Also Interesting. (Destiny)

by Joe Duplessie (SNIPE 316) , Detroit, Thursday, December 07, 2023, 13:39 (142 days ago) @ ManKitten

Halo was different because there was no reward to earn. The reward was, playing it and having fun. Whether it's matchmaking or customs with friends. Then they added ranks, and you had a little number by your name. With that, a little bit of fun died and sweat began to form. The chase of seeing that number go up consumed us.

Fast forward to now and how often do you play a game just for the fun of it. And I'm genuinely asking that question! The games I play, I have fun playing them but the thing I'm playing for is "to unlock this mod" or "to complete this challenge". It's the chase of that gratification.

And if we aren't constantly being served a gratifying moment, well it's hot garbage on fire and there's no other option.

Might derail the thread a bit, sorry.

A Producer working at Criterion on Black (2006) was quoted as saying "It's got to be fun to shoot a gun in an empty room". Meaning that a game has to be its own reward, fun just to play. I'd say most great games achieve this. But I don't really like the modern trend of style over substance.

For example, Alan Wake 2. Now it's very immersive, and I've been loving the story. But the gameplay is just the most basic 3rd person shooter you can get. I'd struggle to call it a good video game. They chose incredible production value over gameplay substance. AW2 feels more like modern Sony games. Incredible stories, but story isn't really important to a video game like it is for a movie or comic etc. Gameplay is what sets video games apart.

You can have a great game with a bad story, but you can't have a good game with bad gameplay.