Games Beaten 2015

[Gamerforlife]

I find it funny and interesting why people aren't able to see what certain games that were innovative or revolutionary are so hated up on this community. Games that tend to be deemed as "overrated" like Deus Ex and Shenmue, etc. If we merely saw them from the lens of what they were when they were first new, for the new concepts, ideas, and visuals they introduced. It's kind of the rub when you're a retro gaming website. You can still not like something, but to label it as overrated I often see as having not played it when it was transforming the industry and it was relevant.

The only parallel I can draw is being a fan of older films. New techniques, dialogue, ideas, often emerge from filmmakers. You might not enjoy the film but the consensus among my friends who enjoy films is that appreciating them for what they were.

I don't see that same level of respect. Is it because you are all jaded old angry men or is it something more subtle, like investing your time in a game that you're not getting enjoyment from? I mean the industry has evolved exponentially since the original Deus Ex and Shenmue, so the games don't have the appeal if you've not already played them. But to say that the games are overrated completely dismisses their historical relevance and innovation.

That'd be like me saying 2001 A Space Odyssey was overrated because Interstellar did it all better.

I played Shenmue when it first came out. I thought it sucked personally, still do. It was boring, focusing on realistic life activities that people don't play video games for. And nothing about the game clicked for me, it put me to sleep.

[MrPopo]

I played Shenmue when it first came out. I thought it sucked personally, still do. It was boring, focusing on realistic life activities that people don't play video games for. And nothing about the game clicked for me, it put me to sleep.

I'll agree here. I kept waiting for it to get fun. The game even teased you by teaching you a combat engine and then not using it again for quite a while.

Oh, and it gave us quick time events. That's a 50 DKP minus.

[Fragems]

Yeah the amount of time spent walking around trying to figure out what came next was annoying as well. After working as a forklift operator at the docks for a week or so I ended up giving up even though I was pretty close to the ending it was just to boring .

It's kind of sad when the funnest part of a game is going into a virtual arcade and playing other games .

[Blu]

Oh, I'm not exclusively targeting CFFJR, I've heard the same sentiments about the Deus Ex series expressed by other members too.

I totally get the sentiment though that the action in Shenmue isn't all that fast paced. For it being an early sandbox game, I always feel like they're trying to define what such an open game is and what you should do with it. It was an environment that was realistic enough to get a sense of life in 1980's Yokosuka. Having a dream of going to Japan one day, but not having the financial means being a freshman in high school, I thoroughly enjoyed the Shenmue experience for what it offered.

Here's my take-away though: even though it was a commercial failure and aspects of its design might have been flawed (e.g.: too open-ended), it provided a dialectic in game design and how other Sandbox (read: console sandbox) games could do to improve or take a different direction to be successful For that and many other things, I appreciated and admired Yu Suzuki's vision was for something new and different.

But I can understand it doesn't appeal to everyone, Shenmue and Deus Ex were examples. I don't care for games like Minecraft for some of the same reasons you highlighted. It doesn't mean that I don't acknowledge what it contributed to sandbox games and building games, or its aesthetics.

[Exhuminator]

Deus Ex was amazing when it came out. You had to be there.

[Blu]

Nope, because that point-of-view is exclusive and elitist. It goes beyond the nostalgia-induced "had to be there" perspective. I personally like how games evolve, integrate elements, it helps weave a neat fabric of game design and history as a medium of personal entertainment. So I'm not sure if you're just trolling, since most of your posts have some significant substance.

[noiseredux]

1. Beavis And Butt-Head In Virtual Stupidity (PC)
2. Renegade Ops (PC)
3. Arena Of Octos (Apple II)
4. Beauty And The Beast (Intellivision)
5. Chivalry (Apple II)
6. Donald Duck's Playground (C64)
7. Left 4 Dead (PC)
8. Left 4 Dead 2 (PC)
9. Fahrenheit: Indigo Prophecy Remastered (PC)
10. Forward To The Sky (PC)
11. Elevator Action (MSX)
12. Quake (PC)
13: Talisman: Digital Edition (PC)
14: Dead Or Alive 5 Last Round (PC)
15. Dragon Age Origins (PC)
16. Hearthstone (Android)



I'm calling Hearthstone "beaten" as I've unlocked the basic deck for all the characters. This seems to be the end of the base game. I also did all the solo stuff, which was brief in contrast.

Brilliant game. I will be continuing with Arena stuff now and waiting on sales for the expansions.

[MrPopo]

Nope, because that point-of-view is exclusive and elitist. It goes beyond the nostalgia-induced "had to be there" perspective. I personally like how games evolve, integrate elements, it helps weave a neat fabric of game design and history as a medium of personal entertainment. So I'm not sure if you're just trolling, since most of your posts have some significant substance.

Only the non-elite use the word "elitist".

[Damm64]

I have to jump into the deus ex discussion.

Personally i didn't feel the "i love this game" until after my third or forth playthrough that's when you really see how the RPG system and upgrades comes into place. Yes, you can't get stuck on the game and that's great the levels are open with multiple solutions and ways to reach the same objective depending on your playstyle but you can't see all the roads on one regular single playthrough.

It's perfect? No, has it's issues but the good parts overweight the bad ones by far. I feel what best describes deus ex, at least to me, it's well said on this video:

https://youtu.be/X43i8NQ--_s?t=45

On the "you had to be there" argument i will admit that when playing a game you should have in mind the time it was made and it will have some rough edges but overall if a game it's good when was launched it will be good 20 years later even when some of the mechanics are not as refined like the modern games.

[CFFJR]

I feel like I need to defend myself here.

First, I need to state again that I did in fact like Deus Ex. Sorry I'm not gushing, ain't gonna happen, but I liked it.

Second, I really hope you guys don't think I'm unable to look at an old game objectively. Fact is, it is typically old games that I prefer, and if I were to stack them up to modern stuff, it would likely be the modern games that I find lacking. I can play an older title and see it for both what it was and what it is. I promise you all that the problems I had with the game would have bugged me just as much if I'd played it at launch.

You'll notice that I never said the game was dated. That is not a statement I have ever made about any game, or ever will, so if that's the impression that came across, it was not intended.

Third, I am not at all dismissing Deus Ex or its influence by calling it overrated. I am well aware of the impact the game had on the industry and on players. Having said that, the game is often tossed about as "the best game ever made", among other high praises. Hyperbole or not, that isn't right. Deus Ex is a good game, but it is not untouchable.

I can not objectively say what game is "the best ever" (honestly I'd say there isn't one) but its certainly not Deus Ex. That sentiment, to me, is putting the game on quite a pedestal, and it does not live up that impossible standard.

To be clear, I don't feel attacked or anything, I'm just offering a response.