Considering your impressive completion rate over at the Games Finished in 20xx threads, you must own a whole damn lot of games! If I had your cookiemonstrous completion rate, I probably wouldn't see buying that many games as a problem, or at least not to the same degree.


But...then I won't notice when they reinstate the GOG logo in color! (I'm still foolishly hoping...)


I quite enjoy looking at my shelf with all the nice little pictures too, it's rather soothing. While I don't feel too guilty about the purchases I've already made and not yet played (aside from a few exceptions), I often shake my head and think to myself, "this is madness!" Also, I can't afford it so there's that, even just the financial reasons alone are a decisive factor.
My completion rate is less than half of yours and I've been buying games at a much quicker rate (0,55 games per day on GOG alone) )so I am looking towards an equation that will never be solved unless I curb my buying for a time. Maybe I could allow myself to buy one game for every 10 games completed? That would be less fanatical than to stop buying completely but for the moment, I've decided to apply drastic measures to myself in that regard. Mainly because of finances, if I had plenty of money I would see it as supporting GOG and keep doing it regardless of how immense the collection grows. One of our members (Barry I think) owns the entire catalog and that's perfectly fine as I'm sure he can afford it.


Ah, that's the name I was looking for, thanks for reminding me. BarryJones something, the legend who owns everything!
Yes there are worse addictions than this, like I said this is #firstworldproblems 101. However, it's better not to ignore any addictions, even the seemingly harmless ones, as they might be connected to underlying issues that are more problematic.
As long as I could afford to purchase everything I wanted I didn't see it as a problem but now that I can't afford it, it has become an issue. This self-help thread is not for everyone who own a lot of games, only for those who see their game purchasing as a problem, either because of finances or because it makes them feel unhappy/guilty/overwhelmed. Or both.



I can't complain as the Swiss Franc here is still ok but we had to devalue our currency quite a bit in order to synchronize it with the ailing Euro. Otherwise other countries can't buy our stuff anymore.
I miss the old times when I could travel to some place and one Swiss Franc would get me 1000 Lira in Italy and so on, it was fun.



The fact that they don't close a thread like this is the very reason I have spent most of my money here instead of e.g. on Steam. I only betrayed GOG twice when I bought the Fallout series and Runaway 3 on Steam sales instead of waiting for a sale here. I ended up getting the GOG versions as well so now I have zero games in my non-GOG collections that I don't have on GOG as well, making me quite a loyal fellow.
I'll keep buying games from here but have to take a break. I'm quite certain that GOG staff would approve to me playing more of their games instead of just being a zombie collector. By playing games, I ultimately spread more love for GOG in this world than by hoarding endlessly.
I contemplated deeply before making this thread, debating with myself if making such a thread violates the "don't shit where you eat" principle, a principle I certainly believe in.
However, this is not a call for rebellion, I'm not telling people to not buy games. I want to discuss the topic of game purchasing addiction in a group therapy manner and my current decision to not buy any games does not have to be someone else's decision. It's a drastic measure for myself as I haven't come up with a better solution plus as I said, I simply can't afford it. For anyone who is equally broke, it is definitely a sensible decision to stop buying games for the time being. This is not a protest in any way.

Only to prevent any misunderstandings, I was only joking with tinyE (tinyE, I love you) and my initial post was clearly ironic as well (even though it contains a bit of truth, likewise the OP). :-)

Very good point, the wishlist is indeed a good place to address things! I have in fact removed redundant stuff from my wishlist (only to buy it later on a sale...) but overall, my wishlist has increased despite my aggressive buying rate. I't s because I also spend time on the forums and read interesting posts by fellow members and thus hear about games I didn't know about. Then I think, wow this is a cool game...and on the wishlist it goes.

How true...I often think ah come on this is just one Dollar here, 2-3 Dollars there. Compared to the insane prices of groceries here in Switzerland, games on sale often cost less than a small bag of peanuts. However, when I notice the total charges for game purchases on my credit card statement, it doesn't look like peanuts anymore. Several Hundreds of Dollars in a year isn't chump change as not everyone in my country is a rich banker.


It would be most tragic if you lost your sense of humor. Now I don't know you in "real life" but here on the forums I've already associated you with humor so what would I do if you lost your humor. I would have to re-associate you, which would be inconvenient. Your situation is indeed no laughing matter at all but I won't disrespect you by shoving pity on you.
If you can joke about your own problems, you become immensely powerful. Not immortal, but it's a special kind of power.

I've never been to Bulgaria but I'd like to visit. I'll have to stop being poor myself first though :)
Being poor in Switzerland is light years away from being poor in most other places but it nevertheless puts an end to avoidable fun expenses. I wouldn't dream about going out to eat at a restaurant and stuff like that, can't even visit friends in cities more than half an hour away, too expensive. As long as I'm not starving or homeless it's not a deal breaker though, I have seen what true poverty looks like in 3rd world countries so I want no pity or anything.


I feel dirty especially when I buy a game a elsewhere instead of from GOG, as I posted above I only did that twice and promptly got those games from GOG as well to appease my shame :)

What if you could continue to increase your collection without having to spend another cent? :P

Asked weakly......

Does kickstarter games count?

I did not misunderstand you, I simply enjoy taking the joke a couple levels further (frequently using facts or factoids of myself as a stepping stone to do so).

Oooh, what a most wonderful picture! Gotta love me some good pixel art and this is a very refreshing entertaining change from the classic badass Gustav Doré illustrations in my 1904 edition of the Divine Comedy.
Just one question: Will I go to the 4th circle of Hell with the "hoarders and spenders" or directly to the 9th circle for treachery??(because of this thread, not because you called me a traitor earlier on for not doing everything you say :D)


Sadly, I only have the German version written with that old lettering that is hard to read. I've tried reading the original Italian version which despite having studied Latin as a major for 7 years and Italian for 3 years as an elective, I had a rather hard time to understand. It's not fun when you have to look up words all the time. Breaks the beautiful poetic flow very much. My Italian sucks big time, probably due to lack of practice. Fortunately, Italians speak with their arms and hands a lot (Stan the Salesman style) and I instantly start doing the same so communications kinda work.

*group chorus*

Welcome, blotunga. Thank you for sharing yourself with us!


Schopaholism, great term. Now that we have a word for it, we can fight it!
I'm not desperate enough to resort to shock therapy (like WoW players breaking their CDs etc) but I do think that completely stopping to buy games is extreme enough for me. Too much shock therapy isn't beneficial, I learned that while playing The Asylum: Psychiatric Clinic for Abused Cuddly Toys - a game in which you psychoanalyze abused stuffed animal toys and when they're too catatonic one must resort to shock therapy, however too much can screw things up so one has to be sensible. Absolutely great game btw, free and playable online via browser!

Might work in some cases. I got rid of my fanatic appreciation of white chocolate by eating too much of it. Never made me vomit though. I did vomit after eating an entire bag of gum bears when I was 4 years old, I vividly remember throwing up a disgusting red slush, really awful. I still like gum bears though. So growing sick seems to work for some foods but not with others and depends on the person, but it is one possible approach. I guess I grew sick of buying games and stopped because of that but as I said I can't afford to do it financially anyway.


High Five! :)

Eh? In the old days, I would never have been able to over-buy games. A new game cost between $70-90, it was a special occasion once in a blue moon. The rest was borrowing/lending and piracy :/


Ah, so fortunate for you! As I wrote above I tried to read it in Italian but had to keep looking up words which broke the flow, it's not an easy ready with that flowery old school language.

Nice idea but if you try that with drug addiction you either die or turn into Keith Richards.

To paraphrase Norm Macdonald, 'My father caught me smoking cigarettes and I thought I was in for the whipping of my life but instead he locked me in a closet with a box of cigars and wouldn't let me out until I smoked every single one of them. So that's when I started smoking cigars really heavily.'

'Tis not, I see thee!

I would never ever berate my number one thread derailing partner-in-crime for derailing, especially because that would land me a place in the 8th circle of Hell among the Hypocrites.

"Chased and bitten by reptiles, interconversion with them"

:-O


You needn't worry, I would never get mad at anyone for posting anything off-topic in my thread (unless it's robotic spam which was auto-translated from Chinese to English, rampant in the game reviews on the GOG store pages)



Hi, PhilD. I think the Alzheimer's session is next door...you're welcome :)


Thanks for sharing, I can very much relate to that. There is inherently nothing wrong with having a lot of games but if one does it to lift the mood, it only works for a short instant so you have to keep doing it again and again. First it's individual promos and then it's...bundles. Yes, bundles. The horror! :(
We need to address the source and nature of our unhappiness in a more wholesome and sensible way than to try and fill that black hole with endless purchases.


I would keep collecting and willfully ignore any underlying issues that make me do the collecting in the first place. In a way, being broke isn't that bad as it forces a new perspective on things.



Yes, but never addressed seriously. Hence, the topic pops up every now and then, here and there. We laugh it off. I'm trying to dig deeper because personal development is quite important to me, and I'm sure it is to many others as well.

I can't say, you make the rules for yourself. I just grabbed the first chair in this round, I don't set the rules. We can listen to each other but you must decide in the end how and if you will limit your collecting.

I need to join! A year and a half ago, I owned zero digital games. Today, at least a thousand, over 400 here, with maybe 10 or them played.

I guess I'm a hoarder, shopaholic, and obsessive collector. I just can't resist these sales or bundles where the games average a couple bucks or less.

I honestly want to install and play them all someday, but realistically I know it's never going to happen.

Thanks for the insightful reply, and here I was just making a cheap joke. Although I too have not purchased any games for a while the last time being Agarest War, mostly because I want to support GOG getting more Japanese games. That said I will try to play through more of my games before buying more, so good luck to all of us!

Translation: I had money. I don't now. :-)

oops. i was responding to awalterj. man i hate the quote editing!

Hi I'm silvrbacgorrila and I'm a game buying addict. I've been clean since Jan 1st 2015.

It started with consoles. Purchasing a new release here, buying a hidden gem from a resale shop there. But back in March of last year I built my first gaming PC and that's when the problem started. Since then I've purchased nearly 100 games on Steam, and a dozen or so here on gog. I knew I hit rock bottom when I resorted to buying a few on Origin. I've only completed 3 or 4 of those games. I need help...but the sales...the flash sales oh god the community choice sales...

So I should give away all my money then to prevent myself from my mountainous pile of digital goodness that is games? Seems a little silly. =P