Awesome Games Only [Ended]

Reply here once done.

So... should this be again only counting games I have never started before?

Hmm, interesting idea. I just wanted to ask a couple more questions for clarification:

• The 3 extra rows can be used by anyone right, even if we haven't completed all the games in the top 24?
• Some games are a bit more vague in terms of what it means to beat it (ex: Kind Words, which is in your top 24), I guess we just ignore them?
• I noticed you had OneShot in your list, and I own it too, but on itch.io. Would such a game be allowed (a game not owned on Steam, but would have counted if we did own it on Steam), or no? I'm guessing no, but just curious.
• I noticed I had some sequels in my list, can we sort of use the prequel game as a replacement? For example, I have The Coma 2 in the first row of my list, but I haven't played The Coma 1. I guess the other argument could be to just play both games and then count the sequel. Another example is you have The Witcher 3 in your list, but maybe you want to play the Witcher 1.
• Should we only do games we never played. What if it was a game we were played in the past and have some progress, but never got to finishing?
• If we were already currently in the middle of a game that fits the criteria, do they count or must they be games started from the date of this post?
• How do collection games work? Example could be Mega Man Legacy Collection or in my case Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove.

Sorry for all the questions btw, but seems like a fun idea.

I managed to fit 32 games in one screenshot, can I scroll in blocks of 32? [slightly /s, contemplating in 24 blocks still unless said otherwise]

43 out of 48 games and 55 out of 72 games
Red X indicates I already have play time in it before the start of the event, Green O are for games I played for the event

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Another neat event :) I might give it a shot, let's try it!

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This is my list, games with red slashes mean I've played them before, can you confirm if these are the games I have to play?

Linelight - 1st row
TY the Tasmanian Tiger - 2nd row
Day of the Tentacle Remastered - 3rd row
Escape Goat - 4th row
fault - milestone two side:above - 4th row

or I can pick any 5 games from the list below?

Linelight
TY the Tasmanian Tiger
Day of the Tentacle Remastered
Escape Goat
fault - milestone two side:above

Gravitas (This is a free game, not sure if it counts) - 4th row
Higurashi When They Cry Hou - Ch.2 Watanagashi - 5th row
Persona 4 Golden - 6th row

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I like this idea! I am in! :D

It would be lovely if this became a regular thing, but I am afraid it might become a lot of work for you -- I mean, are you going to check all of them manually?

Another thought: is it easier for you to get screenshots with achievements at the end, or maybe just links to the achievement pages?

Let me check my possibilities... from my Top 48, these are currently "0h on record" or nearly so (I imagine games with a few minutes should be ok, but let me know):

1. Blackwell Epiphany
2. One Finger Death Punch
3. Rakuen (2 min on record, no achievs)
4. Stardew Valley (14 min on record, no achievs)
5. Terraria (18 min on record, no achievs)
6. The Crown of Leaves
7. Epic Battle Fantasy 4
8. Fallout: New Vegas (9 min on record, no achievs)
9. Gemcraft- Chasing Shadows

So, if I understand the rules correctly, I can get 3 more rows? If so, from the next 24, I have untouched:

10. Higurashi When They Cry Hou - Ch.1 Onikakushi
11. Mark of the Ninja
12. Civilization IV: Beyond the Sword

A fine selection! I will try to pick 5 of these later!

Cheers!

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I'm loving this idea for an event, but ooof.. I'm struggling to get a Top 5 list going. I seem to have played a good majority of my Top 104 games (yes, I've had to scroll that far down.. :c ). I just wanted to clarify a few things, in case I crossed off some that may have been eligible or whether I have to keep scrolling.

I know you mentioned no endless games / MP games, so those I've crossed out. You also said you don't want games that have been started prior to this event / have play time - does that include games that have only idle time for card drops but no achievements unlocked in them? Depending on your answer, I'm guessing games that have no achievements that have some idle time wouldn't count since there's no way to verify if I started them before or not.

Thanks!

I've never done one of these, do I need to take before screenshots for each game showing no time played before starting?
Top 48 unplayed:

• Distraint 2
  Half Life 2 Ep2
  Hollow Knight
• Ori and the Blind Forest

Exa Punks
Half Life 2 Ep1

• Machinarium

• Tales of the Borderlands
  Prey
  Quell Memento (this has 1 minute play time I don't know if I can use it)
  Deus Ex GOTY

• The Hex
  Into The Breach

• Momodora

• is the ones I'm considering. I'd also consider Quell Memento if that one is eligible.
  

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Already have Hades so I won't enter, but it's a neat idea. Thanks for prompting me to take a look at my library in a new way! Turns out I've beaten 15-ish of my top 24, which is way better than I expected. ("15-ish" because L4D2 keeps crashing on the final mission. Except last time I tried, when my asshole AI teammates refused to behave and let me die in the chopper while the pilot was waiting for them to get in!)

Oh cool, question from xMisiu solved my first problem, I have a lot of idle time too.
Another problem is my potato PC, if I pick 5 games, but 1 or 2 won't run at playable framerates can I replace the games?
Integrated graphics here :/

Sure, why not. Maybe this will actually make me... do stuff.

So many VNs, sequels and adventure games in that list... T.T
(And Euro Truck Simulator 2 for some reason...)

Anyway, these games look like safe non-trauma-inducing picks, so I'll go with them, if it's ok:
Helltaker
Linelight
Bit Blaster XL
Hook
Botanicula
They all have achievements and I fully intend to 100% them so if that's ok for a completion criteria I'd like to go with it. ^_^'

Edit 21/12:
Ok, done.
Helltaker
Linelight
Bit Blaster XL
Hook
Botanicula

Honestly, I ended up picking such short games that it kinda feels like I cheated. Only around 20 hours of total playtime between them... Y'know, I won't consider this challenge done until I do another, meatier game too. Mark of the Ninja is suddenly in 25-th place between Left 4 Dead 2 and Mount & Blade: Warband, so I'll do that. Brb, when I'm done.

Edit 30/12:
Ok, done with that too.
Mark of the Ninja
(And I fixed all the other links I had so they actually show my stats rather than the global achievement stats... Ops. ^_^' )

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Nice idea! Might as well attempt it :)
(Note: Most of my games have idle time + i mostly play with steam offline which sometimes does and sometimes doesn’t track offline hours, so as additional proof i’ll take a screenshot when i finish each one)

Games marked with ? don’t have a single-player mode and so they are technically unbeatable.

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Good motivation to play some [edit: unplayed ] games :) [ There is no Shortage of games I've played that have or will be having Winter events >.> ]

Possible Extras/replacements: The Witcher 3, The Room 2, VA-11 Hall-A, Agent A

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Um ...?
Is it an event to play 5 of the top 24 games with high review scores?

I'm not sure, but I took a look at my place.
The green circle is the one that has finished playing.
Others are not touched / Android version has been played.
It seems that there are many such things.

|ｮΘ･)ooO(This month I'll just be watching.)

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Ok, looking at my games... My tops ones I have so many I have either beaten/completed or have played for barely anytime (ones with achievement numbers on image) lol. Very limited options.
My options are pretty much only:

• Kind Words (is this really a game you can 'finish'?)
• Playne (this umm.. this is staring at the screen so not really a 'game' game.)

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RIP playing games for a couple of hours here and there and not committing haha
At least they pretty much crossover with the other event :P

Edit: Oh looking at new rules I can now play all these games in the screenshot and even add a row. We'll see how it goes

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I'll update this after I can post proper proof - picked games. I dipped into a lot of game for a few minutes, sometimes haven't even started just left it accidentally open in the menu, or only played the tutorial, those are all need to be left out. So had to scroll for a bit.
Also a question - what's up with games that are above the specifications of the current PC I have? Like I have A Hat in Time that I'm almost 100% sure I'll get ~10-20 fps just in the menu, and there will be surely other ones that will follow later.

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One Finger Death Punch
Portal 2
Grimm (75min idled)
Gunpoint
The Room 2

Backup:
Cuphead
Life goes on (from next 24)
Nuclear Throne (from next 24) (4.7h idled)
Ultimate Chicken Horse (from next 24)

Cross = played
Red box = idled
Green exclamation = playing

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Completed games:

Hexcells Infinite - achievements

Playing this reminded me of spending hours upon hours in Minesweeper in my teenage years, and the core concept is extremely clever. I will say the game got a little less fun by the end, but it was not long enough to seriously wear out its welcome. Additionally, I strongly appreciate the inclusion of night mode for the visuals!

Finding Paradise - achievement

This was my favorite of the crop, and the hardest to write about because it's hard to articulate what I expected going in and what drastically changed as I saw the story unfold.

I'll summarize by saying while A Bird Story did not particularly move me, this story from the same developer hit hard. (This may be a mild spoiler depending on how you perceive spoilers, so it's hidden) I have the strongest reaction not to stories of human tragedy or romance, but to stories of human dissatisfaction, the feeling that something in life is missing and out of reach. And right from the start, Finding Paradise conveys that feeling so precisely that it should resonate deeply with almost anyone.

My minor gripes are with the resolution as there's no way to get something between "small window" and "stretched-out full screen mode." But the rest of the game doesn't feel limited by the RPG Maker engine, and has some surprisingly detailed art assets and music. Additionally, I love meta-humor, but Finding Paradise is a bit thick with it so that might turn off other players.

I should play To The Moon soon-ish.

Smile for Me - achievements

Some of the ways Smile for Me subverts player expectations and traditional game mechanics, things as simple as standing too closely to a character as you converse with them, are hilarious. Getting the ball rolling with some of the initial adventure game puzzles was a bit hard, but once you get used to the characters, the puzzles become a bit easier to figure out. I don't know if all the humor was a hit for me, but I absolutely loved the Dr. Habit video segments.

Day of the Tentacle Remastered - achievements

As far as classic LucasArts adventure games go, Monkey Island has been my favorite so far, because of its great hint system even though most of the puzzles don't need a hint system. But even without the hint system, Day of the Tentacle is a pretty fun adventure with a good sweet spot in length and a colorful cast of characters. I enjoyed manipulating the same area in different time periods and seeing variations of the same character pop up. Some of the puzzles were tough to figure out, leading me to consult guides, but they get a bit more understandable as time goes on.

Bug Fables - achievements
Note on achievement timestamps: Sometimes achievements do not unlock properly, but subsequently unlock after restarting the game.
Note on play time: I spent some idle time in game to take advantage of the in-game bank. Actual play time is about 30-35 hours.

For me, the Paper Mario sequels beyond The Thousand-Year Door are still fine games, but I understand the desire for more traditional gameplay. And that's the potential of crowdfunding and indie development at its best: passionate individuals stepping in to fill the niche that has gone dormant. The gameplay mechanics in Bug Fables are surprisingly intricate and build on the Paper Mario formula in some clever ways, especially in combat where the possibilities are much more robust. The visuals are not a match for Nintendo's best work but are proficient in their own right especially considering the limitations of a small team with some IndieGogo funding. On the other hand, the soundtrack is superb top to bottom and worth considering for purchase (unfortunately not available on Steam).

Bug Fables did occasionally crash for me, which was unfortunate. My game actually crashed while saving near the very end, which freaked me out because I know there is an issue with possible save file corruption, but thankfully I only lost two minutes of progress.

As for this event being held more often, I would lean toward no because Monthly in a Month is a big event unto itself, and doing Awesome Games Only multiple times would have diminishing returns and get less manageable due to the criteria of what games to include. In any case, it's obviously up to your discretion how you want to proceed, and thank you for all the events so far!

My library (Red line indicates already played and/or ineligible; light blue indicates games completed for Awesome Games Only December 2020):

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