Endgame, the Grind™, microtransactions, etc. (Destiny)

by Cody Miller , Music of the Spheres - Never Forgot, Sunday, October 01, 2017, 11:43 (2690 days ago) @ cheapLEY
edited by Cody Miller, Sunday, October 01, 2017, 11:59

The last is a video by Datto (video embedded at the bottom of the post). I don't particularly like Datto, and I don't like some of things he says in this video (near the end of the video, he says he played The Witcher 3 for only ten hours because at that point he had seen everything the game had to offer, which might be the most asinine thing I've heard all week). However, he offers a few solutions that I quite like.

Games are literally a job for Datto. Destiny is his job. Lack of things to grind for means he can't make videos, and doesn't make as much money. One should not design a game around such concerns. The grind is bad. Period.

This is once again about the real insecurity of hardcore players. All of them want something to set them apart from others, be that gear that takes forever to get, items that take feats to obtain, or even visible ranking systems in PvP. All of these are about comparing yourself to other people. It's not enough to just enjoy a game from moment to moment, and overcome the challenges for yourself. There has to be something to show for it. And the grind is perfect, because if it's one thing hardcore players have more of than the casuals is time.

I fell into that trap a long time ago. But I learned and wised up.

The idea of an 'endgame' itself needs to go away. Des2ny is a huge step forward, and in fact should go even further in my opinion with eliminating endgame activities. No 'endgame'. Just 'the game'.