Poll: "The game gets better later on"

[DirgeNovak]

Depends on how much time is required to get to the "good parts" and on whether the beginning is merely boring or actively unpleasant.

Final Fantasy XIII's 20+ hours it supposedly takes to get good was too long. I stopped playing after eight.
Demon's Souls first levels are so unbearable that I don't give a single shit if it GETS SOOO GOOD MAN later on.

But Heavy Rain's first 1½-2 hours are just kind of dull, and I could easily sit through them and the rest of the game was worth it.

 

[ecoho]

I have before and I probably would again.
In fact...I'm practically doing that now.

Final Fantasy 13 is a game I actually like. Surprising, I know but there are some who do. That said, the game starts out WAY too slow. Many who like it say it becomes good when the game opens up. I don't mind the 10 hour hallway personally but I find the tutorial unlocks the combat options way too slow. For me...the game becomes good around 4 hours. It's a LONG 4 hours but it's been worth it for my multiple playthroughs.

The game I doing this with now is Dragon Age: Inquisition. I'm not hooked on this game at all but I'm told it gets better as you go and open up the world. I'm set on getting my money's worth so I'm sticking with the game and am just hoping it clicks for me soon. We'll see.

get to level 5 then leave the hitherlands! seriously that place is just there to get your feet wet once you progress the story a bit your golden.

 

[HardkorSB]

Depends. When I hear somebody say "Final Fantasy XIII really gets good after the 15 hour mark" or something like that, I can only facepalm.

Heard the same so I figured I'll give it a shot.
I got through disc 1 and a decent portion of disc 2 and it still wasn't good. It looked good but that was it.
Since then I'm less likely to waste time on games that supposedly get good later.

 

[EternallyBored]

It's going to depend a lot on the circumstances. What is the length of time before it gets better? sometimes a slow start can make the the good bits more satisfying, in FF 13's case, 15-20 hours to get to the good bit is probably too long. Are the parts before the good bit still fun? even if they aren't as fun as the later bits? This is how DA:I did it for me, I was enjoying the game with some caveats and problems, the early bit was still enough to keep my attention and enjoyment, it's just that the later bits were noticeably better, so it depends on whether the phrase :it gets better" means it's going from good to great, or from bad to just good.

I've got different thresholds of tolerance for this kind of thing based on the circumstances.

 

[DementedSheep]

Unfortunately "gets better later on" is fairly common in RPG's. Fortunately RPG's tend to have other things going for them than combat so there is usually at least something to keep you interested before things start coming together.

Whether I play a game because it get better later depends on how long later is, how bad it starts, whether I can see the potential there and if I'm feeling patient. I have less patience for it now because I have more games and less time. I'll give most games 5-10 hours if it's a bit boring but not making me want to pull hair out. If it's bad then a couple of hours. I think the quickest I've gotten turned off a game was Castlevania: lords of shadow where I never even finished the demo.
I will not play an MMO for 30 or more hours on the promise that it gets better at max or once you unlock PvP which I have had people tell me before.

 

[unindexedsearchengine]

Well, I used to toss a game if it didn't get good within the first few hours, but then The Witcher happened.
When I started playing, I wasn't having any fun at all, I didn't understand the combat, and found the world boring.
By the time I finished, I was a full-fledged fanboy.

Ever since then, I give games a chance to get their roll on.

 

[V4Viewtiful]

Usually no, If a game can't hold me in for 10 or so minutes it doesn't matter whether or not it's good later, it should be good NOW!

 

[Lunar Templar]

depends on how long it takes to get to the good part really, and how much over all fun I've been having in the 'bad parts'. If I'm having fun to some degree I can push through to the better parts, if not and the game bored the crap out of me, nope, gone.

 

[Vivi22]

Unless later on is under an hour away it's almost never worth it. If a developer lacked the ability to make the game engaging from the get go then they probably lacked the ability to make the game engaging period.

 

[M0rp43vs]

For me it depends on the if the subject of the game intrigues me. I'm more willing to give it a shot to impress me if the premise or genre tickles my fancy. Otherwise, I'd rather not put in the effort.

I do have a rather high tolerance for boredom so I might give an average game 2-3 hours to impress me. But 15 hours? Even if I loved that kind of game, if it takes that long for it get not boring, well sorry, I'm just gonna assume its Stockholm syndrome that stopping you from putting the game down now.

 

[Danbo Jambo]

Good thread.

For me it's about how bad the game is early doors to get to later on. If it's decent then i'll persist, but if it;s a torturous grind I can only take so much.

Dragon Age 2 was the worst. I ground through it after all the promises of good in there, and I've never been so glad to see the back of a game in my life.

 

[Piorn]

I have yet to play a game that actually gets better later, so no idea.
In my opinion, you can see pretty early if the mechanics work or are broken, and even if there's a steep or rough learning curve, if the game is actually bad you know it pretty quickly.

 

[Luminous_Umbra]

It depends on three things:

1. What is happening between the start and when it gets better? (Cutscenes vs gameplay)

2. How long is the time between the start and when it gets better?

3. How good is the time between the start and when it gets better?

The last one is especially important. I mean, it might get better later, but that can mean many things. That might be going from passable to good or good to amazing. I have a much higher tolerance for waiting if it's the latter.

 

[RicoADF]

If the person means after the tutorial and once your into the game itself then sure no problem, if they mean after you spend hours unlocking levels it can piss off. I have too many games in my backlog and not enough time to play them, last thing I need is to waste that limited time on a shitty game that ransoms the good parts behind grinding.

 

[Elfgore]

So many variables are going into effect here. Is the gameplay fun? Is the story so bad it hurts? How long will it take for it to get good? A current example, Dragon Age: Inquisition. Ten hours in, I'm not interested in the story at all, the characters are meh, and the combat is meh. I've just stopped playing the game for now. I rather spent my time playing my 100th hour of Pirate Warriors 2.

 

[Here Comes Tomorrow]

Depends. An hour or two I don't mind.

It took me a few attempts to get into Dragons Dogma. People kept saying it gets better when you get to Gran Soren. My initial attempt I wasn't really taken in by the style. Attempt two, the gameplay wasn't really grabbing me and I had other games I would rather be playing. Attempt three, I played past Gran Soren and ventured out into the world and became hooked. I played about 10 hours then restarted knowing what I knew from my 3rd attempt (and my first time starting as not a Fighter, being able to shoot Harpys myself made SUCH a difference). I can see why people love the game now.

But this like an hour to get to the good part, maybe two. Games like FF13 and DA:I where you need to invest 10+ hours to get going? Ain't nobody got time for that shit.

 

[laggyteabag]

"Just get past the intro area/ first few areas and it will get a lot better" Okay, sure, I can do this.

"Give it 2 or 3 hours" Kinda pushing your luck.

"After about 5 hours, it is pretty good." No thanks.

 

[MoltenSilver]

Nope; what's the point of playing a game that 'gets better later' when there are games that don't make you wait in order to become fun.