A Problem Of Quality
Dedicated NG enthusiasts,
I have a problem. Really, it is one of the better issues one can have, but it is dilemma nontheless:
I don't play enough crap.
I have played the following games thoroughly or to completion since September 2005 and cannot say that I have disliked any of them: Super Metroid, Final Fantasy VI, Street Fighter II Turbo, Chrono Trigger, Deus Ex, Resident Evil 4, Half-Life, Half-Life 2, HL2: Episode One, Final Fantasy VII, Guilty Gear X2, Castlevania IV, Symphony of the Night, Aria of Sorrow, Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin, Rondo of Blood, Metal Gear Solid 2: Substance, Metal Gear Solid 3: Subsistence, Final Fantasy XII, Psychonauts, God of War, Devil May Cry 3, Virtua Fighter 4: Evolution, Shadow of the Colossus, Katamari Damacy, Gunstar Heroes, Metroid: Zero Mission, Drill Dozer, Zelda: Twilight Princess, Zelda, Link's Awakening, Yoshi's Island, Perfect Dark, Counter Strike, Starcraft, Megaman X-X3, Super Smash Brothers Melee, Cave Story, Sonic 3, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3, Ikaruga, Mario Kart: Double Dash, and probably some I'm forgetting at the moment.
That list contains some of the best games of all time and I have enjoyed my time with all of them. However, I feel like my perception has been skewed because of it. I cannot truly appreciate their quality because I don't really have much grounds for comparison. It is a disturbing thought. For example, I liked God of War, but not nearly to the extent that industry critics seemed to. Perhaps I haven't spent my time playing generic beat'em ups to really understand what it did so right.
The flip side of this is of course that there is so much good stuff out there, why should I waste time on bad games? It is a relatively young medium and yet there are tons of titles that are worth playing. Is perspective really worth precious time that could be spent on better games? Would it make the good stuff seem so much superior by comparison that it would warrant the effort? Thoughts are appreciated.
Wow, that's a lot of gaming. Seeing it all listed out kind of scares me, especially considering it is probably not even half of all the games I have played in the same time frame. I am such a loser.
Nerdier Than Thou,
Otacon
2 comments:
Be careful. There ARE tons of games worth playing. But don't get stuck in "great game/shitty game" land. If a game looks appealing, try to play it. Who cares what the public thinks?
Don't stick only to what people recommend. I had never heard of Dragon View or Samurai Western, I tried both with little information going in. They aren't the best games in their genres, but I enjoyed them well enough and would recommend them to others.
And as for judging: You know enough about games to be able to figure stuff out. If a game is good you can tell me what you thought was good about it, and that's enough. It may put things in perspective to know the history of the genre, but that isn't necessary.
Perhaps. I do generally only play things that seem interesting to me; for instance, it is unlikely that I would buy Madden 2k4, despite a general agreement it is the best recent installment. It just does not appeal to me. Conversely, STALKER hasn't been reviewed that favorably, but I really want to play it.
And you are probably right. I might only play games I enjoy because if I can decide fairly quickly if a game is worth my time.
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