Poll: A List of Problems in the Gaming Community That Make Me Rage

[Naota_391]

PUT YOUR EYES HERE FIRST:
It's been a while since I've been on a video game forum board that actually had a community responding and talking at all hours, and it's been kind of exciting. At the same time, it's also brought me a great deal of frustration because it's reminded me of some issues that are endless in the gaming community. I'm hoping that if I name them here, I won't feel compelled to bring them up everywhere else.

I guess I could tolerate your feedback as well./sarcasm

NOW LET YOUR EYES GO WHERE EVER THEY PLEASE.

1. NOT ALL VIDEO GAME STORIES SUCK

Seriously, I'm tired of hearing this. There are plenty of games with great stories. Before you tell me, "They're all the same! So predictable! Basic plot isn't that complicated! Ughhhh!" I want you to understand that there's been a strong argument for the possibility that there are only SEVEN BASIC PLOT LINES, and that everything else is just a variation. A video game story shouldn't have to absolutely blow minds to be GOOD. Stop rating stories on a spectrum of "AMAZING" or "ABSOLUTE SHIT". It's stupid. It makes you sound stupid. It makes ALL of us sound stupid.

Also, a game's story doesn't suck because the game play is inconsistent with the game's fiction. That means the game needed to be polished more, or it broke the immersion or the player's ability to suspend their own sense of disbelief. Come up with another term for it, but it most certainly doesn't mean the story and atmosphere are awful.

Last thing that comes to mind on this one? Be aware of what you're saying in comparison to everyone else. If your reason for saying a game's story is bad is, "I had to sit in a room and listen to people talk, ugggghhhh, blah blah blah," reconsider the possibility that it's not so much the game's fault, it's yours. It's not that the game is bad, it's just that it's not the game for you. Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's bad.


2. EVERY GAME IS BASED ON THE IDEA OF DOING SOMETHING OVER AND OVER AND OVER AGAIN AND MAKING IT FUN
Please. Think about that. Let's not have any more complaints like, "All you do is run and shoot whatever moves. Ehh. It's so bad and boring." Understand that you've described EVERY game ever made. If you have a problem with a game, be specific. Think about how dumb it sounds to say, "All you do in Halo is just shoot things," and then saying that you're having fun with any other shooter based game. Because that's all any shooting game is at its core. Does this make them bad? No! OF COURSE NOT! Other things do! We've seen plenty of great games ride off of these same old tried and true principles. If you're going to say a game is shit, be specific. Please. Don't blame the genre it's in. If that's what you're bitching about, then that just means that genre isn't for you. Again, we arrive at the point: Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's bad. You can call a game out, just make sure you've actually got something to call it out on. Which sort of leads me to my next one.

3. UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE SAYING WHEN YOU SAY WORDS LIKE "MECHANICS", "LEVEL DESIGN", "PACING", ETC.

Jesus. Please. These can be the vaguest terms ever when talking about a specific game. Ever get frustrated about how people seem to have an unreasonable hatred or love for a certain game, and you can't help but feel that this vague opinion has just become contagious and so everyone shares it? It happens with just about every major game ever made, and I doubt anyone's happy about that.

Want to know how to avoid it? Do this:
A) Think about why you feel the way you do about a game.
B) When you state your view, are you passing judgement on a game or just saying how you feel you and the game go together? (I.E. "This game is bad/great" and "This game is/isn't for me")
C) What do your statements mean?

If you're going to complain about mechanics, be specific. You can't just make a general statement like that and expect that it'll float. Understand what these words mean. Like level design. "The level design in that game is just really weak." Okay, how? What many consider to be good level design is when a game funnels a person towards their goal without making the person feel like "Oh hay I'm walking through corridors" even if that's actually what they're doing. Does the place feel like an actual place in that world, or does it feel super artificial? Things like this. Think about them.


Note: There are more things, but I'm spent for the moment. Give me your thoughts, and if you have a particular issue of your own, bring it up and I'll probably add it on here.

 

[Boneasse]

There's a thing you're forgetting to add into account here; half of the users (if not more) on the internet, are retarded. And that's a fact. In all my years of browsing and forum-contributing, I have never met a community quite like this one. This is the only place where constructive criticism is appreciated and rewarded by a user-community.

So when if you made a post like this on any other average gaming-related site, you'd get shot down immediatly and be told to mind your own business. You won't be here though.

So even though I agree with you on many of the points you are making, I just want to make clear that The Escapist is one of the only places where you'll be able to get more than "Halo: Reach sucks because the story is lame" out of people.

Just saying.

If I were to give you a problem with the gaming community I'd say: Graphics.

I won't make a really long post about it, but it really annoys me how a lot of people seem to be unable to appreciate a game that doesn't look photorealistic. I'm not talking about anyone in particular, but today a game with less-than-average graphics will often recieve a lower mark in a review or else be hurled down by many 'gamers' because it looks a little gritty.

When you ask them why they think the game sucks, they'll just say "Well just look at it, it looks like shit" - And that's the only reason they can give you.

Again - This is not a issue on this site, because here, retro-gaming and nostalgia seem to be something a lot of people can actually appreciate.

 

[Naota_391]

It's totally why I've stayed here so far. I've definitely left about a dozen other places after just a day of either constant douche-baggery or a completely inactive community.

Also, I don't except retardation as an excuse. I'll beat and/or love the retardedness out of people if I have to.

 

[Naota_391]

How old are you? I've gotta wonder if that's the gaming community shrinking, or if it's your age groups interest in gaming going a separate direction due to life or just dropping entirely for ze "real" world.

 

[Verlander]

Elitism is my beef with the gaming community, and they're only a small portion of the community to be fair

 

[Naota_391]

Elitism is my beef with the gaming community, and they're only a small portion of the community to be fair

Elitism? Do you mean with in certain games, i.e. joinning a multiplayer game and finding that the majority of the community has become very smug in their skills and created a high barrier to entry? Or more like "hard core" gamers that look down upon anyone who doesn't game as hard or as much as they do?

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

My beef with the gaming community is the online gaming communities of every game. I don't understand why people have to be total assholes when they are online in a game. I say good luck before each match if I'm not too lazy that day and I say good game after the match unless there was glitching involved. I don't tea bag because to me, it's just plain retarded. I don't talk trash unless trash is talked by the other team. If someone has a game name I think references something I like say Four Sticks (a Zeppelin song), I asked about it and if I'm right, I'm like awesome that band or whatever rules. Then, everyone calls each other noobs for using what skills/weapons are part of the game. If a game is inherently broken, don't play it.

 

[Thaius]

The first, for sure.

Going into it a bit more, it really, really annoys me when people decide that telling story through gameplay is the only way to tell good stories in a video game, and if your story is told mostly through cutscenes, the game's storytelling, and even the story itself, sucks. But that's absolutely stupid. Metal Gear Solid, for instance, tells a good story: a bit preachy and long-winded, but really, really good. Maybe if it told more story through gameplay and wasn't halfway comprised of cutscenes, the actual telling would be better, but as it is the story is still really, really good. Same goes for Final Fantasy XIII (which, JRPG haters, was the first in the series to actually be completely devoid of interactive storytelling techniques); little interactivity in the storytelling, but still a really, really good story.

Would it be nice for all games to take advantage of the medium's unique storytelling capabilities? Absolutely! But just because a game doesn't do that doesn't mean the story, or the way it's told, sucks.

 

[Canid117]

A massive and undeserved sense of self entitlement is my beef with the gaming community.

 

[MiracleOfSound]

People complaining about things being 'generic' bugs me, especially regarding FPSs.

If a formula is fun, it will always be fun.

There are only 12 notes in music... rock bands today play the same basic riffs and structures as they always have but it still sounds good to listen to and sounds fresh because it is just presented differently.

 

[strum4h]

I just hate the people of the gaming community. The game League of Legends by riot games has the worst community. Nobody knows how to work as a team because they flame eachother so everyone ragequits.

 

[Naota_391]

My beef with the gaming community is the online gaming communities of every game. I don't understand why people have to be total assholes when they are online in a game. I say good luck before each match if I'm not too lazy that day and I say good game after the match unless there was glitching involved. I don't tea bag because to me, it's just plain retarded. I don't talk trash unless trash is talked by the other team. If someone has a game name I think references something I like say Four Sticks (a Zeppelin song), I asked about it and if I'm right, I'm like awesome that band or whatever rules. Then, everyone calls each other noobs for using what skills/weapons are part of the game. If a game is inherently broken, don't play it.

AGREED. This is largely why I stopped wearing a headset when playing xbox Live for a while. I got Halo: Reach recently, and I was really worried about having this shit happen again. You can imagine my surprise when, out of my first 30 or 40 games, I only ran into maybe two or three jerks. I've actually made some friends through online matches, and we team up here and there to enjoy firefight together.

The few times one of those undesirables DID show up, we stomped them out pretty quickly. For example, this guy just went off on another dude during a match. Something about, "What the FUCK? I shot you with a rocket AND I hit you! How did YOU kill ME? You're a fucking cheater, this is bullshit." Textbook online asshole. The other dude was taken aback, really confused. He just told him that it wasn't really his fault, that's just what happened. Maybe he missed or something, but this guy just wouldn't have it. Pretty soon you had the usual threats of, "I'm going to come to your house and kick your ass, give me a second to find your IP address," and whatnot. I got so sick of it that I finally plugged my headset in and told the two of them to calm down. I told the whiny guy to get over it already. We're playing HALO. This isn't Counter-Strike or something, dying is a big part of the game, and it's going to happen a lot more. I told the other guy to just let it go because this douche bag wasn't going to come to his house, he's just throwing a fit because you won and he can't stand losing.

Actually went over pretty well. The dude shut up, and dropped out the next game. The rest of us had a great time. We were all against each other, but you could hear guys actually bursting into laughter, cheering each other on and giving someone else props for a good kill. I'm glad to say that most of my matches have turned out this way. Online gaming shouldn't be about being a dick, it should be about playing with other people and having a got damn smile on your face while you're doing it.

Side note: Apparently Bungie has taken notice of how a large part of their community is chasing off a lot of other potential players. I hear that they've included some new features in Reach. One in particular has caught my attention: If a player is muted often enough, eventually they'll automatically be muted by the game whenever they jump into a match. A great way for the mature people playing the game to slowly weed out the annoying habits people have picked up over the years.

 

[Naota_391]

A massive and undeserved sense of self entitlement is my beef with the gaming community.

Sounds like someone has been around the WoW forums. I hear those guys are the absolute WORST.

 

[sylekage]

I'm gonna go with the first point, it's completely true. Take Halo for instance. The first Halo game was "Aliens are chasing you, and you must survive." I know that's not really the thing, but it was a basic story, and it turned into a franchise with a great story, hundreds of characters, different places (I've played all the games and read the books. I'm a nerd haha.). People say it sucks cuz it has no story, but it truly does. Even if it's a simple story, it's a story. Not every game needs a long- winded story about where the hero comes from, where he's going, the secondary characters don't need a backstory, and things like that.

I also have issues with the whole "these graphics are shit!" mindset. I played dragon age: origins, and I thought that the graphics were a bit low, but while I was playing it, I forgot about them and got into the game. Graphics aren't a huge issue. "Holy shit! This game doesn't have dirt brown, rust red, or greyness! These graphics suck!!" No. Just...no. If we went back to 8-bit, it wouldn't go over that well, but if some games went back to, say, Ocarina of Times graphics, people would love it, because it would be pure nostalgia of those old games. But people will still rage. Get over it, you don't need picture perfect things in every game.

 

[MiracleOfSound]

A massive and undeserved sense of self entitlement is my beef with the gaming community.

I think in some cases it's understandable, for example the Infinty Ward debacle.

We pay their wages by buying their product, it is good business strategy to make sure the product isn't broken.

When they're whoring out map packs instead of fixing the fundamental problems in the game, then the community has every right to speak up.

And as excited as I am by Black Ops, let's not forget that Treyarch still haven't patched the MP40.

 

[Canid117]

A massive and undeserved sense of self entitlement is my beef with the gaming community.

I think in some cases it's understandable, for example the Infinty Ward debacle.

We pay their wages by buying their product, it is good business strategy to make sure the product isn't broken.

When they're whoring out map packs instead of fixing the fundamental problems in the game, then the community has every right to speak up.

And as excited as I am by Black Ops, let's not forget that Treyarch still haven't patched the MP40.

I was actually referring to people bitching about how Cole didn't have a buzz cut in Infamous 2.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

The hypocrisy. From anyone. And everyone.

 

[Naota_391]

I'm gonna go with the first point, it's completely true. Take Halo for instance. The first Halo game was "Aliens are chasing you, and you must survive." I know that's not really the thing, but it was a basic story, and it turned into a franchise with a great story, hundreds of characters, different places (I've played all the games and read the books. I'm a nerd haha.). People say it sucks cuz it has no story, but it truly does. Even if it's a simple story, it's a story. Not every game needs a long- winded story about where the hero comes from, where he's going, the secondary characters don't need a backstory, and things like that.

I also have issues with the whole "these graphics are shit!" mindset. I played dragon age: origins, and I thought that the graphics were a bit low, but while I was playing it, I forgot about them and got into the game. Graphics aren't a huge issue. "Holy shit! This game doesn't have dirt brown, rust red, or greyness! These graphics suck!!" No. Just...no. If we went back to 8-bit, it wouldn't go over that well, but if some games went back to, say, Ocarina of Times graphics, people would love it, because it would be pure nostalgia of those old games. But people will still rage. Get over it, you don't need picture perfect things in every game.

People who call Halo: Reach's story awful or shit really drive me crazy. Bungie delivers a story WELL in one of their games for once, with tons of great moments, more human characters, and in an interesting time in the Halo universe. The game tries, and I think succeeds, in pulling on the heart strings of its audience. It shoots for something with good posture, and still people dismiss it as garbage. Lowest of the low. It's just stupid.

I probably will add the graphics issue as the next point. Everyone wants a game to look as good as possible, but at some point you've got to understand that for development teams, it comes down to either getting the graphics to look a little better or getting the gameplay aspect done. If the game plays well and doesn't look like complete trash, then let it go. Not every game has to have particle effects in the air and men oiled down with 10 bottles of oil. Is it a nice extra touch? Sure. Is it a necessity? Absolutely not.

 

[MiracleOfSound]

I was actually referring to people bitching about how Cole didn't have a buzz cut in Infamous 2.

So... you mean the petty complaints then

Like the way everyone is freaking out over the fact that Dante is now an emo teenager.