rokkerkory
Member
Pretty excited... Nintendo found its groove again. Sony beasting. MS looking to right the ship.
its an awesome time to be a gamer.
its an awesome time to be a gamer.
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How are you feeling about the gaming landscape currently?
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HazySaiyan
Banned
Not great, games as a business model are just getting more and more disgusting and exploitative and the gaming community is just fucking garbage.
lootboxes aren't going to go away until lawmakers get involved. it's gambling for children and it needs to either be stopped or regulated.
that said, this year is shaping up to be one of the best in gaming for this generation. we've had some extremely ambitious titles from AAAs and indies, and the line delineating those two experiences is more blurred now than ever.
that said, this year is shaping up to be one of the best in gaming for this generation. we've had some extremely ambitious titles from AAAs and indies, and the line delineating those two experiences is more blurred now than ever.
Yeah, still tonnes of face shooting, brown and grey games with grid snapping animations which I'm finding boring. However the indie scene is great and a few Nintendo games will make things feel fresher.
The idea of loot boxes makes me want to puke as it feels like they are next-gen achievements (Cheap thrills) made worst by randomness, which were themselves boring as hell.
I also really hate micro transactions and never have, or will partake in them.
I've also grown sick of paying for online so all that gaming has had to go back to PC for me. This means when Nintendo releases their next Mario Kart I'll have some serious decisions to make
Not to get all hipster, but I've been extremely pessimistic since about the time of 2006 (10 years ago). Around that point in time, games lost most of their charm for me. It became more about graphics and Hollywood-style stories than anything interesting, innovative, and creative like the gen before it. Only game that really struck me in any way was Demon Souls.
The worst part is def. games trying to be Hollywood. All I could do was roll my eyes when I watched the BF1 trailer today.
The merits of any consoles died for me a long time ago. As many have stated, they are exploitative and have been so since a decade ago, i.e. the start of last gen with X360, ps3, etc. The innovation and creativity has completely died out for most games nowadays.
So what I do is just try to find gems in the rough on PC, like Demon Souls. I also play ancient games on the PC like WarCraft III (and thoroughly enjoy it). Occasionally I try to branch out to other old games that still have active online communities. I find that recent games just don't compare to the classics - at all - except for a precious few.
I think it will change when the game industry implodes on itself by drying out one day. Then a new day will come once again when the games are actually creative, non-iterative, and most importantly, fun, again.
The worst part is def. games trying to be Hollywood. All I could do was roll my eyes when I watched the BF1 trailer today.
The merits of any consoles died for me a long time ago. As many have stated, they are exploitative and have been so since a decade ago, i.e. the start of last gen with X360, ps3, etc. The innovation and creativity has completely died out for most games nowadays.
So what I do is just try to find gems in the rough on PC, like Demon Souls. I also play ancient games on the PC like WarCraft III (and thoroughly enjoy it). Occasionally I try to branch out to other old games that still have active online communities. I find that recent games just don't compare to the classics - at all - except for a precious few.
I think it will change when the game industry implodes on itself by drying out one day. Then a new day will come once again when the games are actually creative, non-iterative, and most importantly, fun, again.
J_ToSaveTheDay
Member
Microtransaction creep is starting to feel more and more pervasive and way oversaturated.
Further on top of that microtransaction bit, I think games as a service is being applied too liberally across too many genres, but I do genuinely believe it's an improvement for some. Fighting games, for example, were very consistently one of my biggest annoyances in the industry with complete rereleases of games, and I think digital online platforms are a much better way to deliver new content and balance updates to things like fighting games or online competitive shooters. However, and this is a BIG however for me, I am concerned about the preservation of these types of games. It won't be like having an old SNES cart or Dreamcast disc that essentially embodies the latest, definitive build of a fighting game later down the road, unless publishers take the risk of releasing a brand new disc copy of their games with all the content packed in once they determine support for updates has ended on a title... But I don't see how that weighs out to be a wise move, unless a lot of people express concern over preservation. Fighting games are a genre that I feel I can more readily return to older titles with, so the idea of patches no longer being distributed and possibly being stuck with an outdated, launch-version code of a fighting game in 10-20 years does worry me, assuming they don't receive some sort of remaster/port work to newer consoles.
With that said... I'm ultimately having a better, more engrossing and entertaining year in gaming in 2017 (coming out of a highly positive 2016 as well) than I've had in my entire lifetime, and I've personally been gaming since the Genesis. I genuinely feel I'm very easily tracking for 2017 to be my personal favorite year of gaming of all time. I still play a handful of games that suffer from the above problems -- and I think they're BIG problems -- but for the most part, this industry feels so creatively exciting than ever before to me. I love that more and more indies seem to be getting recognition, some of the AAA games I've played from 1st and 2nd party Sony and Nintendo have absolutely blown my mind, JRPGs feel like they're climbing back into my realm of high favor after feeling almost completely irrelevant to me for a long console generation, and it's all just raising my overall positivity towards almost everything, save for the most egregious examples of using microtransactions as mentioned above. Shit, I feel so positive in general right now, that if a game does bother me with its microtransactions, I don't feel like it's at all a loss to me because I still feel like there's so many other things available right now that don't want to fuck me over as a consumer -- literally just saying "no I don't at all need to even pay attention to this game" totally feels like a thing that I can easily commit to now, and not have to ever complain or think about again. This is exactly how I feel about Shadow of War coming up -- I loved the shit out of Shadow of Mordor in 2014, and had some interest in Shadow of War when it was announced, but the more and more it started to kind of look like a bummer, I had zero difficulty just going "eh whatever, I don't need to buy it -- I'll still have Wolfenstein II and Mario Odyssey that month, and those two are already seeming like huge commitments each."
So yeah, for me personally, gaming is hot fucking fire right now, and I love it.
EDIT: I do think beyond just the business model problems I've expressed above, the popular hateful movements that seem to be successfully representing gaming to the non-gaming world is a huge issue and a huge bummer, too. It weighs high enough for me that I can barely even stand to play online games right now, even ones that I genuinely love like Overwatch, because it reminds me of just how long and ongoing that behavior has been casually accepted in the gaming circles, and I have no clue how to address it in a lasting manner. It's not so much that online toxicity has radically changed -- I feel like I've been having to endure endless shitty insults and behavior in online games since Xbox Live ever began -- but with gaming expanding more and more, it feels like its becoming a place (or at least perceived as a place) where people come to cultivate their anger and find a sense of community in it, and that really sucks.
Further on top of that microtransaction bit, I think games as a service is being applied too liberally across too many genres, but I do genuinely believe it's an improvement for some. Fighting games, for example, were very consistently one of my biggest annoyances in the industry with complete rereleases of games, and I think digital online platforms are a much better way to deliver new content and balance updates to things like fighting games or online competitive shooters. However, and this is a BIG however for me, I am concerned about the preservation of these types of games. It won't be like having an old SNES cart or Dreamcast disc that essentially embodies the latest, definitive build of a fighting game later down the road, unless publishers take the risk of releasing a brand new disc copy of their games with all the content packed in once they determine support for updates has ended on a title... But I don't see how that weighs out to be a wise move, unless a lot of people express concern over preservation. Fighting games are a genre that I feel I can more readily return to older titles with, so the idea of patches no longer being distributed and possibly being stuck with an outdated, launch-version code of a fighting game in 10-20 years does worry me, assuming they don't receive some sort of remaster/port work to newer consoles.
With that said... I'm ultimately having a better, more engrossing and entertaining year in gaming in 2017 (coming out of a highly positive 2016 as well) than I've had in my entire lifetime, and I've personally been gaming since the Genesis. I genuinely feel I'm very easily tracking for 2017 to be my personal favorite year of gaming of all time. I still play a handful of games that suffer from the above problems -- and I think they're BIG problems -- but for the most part, this industry feels so creatively exciting than ever before to me. I love that more and more indies seem to be getting recognition, some of the AAA games I've played from 1st and 2nd party Sony and Nintendo have absolutely blown my mind, JRPGs feel like they're climbing back into my realm of high favor after feeling almost completely irrelevant to me for a long console generation, and it's all just raising my overall positivity towards almost everything, save for the most egregious examples of using microtransactions as mentioned above. Shit, I feel so positive in general right now, that if a game does bother me with its microtransactions, I don't feel like it's at all a loss to me because I still feel like there's so many other things available right now that don't want to fuck me over as a consumer -- literally just saying "no I don't at all need to even pay attention to this game" totally feels like a thing that I can easily commit to now, and not have to ever complain or think about again. This is exactly how I feel about Shadow of War coming up -- I loved the shit out of Shadow of Mordor in 2014, and had some interest in Shadow of War when it was announced, but the more and more it started to kind of look like a bummer, I had zero difficulty just going "eh whatever, I don't need to buy it -- I'll still have Wolfenstein II and Mario Odyssey that month, and those two are already seeming like huge commitments each."
So yeah, for me personally, gaming is hot fucking fire right now, and I love it.
EDIT: I do think beyond just the business model problems I've expressed above, the popular hateful movements that seem to be successfully representing gaming to the non-gaming world is a huge issue and a huge bummer, too. It weighs high enough for me that I can barely even stand to play online games right now, even ones that I genuinely love like Overwatch, because it reminds me of just how long and ongoing that behavior has been casually accepted in the gaming circles, and I have no clue how to address it in a lasting manner. It's not so much that online toxicity has radically changed -- I feel like I've been having to endure endless shitty insults and behavior in online games since Xbox Live ever began -- but with gaming expanding more and more, it feels like its becoming a place (or at least perceived as a place) where people come to cultivate their anger and find a sense of community in it, and that really sucks.
Black Mantis
Member
Pretty good for the most part. Nintendo have bounced back and released a console that people actually want and their games are just brimming with creativity. I can't wait to get a Switch.
Sony have had a good year and have some great-looking titles coming up, GoW4, Spiderman, Shenmue 3 being the ones that will make get a PS4.
Microsoft need to get a grip in terms of how their partnerships are run. Started off well with HW2 being a very good sequel, but kinda fell apart at E3, where FM7 and SoT were the only big exclusives they demoed well. It's a problem they've had for a while, where some of their 3rd party developed titles don't seem to be getting the polish we see in offerings from Nintendo and Sony. It does look like they're learning though, with the delays to CD3 and SoD2, rather than being pushed out and having to fix them a year later, ala Recore.
Sony have had a good year and have some great-looking titles coming up, GoW4, Spiderman, Shenmue 3 being the ones that will make get a PS4.
Microsoft need to get a grip in terms of how their partnerships are run. Started off well with HW2 being a very good sequel, but kinda fell apart at E3, where FM7 and SoT were the only big exclusives they demoed well. It's a problem they've had for a while, where some of their 3rd party developed titles don't seem to be getting the polish we see in offerings from Nintendo and Sony. It does look like they're learning though, with the delays to CD3 and SoD2, rather than being pushed out and having to fix them a year later, ala Recore.
Pretty good judging by my recent top RPGs vote.
Happy Nintendo is firing on all cylinders
Happy Sony is pushing diverse/niche offerings in order to build thier ecosystem
Happy Platformers seem to be back
Pesimistic about MMO Lite- Shared World games. No one has really got them right yet and the flawed ones are being coppied due to the major success that they have found.
Happy Nintendo is firing on all cylinders
Happy Sony is pushing diverse/niche offerings in order to build thier ecosystem
Happy Platformers seem to be back
Pesimistic about MMO Lite- Shared World games. No one has really got them right yet and the flawed ones are being coppied due to the major success that they have found.
KonradLaw
Member
I;m a PCgamer, so very very good. Majority of classic PC genres and subgenres are supported well, indies are doing wonderful things, ports are mostly of good quality and more and more console-centric japanese devs are starting to support PC. Add to this the mods and freeware experiments and yeah..gaming nirvana is what we're having now.
This industries decadence knows no bounds with regards to microtransactions,
It's now so perverse in some games, I just feel dismayed to think how much greedier it'll be in the coming years.
The games flowing in are really great though, especially the ones not trying to nickel and dime you from boot up screen.
It's now so perverse in some games, I just feel dismayed to think how much greedier it'll be in the coming years.
The games flowing in are really great though, especially the ones not trying to nickel and dime you from boot up screen.
As much as I hate the games as a service direction a lot of the bigger publishers are taking, gaming is still as diverse as its been in a long time. And strong as hell. Almost all genres are at full tilt again unlike last gen where there was a dearth of JRPGS etc, whereas now were getting major entries in all the series from DQ to Nier, to Kingdom Hearts, Persona etc
Nintendo is good Nintendo again, and the switch is an incredible piece of hardware. Games are amazing, as to be expected.
PC is ridiculous now. Theres almost nothing that you cant find on it now, from fighters to jrpgs, gone are the days where we have to beg for ports of every game
Sonys strong as hell and only looking stronger by the day with their game lineup
MS.... needs a lot of help. If theres one thing this gen lacks is the excitement that MS was able to drum up around exclusives during its OG Xbox and 360 run. Theres nothing that compares to the Halo 3 launch to this day
If MS was at full tilt too Id argue that this gen is damn near perfection
Nintendo is good Nintendo again, and the switch is an incredible piece of hardware. Games are amazing, as to be expected.
PC is ridiculous now. Theres almost nothing that you cant find on it now, from fighters to jrpgs, gone are the days where we have to beg for ports of every game
Sonys strong as hell and only looking stronger by the day with their game lineup
MS.... needs a lot of help. If theres one thing this gen lacks is the excitement that MS was able to drum up around exclusives during its OG Xbox and 360 run. Theres nothing that compares to the Halo 3 launch to this day
If MS was at full tilt too Id argue that this gen is damn near perfection
I feel it's better than ever, at least in terms of modern gaming in the past decade. A lot of the technology surrounding distribution and service delivery has matured, publishers and developers are understanding the needs and wants of consumers more than ever. I find myself drowning in games, and this year the quality average of games I've played is surprisingly high. I find myself increasingly less disappointed with my experience, impressed by new directions taken by tried and true franchises, and new IPs growing out all over the place.
It's going great now with the resurgence of Japan development on the PS4 side and Nintendo coming back strong with the Switch.Even Steam is doing pretty good for Japanese games. I am hoping that Nintendo,Sony, and Steam can hold strong and continue to support the Japanese development community.
Not too happy about the 3rd party online only GaaS games that launch like it's half a game yet still charge a season pass or has heavy mtx. I am pretty much done with grind/loot shooters cause of destiny and the division.
Not too happy about the 3rd party online only GaaS games that launch like it's half a game yet still charge a season pass or has heavy mtx. I am pretty much done with grind/loot shooters cause of destiny and the division.
There's nothing for me really. I just keep playing old games.
Games i've bought in last couple of years have been a hit or a miss (more of the latter maybe) but even the hits can't keep me playing. I play them once, and that's it. None have the right magic. Nothing feels better than old favorites... It is not nostalgia (that always disappoints in my experience), rather it is that i genuinely feel my favorites are far better games than anything released since.
Games i've bought in last couple of years have been a hit or a miss (more of the latter maybe) but even the hits can't keep me playing. I play them once, and that's it. None have the right magic. Nothing feels better than old favorites... It is not nostalgia (that always disappoints in my experience), rather it is that i genuinely feel my favorites are far better games than anything released since.
As someone that mainly uses portables, I'm really happy with it. All the stuff I used to love as portable games (Advance Wars-type stuff, platformers, 2D action games) is now covered by indies at a range of prices that are still lower than what GameBoy games were in 1990. On top of that, you can play stuff like Zelda, Doom, the new Mario mainline game and Skyrim on a portable this winter, and the promise of the new Fire Emblem and Metroid Prime in the future.
Almost everything I like is consolidating on the Switch, so I'm really pleased about that, the only downside will be the lack of variety once the Vita finally fades away. I'm playing Ys VIII at the moment and I'll definitely miss the Vita next year.
Almost everything I like is consolidating on the Switch, so I'm really pleased about that, the only downside will be the lack of variety once the Vita finally fades away. I'm playing Ys VIII at the moment and I'll definitely miss the Vita next year.
JimmyRustler
Gold Member
It has never been better.
1. PC gaming more accessible than ever (much less tinkering than a couple of years before) and it doesn't progress as fast any more, which is a good thing (remember buying a high end GFX card and 6 months later you already had games where you needed better hardware).
2. PS4 is bloody amazing and Sony is doing a great job in delivering amazing exclusive games.
3. Nintendo is back in the home console market and the Switch is amazing.
4. 3rd Parties are delivering amazing AAA games (a lot of micro transaction, true, but still).
5. Independent game makers constantly shove out amazing games.
6. As of 2017, Japanese games is back on track.
Did I miss something? This has got to be the greatest time ever to be a gamer.
The only thing I want is Microsoft to get back on track and boast the One and give me a reason to buy it. Having 3 consoles simultaneously and a PC with all of them having valid reasons to own them. What a time to be alive.
1. PC gaming more accessible than ever (much less tinkering than a couple of years before) and it doesn't progress as fast any more, which is a good thing (remember buying a high end GFX card and 6 months later you already had games where you needed better hardware).
2. PS4 is bloody amazing and Sony is doing a great job in delivering amazing exclusive games.
3. Nintendo is back in the home console market and the Switch is amazing.
4. 3rd Parties are delivering amazing AAA games (a lot of micro transaction, true, but still).
5. Independent game makers constantly shove out amazing games.
6. As of 2017, Japanese games is back on track.
Did I miss something? This has got to be the greatest time ever to be a gamer.
The only thing I want is Microsoft to get back on track and boast the One and give me a reason to buy it. Having 3 consoles simultaneously and a PC with all of them having valid reasons to own them. What a time to be alive.
-Pyromaniac-
Member
Multiplayer games aren't doing so well for me. I know there's a few games that so many people love but I just remember years and years ago there being so many more MP games people loved and even I was playing throughout the year. Now too much bullshit has creeped into them or they just aren't as good.
Everything else is awesome though. Japanese gaming is my fave and it has made a comeback. The western games are also pretty good. Nintendo is doing well which is really nice. All in all good times.
Everything else is awesome though. Japanese gaming is my fave and it has made a comeback. The western games are also pretty good. Nintendo is doing well which is really nice. All in all good times.
Young Liar
Member
Every production tier is firing on all cylinders to the point that it's hard to keep up with good releases.
The only thing worrying is how AAA development seems to be heading towards an untenable state for the labor force. It's trying to correct itself with games-as-a-service models and microtransactions, but it's bad that the primary method for having a constant cash flow is gacha systems. We'll see if the market tolerates it for long!
If AAA video games are your only source for enjoyment, I can see how you might be down on gaming.
The only thing worrying is how AAA development seems to be heading towards an untenable state for the labor force. It's trying to correct itself with games-as-a-service models and microtransactions, but it's bad that the primary method for having a constant cash flow is gacha systems. We'll see if the market tolerates it for long!
If AAA video games are your only source for enjoyment, I can see how you might be down on gaming.
IISANDERII
Member
The year's biggest release so far is a 6/10 loot box RNG grind fest.
Great year
Great year
DrBillRiverman
Member
Games of 2017: its been a good year for big releases. Feels pretty quiet on the indie side though.
Publishers: still forcing in micro transactions and loot boxes where they can which is disheartening. But hey greedy gonna greed
Community: the larger the industry gets the more sub divided communities become, which is generally fine by me. But there definitely is more mud slinging going on than ever before.
E-sports: loving that e sports keep growing. The overwatch league is such a great idea and I hope its successful
Speaking of Overwatch.
Great game, can't fucking stand the community
Looking forward to:
EW2
Mario
RE7 dlc
Xenoblade
General outlook: positive with reservations
Publishers: still forcing in micro transactions and loot boxes where they can which is disheartening. But hey greedy gonna greed
Community: the larger the industry gets the more sub divided communities become, which is generally fine by me. But there definitely is more mud slinging going on than ever before.
E-sports: loving that e sports keep growing. The overwatch league is such a great idea and I hope its successful
Speaking of Overwatch.
Great game, can't fucking stand the community
Looking forward to:
EW2
Mario
RE7 dlc
Xenoblade
General outlook: positive with reservations
OmegaTreeFish
Banned
I have been going through a strange phase this year. I find less and less big games interesting enough to play. This year I have completed:
- Horizon: zero Dawn
- Shadowrun Hong Kong
- Destiny 2
I think thats it and that is VERY unlike me. I seem to be able to watch a quicklook of a game for an hour and get what I need out of it. There have been some great games release but I think I have just lost interest in a lot of the games I used to love. Maybe its simple because I have less free time and more responsibility.
The good news is that mobile gaming seems pretty amazing now compared to before. I am trying to get back into mobile / portable gaming as it worked wonders when my son was first born and free time was very spiradic. Just loking at my phone I have a bunch of games installed that I want to play thought like:
- Machinarium
- KOTOR
- FFVI
- FF Tactics
- Mario Run (waiting for the sale)
- Dont Starve
- Space marshels 2
- Bite and Magic
- Kingdom
- Xcom second playthrough (ironman mode)
I also have a huge amount on my wish list and its great because I can play this in small chunks as and when I have time.
Because of this and having a 4 year old, I am possible getting a Switch as well at the end of the year.
There will still be the odd AAA game I want to play. For example Walfenstien 2 will be a must play for me but I cant think of anything else coming right now in the AAA space that interests me.
So overall I would say as a whole its actually pretty great. There seems to be stuff to cater to everyone now. While I may personally find most of the AAA space a bit tired and done before, other people (especailly younger people) must be loving whats coming out because they are great versions of these game types.
- Horizon: zero Dawn
- Shadowrun Hong Kong
- Destiny 2
I think thats it and that is VERY unlike me. I seem to be able to watch a quicklook of a game for an hour and get what I need out of it. There have been some great games release but I think I have just lost interest in a lot of the games I used to love. Maybe its simple because I have less free time and more responsibility.
The good news is that mobile gaming seems pretty amazing now compared to before. I am trying to get back into mobile / portable gaming as it worked wonders when my son was first born and free time was very spiradic. Just loking at my phone I have a bunch of games installed that I want to play thought like:
- Machinarium
- KOTOR
- FFVI
- FF Tactics
- Mario Run (waiting for the sale)
- Dont Starve
- Space marshels 2
- Bite and Magic
- Kingdom
- Xcom second playthrough (ironman mode)
I also have a huge amount on my wish list and its great because I can play this in small chunks as and when I have time.
Because of this and having a 4 year old, I am possible getting a Switch as well at the end of the year.
There will still be the odd AAA game I want to play. For example Walfenstien 2 will be a must play for me but I cant think of anything else coming right now in the AAA space that interests me.
So overall I would say as a whole its actually pretty great. There seems to be stuff to cater to everyone now. While I may personally find most of the AAA space a bit tired and done before, other people (especailly younger people) must be loving whats coming out because they are great versions of these game types.
Feels great for me personally since, for the first time ever, I have a top tier PC gaming set up (6700k, gtx1080, 1440p/144hz).
The wonderful world of Steam has been a blessing to get in to. Just hit 100 games in my library last week and although I've only completed 10 or so, the accessibility and quick downloads let me play whatever I feel like that day.
I can see AAA fatigue being an issue for some, but Steam helps alleviate that on the PC side.
Also Warframe and Overwatch are still awesome, even if I'm burnt out/not a fan of the meta on the latter.
The wonderful world of Steam has been a blessing to get in to. Just hit 100 games in my library last week and although I've only completed 10 or so, the accessibility and quick downloads let me play whatever I feel like that day.
I can see AAA fatigue being an issue for some, but Steam helps alleviate that on the PC side.
Also Warframe and Overwatch are still awesome, even if I'm burnt out/not a fan of the meta on the latter.