Funny you should ask...YES, I do buy games because I know they will be huge time sinks...not because I really have all the time in the world to play them...but, because I have found that there is only about 2 or so games typically a year that come out that I really really like, and all those games for the most part are huge (length wise) or very replayable...Of course, I don't get the new games (they cost too much overall) I'll wait for them to become real cheap, then I will buy the ones that seem appealing, and usally these are bigger sized games...I will try each one out, until I find one that I can't seem to stop playing, and wahlaa I've found the game I will be playing for the next 6 months or so...Actually, Mount and Blade: Warband has been my main game now for over a year, so go figure...I do still play other games when I get bored of my favorites, but, time is sparse I must admit...My motto is Play what you like, don't compromise and play games you don't like as much just because they are shorter, play what you love, it's the only way to game on. :)

There are a few good reasons I avoid MMOs, but one of them is surely that they are designed to be time-sinks.

Life is a time-sink. If you enjoy playing something, might as well buy it.

Well, videogames as a concept were destined to become time-sinks of sorts, they all ask of you to invest your time for things that will possibly have no effect other than time flying by in your real and personal life - unless you're like 12, and play something mindblowing that can shape your view of the world.

I've played only a handful of games lately that have made me feel good and that it was worth it, most of the time when finishing a game I feel somewhat empty. :-\

There's a single reason why I wouldn't buy a game: not enough money in my pocket....

Not really, I keep buying games with less and less time to play them these days.

Civ 5 is one I'm weary of going back to though; so many late nights only to wake up feeling like a zombie at work the next day

I find a diet rich in red meaty proteins usually alleviates my cranial cravings. =D

Yeah after burning myself out on Gothic last semester, I have since been even more wary on buying lengthy RPGs. Gothic had a tendency to make me lose sleep and skip lectures :(

The main reason I avoid such time-sinks is because I'd be missing out on all the other incredible gems out there! Over the years I developed some sort of feeling for when something drags out for too long, doesn't mean I avoid any sort of deep RPG or similar alltogether. I just take little bites out of different titles now :)

I feel you, I had the same problem with the first two Gothic games back in 2004 and 2005. I must have finished Gothic 2 at least 6 times back then.

I never played WoW for this reason. Friends tried to persuade me, but I refused to play for even a minute because I remembered the unhealthy months of grinding for items and XP in Diablo 2 (and I didn't even play that much compared to many other people).

Apart from the fact that I prefer single-player a lot more than multiplayer, back in the middle of the 00's when WoW was in all its grandeur, hordes and legions of braindead morons and chicks swarming in internet cafes like bees hover over shit and spending hours upon hours of even more hours levelling up was a common sight.

I never had the urge to play it really. I also resisted the World of Conan MMO, even though I love the world. I don't know if I'll be able to resist a Faerun or a Westeros setting however.

Nope. I'll play as long as I have interest in a game, and interest wanes after a while. I played WoW on and off for five years but haven't bothered for half a year now (would've been a year I think, but I picked it up again to play as Cataclysm was released, but I got bored again after a month of half-hearted playing around).

Diablo 2

Makes me afraid of any lengthy game.

Fortunately Diablo 3 keeps getting delayed so I still have time left.

Hm, I am primarily a single player gamer and like taking my time and hate rushing, so I'm not worried about games like Baldur's Gate or Icewind Dale becoming huge time sinks... I once read a thread on the old BioWare forums by a guy who had finally finished Baldur's Gate II after playing it over the course of two years -- he was married and had kids, and so he just played the game whenever he had time, which wasn't very often. I wouldn't mind being like that when I get older -- as long as I get to enjoy my favorite games every now and then, don't lose track of the story, and stay motivated to finish them eventually, I'll be fine.

I am more careful with MMO's though. I got *this* close to a disturbing level of World of Warcraft addiction a few years ago and realized just in time that playing it had become this compulsive thing that I was doing, and actually didn't really enjoy anymore at all, instead of what it should be (and was, at some point) -- a fun, casual gaming experience with some friends. So I tend to stay away from MMO's and really keep a close eye on myself with the ones I do decide to play. Which are few and far between.