Death to RPGs Backlog Clearing Project *UPDATED*

As some of you might remember, I hatched a scheme to knock some of the W-RPGs (and some Japanese games that mimic them) off of my backlog: Risen, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Geneforge, Gothic, and some From Software games--not to mention some of the DLC. I succeeded in taking a few of them out, but I still have a long way to go. Hopefully, in the coming year I can get my act together and even take out an entire category. As of right now, my remaining targets are:

Dragon Age
Dragon Age: Origins
Dragon Age 2
Dragon Age: Inquisition

Mass Effect
Mass Effect (I still plan to replay this one so I can re-review it here and delete my junky GameFAQs review of it)
Mass Effect 2
Mass Effect 3

Geneforge Saga
Geneforge 3
Geneforge 4: Rebellion
Geneforge 5: Overthrow

Gothic
Gothic 2
Gothic 3 (enhanced edition)
Arcania: Gothic 4

Risen
Risen 3: Titan Lords

Bonus Non-WRPG Category!: From Software "Souls-style" Stuff
Bloodborne
Eternal Ring

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COMPLETED AND REVIEWED PILE

Risen
Risen 2: Dark Waters

Gothic

Geneforge
Geneforge 2

Demon's Souls
Dark Souls
---DLC: Artorias of the Abyss
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin

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Currently, I'm working on Risen 3 and occasionally on Bloodborne. After getting through those, I will be done with the Risen trilogy (Piranha Bytes has made it clear there will be no more Risen games any time soon, if ever). I'll most likely go through Eternal Ring at that point and try to finish off the Geneforge saga.

Comments 5

Never3ndr Dec 7, 2015

Since I'm guessing you have an interest in RPG's, have you played Undertale? I haven't played it, but I'm pretty curious about it...I've heard good things about it, and it has totally screwed my bracket up on the GameFAQs Best Games contest.

Interesting you have the Geneforge games on here. I bought them on Steam but haven't gotten around to playing them...I love RPGs but have a tough time getting into isometric ones.

sashanan Dec 7, 2015

Most of these I don't have yet, as I've become more cautious about buying new games I won't be getting to yet, compared to a couple of years ago. As such I have Mass Effect 2, purchased when I beat 1 for the first time, but I don't yet have Mass Effect 3, and won't get it until I get through 2. It's going to happen, almost no doubt about it, but there's no rush. I'm in fact replaying 1 before I get to 2, because I rushed through it far too quickly. Likewise for the Dragon Ages, I have Origins, and only Origins. Anything beyond will only happen if I like what I see. The other series I know nothing about at all.

Undertale, since it was mentioned, has made my interest list, even before it became such a breakout hit on the GameFAQs contest. I'm not sure who recommended it to me first, but they did so glowingly enough that it entered my radar. And nothing else yet, because backlog. :P

honestgamer Staff Dec 7, 2015

Undertale is on my wish list on Steam, because everyone seems to think it's some previously unseen level of awesome. I suspect I will only find it mildly interesting, though, so it hasn't made the trek from wish list to purchase quite yet. RPGs are big projects. In the time it takes to complete one, a person can often complete 5 or so other games. So you've made great progress, Joe. It's actually rather impressive!

JoeTheDestroyer Blogger Dec 7, 2015

Never3ndr:
I have yet to play Undertale. It's on my wishlist, I think, or at least it will be.

Geneforge can be difficult to get into. I was reluctant to start it because it's a pretty early indie game (out before indie games really exploded like they have these days) and it really shows. I've gotten through the first two games, and I've already noticed improvements in the second installment. I've booted up the third before and it similarly looks touched up.

Sashanan:
I don't usually buy sequels without buying the original game, but a lot of those are series packs and box sets. I only bought the Risen and Dragon Age games separately. I was going to forgo Dragon Age 2, but Suskie's review of Inquisition prompted me to buy both titles. I figure I'm in for a whole lot of 'meh' with DA2, but I'm the kind of guy who needs to play installments in order.

Jason:
Thanks! I've scratched a lot off, but I think only a few of these were completed this year: Gothic, Dark Souls, Dark Souls II, and Risen 2, plus I started both Bloodborne and Risen 3.

Genj Dec 12, 2015

Before playing Inquisition last year, I marathon and slogged through Dragon Age 2 and it was NOT worth it. Yes, the story does set up Inquisition and yes the game's best character is a party member in the sequel, but it is not worth the tedium. The first act of the whole game is padding - basically "yo Hawk, go do side quests to raise a shit ton of gold." After that, the main campaign is mercifully short. The characters are boring, the battles get tedious and samey, the story goes nowhere until the last hour. It's clearly a rushed, thrown together game. Just watch a compilation of story scenes on Youtube or something.