Poll: achivement systems

[GamingAwesome1]

LIVE. I have never tried Steam and not wishing to offend anyone...oh fuck it, PSN's trophy system is a bit of a mess. It's not that easy to tell who has more trophies at first glance fomr what I've noticed.

I haven't seen PSN post update mind you... so maybe it got better.

 

[Daxren]

Live..i like them alot..as with most people its nice getting something back for putting something in even if its a meaningless Ba Dum! of an achievement sound its still fun..i dont go out of my way for them, however if there is a game i really like i will strive to get as many as possible just to continue playing. A La Oblivion..mmm

 

[Gildan Bladeborn]

I'd care more about achievements if they had some tangible in-game impact, but most don't, so I can't be bothered with them - either I'll get them or I won't.

The problem with all achievement systems is the same one you'll find on any forum that displays post counts and awards titles based on them - some people will then go to ridiculous lengths to make their numbers/titles higher by posting rubbish everywhere they can, and the fun little extra feature intended to simply be an added bonus to the main event (posting things on a forum, playing games) takes over as the driving reason people are posting or playing, because if the numbers are higher that means you're more awesome then all the people with low numbers!!!1!eleventy!!

Or to put it succinctly - it's not the achievement systems, it's the idiots who use them that annoy us naysayers.

the achievements in mass effect give you abilities for new characters

Quite, that's why it's the only game I own where I've ever gone (slightly) out of my way to earn achievements since they unlock stat bonuses.

 

[Vierran]

They are all pretty much the same to me except they use different numbers to look slightly different.

 

[ValentinesAshes]

To be honest, Xbox LIVE more or less started the achievement system and everyone else copied. I don't mean copied the idea - I mean literally made an identical copy of it. Besides a change in what the achievements are called (medals, awards or whatever...) and a change in font, there is no difference.

Achievements never really registered with me that much. The only game I ever fully achieved on was Fallout 3 and all of its add-ons and that's simply because I practically lived in it since it came out. The rest I don't bother with unless it adds an interesting and non-irritating gameplay quirk.

I wouldn't intentionally gather multiplayer achievements and resent games that use them to force you to play a bad multiplayer to unlock them like Turok or The Darkness. I don't bother with achievements for collecting stuff either unless the items being collected have some part in the game beyond being just items to be collected.

I think achievements should supplement gameplay rather than extend it.

Anyway, back on topic, I voted for LIVE because they were the first and the others are just copies of it.

 

[Admiral Stukov]

Mass Effect has the best achievments ever as they actually have an effect on the game.

 

[Robby Foxfur]

Ok I, like a nerd, have been reading each post. So i gotta ask does anyone have any Ideas for a universal system like this? I know some people don't care for it so would any ability to turn it off be cool with that crowd? and shy of that is it ok to ask that you just ignore it? any and all ideas are cool with me.

 

[Jared]

Gotta say live for me.

To me, its one of the more established and I always get a satisfying smile when I see the little oval window pop up at the bottom telling me I have done something special. (Or not so depending on how weak-sauce the award is)

I do like Steam's though, they are kinda nifty in they're own right (Love the L4D/2 ones)

 

[Twilight_guy]

Steam. Only because Steam achievement aren't paraded about on your profile they are tucked away where only the rabid glory seekers can see them, thus making achievements less about dick waving and more about personal taste.

 

[squid5580]

Live is creating a problem more than anything else. Why? Because it makes people play games which are horrible just for the achievements, thus encouraging devs to pour out more bad games because they'll know that as long as they add tons of achievements, they'll be fine.

What is that old saying? A fool and his money are soon parted. If every game on the market starts turning out like Avatar the Last Airbender then we can start worrying. Frankly I haven't seen any decline in quality since the introduction of Live though so I think your worries are completely unfounded. Infact it has been quite the opposite with games like Batman and Borderlands hitting the shelves 3 years after the introduction of achievements.

 

[Lord_Z]

Go away achievements! You are in the way of my gameplay!

 

[SonicKoala]

I chose the PSN system, largely because I don't own an Xbox, and the Steam achievements are really inconsequential (which is a good thing, in many ways). Oh, and the trophies are just really cool looking.

 

[TheDoctor455]

The only achievement system I actually liked was the one used in the PC version of Mass Effect. Whenever you gained an achievement in ME (PC), most of them would provide some kind of in-game benefit. I really do think that all achievements should do this. Because quite frankly, I couldn't care less about my gamerscore.

 

[Jammerz]

Well i have all three in my house, me and my bro have an Xbox, my sis has the ps3 and I have steam so i would have to say Xbox because I like the way it is done and as opposed to the PSN it has points not bronze,gold or silver and number of all your trophies.

 

[TZer0]

Live is creating a problem more than anything else. Why? Because it makes people play games which are horrible just for the achievements, thus encouraging devs to pour out more bad games because they'll know that as long as they add tons of achievements, they'll be fine.

What is that old saying? A fool and his money are soon parted. If every game on the market starts turning out like Avatar the Last Airbender then we can start worrying. Frankly I haven't seen any decline in quality since the introduction of Live though so I think your worries are completely unfounded. Infact it has been quite the opposite with games like Batman and Borderlands hitting the shelves 3 years after the introduction of achievements.

I'm just saying that we've opened a gate which shouldn't be open. It shouldn't be possible to earn money just by adding achievements.

 

[Crimsader]

They all suck, but I think I'd go with LIVE... kinda.