It will surprise nobody that, like other hobbies, different gamers have different ways in which they like to tackle each new adventure. On one end of the spectrum you have the casual gamers, who play games as and when they feel the desire; on the other end you have the completionist. This gamer will leave no stone unturned in the games they pick up, going above and beyond in completing the main story, fully mastering and collecting everything the game has to offer. Over time this has grown into its own unique subculture, bringing gaming perfectionists together over their shared drive to squeeze all possible content out of their beloved games. 

What is Completionism? 

Firstly, completionism is the pursuit of achieving and collecting everything a game has to offer, beyond simply reaching the end of the story. This can include completing side quests, collecting all resources and unlocking trophies or achievements. Many casual gamers never experience this side of gaming and as such can miss out on intentional details left by the developers. Of course, there are levels to this, varying from those who only 100% complete games that interest them to those who strive for 100% in all games they play, often replaying games to catch what they missed. However, they all share common goals for what they want to achieve in their completionism: achievements, hidden lore, collectibles, alternative endings and ‘hard’ modes. These together provide a picture of the game experience being 100% completed. 

What brings the community together? 

As with any community, completionists are often drawn to each other. It makes sense – the patience, attention to detail and dedication required to complete these games would seem tedious to many, but completionists thrive on the sense of accomplishment gained from full completion of a game. Spaces on the internet exist aplenty for people to share their passion, from dedicated forums on Reddit, servers on Discord and dedicated guides on TrueAchievements and TrueTrophies. Further, the hugely popular ‘The Completionist’ YouTube channel boasts an impressive 1.4 million subscribers and produces content such as completion guides and reviews. Completionists may appear to be a relatively unknown corner of the internet, but it’s far more popular than it first seems. 

Popular games in the community 

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild offers a vast open world full of hidden secrets, shrines and unique items. Finding all shrines, defeating all bosses, completing all side quests, discovering all map locations and collecting and upgrading all equipment is a huge undertaking, not to mention collecting all 900 Korok seeds (each of which are in a unique location with no way to tell which you already have). 

The Dark Souls series (and Soulslike games in general) offers intense and challenging combat and hidden lore pieces that can only be accessed by exploring every corner of the world, as well as having unique boss weapons and items that are only accessible by fulfilling certain conditions; this can require multiple playthroughs. 

The Batman: Arkham series of games have a healthy mix of main story, side missions and Riddler challenges. Particularly, Arkham City and Arkham Knight provide a vast number of collectibles and challenges, such as Riddler trophies and full combat upgrades. 

Persona 5 Royal adds to the original Persona 5 with even more confidants, activities and items to collect, as well as multiple endings to experience. The time-limited nature of each in-game day makes it especially challenging to accomplish everything in one play through. 

The ups and downs 

As an intensely engaging hobby, completionism naturally comes with its upsides and downsides. Accessing every element of a game can provide a deeper enjoyment of the experience, adding a sense of personal achievement by achieving something the average player has not. However, this unsurprisingly proves extremely time-consuming, sometimes leading to burnout and stress in an attempt to achieve such perfection. 

The unique culture of completionism in the gaming community is driven by a collective spirit for enjoying their favourite games to the maximum extent possible. Completionism offers a rewarding, immersive way to experience gaming. For those who enjoy challenges and perfectionism, it’s a deeply satisfying way to engage with a game on a whole new level you may not have otherwise known existed. 

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