5 Things Hardcore Gamers Need to Get Over
When it comes right down to it, I can’t say from my perspective that I have seen more complaining from the gaming community as a whole as I have in the current console generation. Even moreso, though I generally can see where most people are coming from in their complaints, there are many of them that exist that are simply resistance to change, as if every gamer has suddenly become Rush Limbaugh. So, for this week’s Tuesdaily List, I’ve compiled what I believe to be the top five things that the Hardcore Gamers need to simply get over.
Casual games aren’t going anywhere – For years on end during this current console generation, casual games have consistently been on the NPD charts, selling like hotcakes. They’re incredibly popular, incredibly accessible, and incredibly safe for kids to play. From the perspective of parents, you can buy them for little kids and entertain them for hours. For older folks, you can play a game without being bogged in narrative or complex gameplay (complex to the layman, mind you). Games like this have made millions upon millions of dollars, and due to that fact, we’re stuck with them. Such is life.
Halo is popular, and you can’t do anything about it. – Yes, the Halo series could be seen as Baby’s First FPS. Yes, there really hasn’t been anything remarkable about the series except how fun the first game was. Yes, ODST was a glorified expansion with a sixty dollar price point. These are all facts that I wholeheartedly agree with. However, because Halo is so simple and easy to get into, it’s a decent gateway drug into the hardcore scene as a whole. In fact, there are probably people out there that got into games like Half Life and Bioshock that started with Halo. They now probably won’t admit it, though, for fear of a tar and feathering.
The economy has more decision making power than you. – This is quite possibly the saddest fact on this list. Whether we gamers like it or not, businesses are going to go with the route that makes them the most money, which means that business models that come from the mind of Bobby Kotick are going to stick around. So, even though we don’t want to see it, game sequels that shouldn’t happen are going to, and game sequels that make sense to happen will most likely be rushed.
Motion controls have an audience. – I think that when it comes to gamers not really understand this fact, it’s simply a matter of perspective. Then again, it seems to me that us gamers as a whole simply have not gotten used to the fact that we are no longer the only target audience. With that said, people outside of the normal gamer niche are interested in what can be done with motion controls, which is why they’ve become so popular. Now, could they be a trend like 3-D? It’s possible, but unlikely with how much the industry has latched on. However, they’re here, and they’re only an option, not the norm.
There’s nothing wrong with the FPS format. – This is quite possibly the one thing that frustrates me the most when it comes to the gaming crowd. Though the market is oversaturated with first person shooter games, at the same time there are still some great ones out there. In fact, I still maintain that Half-Life 2 is the Citizen Kane of video games. Opinions aside, the fact of the matter is that the first person shooter format has brought about some fantastic games, like System Shock, Bioshock, Doom, Quake, Left 4 Dead, and others. So, though there’s a lot of gunk out there, keep in mind there are plenty of gems, so bagging the format out of spite is downright silly.
5 Things Hardcore Gamers Need to Get Over
