Why do i find games dissapointing?

[Chaosut]

And more to the point why i do still bother to play them if this is the case. On a sentimental note, maybe it's because when you find that rare gem it makes the whole search worthwile. More likely, it's because i have nothing better to do with my time. Most of the games with a 8 out of 10 or higher (or equivelant) turn out to be a huge steaming pile of dissapointment. I'm constantly looking for games that are actually as good as people say they are. Maybe it's because i fall into the trap of believing that a game with lot's of hype will have more than just simple minded fan boys to back it up. The most common experience i have with video games is 'Did i just play the same game?'. Even alot of games that people say are underrated i still find pretty dull. Whilst i don't want to point the finger seeming as i'm not trying to berrate particular games (*cough* gears of war *cough*). I'm more wondering why most games are never as good as people say they are, and also if there is any reviewer that is trustworthy in ignoring hype and has no invested interest in rating certain games higher than others. Maybe i should just pull the stick out of my arse and stop being a grumpy bastard.

 

[Dark42]

No, don't the world needs more people like you. people that truly see what a game is, overlooking the hype, and see the true core of the game. I myself have been ridiculed many times because I hate Halo. I Know that makes me a very small minority but without that minority truly good games cannot be discovered. You judge a good game not on how many liked it, but how many disliked it. if few dislike a game then its probably good but everyone is entitled to their own opinion. As for a review that dosn't fall for mainstream, have you heard of Yahtzee

 

[Echolocating]

Cite some examples of games that you've been burned on, Chaosut.

 

[voirdire]

I know how you feel. That's why I find myself going back to those little gems I find. Years on, I still pick up FF7 when I look at my current 360 collection in disappointment.

 

[Corven]

Why do you find some games disappointing?

I suppose it would be high expectations, also if someone recommends you a game, you have to take into account their taste in games, just because they thought a certain game was "The Shit" doesn't mean you will.

Also a movie rental card helps, so you can test games for 7 or 8 dollars instead of feeling cheated by paying full price.

 

[Crash486]

Has anyone else said high expectations yet? I think it's probably because your expectations are too high.

 

[darkcow55]

I find myself to be harder on games than most people I know.... but I also tend to go in with lower expectations.

I rarely find myself overly 'disapointed' with a game. Even though I find something like say.... GTAIV to be horribly over-rated, I still enjoy it for what it is.

I even scrapped out a little enjoyment out of Superman Returns: The Videogame, even though I knew the whole time it was a total turd. (I got it for free for buying Gears of War... yeesh.)

Basically, I don't think there is a problem with seeing a games flaws and shortcomings better than other folks, but if you let the disparity colour your view of the game you are doing it and yourself a diservice.

 

[Shapsters]

Meh, people think they are "special", or "different" because they dont like games that everyone else likes. Oh look 75% of people here don't like Halo and they all feel they need to shout it at the top of someplace very high, how neat.

 

[MiracleOfSound]

I find myself to be harder on games than most people I know.... but I also tend to go in with lower expectations.

I rarely find myself overly 'disapointed' with a game. Even though I find something like say.... GTAIV to be horribly over-rated, I still enjoy it for what it is.

.

The new dlc is the latest victim of utter over hype by the media. 10/10 reviews everywhere when it is actually a very flawed, buggy frustrating mess at times. The characters and story are also not nearly as involving as Niko's.

 

[EndlessMayhem]

I think a lot of it has to do with hype and what you read in reviews and such as they tend to give you an opinion about the game before you have even played it, even if its a subconscious one. I tend to enjoy games I have discovered on my own more than ones I have brought due to what soemone else has said as it leaves me with an oppurtunity to think for myself rather than build on someone elses opinion.

So just dont read reviews, they cloud judgement. Horrible things.

 

[Ushario]

The low quality of some games that are getting a lot of hype by fans is terrible lately.

If a game doesn't have a demo, I download it first. I am not getting stung ever again by some money grabbing prick of a publisher (EA im looking at you).

 

[Chaosut]

'No, don't the world needs more people like you. people that truly see what a game is, overlooking the hype, and see the true core of the game. I myself have been ridiculed many times because I hate Halo. I Know that makes me a very small minority but without that minority truly good games cannot be discovered. You judge a good game not on how many liked it, but how many disliked it. if few dislike a game then its probably good but everyone is entitled to their own opinion. As for a review that dosn't fall for mainstream, have you heard of Yahtzee'

Thanks, i wasn't expecting such a nice reception. God bless you (i'm actually an atheist by oh well). My most common experience on a forum is being flamed. Yeah i'm also a part of the halo hating minority, it's good to know your not the only one. And Yahtzee is indeed a savouir to the world of video game critics .

'Yeah you should, lower yoor expectations a little, just because someone says a games is a gift from the Valkyries themselves does not guarantee it's good.'

Yeah, True. It just makes me wonder why alot of people rate certain games are rated higher than god (here i go with the god thing again). Why don't they just rate them fairly.

'Cite some examples of games that you've been burned on, Chaosut.'

Sorry, i'm afraid you've set me off on one of my rants. I hope i don't piss anyway off, but these are just some of the games that have burnt me.
Gears of war is undoubtebly one of the most dissapointing, the game has an uncountable ammount of fanboys and won a shit load of awards. But when i played it the very first thing i thought was 'This is it', this is the best game of the year, and the game that even some people are saying is the best game of all. The storyline was practically nonexistent and the characters all looked like as though they came straight from the movie 300 (shudder). The cover system and regenerating health is hardly innovating.
Next to GOW, FEAR was the next most painful. The key feature of this game was repetition. Every environment looked the same, you almost always shot the same enemy and seeing a young girl in a red dress walk past one hundred times isn't scary. FEAR is actually one of the most unscary experiences i've had, even with headphones and at night time, however i am fairly desensitized.
Unfortunately Mass Effect was also a game that didn't live up to my expectations, it was by no means bad, but it wasn't what i was expecting. Whilst the story was quite good i was shocked by how little choice there actually was with most dialogue options giving the same outcome. The game felt like the love child of halo and gears of war in terms of gameplay. And the shonky vehicle control was just unbearable.
Okay just one more, i promise. Now GTA IV was a game that i did enjoy at times, but is still very flawed. One thing about the GTA games is that the missions are never that fun. GTA IV missions consistently either of chasing another car but not attacking them, chasing a car and attacking them or most commonly going to kill a single target whom happens to have 20 to 50 buddies with him. The friends system was just a chore which i gave up on pretty quickly. Whilst it had some nice details in the game (such as occassionally flying through a windshield), it's focus should've been more on making the core of the game more enjoyable.

 

[Alex_P]

Perhaps it's a matter of the character of your expectations rather than their sheer scale?

If you want something that the game just doesn't do at all, getting fun out of that game becomes quite the chore. Sometimes exactly what the game does and doesn't do really isn't signposted very clearly. You expect one thing but find something totally different. (There's a very long rant about D&D that I could post here, but shan't.) Only once you can really carefully dissect both what you want and what a game does, you can at least modify your expectations to match.

For what it's worth: I dislike both Half-Life 2 and BioShock. Ooh! The heresy!

-- Alex

 

[Good morning blues]

I came to this realization a few years ago, and that was the time that I realized that doing almost anything with other people is much, much more fun that playing the best video game.

 

[TaborMallory]

Welcome to Planet Earth. Humans are the prevalent species here, and they care only about money. For all they care, perfecting any form of media shouldn't get in the way of making money.

 

[Yegargeburble]

I know how you feel. That's why I find myself going back to those little gems I find. Years on, I still pick up FF7 when I look at my current 360 collection in disappointment.

Same for me, except I pull Chrono Cross out rather than FF7.

 

[voirdire]

I know how you feel. That's why I find myself going back to those little gems I find. Years on, I still pick up FF7 when I look at my current 360 collection in disappointment.

Same for me, except I pull Chrono Cross out rather than FF7.

I always meant to play Chrono Cross but kept putting it off. Then 10 years went by.... =p

 

[Sewblon]

It is not video games as a medium, most entertainment is dull and trite.