I just can't seem to find a good game nowadays. Maybe it's that I'm getting older and I just don't enjoy things to the blind degree of ecstasy that I used to when I was a child.

The last time I really sat down and LOVED a (new) game...well, it was probably Disgaea, Ace Combat 5, or Gears of War.

I miss the hours spent playing Diablo II, Baldur's Gate, and Champions of Norrath with my best friends...but it seems that ye' olde Dungeon Crawlers are dying off, slowly but surely...and even further so - the single-console Co-Op multiplayer...everything's on the internet now.

Basically, I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions for just an EPIC game that you couldn't put down the controller until you passed out, or beat it.

For some reference; I have an Xbox 360, and a PC
-I love Dungeon Crawlers, and STILL play Diablo II
-RTS are fun, as long as it's an inventive campaign, and I don't have to play online. (Starcraft, Warcraft, and the Civ series bore me)
-FPS are ok...sometimes...I play CoD4 (PC only) right now only because I enjoy the company of my clanmates, and because I don't have any other games that I enjoy.
-RPGs can be fun, But not the j-rpgs with big hair and angst in more places than a large gathering of teenage girls and emos
-MMOs are also fun, but I've played most of them. Sold all of my WoW accounts, my FFXI accounts, and let my LoTRO account expire. AoC was decent for the free month I had, but I maxed out one character and nearly maxed another. I'm going to be giving WAR a try when it lands, but not sure how that will blow over.

Get your ass to the following:

Dawn of War

Morrowind, Oblivion and the other elder scrolls

And for an injection of awesome, grab a copy of resistance: fall of man... you may feel a bit ostracized from the 'awesome' i speak of at first, but give it time to grow on you.

Ultrajoe:
Get your ass to the following:

Dawn of War

Morrowind, Oblivion and the other elder scrolls

And for an injection of awesome, grab a copy of resistance: fall of man... you may feel a bit ostracized from the 'awesome' i speak of at first, but give it time to grow on you.

I completely forgot about the Elder Scrolls Games...I've played them all to dust.

I also played resistance, tried it several times for about a month, but found myself putting the controller down in favor of Television, and I don't really ever watch television.

Dawn of War I have not played, and will look into.

EDIT: I also Play D&D(4E now), and the Warhammer tabletop.

You should check out Bioshock and Mass Effect.

Dawn of War, but skip to Dark Crusade. And JUST Dark Crusade. Stand alone Xpac and if you dont plan on playing online, then the first 2 parts are skippable in terms of single player and the last one really doesn't add that much in terms of races/abilities.

Dark Crusade = AMAZING. Risk + Warhammer 40K RTS = Epic Win. Add in RPG-like Heroes and ... yah, stupid awesome Epic Win :D

Fantasy or 40k? Ahhh, doesn't matter. Dawn of War will rock you regardless. Make sure you get Winter Assault as well. Dark Crusade is ok if you houserule out the 'crons and the general consensus is that Soulstorm is best avoided.

You are aware of the awesomeness that is the Orange Box, yes?

ThaBenMan:
You should check out Bioshock and Mass Effect.

Played. They were "meh" games to me. =/

But maybe because Mass Effect falls in line with MGS4, in that There was more chit chat than action. And the action felt a little drab and mundane.

Also, I made the mistake of playing Bioshock on a console, and not a PC.

Well of the criteria you listed the 2 that come to mind for me are,
Stalker: Shadows of Chernobyl (FPS/ RPG)
& Sins of a Solar Empire (Space RTS) There isn't an actual campaign but single games can take dozens of hours to resolve; and at the same time you can also choose smaller conflicts to take part in as well. Couple that with beautiful graphics, excellent interface, and deep customization options and you end up with a game that can take up all your free time if you let it.

ReepNeep:
Fantasy or 40k? Ahhh, doesn't matter. Dawn of War will rock you regardless. Make sure you get Winter Assault as well. Dark Crusade is ok if you houserule out the 'crons and the general consensus is that Soulstorm is best avoided.

You are aware of the awesomeness that is the Orange Box, yes?

That's another one that slipped my mind. I had a blast with Portal. HL was about what I expected. TF was pretty good...but I quickly lost interest after my friends stopped playing it.

odisious15:
Well of the criteria you listed the 2 that come to mind for me are,
Stalker: Shadows of Chernobyl (FPS/ RPG)
& Sins of a Solar Empire (Space RTS) There isn't an actual campaign but single games can take dozens of hours to resolve; and at the same time you can also choose smaller conflicts to take part in as well. Couple that with beautiful graphics, excellent interface, and deep customization options and you end up with a game that can take up all your free time if you let it.

I had Sins..and to be honest, I absolutely hated it because - If you built up an overwhelming army and attacked your enemy, they would just run and run and run until you were finally able to corner them into a friendly system and crush them. Such a large scale was a good idea; in theory. But in action it just dragged the whole thing out.

EDIT: I will Be picking up Dawn of War tomorrow, good suggestion there. I'll look into Stalker.

Indeed, get your hands on half life and the must play that is portal

And if i may suggest...

Get SSBB and play with friends, remember why you loved games to start with... because you were in a better world when playing them. friends always make the world better.

Ultrajoe:

And if i may suggest...

Get SSBB and play with friends, remember why you loved games to start with... because you were in a better world when playing them. friends always make the world better.

Yeah, that's something I've been considering. But I don't really want to drop the bill on a Wii at the moment...tempting though it may be.

There are a ton of games coming out that I want to play...but as for things that are already out, that's where the problem seems to lie.

ReepNeep:
Fantasy or 40k? Ahhh, doesn't matter. Dawn of War will rock you regardless. Make sure you get Winter Assault as well. Dark Crusade is ok if you houserule out the 'crons and the general consensus is that Soulstorm is best avoided.

You are aware of the awesomeness that is the Orange Box, yes?

... But, But... I love the Necrons :D I played them so much I forgot how to play any other race, in fact... Wait, that's sad.

:(

Also, I thought I'd mention I play both Fantasy and 40k

My best of both are my Dwarven and Tau armies.

I have the exact same problem, I just can't seem to get excited about games anymore. I used to be able to sit down and play a game through in a weekend, now I am still running through metroid slowly but surely (5 months after i started...) Games these days lose all the intrigue they used to, possibly because I am old and crotchety now as well, but I still like to blame everyone else but me.

TheKbob:

ReepNeep:
Fantasy or 40k? Ahhh, doesn't matter. Dawn of War will rock you regardless. Make sure you get Winter Assault as well. Dark Crusade is ok if you houserule out the 'crons and the general consensus is that Soulstorm is best avoided.

You are aware of the awesomeness that is the Orange Box, yes?

... But, But... I love the Necrons :D I played them so much I forgot how to play any other race, in fact... Wait, that's sad.

:(

The Necrons make me wonder if playtested the game at all. I could rant about how broken they are, but let me just say they are known as the ultimate noob race online for a very good reason. They stand head and shoulders above the other eight races in power.

Stalker is a very good choice if you enjoy a slower pace and atmosphere in you fps. It was my favorite game to come out of last year, but I hesitate to recommend it because it is definetly not for everyone. Just know that with all the patches its quite stable now, which was by far the biggest strike against it at launch.

Which factions are playable in Dawn of War?

T.H.O.R:
Which factions are playable in Dawn of War?

All except the Nid's....

*Cries in betrayed agony*

WHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!! RELIC, WHHHHHHYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

i have been loyal to the hive mind for years... and still i cry to command the swarm in digital form... but alas... i cannot....

Im sorry THOR but i think its that time.

we're goign to have to put you down

*kidding*

the best thing for a burn out or gamres block it to not play for a while. Go down to the local bar, pub or what ever you have nearest you. Enjoy life outside games for awhile. ride a bike in the park, then go to a coffe shop and spend a few hours people watchign and reading, then find some thign else to do.

the best thign for when yoru stuck is to do soem thing else. Hell I start bakign when Im stuck one some thing, it lets me work my ahnds and get good food.

Lazzi:
Im sorry THOR but i think its that time.

we're goign to have to put you down

*kidding*

the best thing for a burn out or gamres block it to not play for a while. Go down to the local bar, pub or what ever you have nearest you. Enjoy life outside games for awhile. ride a bike in the park, then go to a coffe shop and spend a few hours people watchign and reading, then find some thign else to do.

the best thign for when yoru stuck is to do soem thing else. Hell I start bakign when Im stuck one some thing, it lets me work my ahnds and get good food.

Heh, yeah..I usually take breaks. I'm actually on a 3 month (and counting) break right now. I regularly play sports (As I've said in other posts) every thursday I DM a 4e D&D campaign (with my wife and two closest friends) and I spend a night or so in the Bar every week or two. I just want a game that blows me away like when I was still in school, with the mentality of "DEAR GOD LET THE BELL RING SO I CAN GO HOME AND PLAY _____"

Ultrajoe:

T.H.O.R:
Which factions are playable in Dawn of War?

All except the Nid's....

LIES! I just checked on the interwebnets...and it claims that my beloved Tau are also not playable.

*whimper*

Edit I just found out that they're added in the Dark Crusade Expansion. Forgive me Ultrajoe. :D

I have the same issue.I thought it came with age, but I think it's really just lack of game deversity.Also, I used to get excited over hearing about a new game coming out.I would have to wait a few months from when the game was declared.Then I got it,and destroyed it over the course of a few days.Now MGS4 is out, and I'm not even interested in it.After waiting through endless articles and screenshots from 2005 onward, the game has lost all mystery, no sense of adventure left after everyones gone on about it.
When the PS2 came out, I waited a year for the price drop to get it, and I was content on just getting all the PS1 games that went to pricedrop. So when I bought the newer system, it all ready had a deversity of games. I was content. Now with the PS3, I have to wait forever to play the games I want,(Fallout 3, FF13, etc.) Granted there are a few FPS's and a few racing games that I like, but I want a game that's going to give me 40+ hours of exploration and storyline. There's Elder Scrolls 4, but I've allready beat it into the dirt.
The problem I run into is that a lot of games for this system are over in a few hours.As in 5-15 hours.
Oddly, I seem to find myself scanning the PS2 games at a game shop befor I even look at the PS3 title's. Knowing in advance that there's probably nothing worth looking at.
So now I've been picking through old fav's like Dragon Quest 8 and Front Mission games just to pass the time.
I can't get into the Guitar Hero hype, but I will play some of Harmonix's old music games like Frequency. As well as Ejay:Clubworld, not really a game as much as it's a music mixer of different styles like Dub,Ambience,Trance,Drum&bass,etc.
Hopefully, my rant will be obsolete when Fallout comes and I can play it until FF13.

At least they're promising over 100 hours of gameplay with Fallout 3.

GTA IV had lots of content, but it was as drab, and repetitive as the missionary position.

Yeah played GTA4 till I lost interest.Kill these guys, steal their truck, get call to take cousin to pool hall,take free time to launch car over river, leave and kill some cops and steal car, girlfriend calls and I have to go take her to dinner, repeat until insane. Or bored. Initially, I wasn't even going to buy it, but my girlfriend got it because she's never played one befor. We both lost interest after a few days. I bought her KingdomHearts 2, and now she's lost to the world.

Ultrajoe:

T.H.O.R:
Which factions are playable in Dawn of War?

All except the Nid's....

*Cries in betrayed agony*

WHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!! RELIC, WHHHHHHYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

i have been loyal to the hive mind for years... and still i cry to command the swarm in digital form... but alas... i cannot....

There's always the tyranid mod which was fan developed... the Game Manager feature is handy for allowing you to swap back and forth between mods with ease.

If you install Dos-Box, you could probably play Dungeon Keeper. (Dungeon Keeper 2 is less fun, but I think it works on XP). It's fun!

Xhumed:

Ultrajoe:

T.H.O.R:
Which factions are playable in Dawn of War?

All except the Nid's....

*Cries in betrayed agony*

WHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!! RELIC, WHHHHHHYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

i have been loyal to the hive mind for years... and still i cry to command the swarm in digital form... but alas... i cannot....

There's always the tyranid mod which was fan developed... the Game Manager feature is handy for allowing you to swap back and forth between mods with ease.

The hive mind denounces your Mod, If they can make Zerg, then why cant they let me stomp some fucking broadsides flat with a Relic-made carnifex?

WHY?!

Ultrajoe:

Xhumed:

Ultrajoe:

T.H.O.R:
Which factions are playable in Dawn of War?

All except the Nid's....

*Cries in betrayed agony*

WHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!! RELIC, WHHHHHHYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

i have been loyal to the hive mind for years... and still i cry to command the swarm in digital form... but alas... i cannot....

There's always the tyranid mod which was fan developed... the Game Manager feature is handy for allowing you to swap back and forth between mods with ease.

The hive mind denounces your Mod, If they can make Zerg, then why cant they let me stomp some fucking broadsides flat with a Relic-made carnifex?

WHY?!

I have a horrible feeling the term "Termagant Rush" may become a familiar one...
Joking aside, the mod is pretty good quality. Not being a player of 'Nids, the exclusion never bothered me much, im sure they have a good reason for it... maybe... Perhaps they might do what they did with the Necrons- suprise baddies in one game, playable the next. So far DoW II has 3 super-confirmed races (SM, Orks, Eldar), some of the others are a given (Chaos)... probably Impy Goo will be included- it'd be annoying if they go the same route as the first DoW, and require expansions for all the races we now have. Personally, i like Dark Eldar, but then again I like Hellraiser.

If if your gunna try Dawn of War, grab Company of Heroes also.

Xhumed:

Ultrajoe:

Xhumed:

Ultrajoe:

T.H.O.R:
Which factions are playable in Dawn of War?

All except the Nid's....

*Cries in betrayed agony*

WHHHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!! RELIC, WHHHHHHYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!

i have been loyal to the hive mind for years... and still i cry to command the swarm in digital form... but alas... i cannot....

There's always the tyranid mod which was fan developed... the Game Manager feature is handy for allowing you to swap back and forth between mods with ease.

The hive mind denounces your Mod, If they can make Zerg, then why cant they let me stomp some fucking broadsides flat with a Relic-made carnifex?

WHY?!

I have a horrible feeling the term "Termagant Rush" may become a familiar one...
Joking aside, the mod is pretty good quality. Not being a player of 'Nids, the exclusion never bothered me much, im sure they have a good reason for it... maybe... Perhaps they might do what they did with the Necrons- suprise baddies in one game, playable the next. So far DoW II has 3 super-confirmed races (SM, Orks, Eldar), some of the others are a given (Chaos)... probably Impy Goo will be included- it'd be annoying if they go the same route as the first DoW, and require expansions for all the races we now have. Personally, i like Dark Eldar, but then again I like Hellraiser.

in the trailer, the Space marine ad the Eldar speak thusly:

"This planet will be ours"
"No... its... Theirs..." *dies*
Screen pans upwards...

to what seems to be an interstellar cloud or... locust swarm... hanging above the planet, reaching out in whispy tendrils that engulf the planet... so immense you cannot see it moving at all, just hanging in the sky like some foreboding mural.

Ohhh yeah baby, come to pappa.

Sounds like you need something... different. Something crazy. A game where sanity cannot penetrate even the surface of the virtual world it creates.

Katamari Damacy recently got a 360 title, you tried that? Or Ace Combat 6.

If you can get a PS2 easily, you could be able to pick up a second-hand copy of God Hand, it's hard but addictive.

I am curious how you played Ace Combat 5 without a working PS2, though.

Other than that, I got nothing.

L4Y Duke:
Sounds like you need something... different. Something crazy. A game where sanity cannot penetrate even the surface of the virtual world it creates.

Katamari Damacy recently got a 360 title, you tried that? Or Ace Combat 6.

If you can get a PS2 easily, you could be able to pick up a second-hand copy of God Hand, it's hard but addictive.

I am curious how you played Ace Combat 5 without a working PS2, though.

Other than that, I got nothing.

Ages ago I had one. But right now I run on a PS2 emulator... *gasp!*...I've played AC6, it was pretty good. For some unexplainable reason I loathe Katamari Damacy. God hand WAS a lot of fun, now that you mention it.

I think L4Y Duke has a point, just go all out and try some new genres, maybe some short fun games that would be over in a couple of evenings, portal maybe, hell even dare to try some web/flash games, might rejuvenate your love of gaming some.

Peggle IS fun! Its got many flaws, but its fun, and that's what games are about , right?

A lot of people here may disagree with me but I think that the Nintendo DS is a very good little handheld. you're gonna find a lot of cool little titles to keep you fairly entertained.