Lately I’ve been noticing my reasons for playing games changing.
I’m becoming less interested in the challenging aspects: I’m starting to wish games would not get harder as I progress; that they would not throw bigger enemies in greater numbers at me for the sake of a difficulty curve; that puzzles would not become arbitrarily more convoluted as I solve their nefarious predecessors. I no longer have the patience for a game over.
I first started noticing this in Call of Duty 4. Even on the regular difficulty I became frustrated rather than thrilled at having to shoot through countless baddies. I’d hit a difficult section and would want for nothing more than to skip to the next story progression rather than figure out the best way to take everyone out. The story’s presentation was so engrossing that I started to see the shooting as mere filler.
This continued on to Mass Effect where I turned the combat difficulty down to casual. I found I had zero patience for getting killed a number of times in combat, and again wanted for nothing more than to get the encounter over with as quickly as possible so I could progress the narrative. The combat, though by no means poor, was nowhere near as engrossing for me as watching the next cutscene or clicking through the next dialogue tree.
Even a game such as Mario Galaxy had me completely engrossed for reasons you wouldn’t normally associate with a platformer. This is a genre that is designed to challenge and break the player at every opportunity, yet Galaxy possessed an undeniable charm that transcended this preconception. As soon as a star came across that took more than a few attempts to get, I’d give up and go find another that wasn’t as difficult. Not because it was impossible, but because I simply wasn’t enjoying the challenge. As soon as I got sixty stars and reached the credits, I was done. I have no interest in going back with Luigi or getting all 120.
Like the hardcore gamers we all know and love, I propose a new definition – the Softcore Gamer. One who loves their games as much as the hardcore, yet for very different reasons. What I’d like to know is, is this shift in perspective common? Have any other gamers experienced it? Why is it happening – is it to do with age? Or have I just turned into one giant pussy?
July 9, 2008 at 1:06 pm |
I’ve noticed this trend as well (At least in my friends and I). It used to be that I just *had* to finish every game that I started, Half-Life 1, Unreal, Call of Duty 1, every Need for Speed. But now I play a lot more casually, if I really love a game (All the Call of Duties) then I play it a lot and just happen to finish it, but I’ve noticed in Need for Speed Pro Street for example that I hit a point where I get to a race that is too hard for me to accomplish the first 3 or 4 tries so I just stop playing altogether. I find myself playing flash games more and more because they are so quick to get into and out of, quick loading times and if I find a particular game too challenging then I can just try another. My favourite at the moment is http://www.printsudoku.com/index-en.html Print Sudoku.
July 9, 2008 at 2:04 pm |
You are become a jaded gamer. You are no longer impressed by the craftsmanship put forth in the difficulty level of a video game. You just want consistency. Playing a hard game does not automatically make you a hardcore gamer. “Softcore gamer” sounds like a term that should be used for those who play dating sims or something.
July 9, 2008 at 2:12 pm |
Does wanting a little consistency in my games make me jaded? I hardly think so. I love games as much as I always have; perhaps even more now that I understand their inner workings better than as a kid. A difficulty curve is not the kind of craftsmanship that impresses me, but the creation of believable characters and entire worlds that remains breathtaking. This is the craftsmanship and digital artistry that I appreciate.
The problem is that even now games are still too closely tied to their arcade roots. We no longer have to insert a coin each time we die, so the game won’t make more money depending on how many times it defeats us. The Vita-Chambers in Bioshock are a step in the right direction, whilst remaining completely optional for those seeking a greater challenge.
July 24, 2008 at 10:40 am |
Ah, that is the main reason I don’t play shooters and strategy games: I don’t find them fun. Mindless shooting = not fun. I am yet to find a FPS that has a plot other than “so and so went missing/was kidnapped, pls go and rescue them while killing a million people along the way”.
I play all of my games on Easy mode – not because I suck at gaming, but because I hate dying. I find it pointless, it’s not like I’m not going to beat that part sooner or later. I just like doing it sooner and focusing on the story. If I decide to do a second playthrough, then I set difficulty to higher because I already know the plot and I can play to collect all items, kill all enemies etc.
Some may say, “Wow, you’re not a gamer!” and I say: fuck them. I still play many games and ENJOY them (that’s what they are for, right?)
We all seek something in the games, be it a good plot, a nice character development, or a chance to let off some steam and kill some Nazis. And it’s completely fine in my book