Forums » General Gaming

Gaming for fun - Is it dead?

    • 7 posts
    June 19, 2015 5:40 PM EDT

    So, I'd like to apologize if this post is rather wordy, and long-winded, but it's something I've thought about quite a bit over the last several years - is gaming for fun still alive?

    I grew up in the 90s, so I'm part of the generation that was born into gaming, and since as long as I can remember I've been a gamer. For me, it's always been about one thing - having fun. I've never been a competitive gamer, and instead I've always preferred fully co-op games over the competitive matchmaking style games. For this reason, I've always stayed away from franchises such as Halo or CoD, preferring instead to play co-op games such as Borderlands, Dungeon Defenders, or just games with a single player focus. I did however break down and buy Shadowrun on the 360 (always been a huge fan of the Shadowrun universe since I first played it on the Genesis). My view on competitive video gaming was soured even more by my experiences with this game. A friend and I (both fairly inexperienced at the game) started playing together online. Now, for anyone unfamiliar with how this game works, it's quite like Counter-Strike in that each player is awarded money depending on how well they did during the round. They then use this money to buy various, weapons, tech, and magic spells. So me and my friend both bought this piece of tech called Smartlink which acts as a laser-sight - increasing accuracy, and disabling friendly fire. The downside to Smartlink is that the laser gives away your position. Smartlink, as we found out the hard way is considered extremely n00bish. Our teammates proceeded to kill us over and over because we were using it. Three people who were supposed to be helping us in a CTF style match actually stopped trying to get the flag in lieu of relentlessly spawn killing us. After this and a few more less than favorable sportsmanlike attitudes and I swore off online gaming for quite a number of years.

    This brings us to more recently, I bought Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. I've been an avid player of this series since the first installment on the N64, so I'm pretty good at it. Still, I much prefer to play 4-player free-for-alls, any stage, with all items. I enjoy the chaos, and firmly believe that mastering that is part of how the game is meant to be played. If I wanted to play 1v1 on a flat map with no items, I'd learn how to play Street Fighter or something of the sort, but as I've said, I enjoy the chaos. So, a few days ago, I finally decide to delve into some online play. Now, in the online menu, there are two options; For Fun or For Glory - 4-player, all stages, items, or 1v1, flat stages, no items, both modes are 2 minute timed matches. So I figure "For Fun, this is exactly what I'm looking for!" I start playing a few games, and slowly begin to notice something with nearly everyone I'm playing against, there would always be one or two players in the game who would just wait near an edge for someone to come by so they could toss them off or punish someone who's attempting to recover from a smash. I ignored it for a while and kept playing like I normally would, but this behavior became more and more frequent in my opponents. In one particular match I quickly noticed that I was the only one actively pursuing to fight. Players would fight back if I engaged them but besides that everyone just guarded their edge. This made me curious to try something, and I decided to mimic their behavior. About 30 seconds into the match I stopped and stood there doing nothing myself. It was the strangest thing, for a full minute and a half left in the match, no one moved. The match stalemated and I left. I couldn't believe what I had just witnessed! Why would you ever buy a game, put it in your console, load it up, enter a match, then not play!?

    This brings me back to my original question, does gaming for fun still exist? Or have we all lost ourselves into the black hole of competitive gaming? Are we too obsessed with Win/Loss, Kill/Death, and other ratios and stats to actually enjoy our games anymore? Or maybe I'm just talking absolute bullcrap, and have just been unlucky enough to get the rotten apples of the online gaming community. If anyone has any other similar experiences or opinions to share I'd love to hear them. 

    Anyways, again I'm sorry this was so long-winded, and probably unorganized, and I thank you if you've actually taken the time to read all of this.

    Cheers,

    Kneeba

    • 113 posts
    June 19, 2015 5:52 PM EDT

    Dude, that is crazy! I can't believe people would play like in SMASH!!! Fools. 

    Reminds me how I always go in for the fight. However, I hate competitive Smash, it's so boring. So a lot of timing people out is how to play, and some assholes just don't mind doing that. 

    Yes, gaming for fun has died when Online became a thing. 

    • 1441 posts
    June 19, 2015 5:57 PM EDT
    I still game for fun
    • 4 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:03 PM EDT

    It honestly depends on what your definition of "fun" in gaming is tbh. 

    For some people playing online in that competitive nature is fun, for people like me any game that can hold my interest and get my imagination going is where the real fun is. 

    • 7 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:04 PM EDT
    I know man, I was at a complete loss for words. If that is how some people enjoy playing Smash then why not play For Glory instead of For Fun and drag down other peoples experiences?

    I'm glad to hear that someone else feela the same way I do, and that I'm not the only one.
    • 7 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:15 PM EDT
    Yeah, I definitely understand that and it's something I should have mentioned in my original post. I'm not trying to bash on competitive gamers or anything of the sort, if competitive gaming is what you have fun doing then all the power to you. I think the problem resides in competitive gamers taking it to the level of hindering the experience of someone just trying to have some fun and who isnt worried about winning or losing or scores.
    • 558 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:21 PM EDT

    I play some games for fun, like MKX, but I also play games for other reasons.

    I like the Dark Souls series (and Bloodborne) because of the atmosphere, lore, soundtrack, and challenge. The combat is also one of the best parts of those games, too. Those games are notoriously difficult, and people ragequit all the time while playing. But they always come back. Dark Souls isn't necessarily "fun", but is extremely enjoyable for other reasons.

    Did anyone really play The Last of Us because it was fun? Of course not! People played it for the story. Granted, it was fun, but people really just played it for the story. Some people even shed tears of sadness while playing!

    What I am trying to say is, some developers don't always try to make their games chaotic fun like Nintendo seems to do. Of course they don't want their games to be boring, but they go a different direction with their games.

    • 739 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:24 PM EDT

    For sure mate!

    People get very competitive online and the world is full of idiot 12 years olds, the abuse can get pretty bad!

    You have to basically be careful what game you choose to play because some aren't as well thought out as others when it comes to balance.

    Now COD! I've seen this franchise slammed so many times on this site but I love that game and I disagree with the negative views on it. It's well balanced and innactivity can mean death for your team, you have to contribute! That game is FUN.

    I guess you have to work out what's fun for you and then find a game that meets your desires.

    Competitive games are the most addictive in my experience, you can shake off being beat by a computer but when someone runs rings around you online it can really burn...

    In many games getting hatemail from other players is even a sign you're doing well!

    I was playing Dark Souls 2 a couple of months ago and I entered the arena with my new faith build; I watch the opposite gate open and in comes this pro!! He's swirling with his unholy red flames and holding a fucking huge sword that's even bigger than him...

    ...so I shit myself a bit and pop a regeneration spell and buff my longsword with fire. Pull out my shield and do some hit n run with him, he's landing HUGE hits but I'm able to keep moving and let my regeneration spell keep my alive.

    And I beat him. Takes longer than usual but I wear him down....

    Anyway, this guy goes NUTS on me over PM! He's hugely pissed because I'm using the Longsword...

    Now, the 'Fire Longsword' in Dark Souls 2 is picked up during the very earliest stages of the game, it isn't found in the darkest depths of the pit of despair or something amazing like that. He claims that small swords are too 'spammy' and brands me a noob, all this while clinging onto his huge glow stick of destiny...

    Competitive gaming is great fun! I do usually opt for co-op if I can but pvp in many games is very tempting.

    • 1217 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:24 PM EDT

    Personally, I believe that as much as possible gaming should be done with friends; people you know you can have fun with. In that regard, I'm just like you, and most of my games are single player. That said, while online gaming has introduced us to buckets of jerks, it's also introduced us to communities (like this one!), and even if you aren't interested or extroverted enough to get to know people, it's still pretty easy to find groups of decent people to play with. Additionally, the community is a great indicator of what the game is like. If I investigate a gaming community, and everyone is obsessed with min-maxing skills and memorizing combos, I know I'm probably not going to have a good time with the game. Even so, I would say that gaming for fun is far from dead. It may have a suffered a blow from the long draughts of games without couch-co-op, but it's still out there.

    • 4 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:25 PM EDT

    " glow stick of destiny" 

    Classic. 

    • 1483 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:29 PM EDT

    I have different kind of fun in different games. In multiplayer games some of my most favorite moments come from outsmarting the enemy and winning. But I rarely play those. I only play Call of Duty 2 (2005 game) multiplayer with my friends. Flag capture with teams of 3x3 (and sometimes 5x5). Good thing about that game is that cheap tricks to win are almost non-existent. I can appreciate a good game even if our team had lost but our team losing almost always means I didn't play at my best and it is not very fun to realize 

    • 71 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:30 PM EDT

    I'm inclined to agree with you. I've never been a fan of competitive gaming; even when I play with my friends I prefer to play co-op, or joke around (enabling invincibility in Goldeneye, for example). It's almost gotten to a point where gaming isn't even seen as a game anymore, so many people priding themselves on their kill/death ratios and whatnot. I find it ridiculous that some gaming circles make it taboo to use a certain feature of the game itself, like the N00B-tube or whatever. I mean, the developers put the thing in the game to be used.  

    • 739 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:33 PM EDT

    Yeah, you have to find a solid game to play if you're going to play competitively...

    Mine was the original COD Black Ops, loved that game...

    • 7 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:40 PM EDT
    Well, I think if you find anything enjoyable or interesting enough in a game to keep you inclined enough to play it, then it must be fun on some level. Suffering through lackluster gameplay to witness a stunning artstyle or captivating soundtrack happens sometimes, but I don't think I'd consider that game "not fun" because of it. Sometimes the fun of a game doesn't have to come from the actual gameplay.
    • 1483 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:44 PM EDT

    I played some Modern Warfare multiplayer but ended up not liking it (I assume Black Ops is somewhat similar). Too much class building, combos, kill streaks etc. In CoD 2 nothing gives you an advantage over a first time player - only your skill matters. There are 6 classes/weapons - SMG, rifle, automatic rifle, sniper rifle, shotgun and machine gun. You pick a weapon and appear in the world with it. What you do next is up to you. You can't upgrade your weapon, there are no perks. It's all about your skill 

    Example video - Deathmatch is chaotic, there are a lot of tactics and strategy in capture the flag mode 

    • 113 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:47 PM EDT

    Man I hate people like that in DS2. I did get lots of spam mail about playing a certain way.

    Like one time I summoned this dude, and watched him kill a ton of enemies for me while I just messed around. He ended up dying, and sent me some nonsense about me not playing a strong enough build. That my faith build was weak. Meanwhile I wasn't using faith, I was using Intelligence, and that pissed him off even more. 

    I dont know that game is fun, and weird at the same time. It's also not as hard people make it out to be. 

    • 113 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:51 PM EDT

    Ha! I know what you mean about Taboo, but cetain games were some weapons just outshine everything, and become over used kinda bums people out. But grenade launchers cant be used over and over, unless you die. 

    I refer to the usage of Thorn from Destiny. That gun made the game so shitty for me, and to see a friend of mine who has hated that gun for months on end just using it like it's nothing bothered me. 

    • 7 posts
    June 19, 2015 6:59 PM EDT

    That's a good point that I've never really thought about - researching the game's community beforehand. When it comes to multiplayer the community is definitely what makes the game, which is both a blessing and a curse I think. It's disappointing to see a game that you want to enjoy so badly get next to destroyed by an immature community, which is what I feel happened with me and Shadowrun.

    • 71 posts
    June 19, 2015 7:03 PM EDT

    Yeah, aside from a short stint in gr10 I've never really played fps games, so I can't claim to have ever experienced rage at the mere use of a weapon, but I'm sure it exists. I just find it really funny that certain weapons are actually effectively banned by the entire game's online community, and that a player is actually punished for using it. That, and how certain play styles are frowned upon, like camping. I mean, heaven forbid you use a sniper rifle the way it was intended to be used, lol. 

    • 113 posts
    June 19, 2015 7:09 PM EDT

    lol, Vazgen still looks like Call of Booty to me. 

    • 1217 posts
    June 19, 2015 7:10 PM EDT

    I see the same thing in BF3 rented servers, which will often have rules like "No shotguns" or other forbidden equipment/tactics. Most common is forbidding infantry from using anti aircraft weapons.

    • 1483 posts
    June 19, 2015 7:11 PM EDT

    First time I hear this designation. I kinda like it 

    • 7 posts
    June 19, 2015 7:11 PM EDT

    I haven't played Dark Souls 2, played the first one a bit and found it wasn't really my cup of tea. I've seen that situation you described happen in several other games before though. The guy with the bigger sword/gun/axe/what-have-you almost always think they should win because they have the gear with the bigger numbers. Then they get outplayed by someone with more skill and smarts, and they rage.

    • 113 posts
    June 19, 2015 7:12 PM EDT

    Funny, I derive most of my experiences from 3rd Person Shooters but I understand the rage quitting shit. I've seen my friend nearly smash his own tv from all the frustration that comes from trying to be the very best player...

    • 558 posts
    June 19, 2015 7:13 PM EDT

    Good points