Talking Point: Xbox Fans, How Do You Find Time For All These Amazing 2025 Games?

I don’t! It’s why I think I may just go for Core when my Ultimate expires in March. Too many games to keep on top of, I just don’t have time to play them all. If I downgrade to Core at least I’ll have a much better chance at shrinking my backlog.

I still haven’t played Indiana Jones or even HiFi Rush yet, they are on the backlog. Clair Obscur will probably suffer the same fate unfortunately. I won’t play The Dark Ages either as I have yet to finish the original 2016 Doom, let alone Eternal.

The main problem with Game Pass is this lack of time. And I have a lot more time for games than most!

We don't our backlogs keep growing 😭😭😭😂

I just have to be selective. I have been able to finish Indiana Jones, a second playthrough of Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Suikoden 1, Avowed, South of Midnight, and I'm currently playing through Clair Obscure: Expedition 33.

There isn’t enough time I still have 2023 and 2024 games I haven’t gotten to.

Avowed took me a lot longer than I’d planned. People were saying it’s short; 75 hours isn’t short!

@jesse_dylan Was 20 of those hours trying to defeat the final boss??

I don’t have time to play like 90% of the games I’m interested in. As I get older I have more obligations but also more interests and priorities. As such, gaming just takes a back seat and I probably put in 3-5 hours per week now.

I also game less in the late spring, summer, and early fall because of the warm weather. I love being outside. So when winter rolls around, my gaming time will probably shoot up a decent bit.

@johnK nope! Maybe 20 minutes tho! I didn’t actually have to fight the final boss. It was a little anticlimactic 😆

@Titntin yeah I skipped a little bit of collecting near the end, and apparently missed a side quest. And i definitely didn’t read all the lore.

@jesse_dylan Seriously! Avowed took me 62.5 hours! Deceptively long.

These are the games I finished this year:

Metaphor ReFantazio
Atelier Rorona
Streets of Rage 4
The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles
WWE 2K15
Persona 4 Arena Ultimax
RetroRealms: Ash vs Evil Dead
Evil West
Avowed
Eiyuden
Like a Dragon Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii
Assassin's Creed Shadows

Shadows and Pirate Yakuza I've got all Achievements/Trophies.

I've also started South of Midnight, Oblivion Remastered and Expedition 33 but dropped them with each new release.
Expedition 33 I ended up dropping because of the lack of a map on dungeons. I really wanted to love it.
Also started the "new" God of War on PS4 but it's not my thing. It's God of War in name only.

So I'm not sure what I'll be playing now.

@FarmDog08 Did you do all the side quests and collect all the totems and find all the paintings?? The side quests were worth it, I think. The totems and paintings, maybe not... but I kinda wish I would have just done the last few since I had done them up to that point. But I need to get over that completionism mindset so games don't take me two months to play!

@Lup You should just muscle through my man. Everyone else is probably a bit lost in the dungeons as well. I definitely am. It's part of the design to not know exactly where you're going.

I only get to play at night but I juggle quite well. 33 has my undivided attention at the minute.

@jesse_dylan I got all the totems and a lot of treasures. I finished it the night before Claire Obscur released, so I probably rushed Galawain's Tusks and the Garden a bit.

I don't lol. I just wish i has this as a child...but then again I'd likely really be a bum if i had access the all these games. Expedition 33 I'm playing in July, have a week without the family and I'm no lifing it to get it done in that week.

Most of my game time is on the phone so I've been playing slay the spire as it's touch controls and doesn't need a good connection. Really would benefit from the handheld so hopefully it's not a turd when they announce it...i need it to play local offline gamepass games.

It's such a tough thing to balance all of these games, especially because I play on all consoles. I've kinda given up on the idea of a structured "backlog." It's too much pressure to place on a hobby that's supposed to be relaxing and enjoyable. So, I'm just playing what I want to, when I can. I'd love to play Oblivion and Expedition 33, but it just ain't happening right now. And that's okay!

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to play Mario Kart 8, and do my 142nd playthrough of Halo: Combat Evolved

@Lup I mean this with all due respect, I can't begin to describe the hatred I have for you to be able to do this. I'M SO JEALOUS. HOW DO YOU DO THIS?? Good on ya, man

It gets even trickier when you are a movie fan as well! I usually play after work, and watch films/series at night.

I have actually gotten around to more games than usual this year, I've hit 7 games which is usually my yearly rate.
Granted only two of them would be considered big games and both I had on half from last year but still.
Helps I don't play assassin's creed or monster hunter I imagine.
Split Fiction, Cyberpunk, Metaphor, Crash 2, Slay the Princess, 1000X Resist and Ender Magnolia are the ones I've beat, I've given up on Pirate Yakuza and I've started Expedition 33 which so far kicks ass.

15 to 20 hours I only really play at night when the kids going asleep sometimes I can normally play more over the weekend but I do alright ✌️

As many others have said, I don't. I mainly just focus on the stuff I REALLY want to play, and put everything else on the "might eventually play later" list.

@Nighto4 Lol, I feel that. Finding a way to balance gaming and movie time is a difficult task to be sure.

@jesse_dylan

Yeah, but I just don't enjoy at all that part of the design and ends up making a chore of something that I would love otherwise.

@joeyflannel

Being single helps a lot. I don't have as much time now that I've found someone. It's really different.

That's also a reason, I stopped GP Ultimate. I don't have the time for all of this. It took me like a month to complete Indiana Jones. Now I'm waiting for Doom The Dark Ages and I can't decide what to play in the waiting time. I have way more games than I get to play.

Basically play whatever is calling me at the moment.

I started Khazan, but was kinda stuck on third boss (recommended level 18…I think I was like 42 by time I beat 🤣), so started South of Midnight. Then went back to khazan dir a few days…but have now started Expedition 33…

I really want to play one of the retro JRPGs that dropped in last year (Grandia, FF pixel remasters, Suikoden, or Lunar)…but something newer keeps pulling me in. I really need to play unicorn overlords as well.

Too many games

Most days I just try and get the achievement for logging onto GamePass and stay for an hour or two… it is really a hard choice what to focus on as I like most games but need to 100% then as well. My backlog is intense as long as I have GP games the backlog stays dormant….

@Lup Aside from the map issue-- Congrats on meeting someone special! Hope they're a gamer

@FarmDog08 That sounds about the same as me. I think I finished the night before Oblivion came out

@Lup Booyah bud good going 👏💪😎

That’s why I had to cancel gamepass. I am just focusing on two games right now.

I'm still kind of twiddling my thumbs waiting for something good to launch this year. Avowed was fun, but way too short and a very linear experience. Oblivion is amazing, but also a remaster of an old game that I have already put thousands of hours into over the years, so I'm not in any rush to finish it again and would rather sip it like a fine wine.

Hoping DOOM next month is good, but DOOM Eternal is my biggest disappointment of this decade and I'm going in with tempered expectations this time. Still waiting for dates and information on Ninja Gaiden 4, GTA 6, & Outer Worlds 2. Also keeping an eye on Ready or Not, MindsEye, Death Stranding 2, and Metroid Prime 4.

Its weirdly enough but when you have too many great games on GP its also a problem lol. Most people dont have that much time to play so they opt to just buying what they need. And if you prefer buying games over GP, then ps5 is a solid choice

187 hours(!) into KCD2 and still plenty to do, so everything else is having to wait for a turn, although I did make an exception for the comparatively short Lost Records (very good, I thought).

@Titntin what're your thoughts on ac shadows so far? Lot of discourse surrounding it, not planning on getting it myself but just wondering