Are Gamers Losing what's most Important?

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

This is just a little thing I've been noticing through the gaming community. It doesn't apply to all gamers, but I am going to be asking the gaming community as a whole this question.

 

Around the time Battlefield 4 and COD Ghosts was released, I talked to a few gamers about the game. One question I asked all of them is "Why did you buy the game?" Most of their answers were centered around the visual presentation. Not one of them brought up the core gameplay, what makes a game truly a game.

 

This got me wondering; do we, as the gaming community, have standards? Are we losing what's most important? Are we drawn in with graphical presentation or story and not what makes the game what it is; the gameplay?

[Pomfritter 165]

If a game has good gameplay, it will get returned users and happy people. If not, then EA will be sued for lying to people about the state of BF4. Whether or not they care about this is different, and that's why indie games are becoming increasingly popular.

[Frosty Flurry 173]

Well i bought skyrim for both reasons

The graphics and the amazing storyline

But i did ask my friends recently why they thought cod ghosts was good and they shrugged and said it LOOKED cool. Nothing about the gameplay

But yes i do look for gameplay in a game. I want to play games when i get them not look at them.

[Best Username Ever 211]

Well usually when someone buys a popular shooter it  is just due to friends, cool trailers and the fact they've bought the previous titles most people never really care about the actual core game

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

 

 

If not, then EA will be sued for lying to people about the state of BF4

XD 'Bout time. Yeah, I'm a little biased towards EA

[Guest90210 3,567]

Visual presentation has always been how games are sold. This is because you can't "play" a trailer for a game. They cram in as much flashy and "cool looking" stuff on the screen as possible to make it look nice. This changes for some people if a demo is released but not everyone.

Edited January 6, 2014 by Rivendare

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

Well i bought skyrim for both reasons

The graphics and the amazing storyline

But i did ask my friends recently why they thought cod ghosts was good and they shrugged and said it LOOKED cool. Nothing about the gameplay

But yes i do look for gameplay in a game. I want to play games when i get them not look at them.

If I wanna look at something, I'll go watch a movie or look at a nice picture.

[Pomfritter 165]

XD 'Bout time. Yeah, I'm a little biased towards EA

 

I think everyone is by now.

[GhostPony750 958]

What is important to me in a game is mainly the storyline, then the gameplay/controls and then the graphics. That's why Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Blue Rescue Team is my favorite game.

 

But of course, it's still nice to see great graphics, when they improve the gameplay. The average gamer is usually attracted by the great graphics, because the game looks great with them.

Edited January 6, 2014 by GhostPony750

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

Visual presentation has always been how games are sold. This is because you can't "play" a trailer for a game. This changes for some people if a demo is released but not everyone.

I'm mostly talking about shooters. It seems that anything that has pretty graphics, guns, and explosions sells like hotcakes :/

[Fluttershyfan94 5,738]

For me it's many things, story, graphics, gameplay you name it. I think what some have lost is that they only think about the graphics but every gamer is different but it's all about enjoying the game and if we only think about the graphics then we're forgetting what it's really all about and that is just having fun. So yeah, to me gaming is all about having fun.

 

But I notice way too many people that only judge a game based on its graphics but like I say every gamer is different and to some graphics may be the most important aspect while for others it's storyline or anything else. 

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

What is important to me in a game is mainly the storyline, then the gameplay/controls and then the graphics. That's why Pokemon Mystery Dungeon Blue Rescue Team is my favorite game.

 

But of course, it's still nice to see great graphics, when they improve the gameplay. The average gamer is usually attracted by the great graphics, because the game looks great with them.

Perhaps. Still, graphics don't mean much if the game doesn't play well or offer a worthwhile experience.

Don't get me wrong; great graphics and story is definitely a plus, but it just doesn't matter much if the gameplay is broken, unfinished, or just flat out uninteresting.

Edited January 6, 2014 by StevenEarthPony

[Silly 19]

Well I usually enjoy games with a good story line more than I enjoy the gameplay. And I enjoy gameplay more than the graphics. I don't know I think graphics are there to complement a good game. They don't have to be there but it is nice to have them. I guess that explains why I enjoyed bioshock infinite so much

 

That's stupid that people would go and buy a game like cod ghosts for the graphics because to me the graphics are terrible. I like cod 4's graphics more than ghosts personally.

[Guest90210 3,567]

I'm mostly talking about shooters. It seems that anything that has pretty graphics, guns, and explosions sells like hotcakes :/

 

Repetition & Visuals sell. Look at the Madden games. They're literally the exact same games every year, just with a minor graphics & roster update update with maybe a new mode yet they sell millions each year. Also brand recognition plays a big part in the sales of a game. I myself care mainly about the game play although graphics can add to the experience. A lot of great recent games have "bad" graphics (The Walking Dead for example).

Edited January 6, 2014 by Rivendare

[Trolzilolz 31]

I hate BF4 and COD Ghost, BF4 is broken and COD Ghost is lame. I perfer Megaman 2 over them, the visuals are charming and nice, the muic rocks and the gameplay is AWESOME! Don't ever buy them, buy Megaman 2 instead.

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

 

 

A lot of great recent games have "bad" graphics (The Walking Dead for example).

I honestly don't mind the graphics in that game. It's obviously trying to look like the comic series, and for that, I welcome the style. 

[AppleGearRising 525]

The one guy I know who presents a particularly sound argument for the idea that the standards of video gamers are going into a decline goes by the name of Shokio on youtube and I have to agree in this case that, well they are.

Btw, my favourite things about games that make them engaging to me are good well placed music and solid storylines, gameplay doesn't necessarily have to be innovative or revolutionary for it to be enjoyable to me, I should also add that I'm a major Final Fantasy fanboy so maybe that'll shed some light on some of my opinions .

[long gone 8,929]

Personally, I don't really care about the visual presentation. Yeah, flashy stuff is nice, but I'm fine with a cartoony visual style like Team Fortress 2 or The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker too. Gameplay should and always should be the single most important part of a game, as that is what should truly make the game.

 

This is why I've been trying to avoid consoles lately, because I've noticed a lot of gamers on there only seem to really care about having "the best graphics" rather than a truly great game. It's even used as a selling point by Microsoft and Sony now. Yeah, PC graphics are nice, but I don't care about having to make visual sacrifices in some games so that I can play them in my native 1920x1080. If it still plays good, sacrificing some detail for a better frame rate in 1080p is a great trade-off.

[Revy ~ Two Hands 862]

Game mechanics are what define a game first and foremost. Sadly there is less variation in game mechanics these days due to the 250 million dollar price tag to make a game like COD or Battlefield, mostly sent on advertising. It's easy to make a game that you think will sell rather than bank on something different. The indie scene is crowded 100 games come out within a very short time period most indie devs fail as they don't get much coverage.

Edited January 6, 2014 by Gamer Twilight

[Pomfritter 165]

Also, if you look at the big games like COD and compare it to an indie game like Super Hexagon, you can see that sometimes indie games beat out triple A titles in ratings, but that doesn't stop people from falling into brand loyalty. 

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

Personally, I don't really care about the visual presentation. Yeah, flashy stuff is nice, but I'm fine with a cartoony visual style like Team Fortress 2 or The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker too. Gameplay should and always should be the single most important part of a game, as that is what should truly make the game.

 

This is why I've been trying to avoid consoles lately, because I've noticed a lot of gamers on there only seem to really care about having "the best graphics" rather than a truly great game. It's even used as a selling point by Microsoft and Sony now. Yeah, PC graphics are nice, but I don't care about having to make visual sacrifices in some games so that I can play them in my native 1920x1080. If it still plays good, sacrificing some detail for a better frame rate in 1080p is a great trade-off.

If I could give you a hundred brohoofs for this, I would. You literally took the words right out of my mouth

 

 

Game mechanics are what define a game first and foremost. Sadly there is less variation in game mechanics these days due to the 250 million dollar price tag to make a game like COD or Battlefield, mostly sent on advertising. It's easy to make a game that you think will sell rather than bank on something different. The indie scene is crowded 100 games come out within a very short time period most indie devs fail as they don't get much coverage.

Which is sad, but I guess that's one of the many reasons why Steam exists XD

[Silly 19]

Some could argue COD Ghosts and BF4 had great campaigns... They would be wrong.

[long gone 8,929]

 

 

If I could give you a hundred brohoofs for this, I would. You literally took the words right out of my mouth

 Yeah, pretty much. If you care more about graphics or the visual presentation than how a game plays and how smoothly it controls, then I'm sorry but you are not a real gamer.

[TheScarfedOne 36]

What makes a game good in my opinion is a compelling story and tight controlles.

[Geek0zoid 1,467]

Some could argue COD Ghosts and BF4 had great campaigns... They would be wrong.

They might :/ But not likely

 

 

What makes a game good in my opinion is a compelling story and tight controlles.

Eh, control kind of ties in with gameplay.