Which games do you replay and why?

I prefer games with high replay value, aka Bungie's "30 seconds of fun" rule. So I look for games with gameplay I enjoy and enough space to experiment. Open world games are fantastic. Driving games. Any Civ or Sim game. Shooters with good multiplayer.

As far as single player goes, I played Half-Life (1) about 7 times. HL2 three times. Bioshock twice.

Most video game plots suck. A few might compare well to other games, but next to movies and tv, video game plots are horrible.

I tend to replay the following:
Jedi Academy (especially the last level)
Jupiter: The Nexus Incident
Day of Defeat Source (not really replay, but good for some old-school team deathmatch)
Fallouts 1 & 2 (& 3)
Oblivion
MOO 2

I need to hunt down a copy of Star Control II. That's something I'd still play.

Oh yeah, do things like Diablo 2 count? I've lost count of the number of times I've been through that...

I intended to play a bunch of games through a second time, it just never seems to happen.

Bioshock, Mass Effect, Fable II, Overlord II, Oblivion and Fallout 3 were all games I planned on playing through a second time. In all cases I was going to either play the other 'alignment', or with a different skillset (biotic vs. weapons, magic vs. melee). It just didn't come to pass, there was always something newer and shinier coming along that got my attention. All of these (except Overlord II) are still sitting in the drawer though, so maybe someday...

The most recent game that I actually replayed was Call of Duty 2. I played it through on Veteran almost immediately after finishing it the first time. Of course a) the game was just that good, b) there wasn't much else out at that point and c) achievements were a new and still addictive phenomenon back then.

Nevin73 wrote:

I need to hunt down a copy of Star Control II. That's something I'd still play.

Available for free here.

I'm also the person that will replay games by Bioware or other RPGs 2 or 3 times. Kotor (4 times), Jade Empire (3 or 4 times), Mass Effect (2 1/2 times), Fallout 3 (Once mainly though the main quest and a second time through all the quests). I also played Okami twice even though that has no branching paths.

When I was in high school and just bought an Xbox, I played through Halo a billion times with my friends on different difficulties. I would drive home during stacked free periods to have lunch and play Halo with my friends. I can't see myself doing that again with any single player shooters.

I started a second play through of Bioshock with the intent of using the wrench as much as possible, but didn't get very far.

I'll also say I've played through the New Game + modes of two Ratchet & Clank games. Most of the fun of those games is upgrading your weapons and I played the second play throughs until I'd done this.

Other action games like Gears of War or shorter ones like MDK are easy to either jump into for a complete play through or to play a level.

pignoli wrote:

Oh yeah, do things like Diablo 2 count? I've lost count of the number of times I've been through that...

I just purchased this game and I'm currently playing through with two characters. I'm not too far, at the end of Act I on each, but they are so different, that I can easily see playing that game with each character (6 times).

Alternate Reality: The Dungeon (Atari 800)
Dungeon Master (Atari ST)
Ultima 3 & 4 (Atari 800)
Wizard's Crown (Atari 800)
Jagged Alliance 2
Max Payne 1 & 2
Dungeon Keeper 2
Silent Storm
Fallout 1 & 2
Homeworld series
StarCon 2

Server problem double post!

I replayed Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast at least 3 times. The hardest part about that game is restarting it and having to deal with the sabre-less parts. Try it on hard w/o a sabre after beating it on medium with one - makes you change up a lot.

Another great one to replay is Deus Ex - but it looks like everyone already knew that.

Then there are the RPGs that call me back to them. Final Fantasy 6 is the one game that, even though it's decently long, I have zero issue replaying. It was just so well made that it's a delight to revisit.

Quintin_Stone wrote:

Homeworld series

You know it's your fault I'm currently replaying Homeworld, stinking enabler!

mrtomaytohead wrote:
Quintin_Stone wrote:

Homeworld series

You know it's your fault I'm currently replaying Homeworld, stinking enabler! :P

If enabling is wrong, I don't want to be right. u_u

Each year, usually around April/March, I replay Fallout 2, followed by Fallout some month later. Dunno, it`s uncurable itch. Jagged Alliance 2 is always intalled as well.

Final Fantasy 6. The characters, story, and system keep me coming back about once a year, and with it being portable now, it's even easier. A close second would be Oblivion.

Fallout 1 = I played this maybe 10 times or so all the way to the end. Every time I play it I find something new. I didn't even know you could kill the overseer guy until the 9th play through.

Xcom = I have never finished this game but has restarted it a bunch of times.

Morrowind = I have never finished this game but started over probably a hundred times. People make new stuff I want to play and I then I make a new character.

Oblivion = I haven't played it as much of Morrowind but restared a bunch of times also. I don't think I have done anything with the main story except go to oblivion once. I usually jus play side missions and add on missions.

Marvel vs Capcom 2 = I'll pull this out once a year for the dreamcast. Maybe I'll get the ps3 version one day.

There is some shrump I play on the wii that first came out on the gamecube. I can't think of the name though. It had a system where everything was black or white and you could change your ship color to black or white. The thing was bullets of the same color as your ship couldn't hurt and if they hit was charge your big gun. Fun game with a name I can never remember.

Staats wrote:

I tend to replay platformers, mostly because I'm a huge platformer fan and good platformers aren't very common.

Reading this it occured to me that the main link between all the games I replay is the combat. I find the combat in all those games very satisfying. For a long time very few games had combat of a type I enjoyed so I'd play those few over and over. Fortunately, these days, more and more developers seem to share my tastes.

Clemenstation wrote:

First playthrough is usually reserved for doing whatever amuses me, while subsequent playthroughs are for chasing achievements or deliberately doing the opposite of whatever I chose the first time. I ramp up the difficulty too.

I seem to spend my first play through in a state of constant mild anxiety wondering if I'll have enough ammo or if I've chosen the right spells, dialogue options, etc. By the second play through I know I can beat the game so I can relax and have fun.

In RPGs in particular I do a lot of 'doing the opposite of whatever I chose the first time.'

The Legacy of Kain series are frequent replays for me. I just find the storyline's approach to the concept of time alteration and continuum quite thought provoking. The constant twists and turns-- the manipulations of your perceptions of good and evil, choice and consequence – spanning the entire series was just fantastic.

Additionally, the script and voice overwork is just top notch. I'd argue amongst the best in any game.

Taken on the surface, they are rather mediocre action puzzlers. However, the intellectual story and phenomenal dialogue raised this into a great series for me.

Baron Of Hell wrote:

There is some shrump I play on the wii that first came out on the gamecube. I can't think of the name though. It had a system where everything was black or white and you could change your ship color to black or white. The thing was bullets of the same color as your ship couldn't hurt and if they hit was charge your big gun. Fun game with a name I can never remember.

That would be Ikaruga. IIRC, it came out in the arcades, then Dreamcast, then Gamecube and I think PS2. It's now downloadable on the 360, and it's amazing and insane. I have it on the Gamecube. Thankfully after playing it for 5 or 10 hours, it unlocks unlimited continues. I like that it didn't give that to you right out of the gate.

Vrikk wrote:

RPG-wise, it's only been Super Mario RPG, Chrono Trigger, and Earthbound.

This is so me...adding in FF3 (6) also

Morrowind is one I've played with multiple characters. I only play with one type of character, but I'll role-play differently and join different guilds. Hundreds of hours.

Half-Life 2 and F.E.A.R. are probably the other two I like to repaly. They both have fun combat (the guns and weapons sound GOOD), and while F.E.A.R. has a decent story HL2 has a great story and the level design as well.

And then of course there's all the different RTS games I play depending on my mood. Galactic Battlegrounds, Empire Earth, Earth 2150, World in Conflict, Supreme Commander, Ground Control II, Age of Empires, Age of Empires III, probably missing one or two..

I'm not much for replaying games once I'm done with them, though I wish I'd find that magic timeless game I could always return to. I've played through Halo 1 and 2 multiple times, Oblivion and expansions twice, but I dont see myself going back to them anymore.

That being said, Master of Orion 2 seems to find its way onto my computer and laptop pretty regularly. Sure, its showing its age, but I think the game still hits a sweet spot with mechanics, customization and accessibility. It appears cute enough on the surface, but it also leaves the door open to some hardcore themes in how you choose to handle conquering your enemies.

I will on a very rare occasion play Colonial Conquest (Atari 800) though I'm stuck with emulating it as my original floppy disks got de-magnetized. (or is it that they got magnetized.. oh forget it. wiped...) Back in the day, if you turned off your floppy drive with the disc in it, the disc would get corrupted / erased. Anyways, the interface is horrid by todays standards, but the gameplay mechanics were just perfect. I still have the original laminated map it came with on which you can crayon (err dry-erase) out your enemies' territories as you defeat them. Mwahahahahaha. Man, I'm old. On the original Atari 800, some battles could take 15 - 20 minutes which is insane.

I tend to replay Kingdom Hearts 2 with various combinations of strengths and weaknesses.

Quintin_Stone wrote:

Alternate Reality: The Dungeon (Atari 800)
Dungeon Master (Atari ST)
Ultima 3 & 4 (Atari 800)
Wizard's Crown (Atari 800)
Jagged Alliance 2
Max Payne 1 & 2
Dungeon Keeper 2
Silent Storm
Fallout 1 & 2
Homeworld series
StarCon 2

I can't believe how close this is to my list. Did you ever play Magic Candle? Old. Wizard's Crown old.
And Xcom is suspiciously missing.
But to see so many of my favorites here makes me want to check out the others.
Thanks Dr. Q.

Generally, the only games I replay are the short ones

Sometimes I'll dip back in on a harder difficulty setting, but usually, by the time I've finished a game, I'm finished with it for a while.

99 times out of 100, my 'replay' usually means 'play the first few levels, then get distracted by something shiny and new.

As I said elsewhere, I play Half-Life 2 and episodes annually. I have played through Diablo and D2 dozens of times respectively. That is kind of the point of them, you could run through the 5 chapters in a week or two with minimal play.

I always find something new with each Half-Life 2 playthrough, some combat trick-Pro Tip, capture the ManHacks(the flying saws) when captured by the Grav Gun and tossed at an enemy or group are one hit kills. You can throw one a couple of times as well. This can come in handy when you are at the Horde scene in Half-Life 2 in the prison.

I played through Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask 3 or 4 times. Just well crafted games.

You just have t play through the Half-Life Episodes multiple times, and Portal, for Commentary Alone.

I would like to mention, I do not think we can consider replay for score a valid consideration. Do you replay Bejeweld each time you fire up a new instance?

I used to replay stuff a lot, but lately I've gotten picky. Mostly it's because my gaming time has become more limited, and I still have unfinished games in my backlog. Of course sometimes I replay a game for the story, but generally only if it's been long enough that I'm fuzzy on the specifics. Also, if I'm in the mood for a giant-mech game or a space-combat sim, I pretty much have to dig into the archives.

If I do replay a game, I try to mix things up a bit. I'm currently replaying Jagged Alliance 2 using only female mercs, and I'm replaying Ghost Recon without using specialists.

One thing I've discovered is that over time, I've generally gotten better at shooters; some games that used to be impossibly difficult are suddenly easier when I replay them.

Oh, and I don't feel any compulsion to actually finish a game I'm replaying--sometimes I just want a quick visit for old-times sake. And of course, I can save some times by watching old cutscenes on Youtube.

I have a question. Given a reasonable effort, do you replay a game or series before a sequel is released? IE how many of you will run through God of War I and II before firing up God of War III? How many played through Uncharded again before Uncharted 2?

Yeah, I enjoy that. I'm planning on a marathon Half-Life session leading up to HL2E3.

KingGorilla wrote:

I have a question. Given a reasonable effort, do you replay a game or series before a sequel is released? IE how many of you will run through God of War I and II before firing up God of War III? How many played through Uncharded again before Uncharted 2?

I've never done this, usually if I need a refresher on the story I'll hit up a Wiki or something. I'll probably wind up doing it with God of War 1 and 2, but that's because I want to try the HD versions on PS3.

Alpha Centauri is pretty much considered part of Windows in my home. Every computer I've owned since it was originally published has had SMAC on it.

I mean, come on, it's SMAC. It's HAS to be on my hard drive. I wouldn't know what to do without it.

wickbroke wrote:

I can't believe how close this is to my list. Did you ever play Magic Candle? Old. Wizard's Crown old.
And Xcom is suspiciously missing.
But to see so many of my favorites here makes me want to check out the others.
Thanks Dr. Q.

No, I've never heard of Magic Candle.

I didn't play X-Com until a few years ago, so it lacks the nostalgia factor for me. I find the UI too clunky to want to play it again and again.

THE DOCTOR IS OUT!