What do you LIKE about the current state of gaming?

[unindexedsearchengine]

What do we like about the current state of gaming?
Oh, you mean, besides the fuckton of great games, ease of access, cheapness (if you actually try, it's easy to find even AAAs cheap), ever-growing community,rise of indie gaming and just a relative security of the industry?

Seriously, just 'cause EA screws something up every few months, it isn't the end of the industry. In fact,gaming is better than ever.

 

[AnthrSolidSnake]

I really don't see a huge issue with gaming today. My only issues are DRM and what exactly counts as "DLC" to some companies. Other than that, I love how its going. I look forward to purchasing my PS4 (or Xbox 720 is they can manage to offer something I like better) and upgrading to a brand new gaming rig this summer so I can play all the latest games at their highest quality. Gaming has been a huge part of my life since before I can remember, and I'm not about to let a few bad decisions from other companies ruin my experience, if need be, I'll just avoid them until they bring out something better. I understand a lot of peoples concerns about the state of gaming, but I don't understand how they let that effect their entire gaming experience as much as it does.

 

[Callate]

I like that it's possible for small teams and even individuals to release very good games and find an audience. (Still difficult, but at least that's more a matter of signal-to-noise ratio, advertising, and the like rather than a lack of tools or distribution channels.)

I like that engines like Unreal and Crytek are offering a way to create beautiful games while cutting down on some of the overhead. That's probably the best hope for saving AAA-gaming as we know it.

I like that there are games coming out with stories and characters that are actually worthy of discussion and debate. Stories and characters that people who don't play the games could understand the appeal of, rather than explaining the significance of a costume change to the character arc in issue #78 as the listener's eyes glaze over.

I like that the amount of megabytes or gigabytes a game takes up is less and less of an issue.

 

[Costia]

There a lot of indie games with new and fresh ideas.
New AAA games look great (in terms of graphics).

 

[runic knight]

pretty much everything OP said is good stuff.

Also, mods. With pc gaming and the internet, modding games adds to the games you love (well, the ones that allow you to mod them anyways). Compared to the past, things like the steam workshop is the best it has ever been for getting people to mod the game and doing it in a way that others can access and share. And for getting people passionate about games to try and create something of their own.

 

[Reyold]

Really, everything except the AAA industry. you got indie gaming, and, if you're into emulation, a staggering library of retro games, like Battletoads, if for some reason you don't want your sanity anymore.

 

[Genocidicles]

I like GoG, Humble Bundles and Kickstarter I guess.

The rest is ruined by DRM,DLC and pre-order bonuses.

 

[PoolCleaningRobot]

I think photorealism is something that gets hated too much. I see the problems for already realistic games like modern military shooters becoming homogenous but I'm more interested in photorealistic versions of things that don't exist. Stuff like the mutant monsters in fallout or the different places in Halo. Better visuals for these games means more details that can make them look impressive, not just real

 

[YCRanger]

Skyrim basically sums up everything I like about the current state of gaming. It is essentially the culmination of all that this generation has to offer that could not be experienced before. It provides wonders previously unattainable in the gaming world.

 

[Atmos Duality]

Independent game developers who are free to design GAMES.
Bolded, because it is by far the best thing that gaming currently has to offer.
Games where there is real risk, creativity, and diversity.

I'm only really excited for two games right now (potentially waiting all year for them, no less), but they're both fairly ambitious. Ironically, one is an old franchise, the other is completely new IP. Some "retro-hipster" I am, huh?

(Aside: I still don't subscribe to the "gaming is better than ever before!" school of thought. In fact, I think it's silly as there really hasn't been any definitive "golden age" in gaming. Some things get better, others get worse. Overall, it's not even fair to claim it's better than before, given the turmoil in the major markets right now.)