The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

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Alphizzle

The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Alphizzle »

I'm sure that we have all encountered at least one experience where we have desired for a genre to fulfill a specific expectation, later to be initially satisfied when a game releases that caters to your expectation/preference. However, a few hours in, you find that your preference is causing dis-satisfaction for one reason or another.

What's mine? Intelligent AI and a sense of Player Vulnerability.

My biggest frustration with games of the Action-Shooter/Third-Person Genre was the lack of intelligent AI, who would recklessly run directly into the line of oppressive fire, in addition to the player being given the leeway to do same, soaking up damage like a sponge, with minimal consequence.

Therefore, when I got my hands on Max Payne 3 during my second year of Uni, I was overwhelmed with excitement and genuinely satisfied with the level of challenge presented by the game, due to intelligent AI who appropriately cover and flank, as well as the game providing a genuine sense of player vulnerability, as one shot to the head could end it all, regardless of health. However....as the saying goes: "Be careful what you wish for." A few hours in, I was debating game balance, cursing at my TV (haha cringe moment when my housemates heard me), contemplating smacking my Dual Shock on my desk...and I'll leave it there haha)

Ultimately, after completion of the game I felt that I had accomplished a hard-earned victory, with Max Payne 3 remaining as one of my favourite action games of all time!

What are your Bitter-Sweet stories? How did they end?
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KissMammal
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by KissMammal »

Wanting huge, open world environments to explore, then finding that sometimes actually less is more - for want of a better comparison; Banjo Kazooie and Banjo Tooie.
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Joshihatsumitsu »

KissMammal wrote:Wanting huge, open world environments to explore, then finding that sometimes actually less is more - for want of a better comparison; Banjo Kazooie and Banjo Tooie.
I'd have to second that: the possibilities for huge open worlds were a very exciting prospect, for me at least, when GTA 3 gave everyone a taste of sandbox freedom. But that excitement wears off a bit, as you slowly realise how empty these worlds can be, with busy work like collectables occasionally chucked in to fill it out more.

I do have a preference for smaller, more dense open worlds. The Yakuza series comes to mind (despite its appearance it definitely has more in common with RPG's than straight up action games). The comparisons to GTA were understandable (at least from things I read prior to actually playing the game), but it plays very differently, and despite being a considerably smaller game space to GTA, it feels far more full, filled with so many little details to discover, and I found it to be an open world I'd rather experience.

So I guess while in my wide-eyed youth I was wishing for more realism in gaming, it is a case of "careful what you wish for", because gritty, dark, brown open worlds became quite common. Turns out all I really wanted was the goofy, colourful, smaller big world of the Yakuza series. Who knew?
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ThirdDrawing
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by ThirdDrawing »

Nobody likes RPGs with turn based combat.

Even most rpg "fans" call it archaic nowadays. :/
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AndrewBrown
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by AndrewBrown »

ThirdDrawing wrote:Nobody likes RPGs with turn based combat.

Even most rpg "fans" call it archaic nowadays. :/
Please provide me with a list of these people so I may track them down, tie them into a chair, and explain to them why they're wrong.
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ThirdDrawing
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by ThirdDrawing »

Heh, go on any jrpg board nowadays.

They're all people who seem to be young enough to have missed the glory days of the PS1/PS2 era and now all view it as outdated.

RPG boards used to be a haven for great discussion, now it's all about how rpgs need to be more like action games.

/old man complaints
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by AndrewBrown »

Ironic since action games have taken a hard turn towards being more like RPGs in the past decade.
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Joshihatsumitsu »

Aren't most of the Pokemon games turn-based? And technically fall into the category of RPG? That's been a consistently successful and popular series.
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by ratsoalbion »

Joshihatsumitsu wrote:Aren't most of the Pokemon games turn-based? And technically fall into the category of RPG? That's been a consistently successful and popular series.
Yes and yes and 7m copies in a week.
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Stanshall
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Stanshall »

I thought the combat in FF7 was much more elegant and fun than the chaotic camera wrestling of FFXV.
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ThirdDrawing
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by ThirdDrawing »

Stanshall wrote:I thought the combat in FF7 was much more elegant and fun than the chaotic camera wrestling of FFXV.
They're changing the combat to action based in the remake. :/
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Flabyo »

There's an awful lot that is outdated in the JRPG's of recent years, but turn based combat is not one of them.

I have a particular hatred for needless grinding, as it suggests the developers couldn't be bothered to properly refine their experience curve.

Back on thread topic... I think the thing that hurts me the most is that I love one on one fighting games, I buy expensive arcade sticks, I know a huge amount about them and I follow their tournament scenes and... I'm terrible at them. I just don't have the execution to be anything other than painfully average.
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by ratsoalbion »

Same here, but that's like 99.99% of people who follow any sport.
Joshihatsumitsu

Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Joshihatsumitsu »

Flabyo wrote:Back on thread topic... I think the thing that hurts me the most is that I love one on one fighting games, I buy expensive arcade sticks, I know a huge amount about them and I follow their tournament scenes and... I'm terrible at them. I just don't have the execution to be anything other than painfully average.
That reminds me of the time I has playing Street Fighter 2 in HEY in Akihabara, and someone else came up and played of the connected cabinet next to me. We played a few rounds, got my arse kicked a lot, and while I only won one round altogether, it was such a cool experience.

Expensive arcade stick works very well with other genres. Shmup it up, I say!
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Flabyo »

I watched the rocket league world finals this evening. Add that to the list of games I'll never be remotely 'pro' at :)
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Joshihatsumitsu »

That's what I like about building my own arcade cab: I am officially the highest ranked player in my house! Just a long list of JAH initials on the high score table.
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by dezm0nd »

KissMammal wrote:Wanting huge, open world environments to explore, then finding that sometimes actually less is more - for want of a better comparison; Banjo Kazooie and Banjo Tooie.
Perfect!
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by dezm0nd »

I really am after a loot based RPG lately but everytime I fire one up I realise that the RPG bit gets in the way. I just want to stomp on enemies, steal their stuff and use it on bigger enemies.

Diablo 3, you might say...! Too late. Already played through many times and all the extra modes etc.

There needs to be more Action RPGs either in the form of Diablo or Borderlands.
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by Flabyo »

You might enjoy the 'Legends of Van Helsing' games that are on the XBO. They're not fantastic, but they are pretty solid Diablo-esque games.
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Re: The Bittersweet Reality of Your Gaming Preferences

Post by seansthomas »

I've always preferred my racing games OTT and arcadey.

Ridge Racer, WipEout, Daytona, Sega Rally, etc. So its been a shame to watch gaming become obsessed with taking driving games open world, realistic and more bothered about accuracy than fun.

There's been a few emergent seeds of recovery lately and I hope a new Daytona reawakens this once great genre, but if a game ever, EVER asks me to take a driving licence prior to getting stuck in, then I'm out
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