I have noticed that a significant number of Xbox Live users put a tremendous amount of effort into completing achievements. Some people put so much effort into it that they become selfish players who only care about getting their next acheivement. I know this system is not going anywhere, but shouldn't game developers figure out a way to structure them in a way that encourages cooperative and competitive play online?
Xbox 360 Achievements - Bad for Online Gaming?
- Thread starter heavyfeul
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They should, but as you yourself just said... It isn't going to change. The fact of the matter remains that as long as people like to put themselves over other people (using anything to justify themselves) the system is going to stay the same, that's why I never really enjoyed the whole Xbox Live thing... You can only be yelled at by 15 year-olds from Texas so many times before you get sick of playing...
I think the situation would be largely the same without acheivements, which is why I rarely play on Xbox Live with people I don't know in some other capacity (e.g. a forum). For example, I play Gears of War online frequently, but almost always in non-ranked matches with people on my friends list. There's no metagame competition, since non-ranked matches don't count toward the acheivements, and that way everyone can focus on what's important: having a good time. The few times I've jumped into random ranked matches to get my Gears fix when none of my friends were online, I've generally encountered at least one racial/homophobic-epithet-slinging jerk per match.
While Achievements may be the 'goal' for those players, I don't think they're actually the problem. It could just as easily be ranking, or kill percentage, or some imaginary statistic they keep for themselves. Remember, these are essentially the same people who will cheat on PC FPSs, 'speedhack' MMOs, and otherwise ruin just about anything for imaginary gain.
The worst thing for online gaming is actually people.
The worst thing for online gaming is actually people.
Oddly enough you're all touching on something I've given a little bit of thought to.
I think that the achievement system is actually doing the best thing possible for people who want to just go online and play a game or two for fun. The trick is that if you have to be playing in the ranked games to get a ranking, as soon as you as a player decide you don't care, you have all the other people who don't care what some number says they are worth to play with in those unranked games. The only thing that can be tough is finding competitive play without idiots of all ages. (The ones who say good game and actually mean it.)
In games with separate games for people competing and not I've found on the whole a better crew to run with. There are most certainly exceptions - but I largely believe them to be caused by the fact you can still pretend your better than someone else in those modes. (Diablo and Battle.net come to mind here)
I think that the achievement system is actually doing the best thing possible for people who want to just go online and play a game or two for fun. The trick is that if you have to be playing in the ranked games to get a ranking, as soon as you as a player decide you don't care, you have all the other people who don't care what some number says they are worth to play with in those unranked games. The only thing that can be tough is finding competitive play without idiots of all ages. (The ones who say good game and actually mean it.)
In games with separate games for people competing and not I've found on the whole a better crew to run with. There are most certainly exceptions - but I largely believe them to be caused by the fact you can still pretend your better than someone else in those modes. (Diablo and Battle.net come to mind here)
I just find it extremely ironic that you can gain "Achievements" by staying inside and playing video games all day.
I think the achievement and ranking systems are a good idea in theory. The problem is they have been designed as an afterthought. Something to keep the player motivated not as a means to structure gameplay. Since these point tracking systems have such an effect on how players play the game, they need to be put on the same level as collision detection, weapon power, movement physics, etc. It is sloppy design to just come up with a laundry list and tack it on before release. This may require tracking more complex situations/code, but ultimately the pay off could a better designed game with a more structured online experience that will be more rewarding for the majority of players. I do not think it is too much to ask when paying $69.99 for a game.
I think achievements are a good idea. It kindof makes playing games a little more satisfying and it's cool showing your mates what you have acomplished in a game. The orange box has some awsome achivements that make you go back after you completed to game and try doing something in a different way.
Like Throphies on PS3, I like the system, some of them really forces you to play the game, the way developers intend to and it prolongs the replay value. Though it's easy to get addicted to it and some literally wastes days just trying to get a single throphy/achievement, thinking only about that