I dont think its a generational thing. I think its one of two possiblities.
1. games now are mega mainstream. Back then game fans were considerably more geeky and smaller then it is today, people who would sit down to play a game in those days also had mega calculators that they programmed. That makes up a small part of the population. As the technology went more mainstream then it needed to attract the masses and the masses in any generation are typically not calculator programmers.
2. Its a conspircy by DARPA to keep the larger population as stupid as possible so that they dont question what is really going on.
Please do not respond to me, even if I ask you a question, its rhetorical.
OPs claim is so absurd and self-congratulatory I would have never imagined it got this kind of response. Unbelievable.
I find GT's post interesting, and in a very unusal way, has brought together groups representatives of many different stages of gaming to discuss generatal gaps and the overall progression of video games.
You should share your perspective, rather than attempt to defame what is, for many of us, an interesting coagulation of opinions and industry trends.
Hmmm.. 29 pages of convoluted argument and high-flying logic and all it really comes down to is:
What is the definition of FUN ?
Because that is really what the OP was complaining about, even though he didn't articulate it well. He doesn't like "modern" MMO's, because he doesn't like the way they play. To him, they're not FUN.
The relative complexity or depth of games is secondary. What's of primary importance is whether the player is having FUN. And that's an entirely subjective thing.
I like virtual worlds and travel time and having to sit down to heal, because that creates a huge amount of immersion to me. That immersion is my FUN. Many other people hate those aspects, to them those things are time wasters and NOT FUN. Who's right and who's wrong ?
But games are products that are made to entertain, yet they also have to make a profit for those that create them. So developers make games that appeal (are FUN) to the biggest possible audience. The OP and I have the same problem, our idea of FUN is not in sync with the mainstream in MMORPG gaming any longer. It was 10 or 15 years ago, but the market has expanded massively, and mainstream tastes have changed.
My entry point into gaming was PONG, Atari 2600, and the Magnavox Odessey. One button on the controller. It was amazing at the time -- hand-to-eye coordination in its purest form. Up the difficulty until you could simply not react fast enough. The early games didn't end. You played until the game kicked your a**...and you knew it eventually would. That's the way games worked. Very simple fun, but also harsh. Games like Donkey Kong, Pac-Man, Space Invaders, KC's Crazy Chase, etc.
Later came Colecovision and Intellivision (holy crap Intellivision had lots of buttons). Though there was color, the games didn't really change much. Same old..play until you could not surpass the speed of sound and light, your brain could not react as fast as objects on the screen.
While this type of level-difficulty design is still present in video games today, many games do have an actual end and a larger variety of games are available. I have an 8 year old here that can absolutely hand me my a** in any Xbox 360 game. However, I have noticed that most of my kids tend to stray away from difficulty challenges. Instead the difficulty comes in the form of more complex controls, themes, and the multitude of genres available today. Interaction, in itself, is more challenging and the mind processes entertainment in ways that become increasingly closer to reality.
I do agree that challenge is less of a factor today with games, but the challenges are still out there should a gamer wish to seek one out. But that's a natural progression, don't you think? Not everybody is a competitve gamer? It just means more people are playing video games.
I had one of those. It may have been a simple platform compared to today's consoles, but the games were simply harder. They had challenge to them. And no matter how good you got, the games just kept getting tougher until you lost.
Comments
I dont think its a generational thing. I think its one of two possiblities.
1. games now are mega mainstream. Back then game fans were considerably more geeky and smaller then it is today, people who would sit down to play a game in those days also had mega calculators that they programmed. That makes up a small part of the population. As the technology went more mainstream then it needed to attract the masses and the masses in any generation are typically not calculator programmers.
2. Its a conspircy by DARPA to keep the larger population as stupid as possible so that they dont question what is really going on.
Please do not respond to me, even if I ask you a question, its rhetorical.
Please do not respond to me
I find GT's post interesting, and in a very unusal way, has brought together groups representatives of many different stages of gaming to discuss generatal gaps and the overall progression of video games.
You should share your perspective, rather than attempt to defame what is, for many of us, an interesting coagulation of opinions and industry trends.
I think its undeniable we have been dumbed down as individuals and our entertainment/media as well.
But the reasons the OP stated do not explain the causes of it.
Hmmm.. 29 pages of convoluted argument and high-flying logic and all it really comes down to is:
What is the definition of FUN ?
Because that is really what the OP was complaining about, even though he didn't articulate it well. He doesn't like "modern" MMO's, because he doesn't like the way they play. To him, they're not FUN.
The relative complexity or depth of games is secondary. What's of primary importance is whether the player is having FUN. And that's an entirely subjective thing.
I like virtual worlds and travel time and having to sit down to heal, because that creates a huge amount of immersion to me. That immersion is my FUN. Many other people hate those aspects, to them those things are time wasters and NOT FUN. Who's right and who's wrong ?
But games are products that are made to entertain, yet they also have to make a profit for those that create them. So developers make games that appeal (are FUN) to the biggest possible audience. The OP and I have the same problem, our idea of FUN is not in sync with the mainstream in MMORPG gaming any longer. It was 10 or 15 years ago, but the market has expanded massively, and mainstream tastes have changed.
Simple, really.
I had one of those. It may have been a simple platform compared to today's consoles, but the games were simply harder. They had challenge to them. And no matter how good you got, the games just kept getting tougher until you lost.