Sho wrote on Apr 16, 2011, 11:08:

Slashman wrote on Apr 16, 2011, 10:59:
I don't think we've forgotten how to have fun with stuff. It's that the times are so few and far between when we get something that's really fun to...have fun with.

It naturally makes us slightly antsy.

Frankly, I think for some it's a question of advanced age, too. And I really don't mean that in a trollish sense.

Think back to when you and I were kids / younger, how we engaged with games back then, that sense of wonder and exploration in just dicking around with a game and seeing what's possible in there. Thing is, those games weren't all perfect, either. They often had clumsy controls, they had bugs as well, and heck a lot of them had spectacularly shoddy writing. But it didn't matter, it was amazing.

Today's games aren't perfect, especially when you're a PC gamer (and I am; consoles don't work for me on many, many levels). And of course the industry is also doing their fair share of things to be genuinely angry about as a customer (especially one who has to work to pay for their games now). But you can still have a lot of fun with them if you try and strive to recapture a bit of that kid spirit, where imperfections in games are interesting quirks rather than sources of frustration. Try to feel like you're a cool augmented super-hero taking on the bad guys. Play.

Some will say that's giving up your customer's rights and failing to demand a better product, but honestly I'd rather be a bit lenient and enjoy myself gaming than make it something negative in my life.

Sho wrote on Apr 16, 2011, 09:40:

Ray Marden wrote on Apr 16, 2011, 07:06:
Hating that this stuff actually influences people,
Ray

It influences me because it shows me there are people working on that project who care about world design and atmosphere. A good sign to me. Because I can actually forgive a whole lot of technical and even some gameplay flaws when I find the subject matter and atmosphere of a game compelling.

Hating that gamers of all people have forgotten how to have fun with stuff,
Sho

Yaogun wrote on Apr 12, 2011, 19:46:

Creston wrote on Apr 12, 2011, 16:57:
If my internet connection is down, Steam first tries to update for five minutes (for whatever reason), then tries to connect for 2 minutes, then asks me if I want to go offline. I don't have to login to it first to make it go offline. it's just an option when it can't connect to the Steam servers.

Why do you think you have to go online first?

Creston

You may have just blown my mind, Creston. Something about the way the offline mode instructions are worded made me think it was only useful for setting up beforehand if I know I'll be offline. Next time the net is down I'll let Steam "think" for longer. Thanks!

Creston wrote on Apr 12, 2011, 17:44:

Verno wrote on Apr 12, 2011, 15:26:
Hey now, don't be harsh. $24 and a free copy of ME2 is all it might take to sell it to people

I'm amazed it's already on sale. I mean, whodathunkit that rushing a game out in a year's time would tank the sales of a great original? I'm sure Bioware and EA are stunned.

Creston

ldonyo wrote on Apr 11, 2011, 21:07:
Please, don't do it. I know EA has a hard-on for anything that might be as successful as WoW, but they do not have the ability to pull it off, no matter how good the franchise is that they will use to try.

The only thing EA is really good at is running franchises into the ground and then killing off the studio they bought purely for that franchise.

Elessar wrote on Apr 11, 2011, 15:24:
In hindsight, yeah the idea of saying something is similar or a clone, is one in the same. I guess what it boils down to for me is, people should just say it will be like any other MMO that's out. To that, I'd say... yeah, no shit.

Like you mentioned, we look for what's different and if that appeals to us we get it. But if you've been a gamer long enough (and most of us have), you know that games innovate upon one another. Sometimes in large jumps, others in small bits. Until we get our hands on it (or read reviews) to understand how ability, skill tree and class mechanics differ from previous mmo titles, then no one really knows. But if you're calling it a clone simply because it's an rpg that has abilities, skill trees and classes, then that's just silly.

Elessar wrote on Apr 11, 2011, 13:22:

Riker wrote on Apr 11, 2011, 12:36:

Elessar wrote on Apr 11, 2011, 10:57:
Can I have your Old Republic beta key if you're not gonna use it?

BioWare has shown off plenty of the game, so no, I don't think my pre-judgement of the game is unreasonable. It's WoW wearing a space suit.

More generic bullshit. As if WoW didn't derive anything from former MMOs. You can find similarities in almost any game within genres.

Verno wrote on Apr 11, 2011, 07:13:
I don't think complaining about missing multiplayer functionality is generally considered whining, it's kind of a big piece of the product.

Jerykk wrote on Apr 1, 2011, 23:26:

But why would they? An enchanted longsword that's used against someone who is magic immune is still a longsword. It should still do the same damage as a normal longsword does. Trying to balance that out would be... strange?

Not really. Plenty of RPGs have multiple, non-enchanted versions of the same basic weapon type, each with variable damage. Some blades are crafted better than others. A rusty, dull, iron sword isn't as effective as a sharp, clean, steel sword.

Beamer wrote on Mar 31, 2011, 13:25:

I know very few people that actually replace their desktops with laptops, etc.

And, as a counterpoint to that, the only people I know that still own a desktop built their own. And that's two of us. Every single other person I know is exclusively laptop. They don't want to dedicate space to a desktop and want the ability to work anywhere in their home. Mostly they want the ability to sit on a couch and fuck around online while watching TV.

Hell, even my company doesn't do much in the desktop front anymore. Most of us get laptops, docking stations and monitors.

Creston wrote on Mar 29, 2011, 13:00:

tuddies wrote on Mar 29, 2011, 12:06:
can you imagine the horrific X UI on a console? If they only do one thing and improve the UI for X, I will be the first in line! I don't know how many hours, days, months I have sunk into the X franchise, but it keeps me coming back for more! A case study of how gameplay trumps all - even that horrible UI!

People keep harping about X's UI, even after Terran Conflict.What was wrong with the UI in Terran Conflict? You could use the keyboard or mouse, everything was accessible in, at most, two clicks? I never get that complaint. In X2 the UI was quite irritating, but after TC it just seems as if people harp about the UI because that's the thing to do about X?

Creston

Jerykk wrote on Mar 28, 2011, 02:53:

The only piracy DRM slows is the "give a friend the cd" kinda thing.

In the age of torrents, that method probably accounts for less than 1% of all piracy. If someone is so technically inept that they can't even copy and paste a crack, there's really no need for online activations, limited installs or any other elaborate DRM scheme. A rudimentary disc-check would be just as effective.

Jerykk wrote on Mar 27, 2011, 19:32:

Spoken like dirty pirate scum. Stealing is stealing. It doesn't matter if it's digital or physical. If I stole your car and then drove it directly into your living room, running over your cat in the process, that's EXACTLY the same as downloading a game from the internet. Anyone who says otherwise is just a thief. Period.