What games have you anticipated, bought, but never played again?

I’m not sure what game I’ll get around to buying next. I jumped in on Diablo 4, intoxicated by the contact buzz of the shared excitement of my Blizzard Watch coworkers. But after watching excitedly as Baldur’s Gate 3 finally dropped like a (miniature) giant space hamster onto the gaming community after years of anticipation, I’ve still not joined in on the fun yet — even though nostalgia alone certainly places it high on my want list.

There have been games that I’d seemingly waited forever for that more than fulfilled my expectations, like Nidhogg, or left me somewhat dissatisfied like Act 5 of Kentucky Route Zero. But, there are also games I’ve still not played through after finally purchasing them. Hundred Days, for example. It’s a wine-making simulator that I’d been intrigued with after reading articles about how the developer’s life experiences informed the game, but that never translated into actually playing it after a cursory effort. The same went for Arcade Paradise, which didn’t quite engage me like the game I’d envisioned when reading reviews. I feel guilty about letting them gather dust, but my queue of unplayed games keeps getting longer as time passes.

Sometimes, though, it’s just a matter of finding the right time to try out a game again. Final Fantasy VII Remake languished on the shelf for 16 months after the gameplay proved too chaotic for my initial attention span. But, ultimately, I really enjoyed it after trying again and finally getting into the groove. So, maybe, I’ll go ahead and queue up Hundred Days again and see if playing it catches fire this time around. It’s possible I’d just been in a bad mood when trying it out. In any case, I’ve been waiting wistfully for UFO 50 to launch for several years and will certainly and definitely play the heck out of it upon launch. Well, I’ll probably play the heck out of it. Maybe. I guess we’ll see.

So, what about you? Are there any games you own that you’d been anticipating but have never touched after buying them? Let us know in the comments!