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Videogames, a favourite pastime for many of you here on these forums, I know, and I am also one who has enjoyed gaming for a number of years now. What are the stereotypical characteristics you look for in a game though, when buying? Do you look for thrilling action? Gleaming visuals that make you wonder just how the developers do it? What about violence?
I don’t look for anything of the sort these days. All I want to know is how much the title is going to occupy me, and the value for money I get when playing, and sometimes when shelling out on these next generation formats I have serious doubts about whether I’m getting what I want. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt that so many titles are too short. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt there have been a catalogue of lazy ports, lazy look-alikes and lazy licences used on films that have been given injustice to what they should be.
Take the first couple of Lord of the Rings titles released across pretty much every platform known to man, as a first example. I have no gripes with either game; they are both solid titles offering an enjoyable and well-structured quest – for about an evening. That is what annoys me so much, the fact that the idle developers create an identical game for every platform, release it for £40 a pop, which most mums shopping for Christmas dish out without a second thought, and give in return a measly evenings play. Admittedly that isn’t including collecting extras or a second serving, but in my opinion they should be considered fringe benefits, and not part of the overall venture time.
And the even more distressing fact? It seems to be catching on with more of the critically acclaimed developers, even like Rare or Nintendo. Take the latest Banjo Kazooie outing, on the Gameboy Advance. Now I don’t know about you, but I’ve always thought that Rare titles, and especially Banjo Kazooie titles, were of pretty substantial length regardless of which platform they were released on. The latest GBA version, whilst being joyous to play, offered no more than 6 or 7 hours play time, and that was including most of the extras.
With more and more similar titles finding their way onto the scene, 3rd person stealth games with mechanics that might as well match the next shelf filler, things aren’t getting better. Not only is the length of games shortening but also it seems the original ideas pumped into them seem to be getting no more than trickle of ingenuity. The only excitingly different prospects looking to hit our screens this year appear to be Donkey Konga and Animal Crossing. Even the three biggest kingpins of the industry are taking leaves out of each others books with regards to music innovations. Singstar? Music Mixer? Hmph.
The solution? Well there has been one effort that I happily remove my hat to this year. Beyond Good & Evil, a nicely adapted 3rd person adventure with all the fun of any other, released at a generous price of just £20. Why? It only boasted a limited quest. I really enjoyed this title, and got upwards of 8 hours game play when playing it, which isn’t at all bad when you think about it. Actually, I only got double that playing Zelda: The Wind Waker, which I forked out full price for. I think the choice Ubisoft made to slash this price was a brilliant one. It’s all about performance related pay, and Beyond Good & Evil got it spot on.
Sadly, I can’t see this happening too much in the future, despite a pleasing amount of ports getting the price slash treatment. I actually enjoyed the latest “lazy licence” use quite a lot as well, Spider-Man 2 offered more than enough fun and longevity to warrant its price, and The Chronicles of Riddick looks set to do the same. But then you look back on recent months and you also see shoddy ports like a couple of the Resident Evil titles transferred to the Gamecube. “Why? Why? Why?” springs to mind, as my long for lifespan continues, as well as my decision to reject as many lazy titles as possible.
Thanks for reading, thoughts and opinions more than welcome.
I don’t look for anything of the sort these days. All I want to know is how much the title is going to occupy me, and the value for money I get when playing, and sometimes when shelling out on these next generation formats I have serious doubts about whether I’m getting what I want. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt that so many titles are too short. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt there have been a catalogue of lazy ports, lazy look-alikes and lazy licences used on films that have been given injustice to what they should be.
Take the first couple of Lord of the Rings titles released across pretty much every platform known to man, as a first example. I have no gripes with either game; they are both solid titles offering an enjoyable and well-structured quest – for about an evening. That is what annoys me so much, the fact that the idle developers create an identical game for every platform, release it for £40 a pop, which most mums shopping for Christmas dish out without a second thought, and give in return a measly evenings play. Admittedly that isn’t including collecting extras or a second serving, but in my opinion they should be considered fringe benefits, and not part of the overall venture time.
And the even more distressing fact? It seems to be catching on with more of the critically acclaimed developers, even like Rare or Nintendo. Take the latest Banjo Kazooie outing, on the Gameboy Advance. Now I don’t know about you, but I’ve always thought that Rare titles, and especially Banjo Kazooie titles, were of pretty substantial length regardless of which platform they were released on. The latest GBA version, whilst being joyous to play, offered no more than 6 or 7 hours play time, and that was including most of the extras.
With more and more similar titles finding their way onto the scene, 3rd person stealth games with mechanics that might as well match the next shelf filler, things aren’t getting better. Not only is the length of games shortening but also it seems the original ideas pumped into them seem to be getting no more than trickle of ingenuity. The only excitingly different prospects looking to hit our screens this year appear to be Donkey Konga and Animal Crossing. Even the three biggest kingpins of the industry are taking leaves out of each others books with regards to music innovations. Singstar? Music Mixer? Hmph.
The solution? Well there has been one effort that I happily remove my hat to this year. Beyond Good & Evil, a nicely adapted 3rd person adventure with all the fun of any other, released at a generous price of just £20. Why? It only boasted a limited quest. I really enjoyed this title, and got upwards of 8 hours game play when playing it, which isn’t at all bad when you think about it. Actually, I only got double that playing Zelda: The Wind Waker, which I forked out full price for. I think the choice Ubisoft made to slash this price was a brilliant one. It’s all about performance related pay, and Beyond Good & Evil got it spot on.
Sadly, I can’t see this happening too much in the future, despite a pleasing amount of ports getting the price slash treatment. I actually enjoyed the latest “lazy licence” use quite a lot as well, Spider-Man 2 offered more than enough fun and longevity to warrant its price, and The Chronicles of Riddick looks set to do the same. But then you look back on recent months and you also see shoddy ports like a couple of the Resident Evil titles transferred to the Gamecube. “Why? Why? Why?” springs to mind, as my long for lifespan continues, as well as my decision to reject as many lazy titles as possible.
Thanks for reading, thoughts and opinions more than welcome.
Funny you should say that.
There's only been two full priced games I've bought over the last year.
Beyond Good and Evil, which I was pleased with, and Mario Kart Double Dash which I hugely regret! :-)
Even the Windwaker from May 2003 left me feeling let down.
But c'est la vie.
Besides, I think I'm going off this whole games thing anysway...
There's only been two full priced games I've bought over the last year.
Beyond Good and Evil, which I was pleased with, and Mario Kart Double Dash which I hugely regret! :-)
Even the Windwaker from May 2003 left me feeling let down.
But c'est la vie.
Besides, I think I'm going off this whole games thing anysway...
Although you can't really relate it to length of gameplay, Rise of Nations was an utter piece of crap.
There.
There.
I agree with Wakka for once, they are insanely short nowadays. For my brother's birthday he received KOTOR, got straight into it and by the end of the day (about 8 hours later) had completed it. What a waste of forty quid I thought.
Ashman, you're right too, fortunately the only genre not to suffer so far has been racing games. I've been playing PGR2 for a few months now, on and off and it's still not fully complete, and still gives me hours of endless fun, even though it does p!ss me off how hard it is to complete sometimes :D
Ashman, you're right too, fortunately the only genre not to suffer so far has been racing games. I've been playing PGR2 for a few months now, on and off and it's still not fully complete, and still gives me hours of endless fun, even though it does p!ss me off how hard it is to complete sometimes :D
The one genre that hasn't suffered and seems lengthier than ever would have to be the racing genre. You don't have to look past PGR2, Rallisport Challenge 2 and TOCA on the Xbox, or Gran Turismo 4 out this year on the PS2 to realise that.
I felt that the Zelda titles began a slip in length starting with the mammoth Ocarina of Time, then to Majora's Mask, a little shorter, and now Wind Waker, even shorter again. Deep down there is always the fear that this could carry over to the new realistic Zelda due out next year, and to be honest I wouldn't mind waiting until Christmas 2005 as long as we receive a sequel to do justice to OOT on the 64.
Film licences really get on my nerves now though, and even the latest Bond, which tried to be different, was overwhelmingly disappointing. I don't have high hopes for this new Goldeneye either, it again seems nothing will match the quality released on the N64.
I felt that the Zelda titles began a slip in length starting with the mammoth Ocarina of Time, then to Majora's Mask, a little shorter, and now Wind Waker, even shorter again. Deep down there is always the fear that this could carry over to the new realistic Zelda due out next year, and to be honest I wouldn't mind waiting until Christmas 2005 as long as we receive a sequel to do justice to OOT on the 64.
Film licences really get on my nerves now though, and even the latest Bond, which tried to be different, was overwhelmingly disappointing. I don't have high hopes for this new Goldeneye either, it again seems nothing will match the quality released on the N64.
I agree that a lot of games are getting much shorter these days and it's definitely not a change that I like. I think this is also happening to a genre of games which I never thought possible: Role Playing Games. The latest Final Fantasy was extremely short even after the extra parts and was not worth the price.
It seems a long time since I turned on my Sega MegaDrive to play Shining Force 2 but it was a lot longer than modern day releases. Maybe I was just young, but I felt that it took ages and ages to totally level up your characters and rinse out the game.
These days, platformers are even shorter. Maybe with the exception of JAK 2, all the other platformers take a matter of hours to fully complete. Yet they still charge you at fourty pounds . Maybe it is brilliant fun, but it is definitely very limited enjoyment.
Until the developers get this into their heads then I am considering not buying many more games thse days.
It seems a long time since I turned on my Sega MegaDrive to play Shining Force 2 but it was a lot longer than modern day releases. Maybe I was just young, but I felt that it took ages and ages to totally level up your characters and rinse out the game.
These days, platformers are even shorter. Maybe with the exception of JAK 2, all the other platformers take a matter of hours to fully complete. Yet they still charge you at fourty pounds . Maybe it is brilliant fun, but it is definitely very limited enjoyment.
Until the developers get this into their heads then I am considering not buying many more games thse days.
Videogames, a favourite pastime for many of you here on these forums, I know, and I am also one who has enjoyed gaming for a number of years now. What are the stereotypical characteristics you look for in a game though, when buying? Do you look for thrilling action? Gleaming visuals that make you wonder just how the developers do it? What about violence?
I don’t look for anything of the sort these days. All I want to know is how much the title is going to occupy me, and the value for money I get when playing, and sometimes when shelling out on these next generation formats I have serious doubts about whether I’m getting what I want. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt that so many titles are too short. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt there have been a catalogue of lazy ports, lazy look-alikes and lazy licences used on films that have been given injustice to what they should be.
Take the first couple of Lord of the Rings titles released across pretty much every platform known to man, as a first example. I have no gripes with either game; they are both solid titles offering an enjoyable and well-structured quest – for about an evening. That is what annoys me so much, the fact that the idle developers create an identical game for every platform, release it for £40 a pop, which most mums shopping for Christmas dish out without a second thought, and give in return a measly evenings play. Admittedly that isn’t including collecting extras or a second serving, but in my opinion they should be considered fringe benefits, and not part of the overall venture time.
And the even more distressing fact? It seems to be catching on with more of the critically acclaimed developers, even like Rare or Nintendo. Take the latest Banjo Kazooie outing, on the Gameboy Advance. Now I don’t know about you, but I’ve always thought that Rare titles, and especially Banjo Kazooie titles, were of pretty substantial length regardless of which platform they were released on. The latest GBA version, whilst being joyous to play, offered no more than 6 or 7 hours play time, and that was including most of the extras.
With more and more similar titles finding their way onto the scene, 3rd person stealth games with mechanics that might as well match the next shelf filler, things aren’t getting better. Not only is the length of games shortening but also it seems the original ideas pumped into them seem to be getting no more than trickle of ingenuity. The only excitingly different prospects looking to hit our screens this year appear to be Donkey Konga and Animal Crossing. Even the three biggest kingpins of the industry are taking leaves out of each others books with regards to music innovations. Singstar? Music Mixer? Hmph.
The solution? Well there has been one effort that I happily remove my hat to this year. Beyond Good & Evil, a nicely adapted 3rd person adventure with all the fun of any other, released at a generous price of just £20. Why? It only boasted a limited quest. I really enjoyed this title, and got upwards of 8 hours game play when playing it, which isn’t at all bad when you think about it. Actually, I only got double that playing Zelda: The Wind Waker, which I forked out full price for. I think the choice Ubisoft made to slash this price was a brilliant one. It’s all about performance related pay, and Beyond Good & Evil got it spot on.
Sadly, I can’t see this happening too much in the future, despite a pleasing amount of ports getting the price slash treatment. I actually enjoyed the latest “lazy licence” use quite a lot as well, Spider-Man 2 offered more than enough fun and longevity to warrant its price, and The Chronicles of Riddick looks set to do the same. But then you look back on recent months and you also see shoddy ports like a couple of the Resident Evil titles transferred to the Gamecube. “Why? Why? Why?” springs to mind, as my long for lifespan continues, as well as my decision to reject as many lazy titles as possible.
Thanks for reading, thoughts and opinions more than welcome.
I don’t look for anything of the sort these days. All I want to know is how much the title is going to occupy me, and the value for money I get when playing, and sometimes when shelling out on these next generation formats I have serious doubts about whether I’m getting what I want. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt that so many titles are too short. Ever since the death of the N64 I have felt there have been a catalogue of lazy ports, lazy look-alikes and lazy licences used on films that have been given injustice to what they should be.
Take the first couple of Lord of the Rings titles released across pretty much every platform known to man, as a first example. I have no gripes with either game; they are both solid titles offering an enjoyable and well-structured quest – for about an evening. That is what annoys me so much, the fact that the idle developers create an identical game for every platform, release it for £40 a pop, which most mums shopping for Christmas dish out without a second thought, and give in return a measly evenings play. Admittedly that isn’t including collecting extras or a second serving, but in my opinion they should be considered fringe benefits, and not part of the overall venture time.
And the even more distressing fact? It seems to be catching on with more of the critically acclaimed developers, even like Rare or Nintendo. Take the latest Banjo Kazooie outing, on the Gameboy Advance. Now I don’t know about you, but I’ve always thought that Rare titles, and especially Banjo Kazooie titles, were of pretty substantial length regardless of which platform they were released on. The latest GBA version, whilst being joyous to play, offered no more than 6 or 7 hours play time, and that was including most of the extras.
With more and more similar titles finding their way onto the scene, 3rd person stealth games with mechanics that might as well match the next shelf filler, things aren’t getting better. Not only is the length of games shortening but also it seems the original ideas pumped into them seem to be getting no more than trickle of ingenuity. The only excitingly different prospects looking to hit our screens this year appear to be Donkey Konga and Animal Crossing. Even the three biggest kingpins of the industry are taking leaves out of each others books with regards to music innovations. Singstar? Music Mixer? Hmph.
The solution? Well there has been one effort that I happily remove my hat to this year. Beyond Good & Evil, a nicely adapted 3rd person adventure with all the fun of any other, released at a generous price of just £20. Why? It only boasted a limited quest. I really enjoyed this title, and got upwards of 8 hours game play when playing it, which isn’t at all bad when you think about it. Actually, I only got double that playing Zelda: The Wind Waker, which I forked out full price for. I think the choice Ubisoft made to slash this price was a brilliant one. It’s all about performance related pay, and Beyond Good & Evil got it spot on.
Sadly, I can’t see this happening too much in the future, despite a pleasing amount of ports getting the price slash treatment. I actually enjoyed the latest “lazy licence” use quite a lot as well, Spider-Man 2 offered more than enough fun and longevity to warrant its price, and The Chronicles of Riddick looks set to do the same. But then you look back on recent months and you also see shoddy ports like a couple of the Resident Evil titles transferred to the Gamecube. “Why? Why? Why?” springs to mind, as my long for lifespan continues, as well as my decision to reject as many lazy titles as possible.
Thanks for reading, thoughts and opinions more than welcome.