Random Gaming Thoughts

[opa]

I remember back when I first used emulators I save-stated my way through Castlevania just to see the end. However, I foolishly had the "save state" key and "load state" key mapped right next to each other. Wouldn't you know it... in the middle of the fight with Death I accidentally hit "save state" rather than load. I had to get good real fast what with only a few bars of health left.

Death always gets his revenge in the end. lol

I only use save states to practice stages or difficult areas now. I'm not too keen on repeating areas I've already proven sufficiency in.
Or if a game uses 30 characters for passwords... not writing that crap down.

[Gunstar Green]

I only use save states to practice stages or difficult areas now. I'm not too keen on repeating areas I've already proven sufficiency in.
Or if a game uses 30 characters for passwords... not writing that crap down.

This is what I do as well. I've already proven I can beat the level I don't need to do it twenty more times to slowly learn how to fight the boss.

Unless it's a game where I just enjoy replaying the levels for whatever reason.

[prfsnl_gmr]

(3) experiencing games that aren’t enjoyable or good enough to justify more than an a few hours (i.e., content tourism).

So far watching Game Center CX has fulfilled any "content tourism" desires I have had. I go through the show very slowly, though. I think I started watching it almost ten years ago, and I'm only up to episode 154.

Watching a bad game and playing a bad game are two very different things, IMO. You can’t really understand how bad Vigilante is unless you’ve felt the input lag yourself!

IOr if a game uses 30 characters for passwords... not writing that crap down.

This 1000%. Judicious use of save states can really help with some older games’ questionable password systems.

[Limewater]

Watching a bad game and playing a bad game are two very different things, IMO. You can’t really understand how bad Vigilante is unless you’ve felt the input lag yourself!

Sure. Absolutely. But playing through a game with save-states is also different than playing through it straight, barring, perhaps, minimal save-state usage for things like passwords or whatever.

Tourism is never the same as living there.

As I've gotten older, personally, I have had less desire to "visit" lots of different games. If I beat a game, or at least develop some sort of mastery, I can sort of convince myself that I've accomplished something. I'm pretty sure most people don't share that compulsion.

I'll mention as well, having kids and never having decent-sized blocks of time for gaming has made me more interested in arcade games. I can have a meaningful gaming experience in ten minutes playing Crystal Castles or Asteroids. I generally prefer adventure games, and gave Majora's Mask a try a few years ago and gave up because I couldn't carve out sufficiently-sized blocks of time to make real progress.

[Markies]

I've found How Long To Beat ends up being inflated, at least for me. I'm usually 10-20% under whatever estimates it has.

I must play games too slowly.

When it comes to How Long To Beat, I'm usually about 25% over the estimates.
Especially when it comes to older games.

GameFAQs has their own system with people voting on how long it took them to beat games.
I seem to be much closer to that number.

[prfsnl_gmr]

I've found How Long To Beat ends up being inflated, at least for me. I'm usually 10-20% under whatever estimates it has.

I must play games too slowly.

When it comes to How Long To Beat, I'm usually about 25% over the estimates.
Especially when it comes to older games.

GameFAQs has their own system with people voting on how long it took them to beat games.
I seem to be much closer to that number.

+1

I take my time with most games since I anticipate playing through them only once. IMO, it’s the journey, not the destination, that counts when it comes to video games. This is why I don’t think of playing video games as a series of “accomplishments.” My only goal is to have fun and enjoy my hobby. If I accomplish that, I’ve succeeded regardless of how I played through a game. (To be clear, I don’t intend to belittle anyone who thinks of playing video games as accomplishments. Beating some games is really hard and takes a lot of work! If that’s how you enjoy this hobby, that’s fine! It’s just not how I approach it.)

[opa]

I've finally sold my N64 and all my games. Do not regret it.

The N64 is one of those systems that I just couldn't really tolerate playing any more. Bad camera controls, jank-analog stick, really dark video quality (even on a crt with adjusted brightness). The only two games I truly care about are the Zelda games... which I have on 3DS (and they're more fun to play on there with the extra buttons on the touchscreen).

I have fond memories of playing back in the day. Goldeneye, Mario Kart, etc. Outside of being a multiplayer console, I don't think the system really shines. To this day I still buy and play PS1 games. I think the PlayStation definitely has the stronger single-player library.

[SamuraiMegas]

The N64 is a bad console and my mind can't be changed.

[o.pwuaioc]

I've finally sold my N64 and all my games. Do not regret it.

The N64 is one of those systems that I just couldn't really tolerate playing any more. Bad camera controls, jank-analog stick, really dark video quality (even on a crt with adjusted brightness). The only two games I truly care about are the Zelda games... which I have on 3DS (and they're more fun to play on there with the extra buttons on the touchscreen).

I have fond memories of playing back in the day. Goldeneye, Mario Kart, etc. Outside of being a multiplayer console, I don't think the system really shines. To this day I still buy and play PS1 games. I think the PlayStation definitely has the stronger single-player library.

I still say that Ogre Battle 64 is an excellent reason to own the 64, but I suppose if it's only that one game, it might be better emulated. The N64 controller is definitely not optimal for that gameplay.

Other than that, I'm keeping mine precisely because of those fond memories. While we eventually moved on to the 6th generation, the N64 stayed a 4-player powerhouse among my friends well into the mid-00s. We probably didn't switch to the Xbox until 06 or something. And while it doesn't get any real play time from me anymore (it's one of 3 consoles I own that's not hooked up, the other two being the Coleco and the C64), and most of the games I used to have for it I long sold off, I will eventually return to my favorite RPG and will one day again host another Mario Kart 64 competition.

[Limewater]

I have fond memories of playing back in the day. Goldeneye, Mario Kart, etc. Outside of being a multiplayer console, I don't think the system really shines. To this day I still buy and play PS1 games. I think the PlayStation definitely has the stronger single-player library.

This surprises me. The N64 is far from my favorite console, but I can't think of a time in the last twenty years that I've heard someone say that the PS1 was better.

I have a PS1 but I've never even hooked it up. I think the only PS1 game I have is the inferior port of ChronoTrigger. I'm not going to pretend to be very PS1 knowledgeable. What genre of games do you like that you feel has better representation on PS1?