Ben-DutkaAccording to recent feedback one developer received , most – or many – gamers put a premium on Trophies (and Achievements, presumably).
Findings like that always confuse me, because I for one couldn't possibly care less about Trophies. Maybe it's the grudge I have against the increasing necessity for instant gratification and the pining for visible rewards for every little accomplishment. That could be it. It could also be that for some bizarre reason, Trophy collecting just doesn't appeal to my admittedly meticulous nature. By all rights, it should. I'm the quintessential completionist when it comes to complicated stuff like RPGs.
But at this point, I'm almost annoyed when a Trophy pops up. It's like the game has to say, "Hey, good job chief, you deserve a gold star!" whenever I do anything . I didn't need that kind of constant positive reinforcement in school and I don't need it now. Again, though, I can see the appeal; I understand the mania some have for grabbing as many Trophies as humanly possible. I get it. It makes total sense. In this way, I see both sides of the issue, even if I can't imagine killing myself to get a particularly difficult Trophy, just to have it in what I deem to be a meaningless digital collection of sparkly objects.
I'm also not sure Trophies and Achievements are great indicators of ability; the more difficult ones just seem to center on time. In other words, those with no lives seem to have the most Trophies/Achievements (no offense to those with big reward collections). So maybe it's just because I don't have that kind of time anymore, but I doubt it…I really just think it's because they don't enhance the gaming experience for me at all . And because it seems most don't agree, I must be weird. Oh well. So what else is new? 😉
I'm glad I'm not the only one. I recently picked up Silent Hill Homecoming and was glad it didn't contain any trophies. I personally think the trophy popup kills the mood of the game I'm playing.
My friend was complaining about his lack of interest playing older games he had never finished because they didn't have achievements (big xbox fan) and I was dumbfounded by his reasoning.
Games should be about the story and the gameplay, not some random line of text that proves you acquired an item or did something in a certain amount of time.
Well I sort of understand him. (Your friend)
When I was younger I played and shared games with my friends. We competed, showed each other our save files and challenged each other.
Now that I grew older and that well… Not many of my friends live close to my place and have a life (well I do too). I prefer games that have a trophy system. I play games for what they are but being able to show my buddies what I have achieved motivates me even more. I am the type who likes to compare what I do with what other people do. I like to play a game when I have an opponent even if it is a single player game. It has now become really important to me to have trophies 😀
I also feel like it is the *creator's challenge* and completing it all means you truly conquered their game.
Last edited by Neo_Aeon666 on 6/11/2012 10:21:32 PM
You bring up a great explanation for liking trophies. I totally understand your point and I think it's cool that you're able to use trophies to maintain the same competitive motivation older games gave you when friends were closer.
Now I'm wondering if that is my friends reasoning…I doubt it since he is terrible at games. He owns more strategy guides then anyone I know. I think Ben needs to write an editorial on strategy guides.
AH lol yeah. I often bring myself to buy a strategy guide for a game I like (since it always looks so nice) But I can't get myself to look at it until I am done with my first playthrough. I think it really kills the game to look at the guide on your first play.
Gamefaqs is your friend
Yup, me and gamefaqs go way farther back than me and EPSXE… I second LV's notion.
Last edited by Sol on 6/12/2012 4:47:58 AM
I'm no trophy whore but I do like going out of my way to get trophies for my favorite games. It's a simple pleasure that says, "hey, Temjin likes this game more than other games"
High count in the Ninja Gaidens?
World you had to mention Ninja Gaiden didn't you? I hate the trophies on Sigma 2 with a passion. You need more than blood, sweat, and tears for some of those… I would know, I'm missing only one for the Platinum. Points if you guess which one it is…
Not as many as you'd think, World. When my phat PS3 died I lost my original NGS2 progress. Certain cumalitive requirement trophies were reset to 0. But also, NGS2 is probably one of the hardest games to platinum in existence. I haven't met anyone who has a plat for that one.
I'm one away from being the first Temjin… whenever I muster up the courage to get that last trophy.
Wow, that's impressive man. So what trophy are you down? One of the mission co-ops?
sounds to me you're more skilled though than I.
I'm a little over halfway through the game on Master Ninja. I beat the stupid insane armidillo boss and I'm at the subway part of the next level. sigh, maybe some day I'll come back to it to finish it off, but I like my sanity and hair.
I determined, like Halo, NG's are best played on Mentor or Heroic but the hardest difficulities are just more pain than what it's worth, for me.
i would say trophies do prove skill except for multiplayer competition.. but single player definitely… for example I beat a person who platinum resident evil 5 could tell me where all the BSAA emblems are before someone who only beat the game..
in otherword if i was stuck or needed hint/tips on a game Id ask the guy with the platinum before I asked the guy who didnt have it.. and I bet that guy with platinum would be a lot more knowledgeable about the game than the other guy.
How does knowing where a certain hidden object is in RE5 prove any type of gaming skill over someone that simply played the game to enjoy it?
I don't now where all of those medals are but I certainly don't view that as a measure of my skill playing the game.
Well I certainly view it as a high degree of determination 😀 lol
I agree Neo, it can show a level of determination but that doesn't always equate to skill.
You are right! But determination can lead to increased skillz! lol
*edit* Ah sorry you said *not always* meaning you kinda already said it has a chance to lead to skillz XD
Last edited by Neo_Aeon666 on 6/11/2012 10:27:37 PM
Only if one's determination is concentrated in the right area. 🙂
He has a point in that it should translate into knowledgability.
Big whoop, I know a guy that is a master when it comes to working on cars but can't drive any better than an elderly woman.
well the medals were just an example.. there are other trophies.. like beating the game on professional (which is quite hard) the fact that youd have that trophy shows your level of skill… or like beating the uncharted game son crushing… a casual gamer couldnt do that… i mean have you PLAYED uncharted on crushing? anyone who can do that cant POSSIBLY suck (except in online multiplayer.. because obviously dealing with other humans is a lot more dynamic and takes a lot more skill than limited AI)
or beating MGS2 on extreme.. i literally lost to RAY 261 times before I beat him.. lets see a casual/average gamer pull that off… or better yet he wouldnt have to pull it off.. Id be surprised just to see him go HALF that long before giving up and finding something else/easier to do lol.. and i felt accomplished when doing it (not to mention a huge wave of relief) because I had to work for it.. a supposed to needing no skill what so ever and it being so easy that it was practically given to me… and then solidus fight wa no better because I had no rations and like 5% of my health so I basically had to preform flawlessly to beat him (get hit once and it was over).. with primitive PS2 controls no less took a few tries (not nearly as much as RAY) but I got that done too.
now I can do both those without even trying… which to me says.. if i sucked before I definitely dont anymore… and the trophies is what forced me to challenge myself (actually play on extreme because if it werent for difficulty related trophies i would never play a game on a mode harder than its default difficulty) and actually step my game up.. so yeah that sounds to me like how a trophy shows/proves skill.
Personally, I'm rather obsessive-compulsive, and seeing the Trophy list keeps me coming back to games until I've completed everything. Though I admit that often, with the type of games I prefer, that little ding and pop-up rather take me out of the experience. Especially 'Heavy Rain', even though those wisely only occur in-between scenes.
I don't know, I guess it's just something to do when I'm bored. And even without Trophies, I still gathered all 100 Gold Skulltulas and beat 'Guns of the Patriots' in under five hours on The Boss Extreme and meeting all other conditions to get the Big Boss Emblem.
Last edited by Jalex on 6/11/2012 9:39:38 PM
I for one like the trophies. I can understand people not liking them, but they're honestly not doing any harm. I like having more to strive for in games, and they almost give me a little extra push to do things. That being said, would I have played as Tails 50 times in Sonic 4 episode 2 if there were no trophy for it? Probably not. But being somewhat of a completionist, I forced myself to do it. I wasn't putting anything important off while doing this, I did it because I wanted to. I enjoy seeing that little blue bar full. If I know a certain trophy is beyond my limitations, I just don't bother going for it. There's a reason I haven't platinumed Rock Band 2 or any of the Guitar Heroes. I like getting the trophies, but I know when to stop killing myself over them.
"I forced myself to do it. I wasn't putting anything important off while doing this, I did it because I wanted to."
Normally people don't force themselves to do something they want to do.
Ok maybe a bit of poor wording on my part, but I did want to do it for completion's sake.
Ya…I figured that was the case I was kinda just being a jerk to force you to explain a little further.
What are you, some kind of helpful jerk or something? xD
trophies make people go back for more, and try to play the game just one more time.. i don't have a lot of time to replay games myself.. but for games that i really like, or games that I can see myself platinum, i'd go for it… but anything w/ multiplayer trophies.. i just give up on that.
I hate to admit, but, even though I'm not a big trophy hunter, I will look at the list of a game when I get it to see if it's a feasible endeavor to try and platinum it. Some of the games I look at and think that there is no way I'm even going to try. if it's something like "get 10000 headshot kills with a pistol in online MP while flying upside down in a jetpack" I'm thinking NOooo…. But if it's something like, "beat the game on extreme difficulty"? Yeah I'll give it a shot…
Actually now that I think about it, most of the platinums I have gotten are in games that have no online play at all…
I've yet to platinum a game. I leave that to guys like Jawk and Highlander. I think because of this I've been able to enjoy more games than if I actually sat down and tried to acquire the various trophies each PS3 game has.
At least the trophies given in a videogame are earned from dedication……unlike the one's given out to pampered kids for showing up and 'doing your best'. The only game I'm probably ever going to platinum is Skyrim simply because I've put about 500 hrs into it. Thieves guild trophy giving me trouble. Do those missions ever end or what???
If your talking the "return the guild to greatness" you need to do five missions in Solitude Windhelm Whiterun and Markaf (or however it's spelled) then complete the special missions. If your keeping track just keep taking and dropping quests till the one in the town you need appears. It doesn't have to be a different job either, you can keep doing a shill job or whatever you find easy over and over again.
I don't mind trophies but I won't kill myself to try getting every one of them, especially when they've mixed the MP mode trophy's in with the SP trophy's as part of the 100%.
And with all the games that I've got, I've only got 1 game that I've ever gotten the whole full 100% trophies in, was "inFamous: Festival of Blood".
And damnit, just my luck, there isn't even a plat for it, so still no 1st plat for me.
But anyway, some of the trophies listed in games do make me want to play on further past the end, just to see if I can get a few more than I normally would get, like I've been doing nightly with the extra challenges & such in RDR & Undead nightmare.
Last edited by BikerSaint on 6/11/2012 10:10:51 PM
I used to be a huge achievement whore. When I stopped playing my 360 I was at 111,195. I was pretty burnt out on cheevo hunting after I hit the 100,000 mark.
I still like to earn trophies on the PS3 but I don't push myself to get them all. I'll get what I can or feel like getting at the time. It's pretty funny though cause I'd say my average is around 40% complete. I think I have around 16 plats too.
Trophies are fine they have been in games for decades it is just that we used to refer to them as unlocks/hidden characters/optional quests, and such. They offer replayability to those that enjoy the games and there is nothing wrong with that. Those types of things(trophies and in older games hidden unlocks) aren't there for the person that is going to casually play the game, they were put in for the people that really want to do everything in a game they really like.
Sure some games take the trophies a little too serious by either making them to hard(C&C RA3) or just to easy(first Uncharted). But most games have a decent balance between the trophies, the only ones I am against are online trophies as no company can guarantee their servers will be running indefinitely so I am against them(unless it is an online only game).
I seem to go in and out of trophy mode on occasion. I'll go for a few months not caring about trophies at all, and then out of nowhere I'll start looking at certain games and think "I can get the platinum in that, I am going to work on that". Many games that I would have never bothered going back to have brought me back because of the trophies.
And to those that complain about how they disturb the feel of the game, turn your notifications off and then you don't have to worry about it.
I wouldn't by any means consider myself a trophy whore or anything of the same regard. I mean I don't play games to get trophies or achievements.
That being said, there are only a few times I actually try to get the trophies.
One bring when I ask at most 5 away from a platinum trophy, an resample would be the assassins creed games.I think I need 3 for ac2 and maybe 4 for brotherhood.
And the other being anything call of duty. The only reason for this is, yeah I play the sp campaign, and I play online, but to actually get the trophies, especially on veteran yes does give me a sense of accomplishment, but its also to say I slaughtered that game and did every thing there was to do on it.thus giving me nw more reason to play it. And letting me move on to other games.
I must admit I really dig trophies. When I shell out $65 for a pre-ordered game (my way of supporting my companies), achieving the platinum trophy gives me the sense of accomplishment that my money was well spent. I can officially shelve the game and move onto the next. Some of my trophies had no "instant gratification", taking weeks to achieve. The plat I'm most proud of is Vanquish, taking me 5 weeks (I think) of playing the same challenge over and over and over and over…
The majority of games I play are single player with a little bit of coop. I have absolutely no interest in mp and will completely avoid it and forgo the plat (Bioshock 2, AC: Brotherhood).
There was an article here a few months ago about having 2 platinums for single and multiplayer. I couldn't agree more. Either that or do what Naughty Dog did with Uncharted and make it a one match trophy.
My trophy hunting has evolved over the years and I've definitely whored a few games. It's refreshing when I play games with no trophies (just finished Resistance) or on my 360 (where I don't care) and just play to play. Overall, trophies add to my experience and I'm glad they're there.
Last edited by akmdpc on 6/11/2012 10:57:51 PM
I like the puns and in-jokes in their titles, that's about it.
I actually think trophies would have been better in the old days of NES when you only had one good game per year (if that). These days there are so many good games I can't really stop on a single one for so long.
Last edited by WorldEndsWithMe on 6/11/2012 11:47:35 PM
Where is Alienange?
Good question, I think he got stuck in a negative thought-loop.
HAHAHAHA…you made me laugh uncontrollably with that comment.
I rather liked that one myself. I'm going to Prometheus tomorrow, did you dig it LV?
I saw it twice over the weekend. Jawk and I have been discussing the movie via email like little school girls. If you're a fan of SciFi I think you'll love it. My opinions of it are mixed but I think a lot of that has to do with its connection with Alien.
Sweet 🙂 Goin to Imax
I enjoy getting all the trophies in games that I like, but if obtaining a trophy feels like a chore, then I'm less inclined to get it (depending on how much I like the game).
The only thing that bothers me is when developers feel that putting in trophies negates their reason for throwing in cool unlockables. In the past we worked hard to unlock stuff while now it seems we work hard for trophies. I don't think they should be mutually exclusive.
I have the same attitude as you do. If it's too much of a chore then I won't go for it. I also prefer unlockables over trophies as well. I was disappointed when Uncharted 3 got rid of unlockables considering Uncharted 2 had them.
I've never liked trophies. I've never actively tried to get them in any game that has them. Every time a PS3 game gives me one, I wind up deleting them off my hard drive once I'm done playing. The trophies that really aggravate me are the ones you get just for progressing to the next chapter of a game or whatever. Trophies were meant to reward completed challenges right? How is simple progress in a game worthy of a trophy? Like The Walking Dead game for example. It's a great game that has 8 trophies. You get one each time you advance the story. That's it. And what if I'm getting attacked from the direction that that trophy pops on screen? Now I can't accurately fight back since that message is on my screen. Wish consoles, and the PC, would have an option to toggle achievements on and off for those of us that don't really care about them.
"Every time a PS3 game gives me one, I wind up deleting them off my hard drive once I'm done playing."
Explain. nao
Trophies are saved on your hard drive in a folder. Delete the folder.
You sure about that? Last I checked, you couldn't delete trophies…