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Post by excelsior on May 31, 2024 13:15:27 GMT -5
No, I don't mean games you don't understand; I'm talking from a popularity standpoint. There are tonnes of games out there that either get great reviews, or they gain a cult fanbase or whatever that I don't like, as I'm sure is the case for everybody. Usually, however, I can see where the appeal lies. There's just the odd game that pops up, gains an enthusiastic following and I just have to throw my hands up and say "I don't get it!". Now, a shorter way of saying that is that this is a controversial opinion thread of a sort, or perhaps better yet, an old man yells at cloud thread. Still, I want us to all own and admit out ignorance here. Delight in our own negativity. Celebrate our disillusionment. Let us share those negative thoughts that absolutely nobody wants to listen to. What are your "I don't get it games"?
I'll get us started:
Dead Cells. This, to me, is every negative thought that comes into my head when I read the word rogue-lite. There's a bit of randomisation, but not enough to retain any sense of surprise or discovery. You acquire many items in your way. Each one simply filters the pool making it less likely you'll get a good build. The sense of progression in the game is non-existent. You could take this gameplay, stick it into a more traditional Metroidvania fitting and automatically have a better game. I don't get it.
Braid. Ugly ugly ugly. Awful precision puzzling, which leaves me raging even when I've figured the puzzle out in actually performing required actions. Pretentious, one-note twist on tried and true story formula that has me rolling my eyes. I don't get it.
Anything Supergiant Games does. More ugly, with garish artwork. Vapid storytelling and characters. Uninteresting gameplay. Horrible isometric viewpoints. I hate these games. I don't get it.
Uncharted. Not so much "I don't get it" in terms of why this series is popular on a whole. No, what I don't get is why people hold up Uncharted 2 in such particular esteem. Having played the original trilogy on PS4 I have to say Uncharted 2 is the worst one. It's a bit more polished than the others, perhaps, but gunplay still isn't above average. Gameplay focuses on linear platforming/climbing segments where any move outside of the developers expectations equates to a fail leaving me wondering how this game is considered to be a piece of interactive entertainment in the first place. I don't get it.
Gravity Rush. Just eww. Everything is eww. The worst controls I've ever come across. Eww. I don't get it.
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Post by jackcaeylin on May 31, 2024 15:40:44 GMT -5
interesting topic, I do have a few games that could be categorized in this topic. My time to be ignorant! (just kidding)
Valorant/League of Legends: I played these games about 10 to 20 hours and it was just a miserable experience. How can this be still alive? Sometimes I get the impression that the whole world is kinda lonely and lot of people have trouble to solve it, thus they just jump into a multiplayer game to feel it. People are so weird in voice chat. I really don't get it.
Grisaia no Kajitsu: In the world of visual novel games, there is a game with the name Grisaia no Kajitsu. It got a cult following in its niche and everyone recommend it. One day I tried to play it, but I gave up after 5 hours. The game had so much dialogue that went nowhere. You learn so much details and stuff, but the game didn't give me a reason to care about the heroines. It was so much filler. I gave up. I am still surprised it got so big and had so many titles. This is kinda the biggest question mark to me.
Kiseki/Trails series: kinda the same reason like Grisia no Kajitsu, I don't understand its popularity in its niche. They feel like the Resident Evil movies and they always reset the progress of the story and push back to the status quo. I still don't get why Cold Steel got 4 titles and so many good reviews. The whole 2nd game of the quadrology was basically filler and everything that happened got a reset. I literally don't understand its popularity and good reviews. These characters don't have personalities and only exist to make the main character happy. There are so many weak lines and the dryest plot progression and character progression that I have seen for a while and I don't want to start witht he contradictions. I will never get the positivity of it.
Fire Emblem: This franchise never clicked with me. Maybe, I played the Langrisser series first and I wanted a game that was like Langrisser, but Fire Emblem never clicked with me. I barely remember the stories of the series with the exception of a particular title, due to the bait and switch in the SNES era. I get the impression that the series is kinda the same thing again and again, thus I am surprised by its big following.
Uncharted: kinda the same reason like excelsior. I am still wondering why the series got so many strong reviews. It was a basic third person shooter. The ps3 era shooter craze is kinda interesting from a psychological point of view, but I never understood the magic. Nathan Drake has basically every personality, especially in Uncharted 2.
Skyrim: I understood why Oblivion got so big, but I was surprised how many people liked Skyrim. It felt like Oblivion, but with less content and less "RPG". Nowadays, some title get ostracized, if it less content than the previous title, but nobody cared at Skyrim. Many storylines from the guilds were kinda rehash from older titles in a way. Maybe, I am not into viking and maybe thats why I don't get it.
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Post by JDarkside on May 31, 2024 16:51:16 GMT -5
I double Braid. I bounced off that game with such a high level of disinterest. I genuinely have no idea why it was so loved once. Funny enough, it doesn't seem to be loved today at all, due to its creator, Jonathan Blow, just becoming a huge dip who does stuff like tweet about how women have smaller brains ad therefore can't code as well as men. We have actual proof of this via Blow tweeting about the recent anniversary edition not selling well because he couldn't find it easily on the PS5 store while filtering via most popular.
btw, for Grisaia, they made some anime awhile back I'd recommend, with warning that there's some dark subject matter that is not handled in the best way (especially the relationships this guy has with the women in his life, and ESPECIALLY his sister)...but I can't lie, it is extremely entertaining trash when the really bonkers stuff starts happening.
I'll throw out a few:
The Last Of Us: I genuinely have no idea why this is as big of a franchise as it is. I don't think the games are bad, they seem quite good and polished, in fact, but...why? Nothing these games are doing is unique or fresh, and the stories they tell are honestly kind of mid. I think you could make a case for the first game, but Part 2 is bloated in what it is trying to do.
Zelda: Like, in general. Discounting Majora's Mask, Wind Waker, and maybe OoT, I get why those are so beloved. It's every other game that gets lifted up where I start to raise an eyebrow. I remember being actively annoyed with how long the tutorializing went in Twilight Princess to the point it soured me on any future release. There was a long period where the series was stagnant with poor combat, but now it has become an open world thing that just doesn't impress me. Stuff they do with these games is cool, like the bonkers physics stuff in TotK, but something about the whole just doesn't interest me, and I don't understand the absurdly high praise people give them.
Pokemon: I mean specifically why there are still so many adult Pokemon fans, especially because all they do is complain at this point. They're so fed up with this franchise that they mass bought a mid, edgy RUST knock-off that had a Pokemon skin out of spite. You have options! Try a different type of monster raiser! Tons to emulate, tons still coming out today!
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Post by Apollo Chungus on May 31, 2024 18:14:42 GMT -5
I'm usually a bit more placcid about these sort of things, where usually I'll try to understand what other folks see in the games I don't like - both out of natural curiosity and to have that understanding to compensate for a lack of genuine affection. But sometimes stuff does slip through the cracks.
Scott Pilgrim vs The World: I've never enjoyed this game. It's a mash-up of linear beat-em-ups with the RPG elements of River City Ransom without the benefits of either, resulting in a very spongey brawler that takes forever to deal any decent damage or find cool moves. The sound design also stinks, with limp sound effects that focus on sounding "real" in a way that contradicts the rest of the retro presentation and removes any sense of impact from attacks. I'd rather play the games that inspired this.
Grand Theft Auto V: the only GTA I've played a decent amount of, and woof it was deeply unpleasant. I suspect I'd be more at ease with all the dumb and stupid side activities that let you exist in the world of Los Santos, but everyone and everything is aggressively mean-spirited and bitter. I did not find it funny, especially that awful tonal shift in the notorious torture mission that legit goes from "actual no-holds-barred torture that you have to take part in" to "haha black comedy, isn't torture a useless thing to do lmao". The only game where I stopped playing out of pure disgust. Sleeping Dogs is the better gritty sandbox crime drama of the early 2010s.
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Post by dsparil on Jun 1, 2024 6:52:01 GMT -5
A comment first:
Skyrim - I didn't like it overall, but it did have finally have the level of scripting that was promised for Morrowind; I think it's genuinely fair to say it was an outright lie in Morrowind except for the one quest they always used to show it off and very flawed in Oblivion. Outside of that, yeah I think it is just love of vikings and fighting dragons which previously had not appeared in the series. I still think that Daggerfall has the best gameplay, and now that Daggerfall Unity is officially finishing, there’s a non-janky way to play it.
For me:
Assassin's Creed II and Brotherhood - I did like the last of the Ezio trilogy, but the first two are so ridiculously bloated and also have poor plots and controls. All the games in the series that I've played have problems except maybe Liberation which mostly suffers from being a lower budget spin off (originally). Revelations cuts out all the bloat, doesn’t put up artificial barriers and has a decent plot. Which of course makes it the worst reviewed of the three.
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Post by personman on Jun 2, 2024 1:24:59 GMT -5
The Witcher 2 & 3: I just plain never understood what people see in these, especially 2. Its passable as a story and frankly terrible as an action RPG with just bad encounters, hit detection, superfluous talent trees, you name it. I do have some respect for it having the balls to actually have completely different story arcs for its two paths even if it doesn't quite land. Roche's path makes the most sense and is way more polished than whoever the other guy you go with on the other path. But everyone acts like it was the second coming and we must be playing different games. I dont get how something that can so often be utterly miserable to play just gets a pass as a modern classic.
Then there is 3 which just I dare say is one of the most overrated things in this recent generation. Its just more typical open world busy work, the story for the base game is grossly formulaic and boring and for every little arc that is cool (Bloody Baron, Dealing with the Hym) theres like 12 others that are terribly written (just about every interaction with a 'love' interest is horribly handled) and most of the characters I just find fucking insufferable. Everyone lost thier mind with the quest design when there was like ONE time where a generic wanted quest turns into a little arc where... you pretty much do damn near the same thing you would have only now one of your obnoxious Witcher friends are bitching about everything. Great. And again that happens like once, the rest of the games 'amazing quest design' is all just the usual repetitive boring thing you already did 20 times before only maybe you'll have to make a decision for which asshole is slightly less horrible. Just bleh, its the same shit you've seen before and the combat system is awful… again! Why did people act like this thing was a revolution?
I don't hate them, they're both just... fine. But the pedestal people put them on, especially 2 is so damn unwarranted in my eyes. However I will admit I did like 3's two expansions, especially Hearts of Stone. If the rest of it was even remotely like those I'd be able to begrudgingly agree with everyone. As it stands though my favorite Witcher game is the first which of course isn't great! But the damn thing was interesting with its jank and goofy script and weird disjointed plot. You couldn't pay me to replay 2 and 3 but 1 I'd at least humor.
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Post by shelverton on Jun 2, 2024 7:01:04 GMT -5
I have a few games like this, but for the most part I can kinda ”objectively” see the appeal of most of them, like Metroid Prime which I absolutely ”get”. I think I’m just sad and annoyed that I didn’t enjoy it when it’s clearly something I SHOULD love.
Speaking of Metroid, I gave up on Metroid Dread because I got extremely bored and frustrated. That has never happened with a 2D Metroid before, even though the 3DS remake of Metroid 2 wasn’t exactly super fun either. So, seeing Metroid Dread being hailed by some as the best 2D Metroid ever made is an absolute joke to me. I don’t get it. I hate how MercurySteam can’t make a game without at least one repetitive gameplay gimmick. I hated the combat in their Castlevania games and now I hate what they’ve done to 2D Metroid. Also, as far as ”metroidvanias” go, exploration is not fun or exciting and I also think the environments blend together. I wish Nintendo would turn to literally any other studio for future 2D Metroids, but I’m sure Mercurysteam is here to stay…
I also have never understood the appeal of any game where you lose all progress when you die and have to start over. I’ve tried everything from Dead Cells to Hades to Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter and I just don’t get it. I’m sure I’m missing out on something but I have quite frankly given up on the genre.
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Post by spanky on Jun 2, 2024 12:16:38 GMT -5
Most of mine had already been mentioned. Metroid Prime is a big one. This is a game that is raved about to this day by almost everyone and it did nothing for me when I played it.
Ditto Pokemon. I did enjoy the game...in 1998, but after playing through Gen 1 like 4 times in a row, it got kind of old. Every time I play a new game in the series, I can't help but feel I am playing the exact same game.
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Post by lurker on Jun 2, 2024 23:43:35 GMT -5
Isn’t this supposed be about popularity?
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Post by mainpatr on Jun 3, 2024 0:40:09 GMT -5
Got a big one here.
Genshin Impact and related games / clones. WHY are these so popular!??!?!?!?!??!?! Probably the epitome of the mobile Gacha grindfest.
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Post by excelsior on Jun 3, 2024 2:58:21 GMT -5
Isn’t this supposed be about popularity? What comment are you referring to?
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Post by JDarkside on Jun 3, 2024 5:02:36 GMT -5
Got a big one here. Genshin Impact and related games / clones. WHY are these so popular!??!?!?!?!??!?! Probably the epitome of the mobile Gacha grindfest. Gambling addiction and/or otaku pandering. Mostly exists as fuel for doujins.
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Post by Snake on Jun 3, 2024 11:17:07 GMT -5
Tomb Raider series. Couldn't get past the first game. Run run run. Shoot an odd bat. Run run run.
Tekken series. As a game, I was just never very good at it. I'm just button mashing most of the time. While I do enjoy the humor, the joke characters, the lore, and lame endings... I'm perfectly content to just read and watch, and do anything else except actually play Tekken.
Fortnite. Gave a shot, playing with my nephew. Was bored out of my mind. I guess I can see the appeal for kids, the whacky costumes and setting. Just didnt' care for it. But to be honest, 1st-person shooters is a genre I never grew up past Doom, Hexen, and Duke Nukem.
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Post by JDarkside on Jun 3, 2024 17:30:49 GMT -5
Eh. Tekken and Fortnite there are more "I don't like it" then a "I don't get it" situation as you describe (which is fine, btw).
For example, I don't like a lot of games and types of games, particularly real time strategy games - but I get why people like them. The idea here seems to be more a game that genuinely befuddles you in some way, as the absurd amount of praise it may get or you just don't understand the core appeal at all.
As for Tomb Raider, that one makes a lot more sense when you remember how old it is, and it was once revolutionary in terms of game design and what it was doing in a 3D space. That's also why the series had a huge drop off as it struggled to meet modern design standards, until that reboot.
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Post by retr0gamer on Jun 4, 2024 6:13:34 GMT -5
I honestly think the old tomb raider gameplay is perfect. It can feel clunky at first but the thing about it is that it's consistent. Every movement and jump will work the same in every situation. Once you are used to the game it's very fair with some great traversal. TR1 in particular is so well designed although issues start to appear and the series advances.
As for games I don't get, I'm going to start with The Last of Us 2. I'm not wild about the first game. The gameplay is interesting but the setting is basically children of men mixed with the road and zombies. However I think it's a great character study of Joel and I really don't get people that see him as hero figure and not the piece of shit the game obviously makes him out to be.
The Last of Us 2 on the other hand manages to be twice as long and says absolutely nothing of meaning. As a character study, it's really bad. Ellie terrible, a complete sociopath whose actions make less and less sense as the game goes on and shatters any suspension of disbelief. She feels like a villain from a Saturday morning cartoon. Abby is a lot better but her journey to get away from all the violence while having some humanity to it, just isn't interesting.
The game is basically just a lecture on how the cycle of violence is bad and provides no answers or deeper insights into this. It's something that's obvious and it's just reiterating on that. It takes 25 to 30 hours for the game to say absolutely nothing and as a result I'd call it pretentious. It's subsequently come out that Neil Druckmann intended it to be commentary on the Israel/Palestinian conflict but its both-siding of the issues is deeply problematic, especially considering recent events. It's problematic in the same way that the both-siding of racism was handled in bioshock infinite.
I wouldn't mind but I think as a game it works quite well. The stealth and combat are satisfying and visceral and the traps and gadgets you can craft are a lot of fun to use. It's just a pity the game is about twice as long as it needs to be and spoils the pacing of the game.
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