Well I though about from a thread of which ones we dislike and also a
video about do gamers know what they dislike >(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCjHipuMir8). The video is a bit
rambling but it did make a point for me that whereas I can easily name >several mechanics that I dislike, I find it that much harder for ones I
like and the reasons are less concrete.
On Mon, 13 Jan 2025 12:33:21 +0000, JAB <noway@nochance.com> wrote:
Well I though about from a thread of which ones we dislike and also a
video about do gamers know what they dislike
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCjHipuMir8). The video is a bit
rambling but it did make a point for me that whereas I can easily name
several mechanics that I dislike, I find it that much harder for ones I
like and the reasons are less concrete.
It really is difficult. It is easier for me to mention ones I don't
like. But I gave it some thought and.....
I think the only thing I can come up with for mechanics I do like are
games with a lot of interconnected systems.
I am thinking of something like those old city builder games I used
to play like Settlers 2 where if you wanted this, you have to build
that. But if you wanted that, you needed something else as well.
Creating efficiency with all of these systems appeals to me.
Why it appeals to me, I can not tell you.
I am thinking of something like those old city builder games I used
to play like Settlers 2 where if you wanted this, you have to build
that. But if you wanted that, you needed something else as well.
Creating efficiency with all of these systems appeals to me.
Why it appeals to me, I can not tell you.
I like those kinds of games too but there is a narrow band where they
work and a lot of them don't get the balance right. And too often all
the focus on getting it right is in the early game. So when you hit
mid- to late-game things kind of fall apart with either way too much or
way too little material.
So when it comes to what I like, I'm very catholic. I've played
"Doom". I've played "Harvest Moon". I've played "Falcon 4.0" I've
played "Civilization". I've played "Titan Quest". I've played
"Everybody's Gone to the Rapture". I've played "Bejeweled". I've
played "Super Meat Boy". I've played "MLB 06: The Show". I've found
value in all of them. Heck, I've even played that free "Korea Cats" hidden-object game that was offered a few weeks ago. It's rarely the
core mechanics themselves that I have issue with. It's the specific implementations that I dislike.
A well made and fun game *shrug* Mechanically I can't really define that.
Oddly the fun is much more important than well made, as some of the
games I love the most are are were almost unplayable bugfests. Bethesda games, Master of Magic come to mind.
I seem to like 3rd person action or rpgs most these days. I enjoy
trying lots of weapons, strategies and or 'builds' and combat is pretty
much a must.
I prefer darker settings, but I've been surprised by a few lighter ones.I can't say I have a preference for that either way. I enjoyed playing
Then there's the likes of Talos Principle II which was a must buy for me >considering TP:1 I loved and have replayed multiple times. I kinda liked
it but it never really grabbed me in the way the first one did even
taking into the account the novelty value was no longer there.
Well I though about from a thread of which ones we dislike and also a[snip]
video about do gamers know what they dislike >(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCjHipuMir8). The video is a bit
rambling but it did make a point for me that whereas I can easily name >several mechanics that I dislike, I find it that much harder for ones I
like and the reasons are less concrete.
So anyway I'll give it a go in no particular order.
I was going to mention an engaging storyline but then thought I can't
explain what that really means to me!
Escort quests can be fun.
On Wed, 15 Jan 2025 11:54:30 -0600, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
wrote:
On Mon, 13 Jan 2025 16:14:39 -0500, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
Escort quests can be fun.
No. NO! Bad Spalls, BAD! (*reaches for rolled up newspaper*)
I know, I know. We've all had bad experiences. But that's just because
those escort quests are badly done.
But if they're done well, they're fun!
I mean, "The Last of Us" and "Enslaved: Odyssey to the West" are
basically both extended escort quests. The 2008 "Prince of Persia"
(which is a lot better than most people remember) is another.
The key is to not make the escortee so fucking useless and vulnerable
as to squeeze all the fun out of the experience. If they are
vulnerable, don't have them rush into combat. Give them good
pathfinding so you aren't backtracking to get them unstuck. Make it so
the player, not the escortee, is determining the pace and direction of
the adventure. Give the escortee something to do other than simply
whine at the player.
All this takes effort and creativity. But if done well, it works
great. The NPC feels like a real companion, and not just a load that
must be moved from point A to point B.
On Mon, 17 Feb 2025 20:10:05 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07 ><candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 15:15 this Thursday (GMT):
On Wed, 15 Jan 2025 11:54:30 -0600, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
wrote:
On Mon, 13 Jan 2025 16:14:39 -0500, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action, >>>>Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
Escort quests can be fun.
No. NO! Bad Spalls, BAD! (*reaches for rolled up newspaper*)
I know, I know. We've all had bad experiences. But that's just because
those escort quests are badly done.
But if they're done well, they're fun!
I mean, "The Last of Us" and "Enslaved: Odyssey to the West" are
basically both extended escort quests. The 2008 "Prince of Persia"
(which is a lot better than most people remember) is another.
The key is to not make the escortee so fucking useless and vulnerable
as to squeeze all the fun out of the experience. If they are
vulnerable, don't have them rush into combat. Give them good
pathfinding so you aren't backtracking to get them unstuck. Make it so
the player, not the escortee, is determining the pace and direction of
the adventure. Give the escortee something to do other than simply
whine at the player.
All this takes effort and creativity. But if done well, it works
great. The NPC feels like a real companion, and not just a load that
must be moved from point A to point B.
Hm.. the only game where I kinda? liked escort missions was PMD, since
you had the safety net of a billion get-out-of-jail-free revive seeds.
PMD? Pokemon Mystery Dungeon? Purple Monkey Dishwasher?
In general, they're pretty terrible though. /ESPECIALLY/ if the
checkpoints are sparse.
Whenever I think of bad escort missions, "Daikatana" always comes to
mind; that was some bad AI. Worse, technically your AI partners are
supposed to be escorting YOU, but you had to babysit them because if
they died it was automatic mission failure. Most players just parked
them at the start of the map, ran the gauntlets without them, and then >whistled them home once you reached the exit door. The idiots were
worthless in a firefight but relatively clever when it came to
pathfinding.
After that, the various Bethesda open-world RPGs spring to mind. They
AI wasn't nearly as worthless (if only because the developers usually
turned on the 'immortal' flag for the escortee to keep them from an
untimely --and usually totally avoidable-- death) but the missions
were just TEDIOUS. The AI struggled with pathfinding, and never moved
at a reasonable pace; they'd usually walk slower than the player,
insisted on a very langorous pace. And then the reward for your effort
was usually incredibly paltry; you'd escort them across half the world
and they'd reward you with a magic sword that was less powerful than
what you already had.
Rule number one of an escort quest: don't be a burden to a player. And
if you are a burden, reward the player appropriately.
On Mon, 17 Feb 2025 20:10:05 -0000 (UTC), candycanearter07[snip]
<candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> wrote:
Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 15:15 this Thursday (GMT):
On Wed, 15 Jan 2025 11:54:30 -0600, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
wrote:
On Mon, 13 Jan 2025 16:14:39 -0500, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action, >>>>Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
Escort quests can be fun.
No. NO! Bad Spalls, BAD! (*reaches for rolled up newspaper*)
I know, I know. We've all had bad experiences. But that's just because
those escort quests are badly done.
But if they're done well, they're fun!
I mean, "The Last of Us" and "Enslaved: Odyssey to the West" are
basically both extended escort quests. The 2008 "Prince of Persia"
(which is a lot better than most people remember) is another.
The key is to not make the escortee so fucking useless and vulnerable
as to squeeze all the fun out of the experience. If they are
vulnerable, don't have them rush into combat. Give them good
pathfinding so you aren't backtracking to get them unstuck. Make it so
the player, not the escortee, is determining the pace and direction of
the adventure. Give the escortee something to do other than simply
whine at the player.
All this takes effort and creativity. But if done well, it works
great. The NPC feels like a real companion, and not just a load that
must be moved from point A to point B.
Hm.. the only game where I kinda? liked escort missions was PMD, since
you had the safety net of a billion get-out-of-jail-free revive seeds.
PMD? Pokemon Mystery Dungeon? Purple Monkey Dishwasher?
On Wed, 15 Jan 2025 11:54:30 -0600, Zaghadka <zaghadka@hotmail.com>
wrote:
On Mon, 13 Jan 2025 16:14:39 -0500, in comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.action,
Spalls Hurgenson wrote:
Escort quests can be fun.
No. NO! Bad Spalls, BAD! (*reaches for rolled up newspaper*)
I know, I know. We've all had bad experiences. But that's just because
those escort quests are badly done.
But if they're done well, they're fun!
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