Gaming Tropes That Need to GO

[Strangelove]

Generic European Fantasy Adventure 5.

[Vargras]

Hey, Skyrim. How about actually warning me when I'm approaching an enemy that's way stronger than I am? There has to be a better way to find that out than getting hit by them.

 

Yeah, that's been my girlfriend's biggest gripe about Skyrim so far. Everything scaled with you in Oblivion, but everything has a set level in each region in Skyrim.

 

In Oblivion, no matter where you went, it would match your level.

 

In Skyrim, you could wander into a cave and encounter something hilariously weak, something just right for you, or something that's going to absolutely murder you.

[Cyber Rat]

In Oblivion, no matter where you went, it would match your level.

 

No, that was the intention. It didn't really work in practice.

[deanb]

Hey, Skyrim. How about actually warning me when I'm approaching an enemy that's way stronger than I am? There has to be a better way to find that out than getting hit by them.

Yeah, that's been my girlfriend's biggest gripe about Skyrim so far. Everything scaled with you in Oblivion, but everything has a set level in each region in Skyrim.

 

In Oblivion, no matter where you went, it would match your level.

 

In Skyrim, you could wander into a cave and encounter something hilariously weak, something just right for you, or something that's going to absolutely murder you.

They still scale with you in Skyrim. It's just the scaling is tweaked. It was an issue with Oblivion because it scaled with your level, but your level wasn't exactly a true measure of your strength.

 

With Skyrim it's gone the route of Fallout. So you have the standard bloatfly, ghoul, rat types. But then also got your Yai Goi types n Deathclaws. The giants in particular are in marked camps. Same as the Deathclaws had Deathclaw caves n certain valleys/ruins they'd specifically hang about in.

 

I've usually found that caves/whatever containing things that will fuck me up tend to have the outside of the cave with dead bandits, bloody bones etc all strewn about.

[Mister Jack]

Level downs, be they in RPGs or in action/fighting games where dying sends you back to the level you just passed. Hey game designers. I already did this crap. It's not fun to be forced to do it a second time as a punishment.

[Faiblesse Des Sens]

I think if it's done right (Demon's Souls, dunno if they do it in the "sequel") it's great. It really is a proper punishment and makes you really try your hardest to avoid that one attack in the game.

[Mister Jack]

I especially hated it in Demon's Souls. Most, if not all the people I talked to ended up grinding souls anyway with certain spots, so what's the damn point. Grinding isn't fun and it shouldn't be necessary.

 

Of course, I think Demon's Souls in general is highly overrated, but that's a discussion for another thread.

[Strangelove]

I hate having to regrab items or weapons I picked up if I die and I get restarted only a few seconds from where I died.

Or dying and having to redistribute points in rpg style leveling systems. It should just stick.

[Faiblesse Des Sens]

I especially hated it in Demon's Souls. Most, if not all the people I talked to ended up grinding souls anyway with certain spots, so what's the damn point. Grinding isn't fun and it shouldn't be necessary.

 

Of course, I think Demon's Souls in general is highly overrated, but that's a discussion for another thread.

 

It's not necessary. It's the fucking second to last boss. One soul level barely makes a difference at that point and if it does you're playing it like a RPG instead of like an action game and in that case you fucking blow and i'll rape your ass on pvp and beat you up in real life too

[deanb]

Bit.Trip Runner did it. Got annoying enough right away so I thought fuck it. It wasn't so much the act of throwing you back to the start that was annoying, but the fact the start was so damn slow. It was like the platformer equivalent of putting a repeating cutscene right before the boss fight.

[GunFlame]

Fetch Quests!

 

Sometimes, they work and fit suitably in with the game, but often they are just an obnoxious way to add length to a game. I do not want to run from one place, kill or retrieve X amount, and then return to the guy for thanks and a crappy reward.

 

Like I say, some fetch quests can be okay. They tie to the story, they offer great bonuses. But some are like I said, just there to pad the content.

 

I would love to see an end of them, or at least the ones that 100% fit the label; Fetch Quest.

[deanb]

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/12/29/the-complete-rules-for-games/

 

A compendium of sorts.

[P4: Gritty Reboot]

I agree with Mr. John on a lot of those, but I do take issue with a few. As some commenters there point out, the Direct X / .NET framework thing isn’t so simple. Also:

 

“Don’t stop me from sprinting after three seconds.” Yeah, that sounds nice, but the problem is that developers are trying to limit you from a mechanical perspective, not a realistic one. Imagine COD with more sprinting around than there already is (insert MOTHER OF GOD image here). Also, it might not be entirely plausible that a solider wearing 100 lbs. of gear can sprint indefinitely. I don’t understand why Mr. Walker is willing to let games ignore reality on other items (like carrying lots of guns) but complains that three seconds of sprinting is unrealistic.

 

“Don’t splash on my screen” I’m not really sure of games that do this much with rain, other than where it makes sense as in Metroid Prime and Republic Commando. The blood thing may be valid but again, it’s a mechanical decision to alert you that you’re close to dying, or perhaps a stylistic one in some of the overly gory games. A big health bar that decreases is just as unrealistic.

 

“Don’t tell me that you’re a game any more.” Meh, some games do this and do it well. Breaking the fourth wall is a legitimate device so long as it’s employed correctly.

 

“Do let me carry more than two guns.” Again, a mechanical decision that sometimes works. It totally depends on the game. I do agree that games have been doing this too much simply because Halo used it to great effect, but let’s take this one on a case-by-case basis.

 

The rest of them are pretty spot-on I’d say, especially the one about giving the protagonist skills that are consistent from gameplay to cutscenes. It’s so annoying when you’ve fought through hundreds of enemies, only to be taken by four soldiers surrounding you in an FMV sequence. Movies and novels fall victim to this too, having heroes only fail and be captured when it’s convenient for the plot. It’s simply poor storytelling.

 

EDIT: Formatting

[fuchikoma]

I agree with most of them too. My objections are:

 

I like games that know they're games. Skyrim should be immersive. Geometry Wars should be gamey. Minecraft should be... whatever the heck it is... I'm not sure if it "knows" it's a game or not.

 

Having 2 guns is nice sometimes. Counter-Strike, Halo. Other times not. It does suck sometimes being in a high stress situation, going *flip flip flip flip* "no! Where's my damn shotgun?!" *flip flip flip* like you have a cardfile of weapons or something. In a game like the GTA series though, it's nice having a wide "palette" of destruction to choose from.

 

Saving everywhere CAN spoil a game, if only for a certain type of gamer. Save points are ok - but a single quicksave for quitting doesn't hurt anyone.

 

Can't disagree more with moving during cutscenes. It's a tease, and I find few things in gaming more frustrating - even invincible bosses and unblockable attacks are better than this. If you MUST stop gameplay to inject plot, then tell it like it is: I'm not playing, I'm listening. Unless you want to take it all the way the other way... let me walk away while being briefed, or shoot my comrades to death while they explain things to me. Shogo was awesome like that. I shot the (admiral?) and then saw how long I could last against the building's armored guards... then loaded and did it seriously. I should not have to reach more than a decade back to find an example like that... that's just sad. Even the (first?) new Wolfenstein wasn't quite there: An accomplice welcomes me to his home. I throw a grenade at him - he's OUTTA there! Lightning reflexes make him unkillable... but he doesn't even remark on your barrage.

 

Splashing stuff on screen is good. That's not my face - it's a camera into the game world - or a window into it. Yeah, I'm not an android, but it would suck if my character got dirt in his eye and started staggering around blindly and taking damage. Maybe save that for ARMA or OFP...

 

Every installed program goes on the Start menu. Sometimes I use a desktop icon too, but it doesn't stay there - it goes in the "games" folder. It makes sense that most people wouldn't want clutter on the desktop. Still, it's weird that by default the Start menu "games" folder is only for crappy Windows-bundled games. I kick them out and use it for real games.

[Mister Jack]

Luck based random event achievements.

 

Binding of Isaac, I'm looking at you.

[Faiblesse Des Sens]

Wait, achievements? That's a whole different discussion entirely.

[Bercilak]

There are two tropes popular now that I wish would go away:

 

1. Zombies. Really, enough with the zombies.

 

2. Post-apocalyptic settings. See, "Zombies".

 

Interestingly, regarding number 2, there doesn't seem to have been any serious effort put into creating a Mad Max game for last generation or current generation consoles. That would be the only post-apocalyptic game I'd consider playing.

[Yantelope V2]

Borderlands had a little of a mad max feel. It did have zombies though.

 

I agree, Zombies have invaded everything now even games where it makes very little sense (Red Dead Redemption). I'd like to see some more post-apocalyptic games without the zombies.

[TheMightyEthan]

Yeah, I would have preferred a regular expansion to RDR, even though I did really like Undead Nightmare.

 

I want to play RDR again...

[Thursday Next]

I too am bored of Zombies. Especially when they are crow-barred in for no good reason (see RDR and Yakuza). Between the games that shouldn't have them and the games that should (Resident Evil, Dead Rising, Dead Island...) I've totally OD'd on the things.

 

At least Infamous had enough dignity to use vampires as the monster classic spin-off. Still need to play that actually...

[TheMightyEthan]

I'm actually more okay with non-canon zombie DLC spinoffs like Undead Nightmare and the Yakuza thing than I am with straight-up zombie games now. I'm sick of zombie games, but the spin-offs, if done right, can just be a silly little addition to an existing game.

[deanb]

Zombies provide a way around various laws/regulations/ratings against killing people in games. Same with robots. I imagine that's part of the reasoning of including them. They're also fairly simple to code as far as AI goes since they're accepted to be dumb and stupid, getting caught on objects, being slow etc.

[fuchikoma]

That's a good point. If I remember right (way back to 1997...) I think the British version of Carmageddon had "zombies" with green blood, where the North American version had red-blooded people. It was sort of an issue since you got time bonuses and points for running over innocent pedestrians. (While I'm talking about that era, you guys have my condolences for Fallout - I heard that violence against women and children couldn't be depicted even though you never had to do any of it, so children were sometimes invisible and women were talking dogs? Bizarre...)

 

As for the zombie trope, I am kind of tired of it too, but like an FPS, I don't mind if it's done well. I like a couple of iOS games - Age of Zombies (excellent Robotron-style twin stick shooter) and I just started playing Zombie Highway (Zombies latch onto the side of your car on a highway strewn with wrecked cars and you have to scrape them off and shoot them while they try to make you crash or flip your car.) They are getting to be too much of a default character though.

[Yantelope V2]

It's not the zombie games that I mind it's really just the inclusion of zombies where they don't belong. Dean's point about them being easy to program is a valid one I think.

 

I just find zombies to be very limited as antagonists and outside of the apocalyptic survival exercise that people love to run over repeatedly zombies are not nearly as fun to play with in games. Halo is a good example. The covenant are fun to fight against and they yell insults at you and can provide a good exciting firefight. The flood just rush at you and are very annoying and result in the worst level in the game, the infamous library.

[TheMightyEthan]

I've never understood the hate for the Library. I like that level.

 

I do agree that overall I prefer fighting Covenant though.