Infinite Backlog

As of Sunday September 17, 2023, I am looking at the games I own, and it is clear that I will not be able to finish or even play all of them in my lifetime. So I decided to make a list of games that I intend to finish or at least give my best shot.

I have 111 games listed in my backlog. It appears as if it will take 111 days of playtime to finish all these games. I am not sure how I am going to playthrough all these games, and also fit in Halo: Master Chief Collection, Cyberpunk 2077 Phantom Liberty, and the next Battlefield game.

The stats show that the most single player games I completed in a single year is 17, in 2009. At that rate, if I play nothing else except the games on the list, it will take me six and a half years to finish this backlog. Probably right in time for Red Dead Redemption 3!

How can I ever justify buying any new games when the backlog is as massive as this? I still want to buy Halo: Master Chief Collection and do another playthrough of Cyberpunk 2077 with Phantom Liberty.

• Assassin's Creed Chronicles: China
• Assassin's Creed Chronicles: India
• Assassin's Creed Chronicles: Russia
• Assassin's Creed Odyssey
• Assassin's Creed Origins
• Bastion
• Batman: Arkham City GOTY
• Batman: Arkham Knight
• Batman: Arkham Origins
• BioShock 2
• Blood Omen 2: Legacy of Kain
• BloodRayne
• Borderlands
• Borderlands 2
• Borderlands 3
• Borderlands: Game of the Year
• Brothers in Arms: Earned in Blood
• Brothers in Arms: Road to Hill 30
• Burnout Paradise
• Call of Juarez
• Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood
• Cities XL Platinum
• Colin McRae Rally
• Company of Heroes 2
• Darksiders II: Deathinitive Edition
• Dead Space
• Death Stranding
• Desperados 2: Cooper's Revenge
• Desperados III
• Desperados III: Money for the Vultures - Part 1: Late To The Party
• Desperados III: Money for the Vultures - Part 2: Five Steps Ahead
• Desperados III: Money for the Vultures - Part 3: Once More With Feeling
• Deus Ex: Mankind Divided
• Dishonored
• Dishonored 2
• Dishonored: Death of the Outsider
• Doom Eternal
• Dragon Age: Origins - Ultimate Edition
• Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen
• Dying Light
• F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin
• F.E.A.R. 3
• Fallout 4: Game of the Year Edition
• Fallout: New Vegas - Ultimate Edition
• Far Cry 4
• Frontlines: Fuel of War
• Full Spectrum Warrior
• Grand Theft Auto V
• Grim Dawn
• Hard West
• Helldorado
• Hidden & Dangerous 2
• Hidden & Dangerous: Action Pack
• Hitman
• Hitman: Blood Money
• Homefront: The Revolution
• James Bond 007: Blood Stone
• Just Cause 4
• Mafia
• Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
• Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
• Middle-Earth: Shadow of War
• Mirror's Edge: Catalyst
• Mortal Kombat: Komplete Edition
• Moto Racer 2
• Murdered: Soul Suspect
• Need For Speed Heat
• Need for Speed: Most Wanted
• PC Building Simulator
• Planescape: Torment
• Prey
• Prince of Persia
• Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands
• Project: Snowblind
• Psychonauts
• Rage 2
• Red Faction: Guerrilla - Re-Mars-tered
• Rise of the Tomb Raider
• Risen
• Robin Hood: The Legend of Sherwood
• Saints Row IV: Re-Elected
• Saints Row: The Third
• Shadow of the Tomb Raider
• Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun
• Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition
• Soma
• Star Wars: Battlefront II
• Star Wars: Empire At War - Gold Pack
• Subnautica
• The Darkness II
• The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Game of the Year Edition
• The Lord of the Rings: War in the North
• The Outer Worlds: Spacer's Choice Edition
• Thief
• Titan Quest: Anniversary Edition
• Titanfall 2
• Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter 2
• Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Vegas 2
• Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory
• Tomb Raider: Underworld
• Torchlight II
• Trine 2
• Tropico 4
• Tyranny
• Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War
• Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II
• Watch Dogs 2
• Wolfenstein: The Old Blood
• X-Men Origins: Wolverine
• XCOM: Enemy Unknown
• Yakuza 4

I am currently playing Red Dead Redemption 2 (absolutely amazing game) on my main machine, and Tomb Raider Anniversary on my auxiliary machine. I am making steady progress in Tomb Raider, and I think I should be able to finish it in a week or so. My next game is going to be Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes. It appears that it doesn't take too long to complete this.

Alternatively, I just don't pay any attention to any of this and just play what I feel like, and not worry about the massive backlog.

Half-Life: Blue Shift (PC) Review

Well worth the $0.50 I paid for it.

A thoroughly functional game, which does not outlast its welcome. It tells a concise story, and it fills in the gaps of the main Half-Life game. It took me a little under 4 hours to finish Blue Shift.

Technically, it is competent, but the original Half-Life engine has aged poorly. It worked fine at 2560x1440 resolution, but the game looks dated. I found it hard at times to distinguish textures that are meant to be interactive, because of how blurry the textures are at the resolution I am playing. I had to refer to the walkthrough a couple of times because I missed a switch that was right in front, but I did not identify it because textures tend to blend with each other.

The story follows Barney Calhoun, a security guard at Black Mesa. The events of Blue Shift run parallel to the events of Half-Life. The player gets to witness the chaos from a different perspective. Those that care about the Half-life story will find the story of Blue Shift interesting.

After 17 years of first playing Half-Life, I finally completed all the PC releases (not including the VR title).

To fans of the Half-Life franchise, I recommend this game at a deep discount. I do not recommend paying the full price. It’s not on par with the other expansion - Opposing Force, from a gameplay and story perspective.