Video game pet peeves.

[prisonermonkeys]

Collectibles that you can only discover by accident and need a guide to finish.

The best example that I have of this is the Leonora Johnson case in Grand Theft Auto V. It's a murder mystery based on the Black Dahlia, and while the story surrounding it is under-developed, it's still fairly interesting. In order to complete it, you have to find fifty fragments of a letter, and these fragments are scattered throughout the game world - and usually in obscure locations. That in itself is fine, but there is very little evidence of what to do in the game itself. It's entirely possible that you could spend a hundred hours looking for every fragment and fail to complete the set. You pretty much need a game guide to assist you.

Just to clarify on that point, collectible hunts are okay if there is a tangible reward for it. Assassin's Creed Syndicate has one where you have to find music boxes. The only clue you get is the sound when you're within range, but once you have them all, you get a reward - knowing the franchise, it will be a suit of armour. The difference with the Leonora Johnson case in Grand Theft Auto V is that you don't get anything except for an achievement.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

EDIT: whoops, meant to edit that into the post above.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Grinding for achievements

Oh, Assassin's Creed, how we have a mixed relationship right now.

I'm playing Assassin's Creed Syndicate now, and there is an achievement called "No Tickets" that requires you to throw fifty enemies off moving trains. It's fair enough as far as achievements go, but there's a problem: there's only three or four missions where you will encounter enemies atop moving trains. And you won't encounter fifty of them, so your only choice is to grind through early missions to get it.

Likewise "Without a Grudge" from the same game. You have to hijack horse-drawn carriages and destroy 5,000 objects (fortunately not in one go). The only way to really do it is to do laps of The Strand, and by my estimate, it takes about three hours to do it in one go. Also, the achievement is mis-named. "Without a Grudge"? It should be called "Grand Theft Equine" or "A History of British Touring Car(riage) Racing". Its one saving grace is to hear Jacob ask "Who's a good horse? You are!" as you show a reckless disregard for lives, property, animal welfare or the law.

 

[Samus]

Collectibles that you can only discover by accident and need a guide to finish.

The best example that I have of this is the Leonora Johnson case in Grand Theft Auto V. It's a murder mystery based on the Black Dahlia, and while the story surrounding it is under-developed, it's still fairly interesting. In order to complete it, you have to find fifty fragments of a letter, and these fragments are scattered throughout the game world - and usually in obscure locations. That in itself is fine, but there is very little evidence of what to do in the game itself. It's entirely possible that you could spend a hundred hours looking for every fragment and fail to complete the set. You pretty much need a game guide to assist you.

Just to clarify on that point, collectible hunts are okay if there is a tangible reward for it. Assassin's Creed Syndicate has one where you have to find music boxes. The only clue you get is the sound when you're within range, but once you have them all, you get a reward - knowing the franchise, it will be a suit of armour. The difference with the Leonora Johnson case in Grand Theft Auto V is that you don't get anything except for an achievement.

Yup, or the pigeons in GTA IV. Who on earth would have ever discovered all of those on their own, with no guide? If they're going to do collectibles it should be like the Arkham games where they're hidden but there are rough markers on the map. That way you still have to look around the area but you're not just scanning an entire map with no clue to where they are.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Who on earth would have ever discovered all of those on their own, with no guide?

Part of me wonders if developers do it to encourage players to discuss the game.

If they're going to do collectibles it should be like the Arkham games where they're hidden but there are rough markers on the map. That way you still have to look around the area but you're not just scanning an entire map with no clue to where they are.

As far as I know, Rockstar are the only developers who do it. And it feels pretty cheap when they don't give you any indication that it's there, or a tangible reward for your troubles. Exploration can be its own reward, but not when it feels like a chore.

 

[Wolfe]

Part of me wonders if developers do it to encourage players to discuss the game.

Xenoblade Chronicles X took that approach, leaving it up to the players to discover the locations of collectibles and share their findings with each other, fitting it into the game's premise of charting an unexplored world. Only instead of using the clunky and limited social feature in the game, most people went online for the information, and ultimately one proactive player (or a group?) created this nifty interactive map in the style of the game's Gamepad interface.

 

[Sonygamer455]

Zombies running at you in the early rounds.

This is one thing that bugs me about Call of Duty Black Ops III. You could be on the beginning of round 2, 3 or sometimes even 1, all the other zombies are moving at the typical rate for the round you're on, some may have a little pick up in pace than others, which is expected. Then you have this one zombie that will be running at you like he missed the bus as if it was round 9 or higher and he will kill you much faster than the rest. I hate this because it is inconsistent and it just ruins it for me because they don't start running at you on a normal basis until the later rounds and that's how I wish they had kept it. I don't think previous games did this and if they did, I doubt it was as bad as what Black Ops III is.

Edit: When you have only one zombie left on a round, that one will usually sprint at you until you kill it or blow it's legs off. This I can accept, but not if it's at the beginning of an early round.

 

[dylansan]

Gameplay constantly interrupted by unrelated story cutscenes and dialogue.

Whether the story is interesting or not, if there's no feeling that what you're doing in any way relates to what the story is supposed to be--or worse, the gameplay allows you to make decisions completely at odds with the story--then it really ruins both halves of the experience.

I'm not really much for story in games overall, but I think that's partly because so many games handle it poorly. The best games are the ones where the gameplay is the story, not where gameplay is unrelated tedium leading you between long expositiony cutscenes.

 

[BKGlover]

Full completion, but only if you do it this way.

I believe my first experience with this in a completion situation was, has the horse died yet, Assassins creed brotherhood. Some are easy, some are stupid, and some wait until the last few seconds to give you the bird. After the third or fourth sequence I just have up on them and the game really as once I got the gun I just wanted to walk in and kill them so I could be done with it.

And as to why I mentioned the completion side specifically, I've played plenty of racers where doing a specific thing gets you something in return, as opposed to the Ezio extensions where all it gave me was more errands to think about doing.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Pithy achievements

I just got the "Maximum Attack" achievement in Dirt Rally. To unlock it, you have to win all twelve stages of a twelve-stage event with no assists - a manual gearbox, no traction, launch or stability control, no ABS or HUD and forced in-car camera.

It's worth just five points to your gamerscore.

Now it's true that I did it the easy way - twelve stages in Germany on the easiest difficulty setting, using the Alpine A110 (which is ridiculously powerful compared to the other cars in its class), but five points? You get five points for the "Obviously" achievement, which is earned by buying a rally car; it's literally the first thing you do.

 

[Huks]

@prisonermonkeys' post reminded me...

Racing games with arbitrary limits on custom events

Codemasters are huge offenders when it comes to this. Why can't I hold a touring car race at one of the point-to-point tracks in GRID Autosport? And why can't I take a rally car up Pikes Peak in DiRT Rally, or do a solo practice run at a rallycross track for that matter? It's incredibly infuriating.

 

[BKGlover]

@prisonermonkeys' post reminded me...

Racing games with arbitary limits on custom events

Codemasters are huge offenders when it comes to this. Why can't I hold a touring car race at one of the point-to-point tracks in GRID Autosport? And why can't I take a rally car up Pikes Peak in DiRT Rally, or do a solo practice run at a rallycross track for that matter? It's incredibly infuriating.

T'was a wonderful day when I figured out DiRT 2 would let me race Trophy Trucks at the Marina... So much fun, that thing was.....

Has 'No backwards compatability' been mentioned? I believe it has, and probably needs no explanation anyway, but I have a PC extention to staple to it's face: How is it an old game designed to run in a previous version of the same OS runs like S/doesn't run/glitches like hell on the updated one? For that matter, why do we need to use modern processors to breaking point to run something from 15 years ago, and it still cry in agony? Have I missed something in this PC BS?

 

[Morgoth_666]

@prisonermonkeys' post reminded me...

Racing games with arbitrary limits on custom events

Codemasters are huge offenders when it comes to this. Why can't I hold a touring car race at one of the point-to-point tracks in GRID Autosport? And why can't I take a rally car up Pikes Peak in DiRT Rally, or do a solo practice run at a rallycross track for that matter? It's incredibly infuriating.

So very much this. It's been going on with them for such a long time, you'd think somebody would have told them by now that it is completely stupid and has absolutely nothing good about it.

 

[Samus]

Games replaying dialogue each time you go back to a checkpoint after death or restart a mission. Finally got around to playing MGS GZ and it's really tiresome to restart the mission and have to hear KAZ ramble on with the same dialogue every time. Surely the game can recognise it isn't my first time and I don't need to hear the instructions each time.

I assume the full MGS5 is the same? Starting that in the next few days.

 

[JR98]

Games replaying dialogue each time you go back to a checkpoint after death or restart a mission. Finally got around to playing MGS GZ and it's really tiresome to restart the mission and have to hear KAZ ramble on with the same dialogue every time. Surely the game can recognise it isn't my first time and I don't need to hear the instructions each time.

I assume the full MGS5 is the same? Starting that in the next few days.

Exact same in MGSV TPP. Unless you restart from a checkpoint

 

[Sonygamer455]

So many things I can relate to in here. I love this thread.

7. Secrets in video games that you have to check the internet or strategy guides for you to know it- For me, the secrets should have clues within the game rather than easter egg type hide and seek like most developers are doing.

Collectibles that you can only discover by accident and need a guide to finish.

I totally agree with that last line ULTRAVIOLENZZ. The main easter eggs in Call of Duty Zombies have this written all over them! The way they set them up, it's not straight forward at all and it's not something you can easily figure out without using any guides of any sort.

Can I also stop and say that they make them WAY too hard as well? I can't even fathom how people manage to beat Origins in Black Ops II.

Gameplay constantly interrupted by unrelated story cutscenes and dialogue.

Been playing Nightmares lately in Black Ops III and I can agree with this. Even if it is related, I still think they overdone it with the cutscenes.

I want to say the same for the first Black Ops campaign, but I ain't played it in years though.

Full completion, but only if you do it this way.

Midnight Club Los Angeles for the PSP was like this and I don't get why the developers did this. I remember when you finished a race, you had to select "Next race" and keep doing so until you can't anymore, which is usually 3 times. If you don't, you won't get 100% completion and I know that from experience since I have two profiles in that game. The sad part is, if you quit after one or two races, you can't do those others you didn't get to after that.

I'm talking about games like NFS Carbon with its random territory takeovers (which are really just a mild annoyance rather than anything serious)

Yep, I remember those races. They didn't annoy me much unless I needed to leave and really had to save because besides beating it, the only way I could is by ignoring it and going to garage. Which I hate doing because then they take my territory and if I want to complete the reward card to get Cross's Corvette, that doesn't help.

Any fighting game where the AI spams the same attack over and over again.

I remember this happening when I was watching my cousin play Star Wars Episode II for the Gameboy Advance a long time ago. When he was fighting Count Dooku, he kept spamming the force push attack repeatedly until he killed him. My cousin was rapidly tapping the R button and even then, he couldn't fight back. Talk about unfair, I hate it when that happens.

I also remember in Twisted Metal Black, Axel would always spam his special more times than you could ever hope to do when you actually play as him yourself. He did the same thing in Twisted Metal Head On with the freeze bomb and it used to make me so mad.

Infinitely respawning enemies.

Yes I agree. Tarzan for the PS1 was like this in two places and I used to get so mad at the lemurs when I was trying to get some special fruit from a tree. Then their was these pigs that kept rapidly spawning from a tent, which is ridiculous.

I can remember 007 Nightfire doing the same thing near the end of the game, but luckily it wasn't hard since I had a great gun.

Lastly, their is Area 51 on the zombie map Moon in Black Ops. If you hate infinitely respawning enemies, stay away from there because it is the worst I have ever seen!

Games replaying dialogue each time you go back to a checkpoint after death or restart a mission.

I agree with this too. I was getting annoyed at Black Op III recently for this very reason. I had another instance in Lego Star Wars The Video Game years ago on the Mos Espa Podrace. Me and my brother kept getting mad having to hear the same thing over and over again.

The biggest offender for me is Star Wars Trilogy Apprentice of the Force for the Gameboy Advance. On the Endor level, you get this saber strike power. Ben Kenobi will tell you how to use it every time you start the level but it's get annoying after seeing it at least 50 times or more. I mean, that's great Kenobi, but be one with the force and stop telling the same thing I have heard a million times already! Please.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

I assume the full MGS5 is the same? Starting that in the next few days.

The structure is very different compared to previous games, so it's not an issue. And you can skip scenes in one move rather than scrolling through pages of dialogue.

Full completion, but only if you do it this way.

Most of the time, games use these as additional challenges. I don't really see the problem with it. I just finished Assassin's Creed Syndicate, and there's a mission where you have to kidnap trouble-makers at a labour rally held by Karl Marx without attracting attention. Now, you can take out the police officers patrolling the area and complete the mission - but for an extra challenge, you can get rid of the trouble-makers without incapacitating the police. If you do it, you get more money and experience. And most games that add these additional challenges usually offer an achievement for completing all of them.

 

[Com Fox]

Trash Talkers:

While it is satisfying to shut them up or cause them to go into an uncontrollable rage in a game of Mario Kart and Pokemon. It does bring the whole entire mood down and turns players who are just looking for fun into the type of people they hate, people who only care about winning.

It's even worse in a Card Game Simulator. I kid you not, every time I go to Duelling Network to play online Yugioh, no one will ever shut up about how great there deck is and how people are noobs for using certain strats (some Yugioh Youtubers even do this) and when I go to my local Card Game shop no one acts like that, everyone is interested in what Deck you use and what strats you pull off with the cards you have. I can hardly trust competitive gamers nowadays because the fear of them being two faced, in public they encourage you, give you advise but when you play a Video Game they turn into arrogant little 🤬.

 

[Obelisk]

Trash Talkers:

While it is satisfying to shut them up or cause them to go into an uncontrollable rage in a game of Mario Kart and Pokemon. It does bring the whole entire mood down and turns players who are just looking for fun into the type of people they hate, people who only care about winning.

It's even worse in a Card Game Simulator. I kid you not, every time I go to Duelling Network to play online Yugioh, no one will ever shut up about how great there deck is and how people are noobs for using certain strats (some Yugioh Youtubers even do this) and when I go to my local Card Game shop no one acts like that, everyone is interested in what Deck you use and what strats you pull off with the cards you have. I can hardly trust competitive gamers nowadays because the fear of them being two faced, in public they encourage you, give you advise but when you play a Video Game they turn into arrogant little 🤬.

This. You earned a like.

 

[RACECAR]

Trash Talkers:

While it is satisfying to shut them up or cause them to go into an uncontrollable rage in a game of Mario Kart and Pokemon. It does bring the whole entire mood down and turns players who are just looking for fun into the type of people they hate, people who only care about winning.

It's even worse in a Card Game Simulator. I kid you not, every time I go to Duelling Network to play online Yugioh, no one will ever shut up about how great there deck is and how people are noobs for using certain strats (some Yugioh Youtubers even do this) and when I go to my local Card Game shop no one acts like that, everyone is interested in what Deck you use and what strats you pull off with the cards you have. I can hardly trust competitive gamers nowadays because the fear of them being two faced, in public they encourage you, give you advise but when you play a Video Game they turn into arrogant little 🤬.

Found this people several times, couple times in a online NASCAR race (which just erupted into a full blown argument and I subsequently left while it was still in the lobby) and a few times in a GT lobby (One time in particular where some little kid saying everyone sucks because they were using 60s cars, nevermind the room clearly said "60s Classic cars only"). I only got it once on F1 CE (before they shut down the servers) from this one guy who was a massive Ferrari Fanboy and I absolutely laughed when he made a mistake in one corner and I beat him with a Toyota TF106, to which he subsequently disconnects

 

[MisterWaffles]

Exo-boosting/shielding/jumping away/deflecting my attacks.

Get back here and fight me like a man!!!

Loading screens

I've got places to be, GT5!

Bullet spam

Try dodging this

Lava underneath the floor

Boss groundpounds and created traps to make it harder to dodge bullet spam.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Exo-boosting/shielding/jumping away/deflecting my attacks.

Get back here and fight me like a man!!!

So, in other words, stand perfectly still while I kill you?

 

[MisterWaffles]

So, in other words, stand perfectly still while I kill you?

No, more like bosses or other players when they pull a cheap move to evade your fire and make you waste ammo.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

No, more like bosses or other players when they pull a cheap move to evade your fire and make you waste ammo.

So, when they use actual skill.

 

[Aphelion]

So, when they use actual skill.

"Cheap" usually connotes little to no skill being involved.

 

[MisterWaffles]

"Cheap" usually connotes little to no skill being involved.

Yeah, like for example, the personal shield in Battlefront. Negates all laser damage and makes your blaster useless.

 

[Com Fox]

High Powered Enemy Spamming

This is what causes some difficulty spikes.

Ratchet & Clank 3 is probably the worst offender, the level where the Four-Eye 'noids are introduced, there are 14 of them!!! They shoot fast and do so much damage, I sort of developed a fear of those enemies when I first played the game and they are the reason I couldn't beat the level they were introduced in without assistance.

Then you have the final stage where the same 'noids are introduced in their best form. Where they pretty much do a 2HKO without the max armor and some of their placements are cheap.

 

[Aphelion]

Ratchet & Clank 3 is probably the worst offender, the level where the Four-Eye 'noids are introduced, there are 14 of them!!! They shoot fast and do so much damage, I sort of developed a fear of those enemies when I first played the game and they are the reason I couldn't beat the level they were introduced in without assistance.

Then you have the final stage where the same 'noids are introduced in their best form. Where they pretty much do a 2HKO without the max armor and some of their placements are cheap.

Oh my god those god damn dudes. They are so powerful, but I suppose I have a different perspective on them. Ratchet and clank 3 is my absolutely perfect example of a 11/10 game, one of those games which I have played through to completion upwards of 30 times, with all sorts of difficulty modifiers. So if anything, those are probably my favourite enemies because of the challenge they supply.

Sorry, sort of unrelated

 

[VitorSouza]

Handicap and script in sports games, especially FIFA. It is just terrible.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

Yeah, like for example, the personal shield in Battlefront. Negates all laser damage and makes your blaster useless.

Oh, look - somebody who put some actual thought into how they wanted to play the game. That's the problem with the Battlefield and Call of Duty franchises; anyone who attempts to introduce an element of strategy is written off as cheap or not being masculine. It's not a rival player's job to make you look better than you actually are.