I'm Upset that I Hate Good Games

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EyeReaper

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Aug 17, 2011
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I think we've all been there. for example, i hated the Dead Space series, because they simply were not scary to me. I also used to get all sorts of shit from my friends for not liking Halo and league of legends. But who cares? you like what you like, right?
 

scorptatious

The Resident Team ICO Fanboy
May 14, 2009
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We're all individuals. We all have a certain taste when it comes to what we enjoy in games.

For example, I consider Shadow of the Colossus my most favorite game, but there are people who dislike the game. Nothing I can really do about that.

So no, you aren't being arrogant, at least I don't think you are, you just don't enjoy those particular games. Nothing wrong with that.
 

Vern5

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DoPo said:
Brown Cap said:
I learned that Dragon Age was a Bioware creation, and I thought if it's anything like KOTR and Mass Effect, I'd love it. I was dead wrong. Preemptively, I bought the first two games, used, for less than 50 dollars. As soon as I started playing I was very disappointed. A voiceless protagonist, boring quests, and simple, unimaginative combat made me hate the game.
Wait, I don't see what were you expecting exactly. You did describe all BioWare games, you know. They all share the same formula with some permutations, but at its core it's what you described. Heck, "voiceless protagonist" should be one of the best know features, as Shepard was the first (I think) voiced one, KOTOR had you pick dialogue options, in NWN you could at least choose what exclamations and grunts your character would make during combat but otherwise still chose dialogue options silently. The quests are nothing but standard. OK, occasionally you get thrown a riddle (still a standard one) by a BioWare game but that's not really the expectation. For what it's worth, the combat is probably one of the better ones I've seen in a BioWare game. Especially compared to KOTOR[footnote]where you a) slice everybody witha lightsabre and win or b) kill everybody with Force powers and win. It still boils down to "keep doing what you're doing" [/footnote] and Mass Effect where things were better but still I wouldn't call the combat the opposite of "boring and unimaginative". ME2 really went into boring and unimaginative by being a straight up shooter.

I'm not saying you should like DA:O, I don't (don't hate it either) but I really don't understand the reasoning you mention, as DA:O is playing the BioWare formula to the max. Heck, put of all BioWare games, it might have gotten it the best.
The funny thing is that Bioware rarely had very compelling dialogue for its protagonists up until DA:O and halfway through ME1. Bioware is lauded for its "outstanding" dialogue, but the majority of it boiled down to stale characterization for everyone who wasn't the player character and a set of three choices for the PC:

1) Nice response of supreme niceness.
2) Pure greed as a cheap stand in for "Ethical Neutrality"
3) "I will kill you and rape any pets you own for no sane or plausible reason"

Even with Bioware improving or expanding upon their formula their games are all extremely formulaic. Basically, all Bioware games are the same game in slightly different flavors.

OT: No one should feel bad for not liking a Bioware game and especially not for an Uncharted game. These are technically niche games with a very large population. However, if you don't find yourself a part of that particular niche, nothing but imagination or perseverance will get you through that game.
 

sXeth

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Nov 15, 2012
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I wouldn't go so far as to say "Hate", but there's definitely a lot of games I'd be at cross-odds to mass-consensus on. Quite often the "story" games I end up dissatisfied with as the gameplay ends up lacking polish, and replayability is often null on them (once you've seen the story, well thats it.). The sandbox/open worlds I usually find too unfocused and lacking any real drive to accomplish things. Random mayhem can be fun enough for a few hours, but then you're left with an expended toy. Polish again goes by the wayside a lot in those too. A favorite quote of mine on Skyrim was "Well, 87 million dollars and they couldn't animate people walking through doors".
 

RyQ_TMC

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The Wykydtron said:
Well I really didn't like good old Deus Ex. Apparently it's like the best game ever or something... Couldn't even get past the first 3 hours or so, I can deal with something looking like shit but I had no interest in the world at all.
Same here. I tried repeatedly, first with the demo when it came out (so no graphics bias there for me), then with a GOTY edition which came with a magazine some years later. It simply failed to pull me in.

Recently, I had a similar experience with Dishonored. Just no motivation to follow the story. "Here's Empress Uglyface, you love her a whole bunch, now she's dead! And you care a lot and want revenge!" And then a bunch of guys I've just met start ordering me around. Sorry, not my thing.

Brown Cap said:
I understand that if you don't like a game, one simply shouldn't play it, but are these games true works that deserve to be played through?
Neither Uncharted nor DA:O are something that has to be experienced. Frankly, I'm not a big believer in the whole "you have to know the classics" mentality, except maybe in literature. However, if we're talking about Dragon Age, then the "classics" you want to experience are Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment.
 

The White Hunter

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Oct 19, 2011
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Brown Cap said:
This Summer, I had a lot of games to play. I must have been living under a rock, because I hadn't played some stellar games that my friends had highly recommended.
I learned that Dragon Age was a Bioware creation, and I thought if it's anything like Mass Effect, I'd love it. I was dead wrong. Preemptively, I bought the first two games, used, for less than 50 dollars. As soon as I started playing I was very disappointed. A voiceless protagonist, boring quests, and simple, unimaginative combat made me hate the game.
Perhaps I merely set my expectations to high, but I was severely disappointed.

A friend of mine lent me all three of the Uncharted Series, and I was excited to play them. He raved up and down on how much he enjoyed it, but by the time I reached Chapter 6, I didn't want anything to do with it. The gunfights were boring, frequent, and repetitive, and it became and actual chore to play.

I guess the discussion I'm trying to reach is a few topics.
- Am I just being arrogant towards these games? Is there a hidden allure to these games that I'm missing?
- Are there any games that have let you down, despite good reviews?
- I understand that if you don't like a game, one simply shouldn't play it, but are these games true works that deserve to be played through?
Well with Uncharted I really didn't enjoy the first one and indeed couldn't be bothered to suffer til the end of it, the second one was great and swept me up in it's stupid campy indiana jones bullshit. I also found the third entry frustrating but I recently hammered my way through the Vita one and found myself thoroughly enjoying it for similar reasons to Uncharted 2.

Dragon Age is pretty boring, the first is a better game but it's no good played on lower difficulties and can be a pain on higher ones. I dislike how it never fucking tells you a damn thing and throws in piles of backlog into an encyclopedia rather than explaining stuff.

I would say maybe try Uncharted 2 if you started with one. It's better. Doesn't require sixaxis either. But if you don't like them that's fine, they aren't to everyones taste and I personally find them hit and miss.

Onto the questionsL
1) No, there's no accounting for taste and if you dislike them well don't worry about it.

2) I despise Mass Effect, for the above reason of encyclopedias thrown at me and the game generally being dull, particularly the second one. I also don't really like Dead Space (I managed to get into the first one with some effort but I hit a turret section and well, fuck that shit). There are probably others that I can't think of.

3) I'd say maybe turn up the difficulty on Uncharted and try it out again, if you go in expecting an amazeballs platformer or shooter you'll be disappointed. It's really a ajck of all trades and master of none, with a lot of stuff going on, it's more about the story, characters and writing (and yes Drake is a psycopath but that never bothered me in game), and the sequel is better, has more fun set pieces for a start (train crash away!). And nicer environments. Just go in expecting a bit of everything wrapped up in a campy indiana jones style adventure and it'll likely be a more satisfying experience.

As for Dragon Age... Idk, depends why you like western RPG's, I'm more of an Elder Scrolls man, prefer to explore and loot and go on crazy open world adventures than be bored by bullshit.

Edit: Oh also for Dragon Age, it does get better after the first big battle. The intro for that game really overstays it's welcome but after that it does open up a bit and it does get better.
 

The White Hunter

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Oct 19, 2011
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scorptatious said:
We're all individuals. We all have a certain taste when it comes to what we enjoy in games.

For example, I consider Shadow of the Colossus my most favorite game, but there are people who dislike the game. Nothing I can really do about that.

So no, you aren't being arrogant, at least I don't think you are, you just don't enjoy those particular games. Nothing wrong with that.
Shadow of the Colossus is a game loved by many and also disliked by many. I dislike it but I understand the appeal behind it, I just didn't find it very enjoyable to play. Maybe if there'd been the odd smaller thing to kill than the colossi, but then that would detract from it as an art piece.

What was it you enjoyed about it?
 

Rob Robson

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Feb 21, 2013
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I dislike most games that are too polished and "high production value", IE Assassin's Creed, Uncharted, Crysis etc. etc.

Those are almost always completely devoid of soul and depth and feel like they were designed by accountants. Well, they probably were.

Some exceptions like Skyrim, Dishonoured, Mirror's Edge, Mass Effect, Dragon Age etc. exist though.

Any big budget game that is the result of a single man's vision are usually good. Unless that man is Peter Molyneux :p
 

SecondPrize

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Mar 12, 2012
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The voiceless protagonist part of DA:O is a good thing in my book. Not having my character voiced by some schmuck was part of what made it the last bioware RPG I felt told a story with me, rather than telling a story at me.
 

GundamSentinel

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Aug 23, 2009
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Brown Cap said:
- Am I just being arrogant towards these games? Is there a hidden allure to these games that I'm missing?
No, you just don't like 'em. I didn't like Dragon Age either, though my dislike stems more from hating every single companion. A certain awful nihilistic goth ***** was only the tip of the iceberg for me. Between Morrigan and Jack, Bioware seems to have patented that template. I liked Uncharted overall, but it had some bad things (namely the gunplay and Nathan being smarmy).
- Are there any games that have let you down, despite good reviews?
Oh yeah, quite a few. I didn't like Bayonetta, Bioshock, Prototype, Little Big Planet, LA Noire and Skyrim for various reasons.
- I understand that if you don't like a game, one simply shouldn't play it, but are these games true works that deserve to be played through?
No. They're made for entertainment. If you don't like 'em, don't play 'em. Same goes for movies and books. Life's too short to spend your spare time on things you don't like. :)
 

Sir Pootis

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Aug 4, 2012
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SweetShark said:
Whenever I see the Dark Souls 2 boxart, I read it as Dark Soulsh.

OT: Just because others like a game that you dislike, don't be discouraged. Many people consider the COD series brilliant works of art and think that games like Half Life are utter garbage. Personally, I heavily dislike TES: Morrowind and LOZ: Ocarina of Time, despite the many people that claim they're the "best garme evargh".
 

Guitarmasterx7

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Mar 16, 2009
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Dragon Age is not for everybody. It's kind of inaccessable. The combat revolves around strategy rather than action, the questlog is comprised of walls of text, and after you've triggered all the event in a town or whatever, further exploration feels like walking around off the rails of a disneyland ride. You quickly realize the background is just a painted wall and everything you thought was alive is an anamatronic puppet. You have to be able to suspend disbelief quite a lot or plow through it so you don't notice the life slowly draining out of the world around you.

As for uncharted, did you start with the first one? Not to say the second and third are undeniable masterpieces but they didn't really figure out what they were doing until the second game IMO.

For me personally, Half Life 2 was a big talked up thing that I find nothing appealing in. I'm tired of nazis, I'm tired of zombies, I don't like silent protagonists, the color pallet is all puke yellowy-brown, the gravity gun can't pick up 90% of the things I would like it to be able to pick up and I played it marginally
late so I had seen plenty of games that had weapons or magic that did the exact
same thing, and I'm only typing like this right now because this fucking advertisement
won't go away and I can't see what I'm typing otherwise.


Anyways, I'm not trying to turn this into one of "those" threads.
My point is that you shouldn't have to pretend to yourself or anyone else that you like something that you don't.
 

IronMit

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Jul 24, 2012
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OP, same thing happened to me. I tried Dragon age origins after mass effect and I immediately regretted it for all the same reasons as you. And as your on the same page as me...do not try Witcher 1.
Mass effect 1 was my first 'rpg'. I realised later it was more of an entry level rpg. Those pure old school ones seem to involve standing still and relying on numbers. I like numbers, movement &sharp timing to incorporate into strategy .

I love uncharted 2 but I never did play uncharted 1. I played a demo and the hordes of boring repetitive combat drained me. Uncharted 2 mixes it up a bit and was thoroughly enjoyable.

There's nothing wrong with you. Dragon age origins was made for that old school rpg d&d dice roll crowd.
Kotor is similar but easier to get in to. I played it for the first time earlier this year and it's worth a try but be warned it has a similar awkward combat style as origins. You will be standing infront of a still opponent seeing 'miss, miss, hit, critical, miss' lol.

If you were to mention other games you like peps could try giving you some recommendations. After mass effect I tried other rpg-ish games like Fallout 3/NV, deus ex 1/HR, Dark souls, skyrim and was pretty happy.
 

DoPo

"You're not cleared for that."
Jan 30, 2012
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Sir Pootis said:
Whenever I see the Dark Souls 2 boxart, I read it as Dark Soulsh.
Huh, I never did read it like that. NOW I CAN NEVER NOT DO IT!

Vern5 said:
The funny thing is that Bioware rarely had very compelling dialogue for its protagonists up until DA:O and halfway through ME1. Bioware is lauded for its "outstanding" dialogue, but the majority of it boiled down to stale characterization for everyone who wasn't the player character and a set of three choices for the PC:

1) Nice response of supreme niceness.
2) Pure greed as a cheap stand in for "Ethical Neutrality"
3) "I will kill you and rape any pets you own for no sane or plausible reason"

Even with Bioware improving or expanding upon their formula their games are all extremely formulaic. Basically, all Bioware games are the same game in slightly different flavors.
Yes, exactly. While I cannot deny they have lots of polish and are, by many accounts, "good games", the fact rremains that BioWare mostly releases the same game. Can't really fault them for that, either - if it works, it works. Me, I play them because they remind me of those chose your own adventure books I really liked when I was younger. Yeah, I know what the story is and I know it's not even original, I know what happens, but I still want to see what paths I can take.
 

babinro

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Brown Cap said:
- Are there any games that have let you down, despite good reviews?
Yes...
- Skyrim
- Grand Theft Auto 4
- Zelda: Skyward Sword
- Monster Hunter Tri
- LA Noire
- Torchlight 2
- Bioshock Infinite

It all comes down to personal preference. I was hyped for all of the above games (especially Zelda and Skyrim) and they all proved to be 'meh' at best to unplayably boring at worst. I respect that tons of gamers will feel differently and that's okay.

It doesn't mean I dislike all Triple A titles.
Dragon Age 1 & 2 are my favorite current gen RPG's.
Uncharted was a lot of fun but nothing stellar, I'd sooner recommend inFamous as a standout PS3 series.
 

lunavixen

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Jan 2, 2012
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I don't like Uncharted either, every time another gunfight came around i'd just roll my eyes in irritation, Deus Ex: HR is rather torturous, Dead Space was the same, touted as a horror game, turned out to be boring and shooty (okay, okay, i'll concede the ripper and the line gun are fun even if they are stuidly overpowered and defang all possible threats) and it didn't scare me at all, I can't play them for more than an hour before wanting to do something else. Dragon Age was... tolerable I guess? I still haven't finished it but don't really want to, I don't hate it, I just don't know if I can bring myself to finish it.



Snotnarok said:
I like serious sam. Unreal tournament too.
 

Hieronymusgoa

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Dec 27, 2011
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Behind Bioware games (or the Uncharted series) is a lot of well done handiwork. You can say it may be a good game but i didn't like it because I prefere "this" in games and not "that". But actually insisting on that they are "bad" in general can only be a subjective statement and not an impartial one.
There are certain standards to quality which can't be discarded so easily.
In my opinion ;)
 

scorptatious

The Resident Team ICO Fanboy
May 14, 2009
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SkarKrow said:
scorptatious said:
We're all individuals. We all have a certain taste when it comes to what we enjoy in games.

For example, I consider Shadow of the Colossus my most favorite game, but there are people who dislike the game. Nothing I can really do about that.

So no, you aren't being arrogant, at least I don't think you are, you just don't enjoy those particular games. Nothing wrong with that.
Shadow of the Colossus is a game loved by many and also disliked by many. I dislike it but I understand the appeal behind it, I just didn't find it very enjoyable to play. Maybe if there'd been the odd smaller thing to kill than the colossi, but then that would detract from it as an art piece.

What was it you enjoyed about it?
*cracks knuckles*

Okay, here we go.

For me, I love just about everything about it. It had a simple yet engaging story of a young man who was willing to risk his life to do the impossible. Sure, there have been lots of stories which involved a guy saving his girlfriend, but the way it's told here made it very appealing to me.

The fact that you don't actually fight anything other than the colossi themselves made them very special to me. It sorta provides a very nice contrast to the large, empty, and lonely Forbidden Lands. As Yahtzee has put it, it's like riding a bike down a peaceful road and every few yards, the bike turns into a bear.

The fights themselves are also fantastic. When I was younger, I could never imagine a game where you would not only fight a boss, but also climb all over it and search out it's weak points. All while holding on for dear life whenever the colossus in question attempts to shake you off.

The game also has one of my most favorite soundtracks in any game ever. From the soft and mysterious tune that plays during the intro, all the way to the piece played during the very end of the game. It just sets the mood perfectly.

One of the best parts about it is though, is sharing the experience with other people. I had my nephews play the game and they love it. :)

Bottom line, I friggen love this game.
 

Chaos Isaac

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No, Dragon Age as a series isn't that good. It's enjoyable for RPG peoples, but, still it isn't that good.

Again, no, as Uncharted isn't really good at all either. I can't really name anything of note about this series except how the main character is an ass and everything around him is more interesting.

A good game that let me down? Infinite. Plot isn't that great. Gameplay is kinda standard and the enemies kinda suck. Looking at you Handyman. Still, I like it, but... eh.