Games You Obsess Over

What are some game or game series that you obsess over? Obsess is pretty subjective in this topic. So any way you interpret the term is fine.

WOW - Even though I don't play anymore I still check WOW blogs daily to keep up to date with the latest WOW news. I also frequently have conversations about WOW with the people at work since it's the only game that we all seem to agree on.

Splinter Cell Series - For some reason these games immerse me like no other. The Splinter Cell series is the only stealth game series I like (never really liked Metal Gear) but it's a series that requires your full attention and causes you to be fully aware of everything around you for solutions. I also only play the Splinter Cell games with the lights off. Maybe to mimic my in-game goals of hiding from enemies in the dark.

Ninja Gaiden series - I have pretty much every version of the newer Ninja Gaiden games on multiple consoles/handhelds. I like to see how the versions differ.

Tekken and other fighting games -I watch lots of high level fighting game footage and I enjoy watching tournaments and I support the community when I can.

I definitely obsess over Smash, particularly Brawl, I used to go to tournaments occasionally with that one and still watch a lot of Melee and 64 tournament stuff, they're all great games.

Whenever I play Pokemon I get pretty obsessed with it, but the same is true of pretty much any RPG I play, I guess I'm a little OCD or something.

obsess ?
I'll say PHANTAS STAR first ! Very strange, no ? No need to explain it here, on this site
Second, the Phoenix Wright serie ! What a marvelous serie ! They're all great games and I'm actually playing the Dual Destines on my beloved 2DS and it's so great ! Hard to describe it as it's not games to play but to LIVE !
And third, I'll note the serie taht I've discovered only recently : the Zero Escape serie ! Even if I still haven't played 999 : Nine Hours Nine Persons Nine Doors on Nintendo DS (I'll buy it soon !), Virtue's Last Reward is one of the best games I've ever played ! You MUST play it ! And from the same editor, Danganronpa, Trigger Happy Havoc on Vita is great too but I've just started it so...

The Lunar series, as my name kinda gives it away... lol...

I don't think really there's a game or series in general that I really obsess over overall. That said, there are definitely games that in short-medium term, as I play them and for a time after, capture my mind and imagination more than others. I've talked about this game plenty lately, but I have to again, because The Last of Us certainly falls into this category.

I don't think it's because I particularly love the game, at least the way I love, say EarthBound or Okami. I think it's multifacted as to why TLoU has captivated me. For one, it has done what no movie, TV show, novel or other game in my memory has done - make me want to play it while simultaneously making me hesitate to do so. It's because I get truly, physically tense playing it. Not because I'm trying to do something hard, but because it is truly frightening and conveys incredible intensity with each encounter (and consequences of failure are severe and brutal). And I feel it - I was playing Saturday night, and as soon as I booted my save I had to get around four instant-kill enemies (clickers). I successfully stealthed past them, and had little time to relax before having to confront a group of six pack enemies (runners)...and then had to navigate through a building with mixed groups, taking several tries. That ended in meeting a new enemy type (the bloater) that raised the stakes on the Cordyceps disease and brought closure to a bit of foreshadowing. By the time I finished playing, I was shaking from tension as badly as I do after an intense workout.

The second reason is the Cordyceps itself. Naughty Dog took incredible care to make this seem like a real disease. It isn't just THERE...they gave it a history, a source, pathophysiology, a life cycle, everything to make it seem real. It has a story as well. Of course, eventually, reality gives way to the science fiction, but the fact remains that Cordyceps is a real thing in the world, and the creative director got the game idea from the BBC's Planet Earth and learning about this real mind bending fungus. Because Naughty Dog successfully and artfully bridged reality and science fiction, I sometimes wonder...

Could it happen?

Usually I'll play something, and once I beat it (or all games if it's a series), I will totally immerse myself in the universe - read every article I can get my hands on, browse fanart, write fanfic, etc. Obviously the honeymoon period doesn't last forever, though!

Some games clearly have more staying power with me than others, as evidenced by my participation on this site. Back in the day, I was highly obsessed with the Myst series, but then real life got in the way. I haven't even played the last two games yet. (However, I can still tell you miniscule details from the accompanying novels since middle school-me read those over and over and over and over again!)

I keep up with the Sonic franchise fairly consistently but I don't think I'd say I obsess over it. I like the games and all, but if the next game ends up being fairly mediocre I don't make too much of a fuss over it like 98% of the fanbase likes to do.

I'm pretty obsessive when it comes to Castlevania though. I freaking love that franchise (Both Classic and Metroidvania are perfectly fine by me) and have the timeline memorized (Even if the timeline is a bit useless now).

I used to be obsessive over Zelda. I've let it go a lot in the past few years - to the point that I really don't care about the newest games to be released or planned. I guess it just grew to a point where I knew I could never cover all of it, so my interest waned. Which is not to say I wouldn't play a new game if it were put in front of me, but I no longer seek it out like I once did.

Maybe this is an odd definition for the term 'obsess' but in this case it's a game that, after playing it, creeps back into your consciousness and you get the itch to play it. And I guess I do obsess over The Last of Us by this definition...and in general on some level at this point. It may be prompted by the promotion for the remastered version due out soon, but we probably won't get that until it drops in price anyway. I never did play the Left Behind DLC or grounded mode (super aggressive AI) but it's like an earworm right now.

Or earfungus, more appropriately, har har.

If I ever get a system that can play it I'm gonna have to play The Last of Us. Right now I'm obsessing over Super Street Fighter II Turbo. I still think it's the best fighting game ever.