that I already had some of the complex puzzles in the game memorized, and was surprised by that, but then realized that Dragon Age is now one of those 'go-to' games for me. I'll play it again and again, trying to find ways to get the game to react differently than it has before (and I'm usually successful; I once got Tifa to come to me in the Golden Saucer instead of Aeris.)

Anyway, it always kills me that I spend about half my gaming time replaying games that I've already beaten.

Do you guys think I should worry that a) I've narrowed my game-playing almost exclusively to RPGs & b) I spend half that time playing through adventures I've already finished?

And what about you? Do you have any games like this, that you go back to once a year or so and play through again? I actually played FFVII every year, once a year from 1997-2004. I know, I know, but I'm hoping to hear that you're the same way!

ANYWAY, have a great New Year, get drunk, don't drive, and if you're coming to my house for walking tacos, be there at 7:00 tonight!

See ya in 2010!

-Blaine