Watch Dogs & "hacking" things

Ok, so with this gen we saw the continuation of the "hacking" gimmick that's been in a lot of games. You know, press this, press that, move your stick, do it in a short period of time. It's been done to death already. So what I'm not getting here is why people are so excited about a game like Watch Dogs where the gameplay REVOLVES around hacking. Am I the only one that sees this as a boring idea? By the way, my perception is that people are really hyped for this game, I could be wrong. Just judging from what I read. 

wait hold on since when has hacking been "done to death"?mrmusicman247

He's being a gta fanboy

Mostly hermits who can't play GTA V are excited for it.

NathanDrakeSwag

Ok, so with this gen we saw the continuation of the "hacking" gimmick that's been in a lot of games. You know, press this, press that, move your stick, do it in a short period of time. It's been done to death already. So what I'm not getting here is why people are so excited about a game like Watch Dogs where the gameplay REVOLVES around hacking. Am I the only one that sees this as a boring idea? By the way, my perception is that people are really hyped for this game, I could be wrong. Just judging from what I read. 

mrintro

Can you give us examples of these "lots of games" that have employed some form of hacking game mechanics?

Off the top of my head, Deus Ex HR and Mass Effect come to mind. Maybe you can count Bioshock, though a pipes mini game doesn't seem that in line. Still hardly "lots".

[QUOTE="mrintro"]

Ok, so with this gen we saw the continuation of the "hacking" gimmick that's been in a lot of games. You know, press this, press that, move your stick, do it in a short period of time. It's been done to death already. So what I'm not getting here is why people are so excited about a game like Watch Dogs where the gameplay REVOLVES around hacking. Am I the only one that sees this as a boring idea? By the way, my perception is that people are really hyped for this game, I could be wrong. Just judging from what I read. 

AdobeArtist

Can you give us examples of these "lots of games" that have employed some form of hacking game mechanics?

Off the top of my head, Deus Ex HR and Mass Effect come to mind. Maybe you can count Bioshock, though a pipes mini game doesn't seem that in line. Still hardly "lots".

Dead Space 2 and 3 has hacking as well, but only use it sparingly. I LOVED the hacking Deus Ex HR so if Watchdogs can even come close to that it would be amazing....I doubt it will because it seems a bit dumbed down.

[QUOTE="AdobeArtist"]

[QUOTE="mrintro"]

Ok, so with this gen we saw the continuation of the "hacking" gimmick that's been in a lot of games. You know, press this, press that, move your stick, do it in a short period of time. It's been done to death already. So what I'm not getting here is why people are so excited about a game like Watch Dogs where the gameplay REVOLVES around hacking. Am I the only one that sees this as a boring idea? By the way, my perception is that people are really hyped for this game, I could be wrong. Just judging from what I read. 

StrongBlackVine

Can you give us examples of these "lots of games" that have employed some form of hacking game mechanics?

Off the top of my head, Deus Ex HR and Mass Effect come to mind. Maybe you can count Bioshock, though a pipes mini game doesn't seem that in line. Still hardly "lots".

Dead Space 2 and 3 has hacking as well, but only use it sparingly. I LOVED the hacking Deus Ex HR so if Watchdogs can even come close to that it would be amazing....I doubt it will because it seems a bit dumbed down.

In video games, "hacking" in comes different forms. It can be a puzzle, it can be trying to open something under a certain time, it can be trying to possess someone or something. It's really just the idea of pressing a certain combination of buttons, using QTE, using a certain power, etc. In Bioshock Infinite, you can hack the item machine just by using one of your powers. You can also possess an enemy. And this gimmick has been prevalent in many games, the oldest game I can think of off the top of my head is Ratchet and Clank from the PS2 era. Sly Cooper also had it during the PS2 era. Most recently, I can think of Killzone Mercenary, "hacking" is even one of the multiplayer modes. You have to hack a "node" without getting shot to earn points. In the Fallout games you can hack computers and security doors. Heck, one of your skills is the Science skill which can be used to hack better. Then there are games like Rage, where when you die you have to press the buttons at the same time to prevent death. Is that a form of "hacking"? Well, you can say it's QTE, but it's still the same idea. Press buttons at a certain time. The point that I was making is that this gameplay mechanic to me is not that exciting, and if this is being touted as the best thing about Watch_Dogs, then I'm not really interested. 

Quite a lot of games i've played have had some kind of hacking ability or some kind of crappy minigame to hack a control panel or a door but nothing on that level, where its actually a main feature of the game.

wait hold on since when has hacking been "done to death"?mrmusicman247

[QUOTE="mrintro"]

Ok, so with this gen we saw the continuation of the "hacking" gimmick that's been in a lot of games. You know, press this, press that, move your stick, do it in a short period of time. It's been done to death already. So what I'm not getting here is why people are so excited about a game like Watch Dogs where the gameplay REVOLVES around hacking. Am I the only one that sees this as a boring idea? By the way, my perception is that people are really hyped for this game, I could be wrong. Just judging from what I read.

AdobeArtist

Can you give us examples of these "lots of games" that have employed some form of hacking game mechanics?

Off the top of my head, Deus Ex HR and Mass Effect come to mind. Maybe you can count Bioshock, though a pipes mini game doesn't seem that in line. Still hardly "lots".

Sleeping Dogs is another. There are probably more... but its early. I wouldn't say its being overused, not yet anyhow. Besides Watchdogs seems to be taking the whole hacking thing to a whole other level. It's far more than just hacking your way into a chest or past a door.

[QUOTE="mrmusicman247"]wait hold on since when has hacking been "done to death"?PernicioEnigma

I think people are excited about Watch Dogs only because it's a new IP marking the beginning of a next gen. And I also think some Hermits are ridding the hype wagon to hide the butthurt caused by GTA V not being availible on the PC.

But as far as the actual game is concerned, I'm not impressed. It looks like an average open world game, full of repetitive, menial tasks. Such padding is a trademark of Ubisoft open world games, ranging from AC to FC3.

The only thing the game had going for were the visuals, that E3 2012 showcase was awesome, but the visuals went through plenty of downgrades since then.

[QUOTE="StrongBlackVine"]

[QUOTE="AdobeArtist"]

Can you give us examples of these "lots of games" that have employed some form of hacking game mechanics?

Off the top of my head, Deus Ex HR and Mass Effect come to mind. Maybe you can count Bioshock, though a pipes mini game doesn't seem that in line. Still hardly "lots".

mrintro

Dead Space 2 and 3 has hacking as well, but only use it sparingly. I LOVED the hacking Deus Ex HR so if Watchdogs can even come close to that it would be amazing....I doubt it will because it seems a bit dumbed down.

In video games, "hacking" in comes different forms. It can be a puzzle, it can be trying to open something under a certain time, it can be trying to possess someone or something. It's really just the idea of pressing a certain combination of buttons, using QTE, using a certain power, etc. In Bioshock Infinite, you can hack the item machine just by using one of your powers. You can also possess an enemy. And this gimmick has been prevalent in many games, the oldest game I can think of off the top of my head is Ratchet and Clank from the PS2 era. Sly Cooper also had it during the PS2 era. Most recently, I can think of Killzone Mercenary, "hacking" is even one of the multiplayer modes. You have to hack a "node" without getting shot to earn points. In the Fallout games you can hack computers and security doors. Heck, one of your skills is the Science skill which can be used to hack better. Then there are games like Rage, where when you die you have to press the buttons at the same time to prevent death. Is that a form of "hacking"? Well, you can say it's QTE, but it's still the same idea. Press buttons at a certain time. The point that I was making is that this gameplay mechanic to me is not that exciting, and if this is being touted as the best thing about Watch_Dogs, then I'm not really interested. 

That argument could be applied to anything. You might as well have said "stealing cars has been done to death", or anything like that for guns, shooting, puzzles, etc. etc. etc.... "hacking" as you call it (yet you refer to any puzzle involving button prompts AND hacking) hasn't been done any more than any other game mechanic.

[QUOTE="mrintro"]

[QUOTE="StrongBlackVine"]

Dead Space 2 and 3 has hacking as well, but only use it sparingly. I LOVED the hacking Deus Ex HR so if Watchdogs can even come close to that it would be amazing....I doubt it will because it seems a bit dumbed down.

_Matt_

In video games, "hacking" in comes different forms. It can be a puzzle, it can be trying to open something under a certain time, it can be trying to possess someone or something. It's really just the idea of pressing a certain combination of buttons, using QTE, using a certain power, etc. In Bioshock Infinite, you can hack the item machine just by using one of your powers. You can also possess an enemy. And this gimmick has been prevalent in many games, the oldest game I can think of off the top of my head is Ratchet and Clank from the PS2 era. Sly Cooper also had it during the PS2 era. Most recently, I can think of Killzone Mercenary, "hacking" is even one of the multiplayer modes. You have to hack a "node" without getting shot to earn points. In the Fallout games you can hack computers and security doors. Heck, one of your skills is the Science skill which can be used to hack better. Then there are games like Rage, where when you die you have to press the buttons at the same time to prevent death. Is that a form of "hacking"? Well, you can say it's QTE, but it's still the same idea. Press buttons at a certain time. The point that I was making is that this gameplay mechanic to me is not that exciting, and if this is being touted as the best thing about Watch_Dogs, then I'm not really interested. 

That argument could be applied to anything. You might as well have said "stealing cars has been done to death", or anything like that for guns, shooting, puzzles, etc. etc. etc.... "hacking" as you call it (yet you refer to any puzzle involving button prompts AND hacking) hasn't been done any more than any other game mechanic.

The point is - what's so exciting about being able to hack everything? 

[QUOTE="mrintro"]

Ok, so with this gen we saw the continuation of the "hacking" gimmick that's been in a lot of games. You know, press this, press that, move your stick, do it in a short period of time. It's been done to death already. So what I'm not getting here is why people are so excited about a game like Watch Dogs where the gameplay REVOLVES around hacking. Am I the only one that sees this as a boring idea? By the way, my perception is that people are really hyped for this game, I could be wrong. Just judging from what I read. 

AdobeArtist

Can you give us examples of these "lots of games" that have employed some form of hacking game mechanics?

Off the top of my head, Deus Ex HR and Mass Effect come to mind. Maybe you can count Bioshock, though a pipes mini game doesn't seem that in line. Still hardly "lots".

[QUOTE="AdobeArtist"]

[QUOTE="mrintro"]

Ok, so with this gen we saw the continuation of the "hacking" gimmick that's been in a lot of games. You know, press this, press that, move your stick, do it in a short period of time. It's been done to death already. So what I'm not getting here is why people are so excited about a game like Watch Dogs where the gameplay REVOLVES around hacking. Am I the only one that sees this as a boring idea? By the way, my perception is that people are really hyped for this game, I could be wrong. Just judging from what I read. 

StrongBlackVine

Can you give us examples of these "lots of games" that have employed some form of hacking game mechanics?

Off the top of my head, Deus Ex HR and Mass Effect come to mind. Maybe you can count Bioshock, though a pipes mini game doesn't seem that in line. Still hardly "lots".

Dead Space 2 and 3 has hacking as well, but only use it sparingly. I LOVED the hacking Deus Ex HR so if Watchdogs can even come close to that it would be amazing....I doubt it will because it seems a bit dumbed down.

"press X to hack" doesn't look all that compelling or fun, but I guess you can't blame them for appealing to the low standards that console players have set for themselves.