Gamers only care about whats next

[Eventide]

With how fast a game stops being talked about after release (a few short weeks) and with reviews heavily influencing what people think do you think gamers only REALLY care about whats next?

I know for me for some unknown reason, ill get close to the end of game and just stop playing it then get on here or one of the 1,000s of gaming sites and see whats coming in the next few months and probably wont even touch the games i have all the while 'waiting' for something to play.

I think its a real problem for a lot of gamers. Weve all gotten spoiled, like SERIOUSLY spoiled. Maybe its because games have reached a saturation point? My mind hasnt been 'blown' by a game since probably Super Mario on the N64. There have been some great games in the past few years but no matter how great, i always have this kind of cant wait mindset for whats coming in the next few months.

We create our own backlogs (IMO) out of fear of not having something to play because we cant NOT have something to play.

[Setharion]

Oh i believe this Even, i dont think everyone does this but i think many of us can be like this, definitly.

Game forums hype games up so much i find that sometimes reading about a game is sometimes more exciting than playing the game. BUT...when i finally do get the games i really like to rip into them, its just forums i think have hurt the overall play factor a bit since it is fun to read about "whats next".

[best3444]

I see what you are saying but that isn't the case for me and I am sure for others as well. What I will agree with you on is my mind literally hasn't been blown from a game since Mario 64.

What game/tech could do that again? I honestly don't see it happening anytime soon. It would have to be something drastic like it was then with Mario 64 where we jumped from 2-D to 3-D.


I am thinking maybe next gen if they can incorporate AMAZING visuals with 3-D technology without glasses… that may do the trick for me. I don't see that happening next gen though.

[BingJohnson]

I also am a victim of this. There have been a few games that have totally consumed me for their duration. When I was playing Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age Origins, I didn't care what was next. But for pretty much everything else, I was always looking for the next big thing.

[Sondiame]

Ive noticed this too thats why this is the exact reason why i buy old games first before i buy a newer game. I rarely but a New game at 60 dollars because most of them aren't worth it. There are some good games in the 14.99 and under bin. 2 Weeks ive bought LP2 and KUF:COD, Hate KUF now, love LP2. Then even with XBLA games, people will play them for 10 minutes, Stop and go on to do another game and forget about. And most games if they'res one glitch thats too bad, they give up and never play it again, like breach, Gawd it was horrifc at launch. Yet a couple of days ago i got it again and its now playable and fun. What i've seen is that people think that GT and IGN are holy and what they say reflects the game fully, when people dont even realize, Reviews are Opinons not The Fact. Yes we are spoiled and we need to start appreciating games for what they really are.

[dunker]

May 26, 2011 15:12:00 GMT -5 Sondiame said:

Ive noticed this too thats why this is the exact reason why i buy old games first before i buy a newer game. I rarely but a New game at 60 dollars because most of them aren't worth it. There are some good games in the 14.99 and under bin. 2 Weeks ive bought LP2 and KUF:COD, Hate KUF now, love LP2. Then even with XBLA games, people will play them for 10 minutes, Stop and go on to do another game and forget about. And most games if they'res one glitch thats too bad, they give up and never play it again, like breach, Gawd it was horrifc at launch. Yet a couple of days ago i got it again and its now playable and fun. What i've seen is that people think that GT and IGN are holy and what they say reflects the game fully, when people dont even realize, Reviews are Opinons not The Fact. Yes we are spoiled and we need to start appreciating games for what they really are.

This.

I find myself buying "Greatest Hits" versions of PS2 and 3 games simply because if I don't like it, it wasn't a huge hit to my wallet. There are some games I will purchase new simply due to personal anticipation for whatever reason (inFamous 2 and FF13-2 and Versus are on this list). Otherwise, there are enough old hit games to keep me occupied without spending a small fortune.

[nacthenud]

This is something that bothers me about gaming sites like IGN - there is all this coverage before a game launches and it culminates in the review and then there it falls off their radar completely. I like features that continue to talk about older games after their release - talk to the developers again to get their take on market reaction and what they learned from the process of making that game in hindsight, etc. Maybe do short re-reviews of games that have been out for 3 years to see how they hold up today.

I generally find that boards are better though because there is much talk after launch while people are playing the game. Then there are the "LTTP" posts that get people revisiting the older game discussion.

Personally, I rarely buy new games. My backlog is so huge, it doesn't usually make sense for me to buy games when they first come out at full price only to sit on my shelf for months. Generally, I wait for good deals or until I fear not being able to find a game later and I enjoy the great games in my back catalogue.

The last new game I bought close to launch was Enslaved specifically because I wanted to show support for a game that I didn't think would be getting much support. Other than that... I can't even remember.

[cusideabelincoln]

I believe it's a product and subset our culture as a whole. Just about every marketable "thing" suffers the same look-towards-the-horizon phenomenon.

[Phoenix S117]

Yeah, it does feel that way.

I've been playing older games recently. Like Lost Odyssey and Killzone 2.

After buying Red Steel 2 for the Wii at $50 when it first came out and not even playing it for about a year, I've realized how stupid it is to buy a game when it first comes out if I'm not going to play it right then. It's a waste of money in that case.

So pretty much, I am only buying games new if I am going to play them RIGHT when I buy them. Which right now is not that many games, luckily. Gears of War 3, OoT, and Skyrim are pretty much it this year for games I plan to buy on launch.

[runny]

I'll admit it: I am not a nostalgic gamer...I don't know why.

But yes, I do crave what's next.

[teylix]

I think it can be true to some degree.

I mean... for me it's a matter of platform. I have plenty of ps2 games that I havent touched that are absolute classics but I simply won't play them since I got ps3 games to play.

Hell even playing witcher 1 now (so i can play witcher 2)... it took me a bit to get into it since it felt "dated" to me and it was released in 2006! I guess it's more of a graphics issue but i always have it in the back of my mind of why play graphically inferior games that have clunky gameplay elements when I can play the latest and greatest coming out.

Common sense usually gets the better of me sometimes though and I've done lots of retro gaming runs.

Infamous is a good example for me. I remember being really excited about it before it came out, then I thought hrmm I'll wait for it to drop in price since I got other games to play. Eventually I didn't even bother. Now I can get it for free though so I guess that paid off somehow.

[journeyman2x]

I'm with the other cheap gamers on here, I've only bought two games at full price since I got my 360. Usually I get it off of the Amazon market place, even if it's newer game, at a pretty good discount.

[Eradiani]

I'm thinking this applies most to the MMO crowd but I guess at least they play their game.


I know my "backlog" is there for times when i'm without internet lolz

[cpawei]

People love being excited, and I think for a lot of people it's easier to be excited for something they cannot have than something they can get. It just kinds of builds on the anticipation.

I think it's also easier for websites to generate traffic for something people are looking forward to than something people are already experiencing for themselves.

I do enjoy articles that basically look back on games that have been released though. There's just so much more actual discussion and in-depth analysis as opposed to the wild speculation and hype-building that usually perpetuates websites.

I used to be very hyped for unreleased games myself, but as I grew older I just rather go back and actually experience games.
Playing games > getting hyped for something I can't play.
Not to mention there are always things that sound so much better and ambitious on paper than in practice, and then there are also concepts that sound simply weird but just works well in reality.