# Does anyone really replay games? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [October 13, 2008, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770 "2008-10-13T20:15:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![in\_hiding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c5a1d2/32.png) [@in\_hiding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/in_hiding)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/41 "2008-10-14T15:11:40Z")
I replay good games - I finished Deus Ex about six times now, I think. Once without killing anybody, once as fast as possible, and so on. Some other games, like System Shock, XCom, old Lucas Arts Adventures, etc. will be replayed from time to time. I think part of it is about nostalgia - most games I replayed really often are games I played as a kid/teenager. It was easier to impress me at that time, I guess. Besides that, I think game designers at that time relied more on gameplay that on 3D graphics, like they do now. Games like Civi-/Colonization are different, because no two games are really the same. You can use different strategies, there are different Continents, etc., so I would not count that as a replay. After all, nobody will say he replayed chess after he beat it. šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/42 "2008-10-14T15:16:16Z")
I rarely buy new games, so I end up replaying the games I have over and over. Play one for a few months, get sick of it, start replaying a ā€œnewā€ one, repeat. Iā€™m replaying ā€œThe Warriorsā€ right now to get psyched up for a trip to New York City in a couple of months. ---
**Author:** ![Interconnected\_Series\_of\_Tubes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/13edae/32.png) [@Interconnected\_Series\_of\_Tubes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interconnected_Series_of_Tubes)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/43 "2008-10-14T16:31:15Z")
Oh, my friends. šŸ™‚ Thatā€™s what multiplayer is for. ---
**Author:** ![HookerChemical](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@HookerChemical](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HookerChemical)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/44 "2008-10-14T16:37:08Z")
Iā€™ve played System Shock 2 at least 4 times, probably 5 or 6. I played using each path (Marine, Navy, Psi), once with a buddy, and probably once or twice more. I played at least halfway when I got the new skins for the enemies. The most fun was with my buddy. I spend the first half of the game hiding behind his marine, then the second half showing him how awesome a high level psionic was. ---
**Author:** ![in\_hiding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c5a1d2/32.png) [@in\_hiding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/in_hiding)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/45 "2008-10-14T17:31:17Z")
> [@HookerChemical](#): > > The most fun was with my buddy. I wish there were more coop-multiplayer games. Shock II Multiplay is really good, and its just too funny stuffing useless junk in your partners Inventory. Maybe Left 4 Dead will be good, but it looks too arcade for me. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/46 "2008-10-14T18:00:13Z")
Iā€™m currently replaying Splinter Cell Chaos Theory. Iā€™ve replayed ā€˜Flashbackā€™ many times. Iā€™ve replayed Half Life 2 and its episodes. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/47 "2008-10-14T18:43:38Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > Bingo. Once Iā€™ve beaten it, the question becomes "Can I beat it using only archers? Can I beat it mining no gold? Can I beat it using priests? Can I beat it without sniping? Can I beat it with nothing but my pistol? There was a guy a few years ago who decided to go with the premise that, in Diablo II, all the monsters in the game other than the area & level bosses (the ones you _had_ to kill in order to progress through the game) were simply the innocent thralls of the Prime Evils, and therefore did not deserve to die. So, having completed Normal and Nightmare difficulty in the regular manner, using a Necromancer, he proceeded to beat Hell difficulty without killing anything except the essential bosses. It involved a lot of using summons, curses, and bone walls to lure and then trap minor monsters in out-of-the-way places to clear a path to the big bosses. He documented the entire process, with screenshots and text descriptions, as he went about his quest, and he actually succeeded. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/48 "2008-10-14T18:55:23Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > There was a guy a few years ago who decided to go with the premise that, in Diablo II, all the monsters in the game other than the area & level bosses (the ones you _had_ to kill in order to progress through the game) were simply the innocent thralls of the Prime Evils, and therefore did not deserve to die. So, having completed Normal and Nightmare difficulty in the regular manner, using a Necromancer, he proceeded to beat Hell difficulty without killing anything except the essential bosses. > > It involved a lot of using summons, curses, and bone walls to lure and then trap minor monsters in out-of-the-way places to clear a path to the big bosses. He documented the entire process, with screenshots and text descriptions, as he went about his quest, and he actually succeeded. Thatā€™s hysterical. This is exactly the kind of numbskull limitation Iā€™d enjoy, only I donā€™t think Iā€™m badass enough (or have enough patience) to do that kind of a limitation. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/49 "2008-10-14T18:58:47Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > It involved a lot of using summons, curses, and bone walls to lure and then trap minor monsters in out-of-the-way places to clear a path to the big bosses. He documented the entire process, with screenshots and text descriptions, as he went about his quest, and he actually succeeded. Do you have a link to this? Iā€™d love to read it. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/50 "2008-10-14T19:02:48Z")
I have replayed all the PC Medal of Honor and Call of Duty games multiple times. Especially MOH. I love the graphics and the music. ---
**Author:** ![Lobsang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobsang/32/4067_2.png) [@Lobsang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobsang)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/51 "2008-10-14T19:13:38Z")
**spooje** just reminded me. Iā€™m in the middle of replaying all the MOH games I own. Not the newest one though. Apparently itā€™s pants. ---
**Author:** ![Merhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Merhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merhouse)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/52 "2008-10-14T19:38:57Z")
Most of the games I play are Simulation or Strategy games, so they really are pretty open-ended and never really finish. Iā€™ve actually played Capitalism II on 3 different computers, and I still havenā€™t finished all the scenarios. One of the problems with it is that to play the game scenarios (there are also customizable games where you make your own win conditions for ultimate replayability), you have to start at the beginning, so Iā€™ve had to play some of them 3 times now, and well, there are a couple of scenarios I used to be able to complete, and now canā€™t, so Iā€™ve put it away for a while now. Others I play are Sim City 4 and The Sims 2, and those games in effect are SO open ended they really never end. Also Airport Tycoon, Restaurant Empire, Train Sims, etc. etc. I donā€™t play anything all the time now, but those are the things Iā€™ll sit down with for maybe a month or 3 at a time. I spend most of my time reading The Dope, composing messages, and then deleting them. That takes me a LOT of time šŸ™‚ ---
**Author:** ![Claptree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@Claptree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claptree)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/53 "2008-10-14T20:53:08Z")
As someone said upthread, if I like the story or the experience, I will replay the game / re-read the book / re-watch the movie. Iā€™m currently playing through Fallout Tactics again, and Iā€™m in the middle of both Morrowind and Oblivion. ---
**Author:** ![Pithy\_Moniker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8dc957/32.png) [@Pithy\_Moniker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pithy_Moniker)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/54 "2008-10-14T21:38:31Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > [smartass]You finished FFXI? Thatā€™s pretty hardcore! :p[/smartass] Haha! Yeah, thatā€™s how I roll! But seriously, it was a toss up for what to stick in XIā€™s spot between X2 and Mystic Quest. X2 won out. [QUOTE=Anaamika] Oh, wow. Iā€™m doing that now. I only just started though. I finished FF I in 13:31, and am now working on FF 2. [/QUOTE] It gave me quite a different look on the evolution of the series. FF2 will make you curse Square though. Lest I forget, I recently replayed Oblivion because of one of **Anaamikaā€™s** posts. That game always has something new to show me. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/55 "2008-10-14T21:52:56Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > Do you have a link to this? Iā€™d love to read it. Sadly, this was 4+ years ago, and Iā€™ve no idea if the ā€œstoryā€ is still up on the Web. It was originally posted on [www.diabloii.net](http://www.diabloii.net), but that site has since been converted to a Wiki format and I wouldnā€™t know where to start looking for it. I may contact the webmaster and ask if itā€™s still up somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/56 "2008-10-14T22:00:58Z")
Oh, and games Iā€™ve replayed a lot: Diablo II, of course Warcraft II & III [Escape Velocity](http://www.ambrosiasw.com/games/evn/) in its various incarnations. Itā€™s an open-ended space trading game where you can pretty much do whatever you want - be a peaceful trader, become a space pirate, align yourself with one of the many factions/governments and perform missions for them ā€¦ Duke Nukem 3D - Once Iā€™d beat it, it was fun to pull out once in a while, punch in the code for ā€œGod Modeā€, and just run around blowing shit up šŸ˜‰ ---
**Author:** ![Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f08c70/32.png) [@Crowbar\_of\_Irony\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crowbar_of_Irony_3)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/57 "2008-10-15T04:25:07Z")
> [@Autolycus](#): > > Do you have a link to this? Iā€™d love to read it. Those are usually know as variants. Here is a [list of variants](http://realmsbeyond.net/diablo/variantsmasterd2.html) which you may enjoy. Itā€™s very likely the one being described is known as the Priest; though I cannot find any link on it now. (Hereā€™s [a short mention too](http://animeboards.com/showthread.php?t=24323) -[the Lurker Lounge](http://www.lurkerlounge.com/) used to have the details, but now they are not purely D2-centric anymore) I played a singing barbarian and a mageazon before too. It was fun! ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/58 "2008-10-15T14:09:15Z")
Wow. I guess I just never realized the practice was so widespread. I could see replaying games that have plot forks that go to different endings or, like I said earlier, different races to play through with. But either of those effectively make for different games based around a common theme. > [@Claptree](#): > > As someone said upthread, if I like the story or the experience, I will replay the game / re-read the book / re-watch the movie. Iā€™ll rewatch movies from time to time, but there are just too many unread books and unplayed games. I have to explore whatā€™s over the next mountain rather than seeing what I can do to make the mountains Iā€™ve already completed more challenging. Nothing wrong with that. Just not the way I roll. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/59 "2008-10-15T17:47:54Z")
Definitely. Iā€™ve been replaying GTA IV and Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. ---
**Author:** ![Fuji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a9a28c/32.png) [@Fuji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuji)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770/60 "2008-10-15T18:06:40Z")
> [@control-z](#): > > Definitely. Iā€™ve been replaying GTA IV and Dark Messiah of Might and Magic. Keeping the GTA theme going, Iā€™m about to finish San Andreas for the first time (only one main story mission left), and Iā€™m _already_ looking forward to playing it again. I should be picking up GTA IV (and an Xbox 360 to play it on) tomorrow, but Carl Johnson has buried himself deep within my gaming soul and is taking up, I believe, permanent residence. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-anyone-really-replay-games/467770.md?page=4)