It’s probably a good thing I lost my voice and couldn’t be on episode 35 of the podcast. I’ve been playing so many damn games lately that It would’ve been another half hour long. The title pretty much sums up what my gaming life has been recently. I’ve never before in my life had so many delicious looking titles in my possession that I wanted to play at the same time. I’m usually the type of gamer that can really only keep my sights on one game. When a new title comes out, I dump whatever I was playing and go nuts for a few weeks. Unless there is a great multiplayer element to the game, I’ll usually abandon it and go back to whatever I was hooked to before, or an MMO. But this year has been an interesting one. There are so many great games in constant battle for my attention that every night I wind up playing something different. But just like an all you can eat buffet, if you keep going back for the same thing, you may get sick of it. Here’s what is on my plate right now:

Blur – Still cannot get over this game. There’s not been anything about it that has made me say, “Oh, that’s pretty janky.” Even the races where it feels like you’ve got a target painted on your trunk, it’s still fun. It has more intense finishes per capita than any other racing game I’ve played. The only worry I have as I am now level 22, is that once I hit the last level I will start to lose interest in it. But that’s a ton of hours of gameplay to be had before I reach that goal, so money well spent in my opinion.

Team Fortress 2 – I played for about an hour or so this weekend and then took part of our Monday night extravaganza. I’ve nearly broke 90 hours on my Demoman, which is probably pretty light in comparison to some. The single thing that amazes me about TF2 is how well it stands up to time. While I wouldn’t want every game on the market to use a stylized look, it really shows you how much of an impact well done art direction and implementation can have.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 – The initial “wow” effect may have worn away a bit, but BFBC2 still continues to amaze me with how immersive it is. It’s polar opposite of TF2 in terms of look and mood but they both offer the same level of player skill based multiplayer experience that I crave.

Lord of the Rings Online – Probably due to all the F2P talk, I actually logged on the other night for about an hour. Just like any other time I jump into that game I get the same mix of emotions. I love the world, I love my Warden’s mechanics, I love that when I log in I get greeted warmly by a guild that only sees me about once a month. It still makes me sleepy though.

Red Dead Redemption – If I had to pick one, I’d say this has been my main squeeze or the Prime Rib on the line of food if we were to stick with the buffet theme. I think I’m close to wrapping up Act 2 and while there are some things in the game that make me shake my head and say, “silly Rockstar,” overall the game is gold. I really want to share some of the oddities I’ve come across, but I think I’ll just save them for when I’m all done with the game so I can write up a review.

Star Trek Online – Not playing as much, but mainly due to the other games on this list. I don’t feel like I’ve lost interest in the game though. I really want to get some experience on my would-be captain, and there’s still a ton about the game I haven’t wrapped my head around yet. I think that once my 10 hour workdays stop, I’ll be able to devote some more time to STO. I just hope that they stop before my 60 day time card I just applied runs out.

Super Street Fighter IV – I hadn’t played this much in the past couple weeks. What prompted me to bust it out was, honestly, my daughter. I had intended to play some Blur while her brother was still napping this weekend, and as I went into the cabinet, she pointed at the fight stick and said, “Daddy, I want you to play this game, with the girl.” She loves to pick out which fighter I should use, but then I end up breaking her heart when I get an online challenger and I have to use Abel. I ended up going 3 for 6 btw. I fought one guy twice in a row who used M. Bison and was ridiculous.

In the kitchen: Magic: The Gathering – Duel of the Planeswalkers for PC – I have this preordered on Steam. I used to play Magic some years back and while I didn’t have a monster collection of cards, I had enough to get by and have fun. I know Duel of the Planeswalkers is supposed to be a stripped down version of the game and sure, I’m a bit sad that I can’t make my own decks from scratch, but I always sucked at that anyways. Plus, by giving everyone a more even playing ground, it may make the multiplayer more fun. We’ll see. All I know is; I’m so damn pumped to be able to play again.