I think you've hit the nail on the head there, Moriarty. This is probably also why certain books merit re-reading, and others are perfectly fine to get through once but not worth picking up again.

It's the people who really like books who re-read particular favourites. Some people are Dickens buffs, for instance, or Hardy-philes. There are some who make it a special point to go back over A Dance to the Music of Time every few years, or perhaps Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire for the more historically minded.

You'll notice that these are all big meaty works. Nobody bothers much going back over paperback romances, airport thrillers, or teen fiction. In fact, romance readers tend to go through their novels like popcorn, reading each one once and moving on, which is why publishers churn them out in such quantities.

Solid complex literature can never be completely absorbed in one reading, or even in a lifetime of reading. Anyone claiming to get every morsel out of every book they've ever read the first time round is either deluding themselves, or else has only ever read light trash. (Now, I'm not knocking light trash -- I read tons of it myself -- but you can't live on junk food forever, mentally as well as physically.)

Movies are much the same again. I'm not much into them myself, but I appreciate the fact that there are classic movies that are as deep and complex as literature, and merit re-watching and discussion without end. These are the films that give cinema a claim to being an art form, far different from the summer blockbuster froth that is quickly watched and soon forgotten.

And the same applies to any type of art. Good paintings can be viewed every day for the rest of your life, and you'll never get to the "end" of them. Good music can be listened to over and over, and will always be new and interesting. And then there's the black velvet pictures and pop chart hits.

So why should games be any different? If you argue that gaming is in some way an art form rather than a mere consumer industry, then there must be at least a few classic games that merit serious consideration and re-appreciation.

most likely only a good psychologist can help with this.

Poor Pavel! :crazy:

Squinky got it lucky, I've been sent to a maximum security institution to receive tests.
I'm currently in a test tube - naked, cold, and with an itchy eye.

Due to forgetfullness, replaying a game is often like enjoying it the first time. After 2 or 3 years, details of a game slip away, and by revisiting it, I can still experience parts as if for the first time.
As for rereading books, I find it is somewhat the same. Some books that I've read over and over (Silmarillion, LotR, etc.) actually improve with age. These are often detailed reads to begin with, and I always pick up nuances or subplots that I didn't appreciate the first time. Many times the first read is rushed, since you are anxious to find out what happens. It's not until the next time that you can slow down and savor every paragraph.
I think there is value in replaying/rereading, if only because you are a different person than you were when you first enjoyed the game/book. Time and life experiences often bring a different outlook on things. The books I read as a teenager can have a whole new dimension when read as an adult.

Ha. You remind me of my mother. I think it's so annoying when people refuse to watch/read/do anything a second time. You can't remember everything that happened and you might discover something you missed the first time around.
With my mom a movie or something will come on and she'll say, "Oh. I've seen this before." So I'll ask, "What happens?"
"I don't remember, but I've seen it before."
So stupid.

Is your mother a psychologist? Maybe I should go see her... but only if she's good.

:D

Maybe the replay value is in different receipt of the game - because a person changes over time, develops, gains experience.

When I played Gabriel Knight the second time I started to think of the New Orlean thing in a diffenet way because of the hurricane and stuff.

Besides I started to understand and like Gabe more, at the beginning I considered him a jerk - I became more generous with time I guess.

It could be argued, that your thoughts about a game can evolve and deepen also without actually replaying a game, just through remembering it. On the other hand, isn't that overly distracting in life to keep whole games, books, movies memorised with instant access whenever you think about a title? I certainly don't envy Pavel too much if he has this good a memory.

Poor Pavel and his photographic memory!

Can you stop that now Merricat, you're borderline trolling yourself.

Okay.

Yeah well I was not referring to Pavel in my previous post. I prefer to talk to you all crazy guys :D

Maybe we need a support group for re-readers.

However I think Pavels comments are indicitive of modern consumerism and a throwaway society.

Always looking for the next fix, not time to savour the experience or the past.

Too many toys not enough time.

There is the element of the throwaway society but I think there is another view that Pavel did touch on.

Just thinking of my shelves (games and books) there are a load already that I haven't got round to reading/playing. I enjoy re-reading a lot (as a reminder of a story that's partly faded from memory and a repeat of an enjoyable experience with new insights) but maybe I should also spend more time finding out if there are new equally enjoyable experiences waiting to be had, It's not even like I'd have to go out and spend to do it. A ton of new experiences are just sitting there waiting for me. I don't expect them all to be good (and I'll always go back to the things I really enjoy) but there could just be an exciting new favourite there waiting to be discovered.

I think you can replay a game, reread or rewatch for analytical purposes too.

You enjoy it the first time you played it. You find out why you enjoyed it the second time round. This is especially the case for people aspiring to create a piece of their own someday.

Sorry if someone has already made this point.

I've replayed numerous games. None because I necessarily missed them. All because the replay offered a particular challenge.

After playing Shivers the first time, I realized that one could accumulate points simply by riding the elevator. Ergo, one could achieve a high score without solving anything after the first five or six puzzles. Thus, completing the game while accumulating the fewest possible points became the challenge. I went after that particular challenge with a vengence, as did others. I probably played that game at least six times competing with others for "low" score.

A game such as Post Mortem allows one to take two entirely different paths to the conclusion. Who would not want to replay it in order to experience all the game had to offer?

Then there are games such as Callahan's Crosstime Saloon that are so packed with material that there is no way one could experience it all in a single play. Assuming one enjoyed the game, why not go back and find more humor?

I replay games. I love to look at the graphics, and it is nice to forget the puzzle solutions. But the biggest thing for me in an adventure game is the story. I love learning more about the characters and the story, and playing it through again can let you see stuff you might have missed the first time round. That's just my opinion. :)