• Hey Guest. Check out your NeoGAF Wrapped 2025 results here!

Games you'd rather watch than play

Spiffy_1st said:
I keep trying twitch too, but still don't fully understand. I know it's a background thing you have on a second monitor, but there's so much better stuff. If it's a game you haven't played yourself you're ruining your own experience of it.
Click to expand...
There are very few games where this is true.
 
Almost any horror game. Yeah, I'm a scaredy cat, go ahead and laugh. I tried playing Dead Space 1 and 2 but couldn't get past the first level without dropping the controller. Dead Space 3 was different. Got pretty far into the game before calling it quits due to finding it boring. After watching several Amnesia videos, I decided to try it out. I got to try it out on my friend's pc back. There were 8 of us that night playing. My friend told me to play a particular level. They were all snickering as I trudge through the water. Yeah, it was THAT level. Assholes thought they were going to see me run out the room. Luckily for me, I knew exactly what happens in this level. It wasn't till a later level where I said nope.
I usually have my brothers play these games for me while I sit back and watch.
 
Namikaze1 said:
Almost any horror game. Yeah, I'm a scaredy cat, go ahead and laugh. I tried playing Dead Space 1 and 2 but couldn't get past the first level without dropping the controller. Dead Space 3 was different. Got pretty far into the game before calling it quits due to finding it boring. After watching several Amnesia videos, I decided to try it out. I got to try it out on my friend's pc back. There were 8 of us that night playing. My friend told me to play a particular level. They were all snickering as I trudge through the water. Yeah, it was THAT level. Assholes thought they were going to see me run out the room. Luckily for me, I knew exactly what happens in this level. It wasn't till a later level where I said nope.
I usually have my brothers play these games for me while I sit back and watch.
Click to expand...

You have just summed up why this franchise has gone to pot. DS1+2 were quite unnerving in places; DS3 was just plain boring.
 
There are plenty of games that is rather watch than play; however, in those cases, I'd rather do neither than either.
 
I can watch good fighting game matches. Really good PvE MMO battles I can watch for bursts as well if it's a good fight. I can also sit through a bud, usually Haklong, play most games (especially stealth games as I have little patience for them).
 
Platinum Games games.

I just find their games absurdly frustrating. Instead of getting beaten to a pulp over and over, I like to just watch others play it that are actually good.
 
StarCraft 2 Multiplayer. I don't have the time or attention span to get on the top tier guys' level. Haven't played SC2 in months but I've been watching the WCS pretty regularly.
 
A bunch of recent Sony games: Uncharted, Puppeteer, Rain, Beyond TS, Journey, Flower...
Mostly boring to play, but very pleasing to look at.
 
I wish I could watch myself play the Arkham games' combat. ShadowPlay exists, sure, but it's not the same. And I don't see my friends (who are as good or better at me at Arkham combat) playing often enough.

Predator mode is also amazing to watch in real-time at the hands of a master.
 
Even though I had Deadly Premonition on PC from a recent humble bundle, I chose to watch a playthrough after getting scared during it :( Yeah, I know it wasn't even that scary compared to other games.
 
I enjoy watching any game where the difference between a pro and novice is clearly visible.

If you don't know what the fuck is going on at your screen you will be bored regardless. Fighting games are the easiest to digest for someone who has no idea of the game being showcased, because the rules are simple and the result of messing something up is immediate and clearly communicated.

He messed up, he got a foot in his face, his healthbar is now shorter.

If you know the rules and difficulties of what you are watching, you can enjoy nearly anything, even baseball.

That being said: StarCraft 2 because it's the most complex game I really know well, including the always current meta-strategies. I do enjoy watching the yearly Evo Tournaments too although I have no idea of fighter tiers, framedata and what not, but don't always understand the special "ooooohs & aaaaaahs" when it is not explicitly mentioned that someone whiffed a punish, or doing something really out of character in terms of the current meta.
 
fighting games. i love playing them, but i enjoy watching them even more. the things pros can do is far above what i will ever be able to do.
 
Super Street Fighter 4 (and other variation).

It bores me to death playing it, but it's bearable when watching very strong players duke it out.
 
Starcraft II. Before I really played a lot of ranked in vanilla and the first few months of HoTS, now I just prefer watching pros play. It's less stressful that way.
 
League of Legends because what you see in professional level play rarely/never happens when you actually play. Also with such a toxic community it's just better to be a spectator rather than a player.

SSF4 AE because I just down right cannot get the hang of the game :( C+ rank player at best, so I prefer to just watch refined/clean combos and matches in street fighter.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

Top 20 PS2 games that are better than modern games (by Watch Mojo)
Opinion Retro Platform 
4
201
Trilobit replied
  • Poll
PC Gamers, would you rather....
2
99
1K
SatansReverence replied
Name a game you like watching others play but you wouldn't play yourself
42
521
Durin replied
63% of Gen Z Would Rather Play Video Games Than Watch a Movie
2
82
6K
Ozzy Onya A2Z replied
Jeff Grubb: It sounds like Sony has probably settled on a State of Play for June (rather than a Showcase)
2 3 4 5
211
4K
Hector Hall replied
Top Bottom