Worst Industry Trend This Generation?

What's the worst industry trend this generation?

I know a lot of people are going to say DLC, but that doesn't bother me. I think the worst are pre-order bonuses or console exclusivity. Why do map packs for FPS games come out on the 360 first, PS3 later? Why does Arkham Asylum PS3 include playable Joker but the 360 version doesn't? Why do I get unlockable items for Halo 4 exclusively at EBGames?

I know that some of the console manufacturer's probably have deals to get exclusivity here, but the pre-order stuff is just annoying. Why do I get item A and B at Walmart, but then I can't get item C and D unless I get it from Best Buy? They probably do have deals with these retailers, however I don't think those should exist because they're pretty stupid. I don't want to be excluded of content in the game because I bought it from EB over Best Buy!

I honestly think that's the worst trend of this generation. What about you? DLC? Online pass? Limited Editions?

Yeah preorder bonuses are pretty s***ty. But they are bonuses after all. Skins and useless weapons as preorder bonuses dont really bug me.

My least favorite trend this gen would have to be unlocking weapons, perks and killstreaks. It puts new players at a disadvantage in every single game. I understand the need to keep players hooked by offering them goodies, but pitting you against more experienced players with more powerful weapons and abilities is the stupidest f*cking thing i've ever seen.

Talk about broken game design.

Call Of Duty trend. DLC.

Motion controls.

Butt cancer of the industry as far as I'm concerned. Why Matt Stone and Trey Parker haven't made a spoof on them is beyond me.

Motion controls.

Butt cancer of the industry as far as I'm concerned. Why Matt Stone and Trey Parker haven't made a spoof on them is beyond me.

Shame-usBlackley

Pre-order bonuses are ridiculous, Arkham City's offerings being the worst in terms of volume. They had, what -- 10 or 15 items spread across all sorts of retailers? Dumb. Just dumb.

My least favorite trend this gen would have to be unlocking weapons, perks and killstreaks. It puts new players at a disadvantage in every single game. I understand the need to keep players hooked by offering them goodies, but pitting you against more experienced players with more powerful weapons and abilities is the stupidest f*cking thing i've ever seen.

Talk about broken game design.S0lidSnake

I'd say it is a tie between retailer exclusive preorder bonuses and day one DLC. F*** em both. Right in the ear.rragnaar

Motion control. A regular, solid controller beats motion control any day.

Themepark mmorpgs a la WoW-ripoff. I am so disappointed right now. Imagine how awesome these mmorpgs could've been if they were sandbox styled. I become so sad as I slowly realize that this is merely the beginning of the themepark era. I wish I was 10 years older, that way I could've experienced the golden era of sandbox. I was too young and I kept myself to Tibia and Runescape only. If I had been more mature, I would've tried all those old games everyone talks about like DaoC and Ultima and so on... QQ

I'd say it is a tie between retailer exclusive preorder bonuses and day one DLC. F*** em both. Right in the ear.rragnaar

Yeah preorder bonuses are pretty s***ty. But they are bonuses after all. Skins and useless weapons as preorder bonuses dont really bug me.

My least favorite trend this gen would have to be unlocking weapons, perks and killstreaks. It puts new players at a disadvantage in every single game. I understand the need to keep players hooked by offering them goodies, but pitting you against more experienced players with more powerful weapons and abilities is the stupidest f*cking thing i've ever seen.

Talk about broken game design.

S0lidSnake

I agree 100%. Broken, smart, whatever, I think it's a sh!tty trend all the cool kid developers at the back of the bus think they HAVE to use. Thankfully the Halos and War/Starhawks are above this nonsense. Those are the only console MP games to hold my attention in the long term except BF.

Adding to that, games shipping with broken multiplayer in need of patching. Long loading times, errors, drop outs and such. Not so much an industry trend, the devs don't do it on purpose but very annoying nonetheless.

Sorry Solid that isn't broken game design its smart. It's dangling the carrot in front of you all the time. Everyone is the newbie once and takes some licks, but it doesn't take that long until you're on a fairly level playing field. Killzone, Call Of Duty and Battlefield would be far worse online games without the stuff to unlock and keep it interesting. As for my worst trend: Day 1 DLC that was obviously cut from the game like in Mass Effect 3, Batman Arkham City or the upcoming Farcry 3. C'mon guys that is just dirty.GodModeEnabled

I dont know, maybe I'm old school.... I believe the core multiplayer experience should keep players hooked, not just filling bars, prestieging and then going back to filling bars again.

Halo was the most popular online game until CoD came along, and still is. It doesn't use any BS unlock system to keep all the good stuff away from noobs, and it's still wildly popular.

Didn't you say you played BLOPs for like 180 hours? Did you keep playing because you wanted to unlock something new or because you had a blast playing it? Besides, in BLOPs you could buy anything after a few hours anyway.

I thought Battlefield Bad Company 2 was a fantastic shooter, but man it was frustrating having to play with sh*tty ironsights for the first few hours with EVERY single class until I unlocked the red dot sights. Who locks red-dot sights? WTF?

Trying to further monetize online play is pissing me off too. When EA shut down most of the official servers for Battlefield 3 and started renting them out, they effectively ruined the game. I can't find any servers with Wake Island anymore, and in general, the game just feels different now. Most Conquest matches I join have 500 tickets per side and ridiculous stuff like that. Battlefield went from being the only game I liked playing online to being a mess.rragnaar

That sounds terrible. EA really f*cked BF3 IMO.

Trying to further monetize online play is pissing me off too. When EA shut down most of the official servers for Battlefield 3 and started renting them out, they effectively ruined the game. I can't find any servers with Wake Island anymore, and in general, the game just feels different now. Most Conquest matches I join have 500 tickets per side and ridiculous stuff like that. Battlefield went from being the only game I liked playing online to being a mess.rragnaar

That sounds horrible. The hell did they do that for? Are they actively trying to ruin their games?

As for my worst trend: Day 1 DLC that was obviously cut from the game like in Mass Effect 3, Batman Arkham City or the upcoming Farcry 3. C'mon guys that is just dirty.GodModeEnabled

[QUOTE="GodModeEnabled"]Sorry Solid that isn't broken game design its smart. It's dangling the carrot in front of you all the time. Everyone is the newbie once and takes some licks, but it doesn't take that long until you're on a fairly level playing field. Killzone, Call Of Duty and Battlefield would be far worse online games without the stuff to unlock and keep it interesting. As for my worst trend: Day 1 DLC that was obviously cut from the game like in Mass Effect 3, Batman Arkham City or the upcoming Farcry 3. C'mon guys that is just dirty.S0lidSnake

I dont know, maybe I'm old school.... I believe the core multiplayer experience should keep players hooked, not just filling bars, prestieging and then going back to filling bars again.

Halo was the most popular online game until CoD came along, and still is. It doesn't use any BS unlock system to keep all the good stuff away from noobs, and it's still wildly popular.

Didn't you say you played BLOPs for like 180 hours? Did you keep playing because you wanted to unlock something new or because you had a blast playing it? Besides, in BLOPs you could buy anything after a few hours anyway.

I thought Battlefield Bad Company 2 was a fantastic shooter, but man it was frustrating having to play with sh*tty ironsights for the first few hours with EVERY single class until I unlocked the red dot sights. Who locks red-dot sights? WTF?

[QUOTE="GodModeEnabled"]Sorry Solid that isn't broken game design its smart. It's dangling the carrot in front of you all the time. Everyone is the newbie once and takes some licks, but it doesn't take that long until you're on a fairly level playing field. Killzone, Call Of Duty and Battlefield would be far worse online games without the stuff to unlock and keep it interesting. As for my worst trend: Day 1 DLC that was obviously cut from the game like in Mass Effect 3, Batman Arkham City or the upcoming Farcry 3. C'mon guys that is just dirty.S0lidSnake

I dont know, maybe I'm old school.... I believe the core multiplayer experience should keep players hooked, not just filling bars, prestieging and then going back to filling bars again.

Halo was the most popular online game until CoD came along, and still is. It doesn't use any BS unlock system to keep all the good stuff away from noobs, and it's still wildly popular.

Didn't you say you played BLOPs for like 180 hours? Did you keep playing because you wanted to unlock something new or because you had a blast playing it? Besides, in BLOPs you could buy anything after a few hours anyway.

I thought Battlefield Bad Company 2 was a fantastic shooter, but man it was frustrating having to play with sh*tty ironsights for the first few hours with EVERY single class until I unlocked the red dot sights. Who locks red-dot sights? WTF?

I need to step in here. FarCry 3 offers you a short mission with dancing monkeys as bonus for preordering, which coupled with the fattie extra character it comes with I'd say it's something they cut from the game because it was too silly and decided to throw it in as a preorder bonus instead of scrapping it entirely. Mass Effect 3 sells a story-pivotal character as day-one $10 DLC, I say the two offenses don't even belong in the same sentence.Black_Knight_00

too many freaking shooters. =PAllicrombie

too many freaking shooters. =PAllicrombie

too many freaking shooters. =PAllicrombie

too many freaking shooters. =PAllicrombie

Thanks for the clarification there captain Farcry, what the hell is your problem with dancing monkeys anyways? Hello that is probably the most awesome thing ev...yeah ok point taken.GodModeEnabled

The worst trend is anything gaming to do with the internet I hate multiplayer and dlc.

Yeah preorder bonuses are pretty s***ty. But they are bonuses after all. Skins and useless weapons as preorder bonuses dont really bug me.

My least favorite trend this gen would have to be unlocking weapons, perks and killstreaks. It puts new players at a disadvantage in every single game. I understand the need to keep players hooked by offering them goodies, but pitting you against more experienced players with more powerful weapons and abilities is the stupidest f*cking thing i've ever seen.

Talk about broken game design.

S0lidSnake

honestly i dont mind the weapon unlocks...makes want to keep playing the game

the most broken thing in fps games right now is killstreaks...it was almost broken in cod4 enless u played hardcore...but now its in so many games and its just ridiculous...skill should say whether or not u win a game...not gettin lucky and then being rewarded with even more kills for it...(hence why bf2, bf2 2142, ut99, q3 and cs:s are my fav fps of all time)

but if you are going to talk about wats the worst industry trend this generation...its that there are hardly any lengthy games...yeah theres skyrim and fallout...but they get boring...you can do only so many lame fetch quests before u get tired of it...fps games are coming standard with 4-5 hour campaigns? what is that...i remember playing conviction and my steam client said i had beaten the game in under 4 hours...what? glad i got it on a holiday sale...i would have been p***** off if i had spent full price for a sp campaign under 4 hours...and like 3 hours of coop...

i think companies need to STOP focusing on multiplayer in games that dont need it and start making real single player experiences again...

I'd say it is a tie between retailer exclusive preorder bonuses and day one DLC. F*** em both. Right in the ear.rragnaar

Came here to say this. Total BS both of them

I'd say my biggest issues would be this focus on having to be hooked up to the internet to buy/play games and this entertainment center/social device trend going on in gaming these days.

Followed closely by day one dlc, preorder bonues, online passes, game unlock codes.

• DLC
• Online Passes
• FPS's
• Games that value story over gameplay
• Motion Controls
• Dumbed down Sequals

For me it's a tie between Online passes and Day one DLC, I've never bought a game that had either

releasing incomplete games in beta so they can release patches later

[QUOTE="rragnaar"]Trying to further monetize online play is pissing me off too. When EA shut down most of the official servers for Battlefield 3 and started renting them out, they effectively ruined the game. I can't find any servers with Wake Island anymore, and in general, the game just feels different now. Most Conquest matches I join have 500 tickets per side and ridiculous stuff like that. Battlefield went from being the only game I liked playing online to being a mess.c_rake

That sounds horrible. The hell did they do that for? Are they actively trying to ruin their games?

say thanks to mw and their no dedicated servers policy.

Speaking personally, crazy DLC practices, retailer exclusives, and the shooter overload. There are more than enough shooters out there, and some of the DLC habits going around are just nuts.

Multiplayer tack ons are the biggest problem right now, DLCs potential damage is limitless though.

DLC, day-1 DLC, DRM protection, online passes, and disk locked content are all tied for being craptastic trends that have emerged from this gen. Honestly if this trend his magnified next gen, this will be the last new gen I play games for.

DLC

Motion control

3D (Which seems to have been dying down a little bit lately, so that's good I guess.)

ONLINE PASSES <- That's a big one because of all this "controversy" over used games.

Honestly, they'd be shooting themselves in the foot if game developers and publishers want this "anti-used game" technology to be implemented.

With these things like online passes and disc-locked content, before you know it, video games will become like the guns in Metal Gear Solid 4. ID locked so only the people who originally purchased the game as a new copy will be allowed to play it.

DISC LockedContent

Not much of a trend now, but just you wait...

I'll list two that rise above all else:

-the four or five franchises that make the blockbuster money at the expense of all others: Call of Duty, Madden, Assassin's Creed, generic space marine/modern combat shooter #8 are the reasons why we will NEVER see games like Space Channel 5, Parappa the Rapper, Catherine, Shadow of the Colossus, and a whole host of truly unique and imaginative games again; no publisher in their right mind would budget a few millions dollars on games that don't have some sort of shooting, perks, killstreaks, or annual release and that can't hold the short attention span of the average modern and non-discerning gamer.

-the overall shabby way this industry treats us the consumers: you can combine the preorder exclusives, day 1/set aside/cut from the main game DLC, on-disk DLC, online passes, releasing buggy and incomplete games to patch later, equation of used game buyers to pirates, et. al., to one main point - this industry has a condescending, supercilious tone towards its customers; I can't think of any other hobbyist industry that treats its devotees with such callous disregard (gearheads, golfers, movie watchers, and other hobbyists are treated much better than game publishers and designers treat gamers)

Both of the reasons above is why I will game and spend on gaming much much less in the pending 8th generation. I will go a step further; I sense little to no enthusiasm for the next consoles when compared to the excitement from PS2/Xbox/GCN to PS3/360/Wii; therefore, I will predict that all three 8th gen consoles will be readily avaiable two months from launch and will not suffer the same supply shortages that affected every previous generation console (and they all might have difficulty selling through their launch supply, vis a vis, no sellouts).

[QUOTE="GodModeEnabled"]Sorry Solid that isn't broken game design its smart. It's dangling the carrot in front of you all the time. Everyone is the newbie once and takes some licks, but it doesn't take that long until you're on a fairly level playing field. Killzone, Call Of Duty and Battlefield would be far worse online games without the stuff to unlock and keep it interesting. As for my worst trend: Day 1 DLC that was obviously cut from the game like in Mass Effect 3, Batman Arkham City or the upcoming Farcry 3. C'mon guys that is just dirty.S0lidSnake

I dont know, maybe I'm old school.... I believe the core multiplayer experience should keep players hooked, not just filling bars, prestieging and then going back to filling bars again.

Halo was the most popular online game until CoD came along, and still is. It doesn't use any BS unlock system to keep all the good stuff away from noobs, and it's still wildly popular.

Didn't you say you played BLOPs for like 180 hours? Did you keep playing because you wanted to unlock something new or because you had a blast playing it? Besides, in BLOPs you could buy anything after a few hours anyway.

I thought Battlefield Bad Company 2 was a fantastic shooter, but man it was frustrating having to play with sh*tty ironsights for the first few hours with EVERY single class until I unlocked the red dot sights. Who locks red-dot sights? WTF?

I agree with this & your original post.

I cannot stand having to rank up & unlock all my equipment. Lately you see more & more games dragging this process out. LIke for example in BF3 you have to unlock the red dot sites for each gun. Shouldnt i be able to unlock all the sights & then switch them out for each gun? Why do i have unlock that item again & again for every single weapon in the game?

Others find this process addicting but in the end it becomes repetitive & tireing. Having to spend hundreds of hours with each game that has multiplayer in order to get anywhere is a complete turn off.

All of it also makes the games completely unbalanced & broken. With all the different abilities, equipment & killstreaks it completely breaks the game. Killstreaks reward already dominating players with more tools to dominate ( that called broken game design ).

I thought Battlefield was doing a great job up until BF3. BF3 you know have to unlock all of your vehicle features but how are you suppose to unlock any features for your chopper & jet when as soon as you get in the air you are shot down by the elite airspace players who already have all the offensive & defensive equipment.

So you're just trying to get used to flying but yet cant get any vehicle spoints because you dont have any equipment & all the elite players will run you down with thie missile lock ons & such. If you werent there on day 1 release getting that equipment then its likely you'll never get it.

So now we're back to Broken game design again. The old school games did it right but todays games are becoming more unbalanced & broken with each game. Further pushing the process of ranking & upgrading your streaks & magical abilities, & dragging this process out for ages.