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You might only see the best before date on food and drink products, but in the gaming world sell by dates do apply don't they? surely they do, popular games stay on the shelves and the poor games never see the light of day after poor sales and reviews, but how do we know when a game is past its sell by date? Well thats tough, because we can't really, its all down to personal preference, but there a few factors that must influence us to leave one game begging to be taken off the shelf and another which is being grabbed off every day, still don't know what i mean? allow me to explain..
Just how many of you have been put off by a poor conversions? There must be quite a few of us and i'm not alone i'm sure in saying that us gamers get treated pretty badly in some cases. Many times we wait for games to be converted from either another platform or an arcade port and even from japan or the US and guess what, it takes forever to come out and by the time it does we have been waiting for so long that we move onto other games, its common fact that many coversions are lazy and cheap, sometimes we wonder how on earth they got out of the door. Graphics engines age very quickly in the gaming world, and leaving a 9 month gap for a conversion isnt doing the game any favours, sometimes conversions from other platforms tend to have poorer graphics in certain cases and no extra features for making us wait for the game, surely this annoys many of you and by the time you get your hands on it you are sorely disappointed, all we can do really is rely on the developer of the game to get a good conversion out of the door in as little time as possible, if you can't trust a developer, who can you trust?
Another common factor that puts people off some games is the dreaded conversions from PAL to NTSC, over the years this has become a massive issue and in recent years people have started to really get fed up of slow and boarded games whilst paying more than most places. Boarders and slowdown put me off some games a lot because it tends to ruin the experience, it doesn't matter how great the game is, there is no excuse for a lazy port for the PAL owners, we now expect every game to have a 50/60hz switch so that we can experience the games at the speed they are supposed to be played at, whether or not lazy ports or conversions get wiped out in years to come remains to be seen, hopefully it will be, its the least we deserve.
Another problem some games tend to have following a conversion is that they don't seem to sell as well as the same game on another platform, this could be becuase people own the game already or the game doesn't offer anything really new over the same game on another platform, i think people today expect to have some bonus material such as extra levels, touched up graphics, and even bonus DVD footage, its the little touches that count.
Sometimes though it can be effected by the populariy of the game or even the console, if more people own one console then they are going to favour buying the game on that instead of buying another console for the same game, and if the game is poor then usually it could get a conversion to boost sales, many times though this backfires, and rightly so!
Poor Reviews and bad press tend to have a big imact on a game, if say one scores highly and has massive sales then it could be pushed for a conversion so that every platform can enjoy the game instead of people having to play it on one platform, successful games usually have tv adds and generally offer a great experience, but poor games tend to be hidden away and slowly let out for releasing, but as soon as the magazines and websites get hold of it they will rip it to pieces, all it takes is for people to read the views of others and the game is blanked.
But out of date games do not just revolve around these apsects of the gaming world, it could just be that you have finished the game and it no longer interests you, it could be that you have bought it and its just not the game for you, i like every other gamer shelfs a game when its completed or you have got tired of it, there are a lot of reasons why a game is past its sell by date, but think about why your games got past their sell by date at the time, have a look through your collection and see, you will be surprised.Best before? you decide..
Just how many of you have been put off by a poor conversions? There must be quite a few of us and i'm not alone i'm sure in saying that us gamers get treated pretty badly in some cases. Many times we wait for games to be converted from either another platform or an arcade port and even from japan or the US and guess what, it takes forever to come out and by the time it does we have been waiting for so long that we move onto other games, its common fact that many coversions are lazy and cheap, sometimes we wonder how on earth they got out of the door. Graphics engines age very quickly in the gaming world, and leaving a 9 month gap for a conversion isnt doing the game any favours, sometimes conversions from other platforms tend to have poorer graphics in certain cases and no extra features for making us wait for the game, surely this annoys many of you and by the time you get your hands on it you are sorely disappointed, all we can do really is rely on the developer of the game to get a good conversion out of the door in as little time as possible, if you can't trust a developer, who can you trust?
Another common factor that puts people off some games is the dreaded conversions from PAL to NTSC, over the years this has become a massive issue and in recent years people have started to really get fed up of slow and boarded games whilst paying more than most places. Boarders and slowdown put me off some games a lot because it tends to ruin the experience, it doesn't matter how great the game is, there is no excuse for a lazy port for the PAL owners, we now expect every game to have a 50/60hz switch so that we can experience the games at the speed they are supposed to be played at, whether or not lazy ports or conversions get wiped out in years to come remains to be seen, hopefully it will be, its the least we deserve.
Another problem some games tend to have following a conversion is that they don't seem to sell as well as the same game on another platform, this could be becuase people own the game already or the game doesn't offer anything really new over the same game on another platform, i think people today expect to have some bonus material such as extra levels, touched up graphics, and even bonus DVD footage, its the little touches that count.
Sometimes though it can be effected by the populariy of the game or even the console, if more people own one console then they are going to favour buying the game on that instead of buying another console for the same game, and if the game is poor then usually it could get a conversion to boost sales, many times though this backfires, and rightly so!
Poor Reviews and bad press tend to have a big imact on a game, if say one scores highly and has massive sales then it could be pushed for a conversion so that every platform can enjoy the game instead of people having to play it on one platform, successful games usually have tv adds and generally offer a great experience, but poor games tend to be hidden away and slowly let out for releasing, but as soon as the magazines and websites get hold of it they will rip it to pieces, all it takes is for people to read the views of others and the game is blanked.
But out of date games do not just revolve around these apsects of the gaming world, it could just be that you have finished the game and it no longer interests you, it could be that you have bought it and its just not the game for you, i like every other gamer shelfs a game when its completed or you have got tired of it, there are a lot of reasons why a game is past its sell by date, but think about why your games got past their sell by date at the time, have a look through your collection and see, you will be surprised.Best before? you decide..
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lol
No, it doesnt bother me the slightest,its good for you and the forums.
Anyway, ill be back after the exams are over, watch and see. :p
No, it doesnt bother me the slightest,its good for you and the forums.
Anyway, ill be back after the exams are over, watch and see. :p
Thanks spike...and a bit of jealousy there Pro Evo?
Well done Speck, more GAD's for the forum is a good thing....and good for you i guess. :D
Yeah i agree with you mate, the PS2 forum seems to get better everyday! congrats to you to :)
Welldone Spike Cast! I beleive thats 2 Sony forums posters winnig in a row! Congrats to me and you!
Thanks Very much SR! I dunno what to cliam now! i'm stuck for choice!
Yer i think linear games wear out quikly. Like i never play games such as Medal Of Honour or MGS2 once i have completed them. Even for the extras...i like enjoying games and i feel if you play a game that you know whats gonna happen then your wasting your time being bored. Where as a game like Pro Evo is different every time. It's unpredictable, fun to play, therefore lasts a long time, until Pro Evo 2 comes alon, exposes it to the sun, and makes it mouldy.
There are a number of games in my collection that i have to say that are out of date, for many of the reasons that you have mentioned too.
Mainly, its either because i have finished the game already, and when the games are like Silent Hill 2, and Tomb Raider, once you have finished them, thats it, there isnt much point in playing them again. Like some have said, this is closely related to replayability. Games are less likely to go out of date if there is more there for you to keep playing at, this is why the likes of GTA 3 and MGS2 are played over and over, and why they seem to last longer before going out of date than other games. I have now finished many games that are like Tomb Raider, and although i will keep them, i wont play on them for all that much anymore.
Another major facter is that basicly, a new version of the game has come out, so i have no need for the older one. This has happened to me mainly on the PS1, but there are examples on the PS2. Take SSX and SSX Tricky. I own both. They are both very similar, but tricky has improved stuff on it, and generally plays better, so in the end i have no real need to play it anymore. Its the same as when new ISS games come out, Driver too. If theres a better version, your more likely to let the old one collect dust than the newer one.
Games are always going to become out of date at some point though, but thats not to say that they will not be enjoyable...I still play my Nes a fair bit, as do i my Snes and Mega Drive, these games are very out of date, but still damn fun.
Good Post.
Mainly, its either because i have finished the game already, and when the games are like Silent Hill 2, and Tomb Raider, once you have finished them, thats it, there isnt much point in playing them again. Like some have said, this is closely related to replayability. Games are less likely to go out of date if there is more there for you to keep playing at, this is why the likes of GTA 3 and MGS2 are played over and over, and why they seem to last longer before going out of date than other games. I have now finished many games that are like Tomb Raider, and although i will keep them, i wont play on them for all that much anymore.
Another major facter is that basicly, a new version of the game has come out, so i have no need for the older one. This has happened to me mainly on the PS1, but there are examples on the PS2. Take SSX and SSX Tricky. I own both. They are both very similar, but tricky has improved stuff on it, and generally plays better, so in the end i have no real need to play it anymore. Its the same as when new ISS games come out, Driver too. If theres a better version, your more likely to let the old one collect dust than the newer one.
Games are always going to become out of date at some point though, but thats not to say that they will not be enjoyable...I still play my Nes a fair bit, as do i my Snes and Mega Drive, these games are very out of date, but still damn fun.
Good Post.
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