Which FPS Actually Takes Skill?

[anian]

Well "skill" is not really clearly defined here. CS requires reflexes, but is that skill or tactics? I don't think it can really be "skill" if a slight framerate hiccup can kill you.

In TF2 you do benefit from tactics, as much as you can from that kind of gameplay. Rainbow6 and stuff like STALKER, are just annoying for me, overcomplicating and just making the game harder by having your equipment being unreliable (from aiming to jamming) is just unfair handicap to some extent, it goes to skillfully avoiding handicap and not actually getting better at the basic mehanics behind the gameplay.
SWAT4 does take some skill but there's some balance between strategy and actual "regular" FPS come in guns a blazin action. If you organise in co-op and pay attention to what firearms you're using, knowing when to check the situation out before going in...it all offers a place for skill upgrade. Although getting shot in the leg at the begging of the mission and slowly limping till the end, does get annoying.

But every game where teams, AI, gameplay etc. are balanced and reflexes are not that influental, is opened for besting through skill.

I forgot to mention this but probably the most skill requiring FPS besides realistic FPS games, TF2, and Counter Strike would have to be Killing Floor, I wish I could write paragraphs about all the team work and FPS reflexes required in that game but I'm a little busy with homework at the moment.

Killing floor, really? A game where the AI is on the level of Pacman ghosts and ranking up difficulty by spawning more enemies with more health does not take skill.

 

[SIXVI06-M]

Counter strike's difficulty is epic but stalker was fucking ridiculous. (in other words, really fucked up and epic)

I looooove stalker. I always find it thrilling each time I start a new game and have to fight a band of shotgun and rifle toting bandits with a pea-shooter. But I had gotten so good at luring enemies into chokepoints and killing the shit out of them when they poke their head around the corner that I'd taken to raiding the military base with my pea-shooter first before I go and hit the bandits - which by then I'm armed to the teeth with assault rifles and enough ammo to kill them all 10 times over.

The thing is - the game was challenging enough that I'd go and find new challenges. I reckon they can do a LOT more to expand the series with what already exists in the S.T.A.L.K.E.R world.

 

[MattyDienhoff]

I personally consider the following to be most demanding on my skills:

Operation Flashpoint (the first one)
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
Red Orchestra: Ostfront 41-45
SWAT 4

In more conventional shooters like, say, any Call of Duty game, I find myself "running on auto-pilot" so to speak. What (relatively little) challenge there is is not in knowing what to do, but rather just doing it and, if you fail, doing it slightly differently. In single player, for instance, this involves picking the right moment to push forward, when you've worn the stupid respawning enemies down enough (and in the right places), and being lucky enough to avoid the enemy nadespam...

There's not much else to it, really. For example, you rarely if ever even have to navigate because you're usually being led around by the nose and have no responsibility except to shoot things and, occasionally, press F to initiate scripted sequences when someone yells at you to do so.

Obviously I'm referring to single player Call of Duty. I did find Call of Duty 4's multiplayer to be pretty challenging (at least, on the PC a couple years after the game's release, which invariably means playing with a bunch of people who've played it a lot), but not in a very satisfying kind of way. As long as you understand the game modes and know the maps reasonably well, you still don't have to put much thought into what to do (beyond choosing your kit...), just how to do it as effectively as possible.

In a game like Operation Flashpoint, by comparison, knowing what to do is just as important as knowing how to go about it, especially if you're a squad leader. In Flashpoint, a lot of missions dole out a few objectives, then give you a squad, a few vehicles and some support elements and leave you to work out the rest. And "the rest" is a lot of things. For instance:

* Conducting reconnaissance.

* Deciding which direction you should approach your objective from (and how you should get there in the first place)

* Deciding which weapons your men should use (and putting them in the right places so they can make best use of them)

* Adjusting your behaviour and that of your squad to suit the situation (For example, to hold fire unless attacked to avoid unnecessary attention)

The result is a very difficult and challenging game; but a game in which, quite often, you're killed because you made an error in judgement that put you in a particularly dangerous (and usually avoidable) situation, not because you just got blown up by three laser guided hand grenades thrown into the narrow corridor which is your only way forward.

 

[minimacker]

Interesting question. It's all about the definition of 'skill'. Does skill mean experience with the game? Muscle memory? Strategies? Load-outs?

But on a general level, I'd say Halo: Combat Evolved. You know, before all the bullshit abilities and shit happened.

 

[Midnight Crossroads]

None. They're all pretty easy once you understand the quirks of the game.

Games that are usually mentioned as the ones taking skill are the ones which instruct the player the least on how to play. Of course they seem to take more skill when you have no background in playing the game and get thrown up against veterans who've played for years. Add on to that games which have no respawn and you end up sitting around more than playing as you spectate the last player on your team staring at a wall AFK until someone on the other team shoots him. Those games have you cheering for the other team.

 

[Soxafloppin]

INB4 "Halo, Nyuk Nyuk Nyuk."

TO be honest though, most FPS's play the same in my opinion! So if you are skilled in one your skilled in all them.

 

[MattyDienhoff]

For me, Stalker wasn't so much challenging as unweildy and unforgiving.

I really enjoyed the concept, and I wanted to like it, but the execution was poor. For me anyway.

Counterstrike, in my opinion.

I have to admit, my perception of the game is based on the game with mods which alter the gameplay and difficulty (usually to make it harder, but in a more balanced kind of way). It can be much more with mods, but I can see why you feel the way you do.

 

[Right]

I think it has a lot to do with your opponents. Take BFBC2 and BF2 as an example. There are a lot more "n00bs" in BC2 because its much more popular and BF2 is mainly played by people who fell in love with the game 5 years ago and still cant stop playing it (Or in my case people who dosent have a computer good enough to run anything else than BF2.... I´ve only played BC2 for a couple of hours in total online and I acctually like it better than BF2

 

[DeadEy3]

cs 1.6 and battlefield both require team work skill.

quake 3 requires fast reflexes.

 

[tzimize]

Alien Vs Predator 2000.

NOTHING compares to the lightning fast gameplay of alien vs marine. It is FANTASTIC.

Depends on what kind of skill you talk about of course, but if you consider twitch gaming, and aiming/firing at inhuman speeds skill...this is the game for you.

 

[Deathman101]

CS:S, Quake, and COD4: Promod

 

[supersilva]

Eh well I personally think Call of duty 1 and 2 took the most skill out of any FPS, and all COD games after 2 turned into the games we have now, that dont have the same "level of skill". They added level system, perks, regen health, higher levels with better guns. Go back to COD 1 and 2 When everyone had the same classes to pick from, there was no kill or death perks and you had 100 health per round. Sad thing is if you shows most kids(no offence) a screenshot or video of COD 1 they would say your lying and its not call of duty. That or maybe Golden eye <.<

 

[Addendum_Forthcoming]

The Tribes series. What's more important than knowing how to shoot? Knowing how to fly!

Theres a blast from the past ... I loved tribes back in it's heyday. What's the community like nowadays?

 

[Fishyash]

I'd say Halo 3 takes some skill, personally I think sprinting and sight aiming has somewhat dumbed down those kind of games. Of course, as long as there are skill factors still involved, it's still going to require some skill, things like positioning, map awareness and communication are still big skill factors in pretty much every multiplayer FPS.

One thing I like a lot about halo is the objective play. I'll admit I don't really play much FPS games but those game modes look like there is lots of strategy involved (the MLG variety to be honest, no idea about the regular objective modes).

Another thing about Halo that I think makes it require more skill than CoD is the fact that you all start with the same weapon, and important weapons and powerups are placed in the map. They all have a specific respawn time too, so you not only need to secure these powerups and weapons, but you also need to keep track of their respawn time.

Someone probably already said this. I'm sorry for not reading the entire thread before posting.

 

[matt87_50]

yep, immediately thought of CS when I saw the title. hell, even the UTs and quakes...
kids these days...

 

[Legendsmith]

The Tribes series. What's more important than knowing how to shoot? Knowing how to fly!

See: Shattered Horizon. It's pretty much tribes except you're in space.

TF2 definitely is the one that takes teamwork and know-how. (Except for the f***ing pyros)

BC2 maybe.

Hey now, being a puff and sting pyro isn't not easy. Anyone can W+M1. Heavies do it too. But Pyro seems to get all the flak.

As for BC2, I have three 3 things to say: 40mm, Carl Gustav, MG3.

 

[Chrinik]

Battlefield 2 is horrible. Worst hit detection in any game I've ever seen.

I mod BF2 and even in Vanilla it works pretty good. I hope you didn´t forget to lead your targets...it´s not point and click...

 

[Matt King]

an fps that is hard is bioshock with the vita chambers turned off

 

[Squilookle]

The Tribes series. What's more important than knowing how to shoot? Knowing how to fly!

How about Battlefield? In that you gotta know how to shoot, fly, drive, swim, lob, Arty spot, order, cap, and a bunch of other stuff too.

As far as singleplayer goes... Flashpoint. You damn well respect the enemy AI in that game. Name one other FPS that makes you fear the AI to that extent...

 

[Valiance]

Um.

Speaking as a previously sponsored Quake Live player, I'm just going to point out that arranged/organized/team vs. team 4v4 CTF is not a cakewalk.

Any game that requires cooperation is naturally skillful in a certain way, but UT and UT2K4 require very strong hitscan skills. UT2K4, Q3/QL, Tribes, and RTCW all require very strong movement skills.

Dueling in any of these games requires much more than simple aim or movement. Prediction and planning are just as important as aim, which is just as important as position or weapon choice or choosing when and how to engage, and what powerups to fight over.

And hell, knowing when to run could be the hardest thing for some people to learn. And that's just in Arena shooters, not even including things like ArmA II or Flashpoint.

But many FPS games take skill online. Single-player, I'd have to go with some team-based tactical shooter like Rainbow 6 (not R6 Vegas 2, though, heh.)