Gaming is dying, here is why...

AAA console gaming is dying for sure. Mostly incredibly simple games badly attempting to be movies.

But am a pc gamer, who cares?

@ uninspiredcup

So by selling more..... Its dying ?

Excellent deduction, Bright Spark ! Lol

The Black Plague was pretty popular.

@Lulu_Lulu: Progression doesn't necessarily have to correlate with difficulty. An RPG will not suffer if difficulty doesn't decrease. Progression could simply refer to your advancement in the game, the progression of the story/timeline, character development outside of "leveling", and the new strategies made available to you as you advance through the game. The game does not have to shift to an easier difficulty in order to be a fantastic roleplaying game - or to... avoid suffering as an RPG.

Lets use your favorite game as an example since both you and I are more-than-acquainted (tho I'm arguably more acquainted unless you have platinums as well).

In the case of Demon's/Dark Souls, you stated that things can become more difficult when you don't have "the right build" which is incorrect...since soul level and builds don't directly affect difficulty within the game. If you advance further in the game, you're not forced to level or invest points to "decrease difficulty" and the enemies will remain the same difficulty regardless how high you level. In the end, it's a pure skill/strategy based game. If you do not have the ability to recognize patterns, it doesn't matter how much HP, Stamina, or attack power you have - you're gonna die. Soul level and skill point distribution affects the weapons and the strategies you can use, but it doesn't make the game easier. In fact, if you're excellent at pattern recognition, you can beat the game at the default soul level with the same amount of difficulty. You aren't forced to level up to "progress". If you don't level, the game will not become "harder", it will remain at the same difficulty. Individual play style might make the game seem easier because you're able to use strategies that will fit your style better, but it most definitely isn't required.

FYI - the only game I listed that is even remotely close to an SRPG is Little Kings Story. Strategy is an innate characteristic of any RPG. You choose the wrong attack pattern/order, you might not necessarily live. Resonance of Fate - although you have to strategize your attacks, is a JRPG. Mother 3 is a JRPG. Baroque is a Roguelike RPG. The Dark Spire is a first person dungeon crawler RPG. The World Ends With You is an ARPG.

@ uninspiredcup

nice try Mr. Cup. But you screwed up and you know it. Take Responsibilty like Man ! Oh who am I kidding, trying to reason with someone on System Wars.

Do/say whatever you want, the only thing dying is common sense.

I don't know what you wrote and don't care really. I am just here to give you props for having The Super Spy as your sig.

Witcher 3, Dark Souls 2, Expansion to Diablo 3, gaming is dying? hell no...

Yea don't know what he's smoking if he or anyone else who thinks games today don't have quality while games back then did.

hell yea! thanks :). it's not often that you find many n-g fans on GS. probably my favorite title next to magician lord, crossed swords, and magical drop 3.

Aw man, Magician Lord is the stuff! Sengoku 3, Waku Waku 7, Breakers, Savage Reign/Kizuna Encounter, Rage of the Dragons, Spin Master, Ninja Masters, 2020 Super Baseball, Twinkle Star Sprites, VF: Gowcaiser, Tokon Matrimelee, Pulstar/Blazing Star, Last Resort and many more are awesome! Of course KOF is my favorite fighting game franchise (Has been since Fatal Fury and Art of Fighting) and SNK is one of my favorite game developers so it makes sense lol

Major props

Lol at dark souls being mentioned as "difficult" you must all suck. seriously. other than a few cheap death placements the game is a joke.

@Lulu_Lulu: you're at it again, sunshine games professional. RPGs ruining games? Cos they get better reviews than CODs? Loopbacks are too positive for you?

Have a cup of hot cocoa and tell me all about it.

You're so hardcore and edgy

Mainstream gaming is casual now and has been for a long time. We just have to keep our eyes open for the occasional gem that no one notices.

coming from people that praise this game up to be more than it is. "oh look I rolled off an edge like a fool SO DIFFICULT"

@ Some-Mist

I'm not saying it correlates with difficulty I'm saying it skewers the the actuall difficulty, accuracy is hard to determine if the variables keep changing.

And yeah I know about the "other" progressions, try introducing them into an RPG and watch the fans yell how thats not "true" role playing.

As for Dark Souls its my understanding that its got two types of progression, you can level up the character itself or just upgrade the equipment the character uses, its all the same, better stats is better stats, why it makes a difference to other people I just don't know, also Dark/Demon Souls legendary difficulty is artificial, its more punishing than it is difficult, its a simple game really much like any other, it was just "optimized" for masochists so yeah, no amount of leveling/upgrades is gona make a cheap design easier to circumvent. But you must admit having better stats will make an already good Dark Souls player more proficent and conflicts will be resolved much faster, it may not be easier but damn its a whole lot simpler and convenient. I had a similuar experience in Final Fantasy fighting two of those Shield shaped cie'ths simultaneously, my Party was severely underleveled but I decided to take them on anyway, it was by far the most repetitive, tedius 47 minutes of my life, but I beat'em, got some exp, leveled up and faught them again and beat them in 20 minutes, then again in 15 minutes and on and on until I reached reached to 2 minutes, In Artificial Difficulty leveling up only affects duration and your patience.

Oh yeah you mentioned strategy: let me see if I can explain my "cognitive reinforcement" theory with out making a total ass of myself (its still in the early stages).

Since proficency/skill in RPGs is determined by numbers instead of player skill, I use the exact same strategy for damn near everything, overwhelming force, or sheer persistance (like I did with Final Fantasy), and heres why, RPGs are complex for the sake of being complex, in Mass Effect theres no practical/mechanical reason why you need to use warp on Barriers and Overload and shields, the lore of the game (codex) does a great job of explaining the difference between Shields, Barriers, Armor and Health, they used narrative reinforcement to explain their differences , but in practice/gameplay, they're all basicly 2nd versions of health that can only be efficiently damaged by using the correspondind matching attack to inflict maximum damage. My cognitive process is literally the same for each one "use (insert attack with high statistic) against target with (lowest amount of resistance to that specific type of attack)" that fact that they have matching colours only makes things worse, I encountered a simular conundrum in a Tabletop RPG when it came to looting , a thief, a mage and a knight all have different methods of opening chests, respectively: lockpicking, a spell and smashing it open. Narratively speaking it made sense but in excution, the player was doing the same bloody thing with all three characters because profiency in all three scenarios is determined by a number, the cognitive process doesn't change " match the highest rated ability to the the target with the least amount of resistance to it." it was simple maths, the complexity comes from jumping through arbitrary hoops just to accomplish the task because the entire concept is reinforced by the lore and thats my strategy for everysingle RPG, 100% success rate, and its so mind numbingly redundant I can't believe I fell for it for 5 whole years. Actually the game was practically playing itself, They could've added actual lock picking like in Splinter Cell but they didn't, they hardly ever do, smashing a chest open isn't that hard to impliment so no cookie there even if they get that part right, and magic is either cheating or stupid, usually the latter. However The difference is in table top RPGs, although impractical, it was still the best way of determining failure or success or measuring proficiency for abilities, however Modern video game RPGs can't use that same excuse, theres far more practical, player oriented, not cognititvely redundant ways of getting things done and showing variety, they just opted not to use them. Take Arkham Asylum for example, proficiency is determined by the player, and even though theres no narrative reason why you have to attack different types of thugs in different ways, the gameplay mechanics do an excellent job of reinforcing the difference between each thug and why have to attack them in different ways, more importantly, since combat is action oriented (combat in RPGs is like calculating taxes), the cognitive process you execute for each strategy genuinely different and unique. Another way of reinforcing differences in gameplay is to have one feature do multiple things and have different effects, Bioshock's Plasmids absolutely nailed this concept, the powers weren't just differen types of damage like they usually are in RPGs and in Bioshock Infinite, Elctricty Stuns and amplifies damage but can only deal damage its self when used in water, its also used to activate broken swiches. Incinerate deals damage over time but its really party trick is how it makes splicers run to the nearest puddle of water to dous the flames, it also melts ice covering hidden paths, and conceiling items, ect. Each one is different and is properly reinforced both in lore and gameplay, and it sure as hell isn't complex for the sake of being complex, its very practical and promotes a dynamic cognitive process. Oh My God I sound like an breakfast infomercial :O !

@ groowagon

Hey Handsome !

Check out my latestes theory, the giant wall of text up there, should be easy to spot. Haha :D

how is having an easy mode indicate games are dying? you do know that the gaming industry is making money right?

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnd bump !

I would hate more a game with bad gameplay, terrible controls or just boring.

@ madsnakehhh

I hate design oversights more than I hate technical flaws. I think games that are too easy is a design oversight.

Games are thriving now more than ever. There are so many options and great games out. There is something for everyone. If you cant find tons of games you like then its time to find a new hobby.

Gaming is dying? PFFT! I think you just have your own little opinion and thinking its everyone elses opinion.

Your Opinion: ''I dont like games anymore'' *suddenly gaming starts to die down*

Totes mah Goets

It was only a matter of time before games became to political to play. It's the price of going mainstream.

@ ConorHat

www.cracked.com/blog/4-awful-things-were-now-considering-nerd-behavior/

I find my self using this same link like 10times a day, I should just make it my sig.

Games are far better than they ever have been. Hipsters of course like to criticize them, but at the end of the day they are playing new games because despite their claims even they know old games suck.

to me it tells you know nothing about good games. Jon Snow. what do you play then? cod?

they are critically acclaimed titles for a reason, so you think your snotty-nosed opinion really matters?

you were actually praising Bioshock? i mean the art-style and production values were cool and all but it was shallow as hell. a huge disappointment to someone who was actually waiting for a "spiritual successor" to System Shock 2 like they promised. you are also using the word dynamic with it. purpose of the skills in Bioshock are only useful in certain spots where they are supposed to be used. that's the opposite of dynamic, that's the hand-holding-for-dummies the TC is talking about. dynamic use would allow you to get creative with them and use those skills in any situation you see fit. now that would be fun. like nanosuit in crysis. certain powers are not tied to certain situtations.

@ groowagon

I only had fun with COD in Splitscreen. Anyway heres my Xbox game collection (got rid of my PC a While back, still got the games though.) :

DiRT 2 + 3

Gears Of War 3

President Evil 5 + 6

Bioshock 2

LA Noire

Testament Of Sherlock Holmes

FIFA Street

Lost Planet 2

Portal 2

Trine 2

Lara Croft and The Guardian Of Light.

Left 4 Dead 2

Bioshock Infinte

Naruto Ultimate Ninja Storm 3

Arkham City

I'm ready for my judgement now :)

@ groowagon

And I don't blame you for not finnishing my theory, the truth is usually hard to accept. Lord knows I struggled with it for quite some time, and in time you will also realize Dark Soul's Difficulty is artificial and cheap :). Even if you never actually realise that fact, I'l still have faith in you, because you matter ! :D

@ SNIPER4321

lol ! Wheres your list ? Do you even have one ?

I anyway I choose my games by Local multiplayer, its the only reason 3 of those games even got into my collection.

oh yeah I forgot to add Boob Simulator 5, Bayonetta and Vanquish. I'm more carefull in the I chose my single player games.

i'll agree with Portal 2, L4D2, Arkham City and maybe Dirt. others are crap :) especially the worst-in-the-series RE5 and RE6.

@ groowagon

Anyway, if what you say about System Shock 2 is true then you get the basic idea of what I'm trying to get across, I could've used CoD as an example and still made my point accurately, its just that more people know and have played Bioshock. And older games can't be blamed for being impractical because of technological restraints.

@ groowagon

You're right, the others suck, I got them for the local multiplayer.

and President Evil 5 and 6 is not the worst in the series and you can't prove otherwise, President Evil 5 is exactly like President Evil, all they did was go to Africa and added co-op, and President Evil 6's flaws were more structural, mechanically speaking its the most superior in the entire series, they just gotta get rid of the QTEs and lazy inventory structure, and unscript the Boss Battles.

If you don't like it just say so, theres no shame in feeling abandoned by your favourite series, the shamefull part is being a ******* about it.

@Lulu_Lulu

: Holy wall of text o_O

You don't need to upgrade soul level or change weapons. You can actually complete the different sections unarmed though it takes significantly longer - which I'm sure you knew that per your final fantasy example. At that point - playing unarmed - it's your ability to dodge and time your attacks which determine whether you succeed or not.

Regardless, I think the RPG genre might not be your thing and maybe action games (i.e. Arkham Asylum, Bioshock) are more your style. I'm not as big of a fan of RPGs any more either. In fact, I primarily stick to point-and-click adventures and bullet hell shoot-em-ups - both of which you would probably have issues with too.

Comparing proficiency in point-and-click adventures and RPGs would be a bit more similar than comparing RPGs to action games. Both genres are similar in terms of mechanics. Your success is determined in terms of strategy/problem solving skills and not twitch reflexes. It would also be like comparing a player's proficiency in FPS games and RPGs. But there are some minor exceptions in the RPG genre... such as action RPGs. The reason Strategy RPGs don't fit your theories is because it focuses the core gameplay from RPG games - the "strategy" aspect in which you need to be proficient to complete a game - instead of masking it within the gameplay.

And shmups... if you have an issue with the RPG genre not changing in 5 years, I'd stay far away from the genre - tho it is 99% twitch/skill based. It's a proven formula that works.

Yes but if the bosses were too hard on a certain game, few people would have the determination to finish it! I'm sure the developers want consumers to finish their games, not get stuck halfway through and then put the game down!

Play shmups and retro games then. That's what I do, because I would have quit gaming years ago after how stale and streamlined everything has gotten.

@ Some-Mist

RPGs are totally my thing, its RPGs in their current state that are just absolute crap, I demand More Role Playing and less crunching numbers, I'm a gamer, not an accountant.

and I have no beef with those other genres, they are upfront about what it is they really do, Dark/Demon Souls is a fraud. Also I'm slowly developing a taste for Adventure games, I just need more of them on consoles because I aint got no PC anymore. :( . Luckily theres two that I know I'm gona love, the upcoming new Sherlock Holmes game and Murdered: Soul Suspect from the guys (and lady) that made Quantum Conundrum. Still debating whether to get The Walking Dead and The Wolf Amoung Us (that doesn't sound right, does it ?).

Games, as you are referring to here, are dying because of Apple. All the kids want iPads and iPhones (and to an extent iPod Touches) these days, according to the surveys, at least. So if you needed another reason to hate America's greatest business success story, there you go.

Feeding your rage every day.