While writing yesterday’s ER on the elegance with which Mass Effect 2 interweaves its central and supporting stories, I fell back into thinking about the different ways we choose to play games, particularly RPG’s. This subject takes on additional weight as a writer because so often we’re working under time constraints to have a review ready by deadline. But you don’t have to be on assignment to feel that compulsion to power through a game. The compulsion to know what happens provides all the motivation many need to drive their determination to stay on track through a game. And at the extreme end there are many who find their satisfaction in the skill of being able to finish a game on a speed run.
I noted that I fall at the other end of the spectrum and then asked anyone who was interested to describe how they play. Daedraug plays like I do in one massive undertaking but wondered whether there mig…