In the past couple of years, my gaming backlog has grown and grown and at every new sale I fall into the same trap of getting some new games that I then only end up playing some of. With that in mind, my mission this year is to play-through and finish or at least decide to abandon some of the games in my backlog. As of time of writing this my backlog stands at about 180 games. My goal for this year is to finish 36 games from Jan 1 to Dec 31 no matter when I started playing them. As I go, this list will update with the names of the games by month and a short review and score for my own record keeping.

January:
Far Cry 4: 8/10
I had skipped this game in my initial run through of the far cry games. I think it made some improvements on 3 but also at the same time added more fluff and sections that were wholly unnecessary. Felt more like a far cry 3 expansion, but I love far cry 3, so few complaints.
Sniper Elite 4: 7/10
The first few levels are amazing, but by the end, all the maps had far too many interiors and not enough good sniping opportunities, the frustrating placement of generators and lack of other clever noise makers made stealth hard and silenced rounds a requirement to attempt. Can't beat the super satisfying sniping gameplay though.
Borderlands 2: 5/10
Loved the writing, but looter shooters aren't what I enjoy. Especially to play alone, this one kept grinding me down and preventing me from finishing.
Rymdkapsl: 3/10
A really interesting concept, but gets boring quickly.
Lego Batman 2: 8/10
nananana nananana BATMAN
Tooth and Tail: 9/10
Addicting levels of fun when the random level seed doesn't screw you over
We Were Here: 7/10
I need more puzzle games like this in my life

February:
Jurassic World Evolution: 6/10
An A+ dinosaur game with a C- park management game put together
Lucifer Within Us: 3/10
An interesting story and setting ruined by a disappointing puzzle game
Planetbase: 6/10
A good colony builder, until you learn the stupidly optimal strategy that removes the challenge or interest in continuing to play
Victory at Sea: 7/10
Feels like a mobile port to pc and the strategy can get stupidly easy towards the end, but still felt very fun.

March:
Before We Leave: 1/10
Better title: Before We Fall Asleep
For the Fatherland: 3/`0
A good attempt at a tower defense game but needs more turret options/upgrade paths

April:
Song of Farca: 6/10
An interesting detective game with only bad endings
Hyperdimension Neptunia RE:1, 2, 3: 2/10
Got sick of the grinding
How to Escape: 8/10
Another really good co-op puzzle game, final room difficulty spike one of the only downsides

May:
Battlefield 1: 7/10
multiplayer really isn't my thing, but the game is decently enjoyable with an interesting if entirely predictable story.
Reigns: 2/10
Kept my interest for about 5 minutes. The swiping mechanic reveals its mobile origins.
Race the Sun: 5/10
A fun game, especially if you have tons of time to kill, but has no long term mechanics or story.
SUPERHOT: 7/10
Truly satisfying gameplay once you figure out the timing for shots.
Potion Craft: 5/10
Really cool start and interesting mechanics, just felt too much of a grind to me and I stopped after chapter 5.
Viscera Cleanup Detail: Shadow Warrior 6/10
It does what it says on the box.
Roki: 5/10
Making your voice actor sound like the bored teen does not immerse me further. Also way to ruin the ending... The main villain arguing you are the evil all along doesn't work when you compare "letting" your mother die to kidnapping and killing children for several hundred years.
Rebel Galaxy: 9/10
An amazing game that allows you to create organic stories based on your decisions, like that time my mercenary had a mid life crisis and decided to go mine 50 rocks until I got the achievement and then got his life back together.

June:
Doorkickers: 6/10
A fun game, but ultimately felt too much like it wanted to be an army shooter rather than a swat game. Shields and Pointmen were basically pointless when all levels were able to be run with shotguns or assaults.
911 Operator: 5/10
A good concept, if very repetitive. Interesting calls though.
La-Mulana: 3/10
This game simply never clicked with me, sorry Will.

July:
Mafia III 7/10
Fun open world game, but the story felt lacking as did the characters. The DLC un-ironically had much better story and more interesting versions of the characters.

August:
Havsala: Into the Soul Palace: 3/10
I legit have no idea how someone was expected to figure some of those puzzles out.
Lego Pirates of the Caribbean: 8/10
Da da dun dun, da da dun dun, da da dun dun. da dun da da!
Death and Taxes: 7/10
Interesting story and events. I like the cosmetic options for the Grim as well. Too many endings though, especially with no mid game save to return to.
We Were Here Forever: 9/10
A game that had my attention from the word go. The underwater puzzles are the only reason this game did not receive a 10.
Homefront: 6/10
A boring and generic early 2010s shooter with minimal story designed to draw people for the multiplayer. It received this high a score mostly because it gave me nostalgia for another shooter. Frontlines: Fuel of War.

September:
Battlestations: Midway: 8/10
Tunic: 6/10
Phantom Doctrine: 7/10