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Author Topic: What Makes a Good Game?  (Read 3214 times)

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Offline Linde

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #29 from previous page: March 04, 2013, 05:36:21 PM »
Quote
DON'T ever never ever do enemy re-spawning. It's annoying as hell and unrealistic. It could be done only as a part of a story/level design. Like there's an alien teleport and they keep popping out until you shut it down/destroy it. But re-appearing enemies for no reason is a big no-no.

I think Doom nailed that pretty well (especially compared to Doom 3 :)). To use your own terminology, it adds to the fear factor and suspense when done right. But I don't see realism in games as an inherently good thing. If it's unrealistic, so what? The whole premise of FPS games since the birth of the genre is unrealistic. You can't run and jump carrying five rifles. You can't restore your health instantly by walking into a white box. I can't think of a single realistic FPS I've spent any relevant amount of time with. Shooters that do aim for complete realism mostly end up having a completely arbitrary level of realism that makes every unrealistic element of the game pop out in a really disenchanting way.
 

Offline fishy_fiz

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #30 on: March 04, 2013, 05:36:22 PM »
While Im not really a mobile gamer (I only a few emulators on my phone and never really bothered to download any other games), I actually think there's a few good things theyve (and Nintendo's Wii to a degree) bought back to gaming. Most notable being that people no longer judge games on so heavily on graphics.
It was only a few years ago when most gamers would write off a game before they even gave it a chance if the graphics werent up to par. Nowadays people are exposed to weaker platforms again, ergo much quicker to judge a game on its own merrits rather than the quality of its graphics.
There's still some people who dont look beyond audiovisuals, but this has always been the case (even amiga had its share of games that played badly, but looked nice, and sold well because of it).

Low spec systems (mobile devices) I believe have played a big part of this.
Near as I can tell this is where I write something under the guise of being innocuous, but really its a pot shot at another persons/peoples choice of Amiga based systems. Unfortunately only I cant see how transparent and petty it makes me look.
 

Offline Mrs Beanbag

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #31 on: March 04, 2013, 05:40:54 PM »
Also a lot of flash games are very fun to play, even really simple ones. And even console and PC games don't insist on 3D/first person as much as they used to. There are many popular games on modern formats now that could be made on Amiga.

Realism... we don't need realism as such. But we do need a game to make sense, to be comprehensible and coherent.
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Offline Linde

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #32 on: March 04, 2013, 05:47:13 PM »
Personally, I think an admirable quality of some games is to really stay games, without making use of excessive cutscenes, written back stories, totally scripted and linear dialogue and explicit milestones, which are all things that more often than not detract from the immersion. If you can make the plot develop through gameplay itself rather than sifting through pages of back story or hours of cutscenes, you are doing a Good Thing.

On the other hand, I enjoy some games that have movie-like qualities, but they mostly get away with it because of some brilliant gameplay element.
 

Offline XDelusionTopic starter

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #33 on: March 04, 2013, 05:49:11 PM »
Quote from: Mrs Beanbag;728241
Quite simply, "no".


I apologize in advance then. ;)
Earth has a lot of things other folks might want... like the whole planet. And maybe these folks would like a few changes made, like more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and room for their way of life. - William S. Burroughs
 

Offline Linde

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #34 on: March 04, 2013, 05:56:42 PM »
Quote from: Mrs Beanbag;728255
Realism... we don't need realism as such. But we do need a game to make sense, to be comprehensible and coherent.


Not necessarily, in my opinion. There are good games built on the idea that comprehensibility is the main challenge of them. Say, Fluxx, where the rules are constantly altered by its players, or Braid, where every level has its own unique space-time gimmick. Especially for puzzle games, both comprehensibility and cohesion might not be given goals.

As for realism, I agree; some of the deepest and most popular strategy games in the world are totally abstract.
 

Offline Lord Aga

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #35 on: March 04, 2013, 05:59:16 PM »
Quote from: Linde;728253
I think Doom nailed that pretty well (especially compared to Doom 3 :)). To use your own terminology, it adds to the fear factor and suspense when done right. But I don't see realism in games as an inherently good thing. If it's unrealistic, so what? The whole premise of FPS games since the birth of the genre is unrealistic. You can't run and jump carrying five rifles. You can't restore your health instantly by walking into a white box. I can't think of a single realistic FPS I've spent any relevant amount of time with. Shooters that do aim for complete realism mostly end up having a completely arbitrary level of realism that makes every unrealistic element of the game pop out in a really disenchanting way.

Well, I don't mean realistic in a "100% real world experience" kind of way. Of course games can't and need not be like that :)
Mrs Beenbag said it best. It's like an attack on the player's logic.
It's ok if you have a type of say... teleporting demon. So he can come at you from anywhere. Even the corridor you've just cleaned. Now that's good sense, good story telling and a significant fear factor. Or a type of monster that rises from the dead after 10 min or so. So you know he can be somewhere. But killing everyone in a room, moving on, then coming back after a while and seeing the whole bunch there like nothing has ever happened, now that's plain dumb and insulting for a player.
Respawning can be a cute trick if done well and in small doses, but doing it throughout the game is more likely to make the player quit in frustration. Or finish the game for the sake of finishing it, while mentioning the creator quite often and in nasty context :)
« Last Edit: March 04, 2013, 06:01:24 PM by Lord Aga »
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Offline motrucker

Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #36 on: March 04, 2013, 06:34:07 PM »
If you dream about it, it's a good game.......
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Offline Oldsmobile_Mike

Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #37 on: March 04, 2013, 07:41:12 PM »
I loved the old SSI "Gold Box" games, especially the first, Pool of Radiance, and other fantasy games of that era like Legacy of the Ancients on My C64, Wasteland, etc.  A game doesn't have to have flashy graphics to be "good", I much preferred a free-flow storyline where you could sort of wander around the world if you wanted to, a good learning curve, and lots of options for character development.  For me a good game was one that would keep you immersed in it's world all night long, and you wouldn't even notice how late it was!  Just my .02 cents.  :)
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Offline J-Golden

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #38 on: March 04, 2013, 07:51:41 PM »
Quote from: motrucker;728264
If you dream about it, it's a good game.......


So, OT, but when Wasteland came out , I got it for my Apple IIe.  For a week solid I woke up, did my paper route, Played Wasteland and went to sleep.  Eating was in there somewhere too but I don't remember it...

After the week, I woke up (or thought I did) and couldn't move as there was a battle between my group from the game fighting robots and mutants  ON MY CHEST!!!:rofl:

GOOD GAME!
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Offline fishy_fiz

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #39 on: March 04, 2013, 09:58:50 PM »
Haha, Ive had some majorly weird dreams during periods of excessive gaming. For some reason though they tend to be very over the top nightmares when I have dreams that are influenced by games. Perhaps due to the style of games that have the longevity required to completely submerge yourself into for a week or two and thier stories, or maybe due to the sleeping patterns that submerging yourself so heavily into a game requires (probably somewhere inbetween really). Whatever the reason they usually end up a twist on the same recurring theme. Lots of flesh tones (never full color), lots of blood, and my father's decapitating clones factory (weird story of its own), but with an influence from whatever game Im playing.
Reading this back Im not surprised I seldom have marathon gaming sessions :) Those dreams are creepy as all heck.
Near as I can tell this is where I write something under the guise of being innocuous, but really its a pot shot at another persons/peoples choice of Amiga based systems. Unfortunately only I cant see how transparent and petty it makes me look.
 

Offline Mrs Beanbag

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Re: What Makes a Good Game?
« Reply #40 on: March 04, 2013, 11:13:04 PM »
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