My Twitter feed has been buzzing this week about three highly anticipated games and the more seedier aspects of them. Star Wars Battlefront II, Forza 7 and Middle-Earth: Shadow of War are all releasing soon. All three of them have been getting some negative attention due to loot boxes, the “reward” that’s becoming more and more common in any game with a multiplayer component. I’m totally for the idea of loot boxes when it comes to costumes and cosmetics because I really don’t give enough of a shit about those aspects. I’m fine with my Pharah looking just like a regular old Pharah in Overwatch, I don’t need her totally badass Thunderbird getup even though it reminds me of my years living in the Pacific Northwest.
But a lot of people are upset but how these three games are implementing the boxes, from Shadow’s supposed locking of the true ending behind either endless grinding or buying boxes to how Forza is choosing to dole out mods that help you. I’ve seen some say they’re not buying these titles because of this, but history shows that isn’t always the case. But as I read those complaints, I wondered “Is there anything that would get me to just stop gaming?”
I’ve touched on this before when I wrote about my experience with VR, but thankfully my fears of an all VR future appear to be decades away. For the foreseeable future, my favorite hobby is safe for me to enjoy. So what would get me to just give it all up? A spouse asking me to? Nah, I’d just get a new spouse. Losing my hands and eyes in a terrible Fro-yo accident? Pfft, I’d learn to play with my feet and ears. I thought about this as I played my 3DS in my room, the dining room, the living room and then on the bus to the movies and that’s when it hit me: I love my home consoles, but the end of portability would be the end of my gaming adventure.
I’ve endured enough mobile games to know they’ll never fully replace my dedicated gaming machines (though many are very good), but I also know I’m having the most fun when my gaming is on the go. Sure, there are some experiences that are best on a big screen, but over the past five years, I’ve spent more than 70% of my time on my 3DS and Vita. Even if I’m not taking it with me on the bus and train, I’m antsy and I love the freedom of being able to move around my house as I want. Perhaps that's ADHD or simply the end result of living in a world as full of distractions as this one – excuse me while I look up 500 random things on Wikipedia and then refuse to send the website even a dollar so it can keep its doors open – but I don’t like to be confined to just one spot on the couch for too long unless it is a really, REALLY enthralling game.
That’s me. Is there anything that could make you give up gaming?
via destructoid http://ift.tt/2wYzYTj