Games you like that you struggle getting back to

[Rapier]

I mean in the sense of having games you enjoy, but there's something in it that demands double or triple of your patience and motivation to get through, and whenever you pick it up again you think "ugh, I'll have to deal with this and this and this again, and it's such a chore". Maybe it's a dungeon you find annoying, or a boss, or a gameplay thing.

• Elona: Fun roguelike, but its extremely grindy nature, very repetitive quests (there are only 5 types of generated quests and 3 of them are restricted depending on your build/stats) and obligatory game-y ways to get things done efficiently really put me off.
• Kenshi: Another fun roguelike. It is grindy, but for me that's tolerable enough. What isn't is the huge micromanaging of your base that you need to do - the game's automatization for tasks doesn't work very well and needs the player's attention. And the gameplay ends up becoming more of the same - you have goons mining for hours, or you have someone steal from shops. There isn't much space for different ways to play the game.
• Age of Wonders 3: Not so much when I'm playing by myself, but playing this in multiplayer became annoying very quickly to me, because turns happen in real time. Many times you'll have to stop what you're doing or lose your trail of thought because one of your friends needs to battle against an enemy somewhere, and as interesting as it is at first, you'll see yourself having to wait 5-10 minutes before returning to your game and also spend a very long time in the game without accomplishing anything at all.
• Terraria: Loved that game back in the day, but it gets repetitive very quickly. You spend hours mining for ore, make weapons/armor with it, kill a boss, then spend more hours mining for better ore, make weapons/armor... You get it. Exploring is actually fun, but when progressing through the game means grinding for resources to make better equipment, it gets repetitive and boring quickly. Starbound is a perfect example of a game that does this right, imo.

[Fabulously Olivier]

Xenoblade Chronicles 2... I just really hate having to track down/grind these little challenges to unlock the skill trees for my blades.

 

Trails in the Sky - the slow-paced random battles coupled with all the side quests really make it a time commitment. Currently going through Second Chapter, and while I love the story, it's a daunting experience to play. Maybe it's because I just really want to play Cold Steel, but I have to get through the PSP games to get there.

 

Guild Wars 2 - I have two nasty habits. I delete and remake characters, and I set too many simultaneous goals for myself. Leads to burnout.

[vanguard333]

The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks: My personal favourite Zelda game and also a game that I think is very underappreciated, but I cannot play any of the plot-mandatory duets. Playing the spirit flute requires breathing on the DS touch pad, so you actually have to be musical to get those duets correct. I love the game, but I can't replay it as I wouldn't even get to the first dungeon. 

Edited May 3, 2020 by vanguard333

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

I needed much overcoming and two years to finish Trails in the Sky FC. I really disliked the low amount of party members and resources. The battles became really long and tedious. Some battles like the ones agaimst the Jaegers were even almost unfair. Though it was it worth to finish it! It was the entrance of a womderful JRPG series for me. All Trails games I played after FC were much more enjoyable.

Currently I would say Tokyo Xanadu Ex. I like the game, but there are games I want to play I like more.

 

Edited May 3, 2020 by Falcom Knight

[Yexin]

Fire Emblem Three Houses: although i generally liked it, after having played it 5 times, i can't see myself playing it ever again, i just got sick of it and of all the discussions it caused

NieR:Automata: i loved it, i still love it and i think i'll always love it, but i don't want to see those characters in pain ever again just because i want to finish the game once more, so i'll just treasure my memories of my first 2 complete playthroughs in my heart

Edited May 3, 2020 by Yexin

[LoneStar]

Disgaea 5: I tried the game out and liked it. Then I decided to buy it, but I have barely gotten 20 hours into the game. The main reason I struggle to get back into it because I was overwhelmed by all of the customization options. This was my biggest concern going into Three Houses.

Astral Chain: The problem here is Joy-con drift. The only games that are actually playable for me are RPGs like Three Houses.

[null]

Luigi's Mansion 3: Honestly, this one just flat out disappointed me. The slow pace, lack of meaningful collectibles, and lack of variety just bored me to death. No matter how hard I try, I can't seem to get myself to finish it. Same with Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon as well.

Fates (BR and RV): Neither of these clicked with me like Awakening did. I would get halfway or most of the way through, get bored and quit, and then start another file sometime later only to do the same thing.

[Sir Gerwald of Vallora]

Dark Souls 2: I love Dark Souls, but this one is a tad too punishing. Don't get me wrong, that's the point, but losing a permenant amount of health very time you die which can only be replenished with a limited resource is a bit much.

[SSbardock84]

Lots of the Zelda games. Skyward Sword is the best example I can think of. Those trial things suck so hard.

[Lightcosmo]

Pokemon D/P/PT. The EXP I'm these games alone makes them very boring to me.

[Jingle Jangle]

Fallout New Vegas: In my play through I have encountered several buts that broke the script of important quests. In additions losing some of my mods making certain actions unresponsive  51 hours is not easy to gain back. 

Persona 3 FES: I'm almost at the end of the game. Currently in the month of November; but what's stopping me is juggling a harem of women. At the point there I have 6 girlfriends and each day I risk of a social link being broken due to trying to please everyone at the same time. Everytime I play now, I have the make a new save each day in case something goes wrong. Too much micromanaging. 

[Hawkwing]

Pirates! Live the Life! Less "Struggle to get back into" and more "struggle to play for long periods of time like I could as a kid". I still love this game to bits, and I've gotten smarter about the backstabbing aspects as I've gotten older, yet despite loving the minigames, they make this game very repetitive, which gets tiring if I try to play it for longer periods of time.

Master of Orion 1: I love both this game and the sequel, and I actually think the original did certain aspects better, such as science (the second game had you choose between several technologies were there was often a best choice, whereas the original you could research different fields at the same time, and I thought the RNG aspects were a lot more noticeable in a good way). As much micromanagement as the second game had, however, the combat really makes it hard to return to the original. As well-executed as the concept of being able to design your own spaceships is, you have to edit a previously existing ship to add the upgrades, which ends up eliminating every single one of said ship in your fleet, which damns military focused races as they constantly have to scrap large chunks of their fleet if they wish to take advantage of their new technologies. It doesn't help that combat itself uses Heroes of Might and Magic's "hundreds of units are squeezed into a single icon" method, which I'm personally not fond of as it makes battles less large and interesting as they could be.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic: As buggy as the second game is, being able to change weapons at the push of a button really makes the first game come off as slower, since switching out melee and ranged weapons requires going to a menu. And while both games have a tutorial that overstays its welcome, I prefer KOTOR 2's simply because you go through an abandoned mining colony (with a mystery element to find out what killed everyone), a space station, the surface of a partly terraformed planet, and finally a base in the ice before the game opens up, whereas the first game takes place largely in different sections of a city, which while visually distinct makes me tired of the aesthetic. They're still both excellent games, but I just find it easier to return to the second game when compared to the first one (not to mention I find the second games story to be far more interesting, but they're both good).

[MisterIceTeaPeach]

On 5/3/2020 at 6:29 PM, Fabulously Olivier said:

Maybe it's because I just really want to play Cold Steel, but I have to get through the PSP games to get there.

I assume you refer to the two Crossbell parts by mentioning PSP. 

You don't have to play them before Cold Steel I and II at all.

[Rapier]

11 hours ago, Falcom Knight said:

I assume you refer to the two Crossbell parts by mentioning PSP. 

You don't have to play them before Cold Steel I and II at all.

Cold Steel spoils a lot of Crossbell, though. 1 spoils important events in Ao right in your face.