Retiring A Video Game Or Admitting Defeat

Time: the limited resource. And JRPGs: my favorite video game genre, known for lengthy playtimes. I don’t finish, beat, or complete every game I play, sad to say. Reasons vary. Maybe the game is too long. Or maybe it’s too hard. But it seems that time is a big factor; there’s a whole gaming website called, “HowLongToBeat.”

This week, I dusted off my Switch and resumed playtime in Sea of Stars; I’m still having fun with it. I think I’m about half-way through. It’s a relatively short RPG, according to HowLongToBeat. I will likely finish the game.

“Finish” is the term I normally use to say I completed or beat a game, meaning I “rolled credits,” finished the main gameplay/narrative, and/or beat the final boss (in its final ultimate form).

The term, “finish,” is distinct from “complete.” To me, completing a game means 100%-ing it, or accomplishing everything: main quests, side-quests, mini-games… Some gamers are Completionists — not me. I typically play the main quest plus some side quests, but not every-single-thing. Who has that kind of time?

I like to finish a game, but sometimes I’m finished with a game before I actually finish it, know what I mean?

I’ve often felt bad for not finishing a game, like I left something undone due to being inadequate. Like, I just didn’t “Git good” and beat it. But often, it’s not due to the game’s difficulty or my lack of gaming grit; it’s usually about my limited time. Well, that and my lack of focus; meatspace can be demanding.

I like the terms HowLongToBeat uses for a game that’s no longer being played. Either you “Retired” it or you “Completed” it. To compare, IGN’s Playlist uses the simple terms, “Quit” and “Beat.”

For the record, sometimes I beat a game. Sometimes a game beats me. Truth be told. Metroid Dread beat me (that darn Escue mini-boss!).

Yeah, so “Retired” is better to me than “Quit” or “Did Not Finish.” Sure, I may be splitting hairs. But quitting to me is admitting defeat and giving up in a game. Okay, I’ve done that more than once. Guilty.

But what I’m driving at is absolving myself of feeling obligated to finish, beat, or complete every game I play. I’m allowed the option to “retire” a game. To me, this means I enjoyed it as much as my time/energy allowed and I’m now free to cease from playing it anymore. Then I can start playing the next game.

A recent example is Pokémon Violet. I played for about 40 hours, arriving at the final gauntlet. There was a last string of boss battles to complete before taking on the ultimate boss fight. The story was essentially complete. And frankly, I’d had enough.

I explored all the regions, I gained all the traversal skills, I defeated all the separate storylines and their respective bosses. I finished about 98% of the game. So then slogging through a long series of increasingly challenging bosses just didn’t seem worth the effort at that point. The only gain to be had was seeing the credits roll and earning the title of Pokémon Master. Battling in and of itself (the battle system) wasn’t good enough for me to endure multiple boss fights back-to-back.

Another title that I played until 99% through: Metroid Prime (Gamecube). It’s not an RPG, but it was an excellent game; I loved it. I literally made it to the final boss battle. But after a dozen or so failed attempts on different occasions, I gave up. The game — that boss — beat me. I really tried hard and just couldn’t swing it. I didn’t “retire” it; I quit in exhausted defeat. But at least I had lots of fun for all the hours leading up to my ultimate failure. Ha! The fact I enjoyed playing 99% of it, to me, is a success, or close enough.

That was long ago. These days, I try to immerse myself into rich RPGs. Their long playtimes are both daunting and rewarding. But since my time is limited (adulting and such), I must allow myself the leeway to “retire” games no matter how easy or hard they are.

I can finish or beat very long, challenging games when I want to enough. For example, Dragon Quest XI S and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 are two recent titles I completed, playing over 100 hours each. 

When I need or want to be done playing, I don’t have to “finish” a game to be finished with it; I can “retire” it. If I can’t beat the game, fine. If I can beat it but don’t feel like going through with it, okay. If the fun is over, I can let it go and move on.