Replay Value

Dragon Age

So, in spite of some of the less than charitable things I’ve said about Dragon Age: Origins, I’m playing it again. And I know it won’t be the last time.

My wife and I like to discuss different things we like about the game, other ways we plan on playing it, and even toss dialog from the game back and forth at one another. If that’s not an endorsement, I don’t know what is.

I’m also starting up a new Mass Effect play-through, but I’ll probably finish my Orange Box review series as well as Assassin’s Creed 2 before I really dedicate myself to putting another Infiltrator through the paces of Insanity. There’s a lot to be said for a game’s design, though, if I’m willing to put myself through the stickier bits just to enjoy a particular scene or storyline again. Fallout 3 is another candidate for a repeat play-through, provided I can find a way to afford all of the DLC. I think I’d need a magic cauldron or something.

I’ve thought about the replay value of some older games, as well. StarCraft, Full Throttle, Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines, pretty much any of the Wing Commander games… they’re all games I’ve played multiple times, and even with the gift of hindsight and more advanced simulations at my disposal, I’d happily play any of them again.

Share your thoughts with me, folks. What games have you encountered that, after playing them through, maybe even years ago, you’d really enjoy playing again? What gives a game replay value for you?

5 Comments

  1. Fallout 3 is the best example. I still play it. I’ve played through no fewer than eight playthroughs. The last time, I found plenty of content I’d never seen before.

  2. I put about 80 or 90 hours into Dragon Age. Now that’s replay value. Although the ultimate in replay value for me has to be Disgaea. That game was ridiculously fun, and I can’t even tell you how many hours I poured into that thing. It’s gotta be well over 200 though. I defy any other game to entertain me for that long.

  3. 80 or 90 hours? Wow. Good on you. I don’t think I could do more than the 25-30 I did. That was two playthroughs (and doing all the various origins,) and the expansion. It doesn’t really seem like playing through again makes the game any different, no matter what you do. Sure, you can make different choices, but you know what the results are. They’re pretty immediate. Color me slightly unimpressed.

    I did like the characters relatively well, but I think I got everything I needed to out of them the first time.

  4. I absolutely love Dragon Age (though I seriously cannot believe the 25-30 hour mark as anything but hyperbole. I’m sorry, but the fastest time by a QA was 12 hours using cheats to bypass all dialogue (and more than just pressing the escape key I believe) so I can’t see 2 playthroughs, 4 partials, and the xpac in that time. Not trying to be antagonistic, but I feel that exaggerations, intended or just mis-remembering, belittles how much the game had to offer).

    I definitely see the replay value, even with its flaws (I have it both for the PC and PS3, and I have completed one game, and have one in progress on each system.) is huge, even if the decisions aren’t always the most exciting. Most of my favorite games don’t have the option to change the story at all, so maybe I’m biased.

    For me, the number one replay value lies in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I’ve beaten it probably about a dozen times, and even if it has been a few years, it’s still one of my all-time favorites, and if I had the time to play more games (and finish the ones I have) I would definitely whip it out again.

  5. I love playing through Oblivion and Morrowind. A lot. I’ve played through Dragon Age four or five times now, but I’ve got over 300 hours logged into one or two saves of Oblivion alone, and I can’t even remember how many times I’ve run various saves for Morrowind.

    Also, Doom 1 and 2. I played the hell out of those games as a kid and I still think they’re fun.

    I’ve also been known to replay Baldur’s Gate (1 and 2) and Ocarina of Time. There aren’t many other games on the market right now, from past or present, that I’m willing to boot up and run after having slogged through their story once or twice (for the achievements now).

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