Things Game Companies Keep Doing That You Don't Understand

[pankakes123]

Sorry for the long title, if anyone wants to give me a better one I will change it.

Anyway the title pretty much says it all. What is it that game companies, manufacturers, developers, etc. do that nobody likes but they keep doing it anyway, or just started doing it.

I'll start with 2 things about the Wii U. Why the hell are the controllers glossy? Who likes glossy? Phone companies keep making their stuff glossy as well and a ton of people hate it. Your fingerprints are left EVERYWHERE! If you want to make a TV glossy fine, but not something you hold in your hand all the time! Matte finish please!

Also, really Nintendo? Why the hell are you not using analog triggers on the Wii U gamepad? This topic was brought up recently on the site in another thread as well I believe. It is stupid, analog is simply the superior option in every way.

So what are small things that everyone, especially you, hate but companies continue to do it for no good reason?

[RyaNtheSlayA]

I'll start with 2 things about the Wii U. Why the hell are the controllers glossy? Who likes glossy? Phone companies keep making their stuff glossy as well and a ton of people hate it. Your fingerprints are left EVERYWHERE! If you want to make a TV glossy fine, but not something you hold in your hand all the time! Matte finish please!

Because it looks pretty in a display and in advertisements, and when you pull it out of the box. Never underestimate people's desire for shiny, glossy things.

Anyways

Is it really too hard for some developers to replace the prompts for 360 buttons with their PC equivalents? Dark Souls for instance, on top of having incredibly bad PC controls, also doesn't even tell you in game what those buttons are. Certainly not the only game, but, it's the one that comes to mind.

[BoneSnapDeez]

The glossy black plastic is hugely annoying. My PSP looks like an oily mess.

Also:
- rushing games to release, knowing that they'll need to be patched.
- focusing too much on multiplayer and ignoring single player.
- unnecessary, gimmicky controls (ie: pointless Wii minigames stuck into the middle of otherwise great RPGs, using stylus controls on DS games where the control pad would be vastly preferable).
- compilation discs that contain certain games as "unlockables" instead of making them all available from the onset (ie: Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection).
- ugly uncanny valley "realistic" graphics.
- overly long, unskippable cutscenes. Even more so, games that are "just like movies." That trend should have died with the Sega CD.

[jejun]

Cramming everything into the fourth quarter for release. So many games that come out then are just lambs led to the slaughter as they all compete for a limited amount of money, then in the months that follow we're inundated with tales of "disappointing sales" for a bunch of those games.

[MrPopo]

So here's an explanation for all these things:

- rushing games to release, knowing that they'll need to be patched.

Because they can. If they're banking on the fact that the majority of sales will be pre-order purchasers then it's more important to hit some specific date because it's before game X/during an important holiday purchasing time.

- focusing too much on multiplayer and ignoring single player.

Because with today's DLC model for multiplayer additions you can make much more money if people are playing your game for multiplayer. You can release single player DLC but if someone has finished the game before your DLC comes out then many people won't play it.

- unnecessary, gimmicky controls (ie: pointless Wii minigames stuck into the middle of otherwise great RPGs, using stylus controls on DS games where the control pad would be vastly preferable).

Trying to meet perceptions of customer expectations and utilizing all the features of the platform. This tends to be most evident at the start of a product cycle and tapers off as time goes on (Dawn of Sorrow had drawing the glyphs to kill bosses, Portrait of Ruin ditched it). There's also some discovery going on; if you use every feature of the hardware in the initial games then you figure out what works well with your audience and what doesn't.

- compilation discs that contain certain games as "unlockables" instead of making them all available from the onset (ie: Sonic's Ultimate Genesis Collection).

This actually encourages the player to try out everything on the compilation. First you get the obvious benefit of getting people to play a title to do the unlock. But then you have players trying out a game they might not have otherwise because they suddenly unlocked it. If you're going to take the time to make a compilation like that you want people to appreciate your work.

- ugly uncanny valley "realistic" graphics.

I'm going to have to call this your personal perception. What seems ugly to you is nice looking to others.

- overly long, unskippable cutscenes. Even more so, games that are "just like movies." That trend should have died with the Sega CD.

This goes back to the story vs. gameplay debate. Are you using the game to tell a story, or is the story there to frame the gameplay?

Cramming everything into the fourth quarter for release. So many games that come out then are just lambs led to the slaughter as they all compete for a limited amount of money, then in the months that follow we're inundated with tales of "disappointing sales" for a bunch of those games.

I hear there's this thing called Christmas, where many children who don't have incomes of their own receive games as presents, and would not have the option of getting the game at other points in the year (aside from birthdays, which are evenly distributed).

Also, really Nintendo? Why the hell are you not using analog triggers on the Wii U gamepad? This topic was brought up recently on the site in another thread as well I believe. It is stupid, analog is simply the superior option in every way.

Analog is better in pressure sensitive applications and digital is better in on/off situations. For example, using the trigger to fire a weapon is better digital, whereas a throttle is better analog.

[Hobie-wan]

- overly long, unskippable cutscenes.

Unskippable anything. - They should also provide an 'are you sure' if it is something potentially important. Additionally cutscenes should be pauseable because sometimes minor emergencies or people at the door happen. Heck the 'are you sure' can work as a pause.

Not allowing button remapping - It doesn't matter if you're playing a console or a PC game, if you want to set up your own crazy control scheme, you should be able to. Maybe you're just nuts or maybe you have some physical issue to work around. It isn't like companies need to write all new code for every game they make and the system is already arbitrarily tying signal A (up on the Dpad) to activate function B (move up) so allowing you to reset that should always be an option, always.

[fastbilly1]

Not allowing button remapping - It doesn't matter if you're playing a console or a PC game, if you want to set up your own crazy control scheme, you should be able to. Maybe you're just nuts or maybe you have some physical issue to work around. It isn't like companies need to write all new code for every game they make and the system is already arbitrarily tying signal A (up on the Dpad) to activate function B (move up) so allowing you to reset that should always be an option, always.

Seconded. Full remapping should be standard on ALL games.

I also dont like how companies will give you splitscreen multiplayer on a single box (if they give it to us at all), but once you go online its a single player per box.

[Dylan]

I think in most cases a better perspective would be "Things that consumers keep paying for that you don't understand".

[pankakes123]

I also dont like how companies will give you splitscreen multiplayer on a single box (if they give it to us at all), but once you go online its a single player per box.

To kind of add on to this, why the hell do they shrink the screens of each player when you do split screen on Nazi Zombies on World at War?

[3DSStrider]

On-disc-DLC
"Horror" games that are just shooters with zombies instead of terrorists or whatever
Boring Hollywood movie wannabe music
Not fixing obvious glitches & problems between games (I'm looking at you Madden)
Portable games that are downsized console games instead of something unique
"Sequels" that are just rehashes

As for the Wii U triggers thing, it's probably to keep costs low. These things have screens, near-feild-communication, and whatnot. They already cost like, $100 in Japan (I think).
I do agree about the glossy finishes though. I personally find matte much sexier.