After reading all the hate for games like halo 2, fable, metroid prime, zelda wind walker, metal gear solid 2 etc etc etc I got to thinking:
What I noticed is this forum has a large collection of game critics, it reminds of a smaller section of the movie critic scene. Go check out some movies you like and see what critics say about them, in large part actual readers regularly rank movies much higher than the critics. When compared to the masses, critics have a distorted view, probably because they are so over involved that any weak points are exagerated and to them are show stoppers. The backlash that you see on these threads for many popular games is largely tamed or non exsistent with the masses. What I have noticed in life as well as games is if you do something too much you will enjoy it less and less, as the saying goes, variety is the spice of life.
Take halo 2, the newest game that has let down so many on this forum. I keep thinking to myself, what game is doing it better that people can honestly say halo 2 is a tremendous let down? As soon as you mention that game(s) the same critique you used against halo 2 can be used against every game ever made. My favorites are poor level design, poor art, bad story, all so subjective and often never elaborated on that they are meaningless outside the person making the claims. I could understand poor controls, or too easy or too hard, or graphics below current standards, with elaboration these could shed light on things that may hinder enjoyment.
I enjoyed fable because of the fun combat, rich enviroments and was loaded with treasure and quests. It wasnt perfect, or even close, the game was way too easy because it didnt compensate for the strength of your character, the village and people portion were not linked to the core quests and felt like a side show, and the good versus evil aspects had little impact on the main quest gameplay. That said, none of these things prevented me from having fun, which is the most important part of any game experience. When I think of most of the games ive played for the xbox, (more than 70 since i got the xbox in 2001) most games did not give me the amount of fun it did. Compared to the other action adventure games ive played on the xbox Fable is better than the majority, but on this forum you would think the game was utter rubbish, mostly I think because the game critics are over involved, over informed, over hyped and can no longer enjoy a gaming experience like they once could.
If you are not enjoying games like you used to, cant see why so many people are enjoying something you hated, or most games you play seem like work then heres my advice
play less, stop reading previews, and play a variety of different genres. Ive been there, was a hardcore pc gamer who was getting 40 games a year and finishing less and less as time went by. I was getting games, played a couple levels and never touch them again, always looking for gaming nirvana. Now I play console games, enjoy the majority of games I play, play every genre out there, including ones I loathed like turn based rpgs. Now because I tried KOTOR I can try others without my former prejudices.
Happy gaming
What I noticed is this forum has a large collection of game critics, it reminds of a smaller section of the movie critic scene. Go check out some movies you like and see what critics say about them, in large part actual readers regularly rank movies much higher than the critics. When compared to the masses, critics have a distorted view, probably because they are so over involved that any weak points are exagerated and to them are show stoppers. The backlash that you see on these threads for many popular games is largely tamed or non exsistent with the masses. What I have noticed in life as well as games is if you do something too much you will enjoy it less and less, as the saying goes, variety is the spice of life.
Take halo 2, the newest game that has let down so many on this forum. I keep thinking to myself, what game is doing it better that people can honestly say halo 2 is a tremendous let down? As soon as you mention that game(s) the same critique you used against halo 2 can be used against every game ever made. My favorites are poor level design, poor art, bad story, all so subjective and often never elaborated on that they are meaningless outside the person making the claims. I could understand poor controls, or too easy or too hard, or graphics below current standards, with elaboration these could shed light on things that may hinder enjoyment.
I enjoyed fable because of the fun combat, rich enviroments and was loaded with treasure and quests. It wasnt perfect, or even close, the game was way too easy because it didnt compensate for the strength of your character, the village and people portion were not linked to the core quests and felt like a side show, and the good versus evil aspects had little impact on the main quest gameplay. That said, none of these things prevented me from having fun, which is the most important part of any game experience. When I think of most of the games ive played for the xbox, (more than 70 since i got the xbox in 2001) most games did not give me the amount of fun it did. Compared to the other action adventure games ive played on the xbox Fable is better than the majority, but on this forum you would think the game was utter rubbish, mostly I think because the game critics are over involved, over informed, over hyped and can no longer enjoy a gaming experience like they once could.
If you are not enjoying games like you used to, cant see why so many people are enjoying something you hated, or most games you play seem like work then heres my advice
play less, stop reading previews, and play a variety of different genres. Ive been there, was a hardcore pc gamer who was getting 40 games a year and finishing less and less as time went by. I was getting games, played a couple levels and never touch them again, always looking for gaming nirvana. Now I play console games, enjoy the majority of games I play, play every genre out there, including ones I loathed like turn based rpgs. Now because I tried KOTOR I can try others without my former prejudices.
Happy gaming
