Pile Of Shame - Video Game Edition

I became aware of the term 'Pile of Shame' through the excellent Gamers With Jobs podcast/website/forums. I do believe the term originated elsewhere, perhaps over at 1up as some have suggested. In my definition, the pile of shame refers to the stack of media I have spent money on, but haven't consumed yet. In these tough economic times, I am going to endeavor to shrink my piles of shame. It makes sense to go back and play games I have already spent money on before spending money on new games. This is partly motivated by a lack of games coming out that really interest me. The only game scheduled for this year that I am dying to play is Dragon Age Origins. My plan is to make that my only video game purchase for myself for the rest of the year. At the same time, I am going to attempt to keep playing the games I already own. So, let's take a look at what games I own, haven't finished, and might possibly play. If you see one of your favorites here, be sure to mention it and I will maybe move it to the top of the stack.

Xbox 360

Fallout 3 Downloadable Content (I have played about 100 hours of Fallout 3, but haven't touched any of the FOUR expansions.)

Fable II (I played quite a bit, but I was mildly disappointed in the game. I need to play it some more.)

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (i have put tons of hours in, but still haven't finished the expansion)

Overlord (half finished)

Banjo Kazooie: Nuts And Bolts (10% finished)

Enchanted Arms (never played)

Just Cause (60% finished)

The Orange Box: Portal (never played)

The Orange Box: Half Life (barely started)

Viva Pinata (not played nearly enough)

Xbox Live Arcade

Peggle

Magic The Gathering

Xbox

Armed and Dangerous

Beyond Good and Evil

Buffy The Vampire Slayer

Grand Theft Auto San Andreas (60% finished)

Oddworld Munch's Oddysee

Oddworld Strangers Wrath

Panzer Dragoon Orta

Shenmue II

XIII (50% finished)

Playstation 2

The Bard's Tale (10% finished)

Bully (50% finshed)

Final Fantasy X

The Getaway

God Of War

Ico

Jak II

Jak 3

Katamari Damacy

Kingdom Hearts II

Klonoa 2: Lunatea's Veil

Shadow Of The Colossus

Sly 2: Band of Thieves

Sly 3: Honor Among Thieves

Suikoden IV

Viewtiful Joe 2

Playstation

Final Fantasy I

Final Fantasy II

Final Fantasy IX

The Legend of Dragoon

Oddworld Abe's Exoddus

Oddworld Abe's Oddysee

The X-Files

Gamecube

iNinja

The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (50% finished)

Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

Tales Of Symphonia (60% finished)

Viewtiful Joe

Gameboy

Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney

Metal Gear Solid

PC

Mount & Blade

King's Bounty: The Legend

Far Cry

World Of Goo

Dark Messiah Might & Magic

Tomb Raider: Anniversary

Mark's Box - August 2009

Has it really been a month since I have posted anything? I have had lots of posts in mind, but I've been too lazy to sit and post them. Or perhaps I was too engrossed in other things...

An update on last month's box: Ythaq was pretty interesting. The story took a bit of time to hook me, but I was drawn into it by the end. The art is quite wonderful. I look forward to more. Low Moon by Jason was quite excellent too. Jason ended up winning another Eisner this year and Low Moon will probably be nominated next year. He really is one of the best in the business right now. I haven't gotten around to Sleeper yet.

This month's box may be one of the best boxes I have ever gotten. There is so much good stuff in it, I really don't know where to start. I don't feature items on here that I have listed in the past, but I will list the stuff I got this week that I can't wait to read. Mouse Guard: Winter 1152, Northlanders Vol 2, Pluto Vol 4, and Red Sonja Vol 6. I really should start reading them all right now. Aside from all that awesomeness there are some new books that look quite cool. Here is the top three:

Echo by Terry Moore - I have no idea what this book is about. Terry Moore wrote Strangers In Paradise for years and I have loved the first few books of that series. He has also done some writing for Marvel that I will be picking up soon. I had a brief chat with him at Comic-Con and he was very nice considering the stuff I was babbling wasn't making much sense. Check this book out on Amazon here.

The Nobody by Jeff Lemire - Jeff Lemire is one of the most celebrated indie comic creators of the last few years. His Essex County trilogy has won tons of awards. I haven't read it, but it should be showing up in a box sometime soon. This story takes the classic character the Invisible Man and drops him into a modern town. Sounds quite cool. Check it out on Amazon here.

Prince Valiant, Vol. 1: 1937-1938 by Hal Foster - Super old school comic strips from the newspapers. This book is huge. I don't think it will fit on my shelves. I love reading comics from way back when and this one looks awesome. The strip lasted for something like 35 years. I am looking forward to an epic tale. Check out a cool review of it here. And it is on Amazon here.