How does one handle coming back to the RPG (Fallout 2 for an ex.) after a long time.

[The_Den_Resident]

It's been almost two years since I played Fallout 2 with only playing it for about an hour four times between the nearly two years since 2022. I have currently 468 hours in the game, but man I don't know how I did it about two years ago. I came back today and played for three hours giving me 468 hours from the 465 hours I played before.

(This idea can be applied to any RPG game how do you come back to it after a long time? I mention Fallout 2 for this specific case. But it can be for Fallout 1 as well.)

But yeah, how do you guys/gals retrace your steps? Do you leave notes behind before stop playing the game for a long time? Do you wing it? Or is your memory awesome that you recall everything you did last?

I did remember a couple of my goals.
- Get as many companions as I can into the Bishops casino upper floor. Done!
- Go to SanFran and do the quests there. Oh no I forgot to get Chip's spleen! Poor Chip r.i.p, =(

Anyways what do you folks do? When coming back from a long hiatus, do you have a set plan? Following the old one or make a new one because you forgot?

So how do you handle coming back from a long hiatus?

 

[Aurelius Of Phoenix]

I end up restarting, then playing other games, and then the loop repeats until I can't stand doing it anymore so I stare at the game for a second and play something else. This happened to me with the Shadowrun games and Pillars of Eternity. I'll finish them someday.

 

[Iprovidelittlepianos]

Usually I start a new save while keeping the old one, telling myself I’ll come back to it eventually. I never do.

 

[Hawkwing74]

Usually I start a new save while keeping the old one, telling myself I’ll come back to it eventually. I never do.

This is what I do as well. I was on my fifth Baldur's Gate 3 run before I even finished the game.

 

[Risewild]

I just restart. My memory is so bad that I can forget almost everything I did in a game if I don't play it for a week...

 

[PlanHex]

I am a bit compulsive about only playing one game at a time and finishing it, so this rarely happens, and I would always restart, because if I have put the game down it is likely because I deliberately stopped.
I can't really recall picking up an old save ever, though I suppose I must have at some point in my life...
I've finished lots of games and books I didn't like much due to the compulsion to see it through to the end too.

 

[Alphons]

I always read through the quest journal- both the started and completed quests to help refresh my memory.

Classic Fallouts are a bit worse in that regard, only having the goals listed and getting crossed out as they're finished.

 

[Yossarrion]

I usually playthrough it once or twice a year. So when I go back I just restart