Unfinished Business

I’ve become something of a multiplayer fiend in recent months. If you’ve read any of my previous blogs you may have noticed this. If you haven’t read any of them, they normally go along the lines of  ‘I like guns, guns are great. I shoot people on XBL’ but it’s gotta be real people, killing AI just doesn’t do it for me lately. Co-op is acceptable, I enjoy it but my heart’s never entirely in it. Let’s see, when was the last time I played a campaign through by myself… Shadow Complex probably doesn’t count, I reviewed that for Ready Up! I do wonder if I would have even bothered getting it otherwise. I honestly doubt it, and I would have missed out, as it was an excellent game!

I started up Mass Effect again, about a month ago, but that was purely to race this guy to complete it on insane. We got part of the way through and realised that he’d set it to Hardcore by mistake (n00b! :p) so quit that and started up a game of Gears 2.

I’m starting to dislike my current attitude towards single player games. I don’t want to be this person who misses out on stories cause I can’t take the time to sit quietly and play a game by myself without being in competition with someone. Right now, as I write this, I have had Halo 3 ODST for a week. All I’ve done is Firefight, I haven’t touched the campaign. I’m gonna do it at some point, I’m sure… probably in co-op though…

I had a li’l scan on Xbox.com. The last game I played to completion by myself was Oblivion, just over a year ago. It was my third play-through of that game.  I put a hell of a lot of hours into each one and enjoyed it thoroughly each time. Further self-stalking filled me with dread.  As I scrolled down my played games list, I realised, I have been neglecting my games. Barely scratching the surface of  Red Faction: Guerilla, Fallout 3, Fable II, GTA IV and even Halo 2. There, I admit it, the KillerChick never completed Halo 2. Plus, while I’m ‘confessing’ my sins I might  as well add that I’m not getting Batman: Arkham Asylum, no matter how many times I hear or read that it’s a ‘masterclass in games design’ cause I know, I just wont play it. I’m a terrible person. My place in gamer hell has been truly assured.

The reason I’m pondering this right now is the impending bombardment of new titles that us gamers will face over the next few months leading up to Xmas. ODST was the start for me, and assuming I ever take a break from Firefight, I’m gonna be wanting to play, amongst others, Left 4 Dead 2, Crackdown 2 and Modern Warfare 2. Those titles I will buy, for sure.  And they will get played, no doubt. They all have multiplayer modes. There is one though, one that makes me cling to the possibility that I can change, that I don’t have to be this way, that I can commit, whole-heartedly, to spending some quality time with. The pre-order has been made, the date has been arranged. I already know what I’m going to wear (hoody, tracksuit bottoms and slippers) I know what I want to say (‘Sorry I’m not joining any mp tonight’) but for the most part, I’m going to stay in the moment and see what happens. I have plans to enjoy a good few nights with a real bad boy. Just me and him, going all the way together, I can’t wait!