I'm not what most would consider an "old-school" gamer. My first real console was the SNES, not the NES. Super Mario 64 is what defined my generation, not the original Mario Brothers. I'm more comfortable in a 3D Hyrule than I am in a 2D one (Which isn't to say I didn't love A Link to the Past, but that's another story).
Those things being said, I have a problem. Last Christmas, I received an Xbox 360. It was a great gift, because I'd been hearing so much about The Orange Box, and how my computer would never be able to run it. Today, the 360 is one of my favorite consoles; I play it more than any other that I currently own.
My problem is this: I think I get too much satisfaction out of achievements and being connected to the Internet. At first, they were just neat little distractions... Now they've become a bit of an obsession. Earning them is nearly half the fun of the game for me.
Now, this wouldn't be a problem on it's own, at least not for most people. The thing is, I find that my perception of gaming has now shifted. I get less enjoyment out of games that lack some kind of achievement system, or a method to connect to the Internet. Considering the fact that I have a huge PS1/PS2 library of games, I find this a little bit disturbing.
Example:
I owned the PS2 version of Bully before I owned the 360 version. I thought that the 360 version was inferior, due to the fact that it's graphics weren't all that much of an improvement, and it had framerate issues up the wazoo... And yet it was the version I finished first, mostly because I knew I was going to get achievements out of it. To this day, I have not finished the PS2 version of Bully.
Like I said, I'm not an old-school gamer in the strictest usage of the term... But I used to think I could get as much out of beating a game and being the only one to know it as I could beating a game and telling the whole world about it... In fact, that was one of my main arguments behind putting off buying a 360. And yet, here I sit, finding that I'll play a 360 game over a classic PS2 or PS1 title, simply because everyone else will know.
My question is this: Have any of you run into the same problem? Do you find yourself getting less out of games that don't have achievements or any way to go online?
Those things being said, I have a problem. Last Christmas, I received an Xbox 360. It was a great gift, because I'd been hearing so much about The Orange Box, and how my computer would never be able to run it. Today, the 360 is one of my favorite consoles; I play it more than any other that I currently own.
My problem is this: I think I get too much satisfaction out of achievements and being connected to the Internet. At first, they were just neat little distractions... Now they've become a bit of an obsession. Earning them is nearly half the fun of the game for me.
Now, this wouldn't be a problem on it's own, at least not for most people. The thing is, I find that my perception of gaming has now shifted. I get less enjoyment out of games that lack some kind of achievement system, or a method to connect to the Internet. Considering the fact that I have a huge PS1/PS2 library of games, I find this a little bit disturbing.
Example:
I owned the PS2 version of Bully before I owned the 360 version. I thought that the 360 version was inferior, due to the fact that it's graphics weren't all that much of an improvement, and it had framerate issues up the wazoo... And yet it was the version I finished first, mostly because I knew I was going to get achievements out of it. To this day, I have not finished the PS2 version of Bully.
Like I said, I'm not an old-school gamer in the strictest usage of the term... But I used to think I could get as much out of beating a game and being the only one to know it as I could beating a game and telling the whole world about it... In fact, that was one of my main arguments behind putting off buying a 360. And yet, here I sit, finding that I'll play a 360 game over a classic PS2 or PS1 title, simply because everyone else will know.
My question is this: Have any of you run into the same problem? Do you find yourself getting less out of games that don't have achievements or any way to go online?
