How to Prioritize Your Game Backlog (A Simple System That Works)
A 150-game backlog isn't actually the problem. The problem is that all 150 look equally important when you're deciding what to play tonight, so you default to whatever's most recent or most hyped — and the games you were genuinely excited about eighteen months ago quietly never get touched.
Prioritizing isn't about forcing yourself through a strict queue. It's about making sure the games you'd actually regret never playing don't get buried under everything else.
A three-tier system
High — you'd be genuinely disappointed to miss this
The sequel to a series you love. The game everyone whose taste matches yours won't stop talking about. Anything with an actual deadline (leaving a subscription service, a friend waiting to co-op it with you). Keep this list short — five to ten games, max. If everything is high priority, nothing is.
Medium — you want to play it, no rush
Solid, interesting, on your radar — but nothing is pulling you toward it specifically today. This is where most of a healthy backlog should live. It's your "when I'm in the mood" pool, not a queue you're falling behind on.
Low — bought on a whim, not actually excited
Impulse buys, bundle filler, games you added because they were free. Being honest about this tier is what keeps the other two meaningful. Nothing wrong with owning them — they just shouldn't compete for your attention against the ones you're actually excited about.
How to actually sort into these
Don't try to rank your whole backlog in one sitting — that's how prioritizing itself becomes a chore you avoid. Instead, do it as you add games, and revisit the High tier specifically every month or two. Ask one question: "if I never played this, would I actually be annoyed?" If yes, High. If you shrug, it's Medium or Low.
The tier only needs to answer one question — what am I most likely to actually want next — not describe how good the game is. A low-priority game can still be great; it's just not the game pulling at you right now.
Let priority interact with the rest of your system
Priority works best combined with the other two signals that matter: how long a game takes (see using HowLongToBeat to plan your backlog) and your current mood (see how to decide what to play next). A High-priority, 10-hour game that fits a free weekend is about as good a match as you'll ever get — filtering your backlog by priority first, then length, is usually enough to land on an obvious next pick.
Re-tier honestly and often. A game that was High priority a year ago and still hasn't been touched isn't actually High priority — it's Medium at best. Letting the tiers drift to match reality is what keeps the system useful instead of aspirational.
Tag your whole backlog by priority in minutes
Sort your library by High / Medium / Low, filter by what fits your evening, and stop losing track of the games you actually care about.
Get started for free →