Common practices you hate in videogames

[Atarifever]

Common practices you hate in videogames

People making them after about 1995.

[AtticGamer]

I hate mini-games, the kind that are used to put "variety" in an action game. Most of the time, I can be good at the main game, but then I'll get into a mini-game which uses completely alien game mechanics, and it just deters from the main game's experience. Most of the time, fortunately, those silly mini-games can be bypassed, but the most infuriating situation is when the reward for winning the mini-game is an important item. The worst offender I can think of is Mega Man Legends, where you need to win the toughest roller race in order to acquire the crystal required to build the strongest laser weapon. It doesn't matter if I'm leveled up to the max and can practically defeat any boss in the main game with my eyes closed, if I can't perfectly master that stupid rollerskating interface, that all-important item stays out of my reach. (And as you can guess, I've never been able to win that stupid roller race, and I was only able to try that laser with the help of a cheat device.)

 

I think my profound desinsterest for mini-game-based titles (like Warioware) began with that unfortunate experience...

I'll put TLoZ in there as well. I doesn't use different mechanics but some of them are plain stupid, except the target practice.

[Lauren Tyler]

Let's see:

 

 

1. Cool Unlockables That Can Only Be Gained By Superhuman Feats Of Gameplay Skill

 

OK, so if you want to have us earn hidden features and cheats by playing through the game and doing well, that's fine. But what if the gameplay requirement is insanely difficult so only the most hardcore players will be able to get it? What's the point there? Are you trying to weed out the hardcore from everyone else?

 

CIP: Resident Evil: Code Veronica - Where in order to unlock the rocket launcher (I think) you have to go through the game and get an S ranking (or maybe an A, one of those two.) How do you do that? By completing the game under a certain time limit without using first-aid sprays, without continuing (meaning no dying)... and no saving. WTF, Capcom. It's a two-disc long game, some of the most annoyingly tough

bosses and creatures are in the game, and you expect us to do all that in one sitting? What were you guys smoking?

 

 

2. FPS's That Offer The Same Experience, Both Single And Multiplayer

 

It seems that 90% of the time, many FPS games seem to proclaim they offer new stuff not found in others, but in the end they generally turn out the same: run-n-gun while maybe pushing a button here or picking up an item there, with nothing really new or noteworthy. In multiplayer, all you get are the standard deathmatches and capture the flag options.

 

CIP: Too many to list.

 

Mind you, I'm not saying every FPS is guilty of this, but a lot of them are. I haven't played a lot of them recently, and I would like to try H3 and CoD4, but for the longest time it seems a lot of the FPS games I've played are really guilty of the same-old-same-old stuff.

[Video]

I got a lot myself, but here's the big three.

 

1 UnSkIpPaBlE cut scenes (could be the intro 'who made it' (who cares) crap) I mean, yeah, the cut scene in Final Fantasy was vaguely amuseing. No, I don't give to shits and a god damn less about it. (they ruined any possible replayability of the game) This isn't the only one, just the one that most obviously comes to mind right off.

 

2 ClOwN cars. You know what it is, if you've played any game in history ever (ok, it's not that bad in most games but still) Why the hell do I want to be in an area where you have to have extreme concentration just to get over the room sized bottomeless pits walking over a tight rope, when five billion guys come out of no where (and magically, they can float through the air) and there's no way to stop them, so killing them is really useless, but only done so you can get across the @#%$ room.

 

3 Artificial lengthining of the game. ANY of you who have ever played an RPG know this one. It's playing though a relatively short game, then playing though it again, and again, and again, 20 or 30 times, just because the boss difficulty is set insanely high. Golden sun is one of the F E W RPG's I've ever played that was actually competantly designed so you could play though the game streight, not much leveling up is required just cause you get to a boss or something. It also happens to be one of the few that I actually liked enough to play though multiple times.

 

There's so many more that really chap my ass, but that's enough for now.

[DragonmasterDan]

Presently bad 3D control schemes is my current most hated practice. This includes aiming with a stick and not a pointing device. Pressing left making you spin in a circle and not move left. Poorly designed menu systems that take too much time to click through. Lack of control scheme customizability.

[AtticGamer]

I hate games with rating systems, you work hard and get a shitty ranking at the end to demoralize you and ruin the ending.

Examples: Devil May Cry, Luigi's Mansion, Street Fighter 3.

[Vic George 2K3]

Common practices you hate in videogames

People making them after about 1995.

 

Sounds like you got a bias for pre-1996 games.

[Emehr]

Having to click through five different company logo screens just to get to the title screen *cough*Guitar Hero III*cough*. How is it that all these companies can collaborate to make a game but they can't get together to make just ONE animated logo screen?

 

Here's another one: okay we've gotten to the point where we can see dripping sweat and nose hairs on characters. How about the developers spend more time working on facial expressions instead? We have wrestlers picking up 300 lb opponents ready to deliver a piledriver but by the looks on their faces you'd think they were staring at a television watching the news. Move some eyes! Grit some teeth! Actually *look* at your opponent! Let's see some veins popping out of foreheads!

[Captain Beard]

Having to click through five different company logo screens just to get to the title screen *cough*Guitar Hero III*cough*. How is it that all these companies can collaborate to make a game but they can't get together to make just ONE animated logo screen?

This one really annoys me too -- and it applies equally well to DVDs (where you often can't skip them just by pressing a button.)

Do these folks not understand that while they're definitely drumming their company's name into my head, they're simultaneously making me hate them?

 

Any publicity is good publicity, eh?

[tyranthraxus]

Perhaps this is a good thread to dig out Graham Nelson's The Craft of Adventure,

his essay on adventure games. While he was musing on specifically on

text adventures, most of his 'commandments' are applicable to video

games in general. Check out the link for detailed explanation of each right.

 

Bill of Player’s Rights

 

 

1. Not to be killed without warning

 

2. Not to be given horribly unclear hints

 

3. To be able to win without experience of past lives

 

4. To be able to win without knowledge of future events

 

5. Not to have the game closed off without warning

 

6. Not to need to do unlikely things

 

7. Not to need to do boring things for the sake of it

 

8. Not to have to type exactly the right verb

 

9. To be allowed reasonable synonyms

 

10. To have a decent parser

 

11. To have reasonable freedom of action

 

12. Not to depend much on luck

 

13. To be able to understand a problem once it is solved

 

14. Not to be given too many red herrings

 

15. To have a good reason why something is impossible

 

16. Not to need to be American

 

17. To know how the game is getting on

[Mike OC]

How about protection missions? I mean, my character has big guns and lots of ammo, and yet my hopes of passing a mission rests firmly on the shoulders of a little girl with no weapons and no ammo passing an area the size of a football stadium filled with zombies?

I could mop the floor with zombies, but I am forced to navagate an unarmed little girl into some of the most intricate and dangerous territory in the game just to have her get me a coin or jewel that I need to pass through. Worse still, I have to take the little brat with me and make sure she stays alive! What ever happened to "you don't have to be the fastest, just faster than the slowest".

[AtticGamer]

How about protection missions? I mean, my character has big guns and lots of ammo, and yet my hopes of passing a mission rests firmly on the shoulders of a little girl with no weapons and no ammo passing an area the size of a football stadium filled with zombies?

I could mop the floor with zombies, but I am forced to navagate an unarmed little girl into some of the most intricate and dangerous territory in the game just to have her get me a coin or jewel that I need to pass through. Worse still, I have to take the little brat with me and make sure she stays alive! What ever happened to "you don't have to be the fastest, just faster than the slowest".

.....

Curse you Ashley!

[jhd]

1. Cool Unlockables That Can Only Be Gained By Superhuman Feats Of Gameplay Skill

 

OK, so if you want to have us earn hidden features and cheats by playing through the game and doing well, that's fine. But what if the gameplay requirement is insanely difficult so only the most hardcore players will be able to get it? What's the point there? Are you trying to weed out the hardcore from everyone else?

 

I would take this a step further -- I really hate unlockables of any sort. I have paid for the game content, and I want to enjoy it -- ALL of it!

 

For example, I recently bought the Sega Genesis collection for the PS2. One of the big draws for me was that it included the arcade version of Zaxxon (and this game is not available elsewhere on the PS1 or 2). Annoyingly, to unlock this game, I had to complete some feats in Sonic the Hedgehog. I don't especially like Sonic, yet I was forced to play it (agan and again) to get the unlock. Now that it has been accomplished, I will probably never start Sonic again.

 

The PS1 game Driver is like this too; it is necessary to pass a "road test" before the game itself can be played. Without resorting to a Gameshark, I would never see past this sequence. Sure, with practice I could probably manage to pass the road test, but it will have ceased to be fun long before I get to that point.

[AtticGamer]

The only unlockables I support are the ones in MK DS, because it isn't too difficult, just needs dedication (not super human skill) and RE4, by gaining extra modes after the main game (the Ada game should be like that as we see another facet of the story).

[supercat]

How about protection missions? I mean, my character has big guns and lots of ammo, and yet my hopes of passing a mission rests firmly on the shoulders of a little girl with no weapons and no ammo passing an area the size of a football stadium filled with zombies?

 

Well-designed protection missions can be fun. What is Lemmings, for example, if not a protection mission?

 

I will certainly grant that there are plenty of bad protection missions out there. While it may sometimes be okay if the entity to be protected behaves as a mindless automaton (as in Lemmings), it generally shouldn't be actively stupid or suicidal (unless e.g. the premise of the game is that it's an enemy to be captured alive).

 

I would like to add another few suggestions to the list, btw:

• If the user is likely to have to wait for awhile without needing to do anything, provide a means to accelerate time until something interesting happens. If the 'interesting' event may not be predictable, provide a means to have it return the game to normal speed automatically.
  
• Avoid making people micro-manage the unpredictable. Lemmings often require tricky micro-management, but since their actions are predictable it's possible for a player to plan things effectively (e.g. once I turn this guy into a digger, I'll have 17 seconds to attend to other Lemmings before I attend to him again). A game like WarCraft II requires micromanagement of the units, but the requirements are unpredictable.
  
• Outside of the creation of explicit constraints, the developer should be on the side of the player, helping him to have a good time and ultimately to win. In a game like Lemmings, the whole premise of the game is that Lemmings are stupid. Thus, it is entirely proper that they will perfectly happily march off a cliff if you don't stop them. The stupidity of fighting in WarCraft II does not seem like it should be part of the premise, nor an explicit constraint. Therefore, I would suggest that the game would be improved by changing the "fight" logic so that units will not attack other units they cannot damage, and also adding a "fight when convenient" option which would specify that units should flee from units that can damage them, but attack any that cannot.
   
  It should be noted, btw, that the developer's assistance to a player may not always be visible. In Toyshop Trouble, touching one paint can and then brushing diagonally against another while moving away from it will not grab the second color. I don't think many players would notice that, but when I was testing the game before I added that feature I found myself frequently grabbing the wrong color. Since grabbing paint isn't supposed to be hard, I added some extra code to help the player get just the desired color.
  

I wonder why so many developers fail to adhere to the philosophy in the third point above? Many games are made difficult by poor control response. While there may be times when this is appropriate (e.g. in Thrust+, it can be hard to keep the ship under control while carrying a klystron pod) there are far more times when it is simply annoying.

[shadow460]

Another gripe: Abhorrent AI in RTS games. Anyone who's played Command & Conquer will know what I mean when I bellyache about my engineers walking through Tiberium.

Also, why on this green Earth do Westwood's AI players even bother with superweapons? You know almost exactly what units will be affected and what their target will be. It gets old rebuilding your war factory and fighting off a lone prism tank that just magically appears in your base.

 

Emperor: Battle for Dune was the worst about stupid units. Your vehicles would happily drive by a packs of Minotaurs, knowing full well they'd die in seconds. Yeah, I wanted to replace those gunships because they landed right there. Oh, and be sure to kill the flame tank that followed them before you shoot anything else. The resulting explosion is bound to attract a sandworm which will happily eat the rest of my spice miners unless they happen to find an enemy base to wander into first. Thanx, buddy.

 

Also, racing games that give the computer an unnatural boost. Sure, an inopportune burst of rocket fire sends me careening into the outside wall of Moa Therma's first hairpin on the black run. Not a problem, but tell me why I can load that Feisar up with two quakes, a leech beam, and a plasma bolt, yet he flies on like nothing happened. OK, so I pass him on the first lap, and three laps later when I barely brush the wall in that Mag-Lock section, that Feisar shoots by me like I've lost my anti-grav unit. I've been smoking this guy ever since the first lap, and he's still on my tail!? Also tell me why one burst from his cannon puts me in critical shield status, while absorbed so many weapons to begin with?

Edited February 28, 2008 by shadow460

[TwinChargers]

How about having to get those stupid licenses on Gran Tourismo before they let you participate in the races. I bought the game, just let me race already. One of the main reasons I think the series sucks.

[Atari5200]

here's a good one. Life Bars...where did they go??? Why is every character in a FPS immortal to where if you get shot all you have to do is sit there and you magically heal. For christ sake, I've gone through a mission on Call of Duty II and no shitting, been shot 150 times, one of the stats is how many hits your character took. At least with Medal of Honor you need med packs, but seems like every shooter now a day is following this same, well, if you stand still your magical healing powers will take over. Granted it does make said games much easier, but there should be a limit, no person could go through a German city getting shot 150 times and live, let alone live and still complete the mission.

[cimerians]

here's a good one. Life Bars...where did they go??? Why is every character in a FPS immortal to where if you get shot all you have to do is sit there and you magically heal. For christ sake, I've gone through a mission on Call of Duty II and no shitting, been shot 150 times, one of the stats is how many hits your character took. At least with Medal of Honor you need med packs, but seems like every shooter now a day is following this same, well, if you stand still your magical healing powers will take over. Granted it does make said games much easier, but there should be a limit, no person could go through a German city getting shot 150 times and live, let alone live and still complete the mission.

 

LOL!

 

Funny.

 

I personally hate save points. Let me save anywhere I damn well please. I dont care if it makes the game "too easy". I have a life to live.

 

I'm actually to the point where I may not buy a game if it has save points.....or save points that are just not placed very well.

[shadow460]

How about having to get those stupid licenses on Gran Tourismo before they let you participate in the races. I bought the game, just let me race already. One of the main reasons I think the series sucks.

 

Well said, but the real kicker is getting those stupid gold medals. As if getting the licenses wasn't difficult enough, they throw a carrot out there to make you want gold.

 

Then when someone realizes a flaw in the game prevents it, Poly blames that on the people who designed the controls. AS I said, they can take Gran Turismo and get lost.

After Tourist Trophy (maybe) and the PSP port, I'm done. I'm buying the PSP port only as part of a complete UMD collection.

[Student Driver]

In adventure games: having some required step in the game that is found only through trial and error, not through logic, in-game-story clues, or anything else that would make sense. D had one of these-- the secret passage through the stone wall near the end, required to confront your adversary. There are no clues about that passage in the game, there is nothing visual that would suggest "hey, there's something about that wall... perhaps I should investigate!"

 

Fighting/shooting games that have a boss at the end of each level, then... get this unique idea has you fight every boss one right after the other one more time before getting to the final boss!

 

One on one fighters that have special moves/combos that require controller motions that don't match your character's movements. Most of the special moves in the original SFII kinda make sense-- they match the character movements and you feel like you're charging up or whatever. Half-roll of the joystick, Konami code, and you have to time a jump right at the end... 999 hit combo! Right.

[BydoEmpire]

here's a good one. Life Bars...where did they go??? Why is every character in a FPS immortal to where if you get shot all you have to do is sit there and you magically heal.

That's a good one. It sort of makes sense in a sci-fi game, because maybe your suit has some healing technology, but for anything trying to be "real world" it doesn't make any sense at all.

 

I hate it when game menus list new game first before load game. I'm probably going to be loading a game a lot more than I'll be making a new one so I want it to be the first menu option.

I agree 100% - I don't understand why people don't do this. Edited March 2, 2008 by BydoEmpire

[JohnnyBlaze]

I have a few responses:

 

 

Most of the time, fortunately, those silly mini-games can be bypassed, but the most infuriating situation is when the reward for winning the mini-game is an important item.

 

Much like Zelda if you have to do a necessary upgrade or item(i.e. winning a "baseball" game with your sword in order to win an item you need to enter a dungeon, or winning a target practice game to upgrade your arrow capacity)

 

Going along with that is having to play a mini game to get access to certain things(like the "border jump" in Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga)

 

 

How about protection missions? I mean, my character has big guns and lots of ammo, and yet my hopes of passing a mission rests firmly on the shoulders of a little girl with no weapons and no ammo passing an area the size of a football stadium filled with zombies?I could mop the floor with zombies, but I am forced to navagate an unarmed little girl into some of the most intricate and dangerous territory in the game just to have her get me a coin or jewel that I need to pass through. Worse still, I have to take the little brat with me and make sure she stays alive! What ever happened to "you don't have to be the fastest, just faster than the slowest".

 

Yeah, I know right! Going along with that is the whole "Emma Emmerich" segment from Metal Gear Solid 2. \

 

I'm kicking ass and killing all these terrorists, now all of a sudden, I've gotta babysit and hold hands with a grown up woman?! Then, I gotta hold her while she's swimming and she has the shortest air bar ever! I can't even swim myself and yet now I have to scramble to find an air pocket all because this bitch can't swim!

 

Finally, I have to protect her while she does a tightrope walk to get to the next strut!

 

I damn near threw my controller up against the wall after all of that!

 

 

having some required step in the game that is found only through trial and error, not through logic, in-game-story clues, or anything else that would make sense.

 

 

It's funny you mention that. I'm playing Pokemon Snap and to get to the final area, it's the same thing. There's a switch to open up the gate. You throw food...nothing. You throw Pester Ball...nothing. The most screwed up part is that..THEY GIVE YOU NO CLUES!!! All they say is..."A suspicious switch....Good Luck, Dickbag"(Yes, that is my character name). WHY DON'T YOU TELL ME HOW TO ACTIVATE THE F---ING SWITCH!!!

[Atari5200]

I have 3 more after having some decent bouts with MOH Heroes for PSP, and GRAW for 360 both multi-player gaming.

 

#1. Team killers. My fricking god is that annoying as hell.

#2. Spawn Killers, again, god, makes you feel good to kill someone that just popped up and hasn't had time to even move, lot of skill involved there huh.

#3. hackers. nothing better to ruin a game of all decent players. A great game turned crappy as hell when you have someone manipulating the program that can't die and kills everything it sees. This is what pretty much turned me off of Socom for PSP and is beginning to turn me off of Medal of Honor.

[HammR25]

I also hate all unlockables, especially in racing games. If I buy the game I want to be able to race whatever car on whatever track is in the game. At least provide a cheat code so the people who like unlockables can progress through unlocking them.

 

I remember renting a 007 game for the PS2 and finding out the only way to play multiplayer was to do several of the co-op missions first. Needless to say I took it back and never bought the game because I only wanted it for the 4 player on screen multiplayer.