I hate what video games have become • Hacker News Board

Re: I hate what video games have become

#351

Post by dkersten » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:10 PM UTC

bart_spoon wrote: post #303

holler wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

One complaint I've had with RL recently is that it seems like they've put all their energy into new visuals and cosmetics while leaving the game mostly unchanged. The standard multi ranked map sometimes feels boring and I've wondered why they don't add different types of maps to the mix; spheres, tubes, different physics, goals in the center, figure 8 map(?), embankments (like map in season 1), etc. I guess it's simp…

The reason is because people absolutely hated that Tokyo map with the embankments, myself included. Rocket League is unique in that the core gameplay is so good, that messing around with it is just a bad idea. It’s like asking why there aren’t new pieces being released for Chess, or why people don’t start adding unconventional elements to a soccer field. It’s because novelties like those take away from what is alread…

Interesting. I haven't played Rocket League in years, but I actually liked that Tokyo map... it added variety.

Re: I hate what video games have become

#352

Post by usrusr » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:10 PM UTC

nopcode wrote: post #254

SentientNo4 wrote: post #236

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Cosmetic items are not just visual though. They are real elements in the game. Yes, I really hate this argument that cosmetics are not gameplay. Visuals are a huge part of what makes a game, no one would be happy if games shipped without textures and shaders and people would have to pay to unlock them.

A better phrasing is whether they offer a competitive advantage.

While I get the impression that many of those visual bling payables available today seem to give more of a disadvantage than an advantage, back in the days of 1.6 CS I caught myself in real life considering the contrast between what I wore and the environment I was passing through. Not because I was expecting to get shot at (I certainly wasn't), but because at the time it was so much of a routine consideration for me. Yes, visuals can be a competitive factor.

Re: I hate what video games have become

#353

Post by deltaonefour » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:12 PM UTC

EugeneOZ wrote: post #208

prohobo wrote: post #183

This economic model for games is kind of required at this point, but the author is hitting on something true about the industry: it's not as good as it used to be. The golden age of gaming ended somewhere in 2005-ish, and now the vast majority of games are derivative and often worse than the originals in terms of gameplay. They sell because people like new content. They are also less about the art, and more about the…

RDR2 was released in 2018, it's the best video game in the history of humanity, so your date of the golden age is not correct.

RDR2 was a masterpiece.

I wouldn't call it the best video game in the history of humanity. Certainly the most immersive open world game in the history of humanity with a story and cinematic flair on par with the best films from Hollywood. An achievement by rockstar that has yet to be toppled. No other open world game including their own GTAV even comes close. Not even elden ring beats it.

Re: I hate what video games have become

#354

Post by mmcdermott » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:13 PM UTC

bootloop wrote: post #184

OtomotO wrote: post #151

As a (non game) developer, I can say, thay free to play is instantly dead on arrival for me. The moment something is known to become or becomes free to play is the moment I lose all interest. The dishonesty in the system itself is what makes this unbearable for me. Developers need to eat, Managers need to eat, Marketeers need to eat... And sometimes psychologists doing evil mindtricks and supporting gambling addictio…

This is absurd. So you also don't use any software products which are a) free to use or b) habe a free tier?

Not the GP, but I have a hard pass rule on F2P as well. My reasons for it are two-fold. The biggest one is that I just don't want to deal with it. I spend my entire day "doing business." Games are a place away from all that and I don't want the F2P shop to intrude on my time away from the rat race. The other reason is that in the vast majority of scenarios, F2P creates incentives on the developer to create games that feature things I don't like (grinding and lootboxes being examples).

Re: I hate what video games have become

#355

Post by boredumb » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:13 PM UTC

Just imagine in game purchasable cosmetic items as a buy-only NFT.

Re: I hate what video games have become

#356

Post by Loughla » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:15 PM UTC

hypertele-Xii wrote: post #223

bradknowles wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have to eat? Do you have to have a place to sleep? Seems to me like making a reasonable amount of money to help towards these goals is not an unreasonable thing to hope for. But maybe you can prove me wrong?

Oh sorry sometimes I forget most people live in wage slavery.

I'm genuinely confused by this. Are you saying that you shouldn't have to worry about eating and living indoors? Or are you saying that you literally forget people have to pay for those things? Can you please explain what you mean?

Re: I hate what video games have become

#357

Post by jdlyga » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:15 PM UTC

The real problem with modern games is they're too focused on making the biggest most important game possible instead of making the game fun. I think development teams and budgets have gotten too large. It's the constraints that really bring out people's creativity.

Re: I hate what video games have become

#358

Post by dreen » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:15 PM UTC

ikurei wrote: post #290

nopcode wrote: post #254

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A better phrasing is whether they offer a competitive advantage.

Why? Why is competitive advantage the only thing that matters? OP is just ranting about people who pay more getting a better experience, making paying such a central part of gaming. They just hate this, which I agree with, although I know others don't. In a way, getting a better experience just for being able and willing to pay more is a basic feature of our society. Why should we expect videogames, being as expensiv…

IMHO when a game centres around competitive play, and said game also allows you to buy competitive advantage for real money, that is a problem. A situation like this is called "pay to win" and is tempting enough for some game companies to ruin their game with.

Re: I hate what video games have become

#359

Post by deltaonefour » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:15 PM UTC

If you think the industry is shit right now, you haven't been gaming. Literally OP article didn't even mention Elden Ring the greatest Triple A game that's trending right now.

Elden Ring is the opposite of everything OP mentioned and you can't criticize the industry without bringing up the IT game that is literally the opposite of the entire article.

The golden age of the gaming industry is right now. That goes for triple A games AND indie games.

The whole DLC BS is this annoying side thing among triple A studios but it has nothing to do with overall trend of the industry.

Re: I hate what video games have become

#360

Post by alex_sf » Mon, Mar 28, 2022, 2:17 PM UTC

There are definitely dark patterns, dishonestly, manipulation to drive sales in F2P games. That's not a good thing.

However, most of the people criticizing this did not grow up poor. When I was a kid, there were a ton of video games I would have loved to play, but my family couldn't afford it.

Nowadays, everyone can play. The difference between the haves and have-nots are cosmetics. Better than that: in most games, the best cosmetics can often be unlocked purely (and only) by skill. A poor kid may not have as many skins or whatever, but they can still unlock things.