Games you think are overrated?

[Original Alear]

I'm not a huge fan of OoT compared to most people. I like topdown zeldas the best (never finished minish cap though...I really should!). I'm also kind of meh about the N64 in general...PS1 sort of stole me away from nintendo home consoles for a little bit. So I guess I think OoT is a bit overrated? Fuck everything, I'd rather play Brave Fencer Musashiden.

I still like OoT.

I know I probably shouldn't say this on a site run by Vincent, but I wasn't really blown away by legend of heroes: trails in the sky. It had a cool ending, but I found it rather dull during the first...quarter or third of the game? And the gameplay never really gets very interesting imo. I wish you could choose to move a character to a certain space and then attack, as opposed to being forced to using the closest space that the game selects for you. There are some attacks that circumvent this, however (Estelle's tornado'y attack lets you select where you stand and shows you the AoE for that square).

GREAT SOUNDTRACK THOUGH.

[Irysa]

Tales of the Abyss and Tales of Symphonia have to top the list.

The latter is a slow as molasses bland and cliche to the absoloute max JRPG with no distinctive features whatsoever, and the former is frequently hailed as a poignant example of believable characterisation when in reality it's hamfisted and incessantly repetitive (not to mention the combat still sucks).

Persona 3 and 4.

Symphony of the Night is too easy and gets boring fast once its novelty wears off. Later Castleroid/Metroidvania titles eclipsed it easily but people still act like it's the best.

Any Platinum Games title; preset combos, QTE or die, horrible balance and largely trivial enemies? No it's not God of War, but people sure rag on that game for all the same problems yet are weeb enough give Japan the pass on the same bullshit!

Bioshock and Spec Ops: The Line.

(I cannot be bothered to do an in depth post on why these games hilariously miss the mark for anyone who isn't moronic enough to identify with characters they have no reason to identify with, so I'm just going to link and quote)

Link 1

Link 2

This manipulation of the play through narrative reminds me of similar situation, when the developers of Bioshock likewise attempted to use their linear narrative an as excuse. They tried to cleverly mask the fact that they’d completely sold out the System Shock legacy and had instead made a corridor shooter devoid of player agency. The clever plot twist was that the player-character was being telepathically controlled by the antagonist for the majority of the game. ‘Ahah!’ thought some players, ‘here is our explanation as to why Bioshock is a corridor fetch-a-thon.’ Never mind the fact that, after the ‘big reveal,’ the game continued to play in exactly the same manner, and be exactly the same corridor shooter devoid of any real player agency. The whole twist had no effect on the gameplay; it was simply narrative window dressing.

Of course, there are still enlightened people who comment that the Bioshock twist was appropriately meta and deep, that the developers were making the point that it’s really the videogame that is in control of a player. That’s just fucking dumb. It’s like reading ‘I can’t believe I made you turn the page just then!’ on a new page of a novel when the reader is simply following conventions set by their knowledge of books. It’s exactly the same conceit as when a child says ‘hey you!’ followed by ‘made you look!’ if you do. Maybe it’s a deep commentary on how people are socially wired to react to calls for their attention, or maybe it’s just a kid being a dick. If anything, the Bioshock twist is an unwitting indictment of linear narratives and their utter failure to realise the possibilities of the medium.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Irysa

[Hyperthrough]

Even though I love Pokémon, I'm gonna say the past 2 or 3 generations are becoming... bland?

I love the battle system in the latest generation, I mean in Generation III, they split the Physical and Special Attack by type, which was pretty stupid.

I love the Mega Evolution, it gives a sense of surprise and adds depth to strategy during online battles.

But as games themselves, the story, characters and locations are pretty bland and forgettable. Probably the most memorable is D/P/Pt and B/W story is to me, otherwise the other story is pretty forgettable.

I don't think the newer Pokémon games should get praised often with the direction Game Freak is heading.

[Jedi]

Even though I love Pokémon, I'm gonna say the past 2 or 3 generations are becoming... bland?

I love the battle system in the latest generation, I mean in Generation III, they split the Physical and Special Attack by type, which was pretty stupid.

I love the Mega Evolution, it gives a sense of surprise and adds depth to strategy during online battles.

But as games themselves, the story, characters and locations are pretty bland and forgettable. Probably the most memorable is D/P/Pt and B/W story is to me, otherwise the other story is pretty forgettable.

I don't think the newer Pokémon games should get praised often with the direction Game Freak is heading.

>Implying the story in any Pokemon game is meant to be deep, meaningful or even good.

Only time it was even closed to being achieved was the GC duology, but other then that you can't say any of the Pokemon games really tried to have a good story.

Sure theres some implications and attempts, but overall Gameplay>Story in terms of Pokemon and thats how it should stay.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Jedi

[Tragonight]

Who even plays Pokemon for the story? Gen V had the best one IMO.

[BrightBow]

I kinda feel this way about Final Fantasy VII. I don't really know what is so special about it. Like, I get that it was the first 3D entry in the series, like OoT over on the N64. But the difference is that Zelda actually changed to make the most out of the 3D. They put a lot of thought into how Link should interact with the environment, how the camera should work and how the combat should work. Basically, OoT is not ALttP with 3D graphics, that would be ALbW and that game is very different from Ocarina of Time.

But when it comes to FF VII, nothing significant seems to have changed. It's just like a 2D Final Fantasy but with 3D models. And the low polygon models are ugly as heck anyway. Of course, the presentation in combat has gotten a lot better through that transition, but that's about it.

I also think that most Platinum games are overrated. I mean, their core gameplay is great... it's just that a lot of the other stuff is awful. Like all those instant-death QTEs, especially because of the ranking system. And even if there isn't a chance of dying, they will just make cutscenes unskipable anyway, like most bosses in Bayonetta 2. Yeah, there is a QTE but you only get bonus halos for it. Besides, it's one hell of an anticlimax to have your character just summon an external force to effortlessly annihilate the opponent. Like, what was even the point of the fight until then? Because of this, Bayonetta games a are a circle of build-up followed by frustration instead of a proper release. "Infinite Climax" my ass.

The original Bayonetta was definitely the worst in that regard. Like, not only were there instant-death QTE's all over the place but they are also completely unintuitive. Like, the bike section has a part were you have to press UP+Jump... even though UP does absolutely nothing during the normal driving gameplay, so your intuition says to simply press jump which will suddenly kill you now. And this stuff counts as an entirely normal, score-wrecking death. Thankfully, at least in that regard they got better but that is really the only thing that has been significantly improved since then.

Speaking of the scores, another issue is that you have little but your memorisation to rely on when finding all those optional battles. If you make a slight mistake and forget about on of the locations, it ruins your entire run. And you won't even know it until you are through the entire level. The other issue is that stuff like the Virtual Missions or Muselheim break the pace of the level. Partly because they are separated by loading screens but also because those levels are designed around repeatedly trying them and will mercilessly force a restart for even the slightest error, while during the rest of the level you can't retry anything and have to move forward.

Also, those short playable sequences at the credits in some of their games would be neat... if they didn't factor into the final score. Like, yeah those sequences are easy. But because they are so compressed, the slightest mistake can ruin your rank. You would think that after the final boss and during the freaking end credits, you could relax a little but nope. Also, to think that in a game designed about replaying levels, you would always have to sit through the whole credits sequence in order for your score to count. Who thought this was a good idea and why to they keep doing it, even in games like Rising were there are no playable sequences in the credits whatsoever?

It's because of those omnipresent problems in their games, that my favourite game of theirs is their freaking Korra licensed game. Like, yeah it's a low budget title, so it has less of the stuff that makes Platinum games great, but because of that it also has significantly less of the stuff that makes Platinum games a pain in the rear, while the core action is as good as ever.

Edited August 30, 2015 by BrightBow

[Anacybele]

I find the stories in Pokemon games to be better than Awakening's story... lol

[blah the Prussian]

I find the stories in Pokemon games to be better than Awakening's story... lol

That's actually probably true. Like, Pokemon has simple stories, but they for the most part make sense.

[Irysa]

...Assuming you ignore the fact nobody in universe seems to actually engage in physical violence to overpower a little kid for his Pokeballs...

[Zerosabers]

This thread should've been called games you don't like as much as someone else.

...Assuming you ignore the fact nobody in universe seems to actually engage in physical violence to overpower a little kid for his Pokeballs...

But thats illegal...

[blah the Prussian]

...Assuming you ignore the fact nobody in universe seems to actually engage in physical violence to overpower a little kid for his Pokeballs...

Well thats what the cops are for isn't it now? Also theres the fact that the kid has a bunch of monsters he can use on you in return.

[Original Alear]

...Assuming you ignore the fact nobody in universe seems to actually engage in physical violence to overpower a little kid for his Pokeballs...

It is a little weird that they always steal half your money and none of your pokemon when you lose a battle.

[Irysa]

To the above three posts; The enemy gangs are illegal crime organisations and they always get foiled by taking on a 10 year old one by one (sometimes 2v1!!!!) in Pokemon battles instead of just physically attacking the kid instead.

Don't misunderstand, I am not trying to get pissy about the plot of Pokemon, I am merely disagreeing with this quote

"Like, Pokemon has simple stories, but they for the most part make sense."

Edited August 30, 2015 by Irysa

[Blue Druid]

Very well then! I shall rename the title of this thread in order to avoid a Youtube-styled flame war.

[Shinehollow]

It is a little weird that they always steal half your money and none of your pokemon when you lose a battle.

Yeah,and your Pokemon can't even fight anymore,so they can't resist.What,are they scared of a ten year old or something?

[Knight]

If you want to play Pokemon for the story, play the Mystery Dungeon games.

IMO the best part of the Pokemon adventure is finding NPCs who say strange things like "what if the ocean was the tears of Pokemon?"

[Original Alear]

Yeah,and your Pokemon can't even fight anymore,so they can't resist.What,are they scared of a ten year old or something?

Do you think that when you take money from a defeated trainer, you're also taking half of their pocket money?

[Tragonight]

Oh, the thread name changed now. My original answer doesn't apply anymore, because I actually thought OoT was a good game.

Popular games that don't appeal to me? Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto. There are a lot more, but I'll leave it at that.

[Blue Druid]

IMO the best part of the Pokemon adventure is finding NPCs who say strange things like "what if the ocean was the tears of Pokemon?"

Haha I love those, but they're kind of hard to come by..

Oh, the thread name changed now. My original answer doesn't apply anymore, because I actually thought OoT was a good game.

Popular games that don't appeal to me? Call of Duty and Grand Theft Auto. There are a lot more, but I'll leave it at that.

I changed it because some people were complaining, but I didn't think it would change the argument. For me those games are Call of Duty and EVERY GODDAMN SPORTS GAME, especially FIFA.

[Anacybele]

I can't say Awakening anymore because of the new thread title... I thought it was a good game, just not a great/amazing/incredible game. xP

But Zelda: TWW, Zelda: MM, and Pokemon gen 3 don't appeal to me (gen 3 meaning RSE, not FR/LG) at all.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Anacybele

[Shinehollow]

I can't say Awakening anymore because of the new thread title... I thought it was a good game, just not a great/amazing/incredible game. xP

But Zelda: TWW, Zelda: MM, and Pokemon gen 3 don't appeal to me (gen 3 meaning RSE, not FR/LG) at all.

I agree with you on Wind Waker and Majora's Mask.I just don't like the cell shaded graphics and the cartoon like feel in Wind Waker,and I just picked up MM 3D to have another Zelda game.To have another Zelda game I'm too cowardly to finish because of the Skulltulas.

I also still stick with my original post saying that Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario 64 weren't my taste.

[Blue Druid]

But Zelda: TWW, Zelda: MM, and Pokemon gen 3 don't appeal to me (gen 3 meaning RSE, not FR/LG) at all.

Hmmm, but what do you dislike about each game? (not that I think they're flawless games though)

[Knight]

Most multiplayer-focused FPS's, RTS's, MOBAs, MMORPGs and casual games. Not that these genres can't be good, but they're typically genres I don't find personal enjoyment in. These are popular games that don't appeal to me. Also, I've never understood the appeal of all those first-person survival games that get put on steam by the truckload.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Knight

[Blue Druid]

Most multiplayer-focused FPS's, RTS's, MOBAs, MMORPGs and casual games. Not that these genres can't be good, but they're typically genres I don't find personal enjoyment in. These are popular games that don't appeal to me. Also, I've never understood the appeal of all those first-person survival games that get put on steam by the truckload.

Neither do I, really. Also, about the first person survival games, would Minecraft be considered one of those?

[Anacybele]

Not ShadowShine's reasons, I can say that. The cartoony look in TWW was actually one of the few things I liked about it. I just didn't like the huge ocean (it felt empty, as the only land to explore were little islands) or the story or the dungeons and the difficulty was far too easy. I swear, TWW is one of the easiest games I ever played. And this is coming from someone who isn't really an expert at gaming. It had some nice characters though (Komali, Medli, and Quill ftw. Rito rock!).

MM, I didn't like for similar reasons. Boring story and dungeons, imo. Also boring overworld again. The main story was also far too short. The game is like 80% side content and only 20% actual main story. Don't get me wrong, I like side content, but not this much compared to the main story. I liked Zelda games having six or more dungeons. Hell, ALttP has TEN and that's my favorite thing about the game.

EDIT: Oh, forgot about Pokemon RSE. I didn't like almost any of the Pokemon, Hoenn is an awful region, imo (boring towns, too much water, bad Pokemon designs, etc.), the story was eh, I don't like Team Aqua (Team Magma is badass though!), and I didn't like that moves were physical and special based on type. Gen 4 did the right thing with its physical/special split based on the moves themselves rather than their types.

Edited August 30, 2015 by Anacybele