sea said:
Our friend Rowan Kaiser, who wrote the mind-numbing "Rhythm of the Quest" article about New Vegas, now brings us this "gem":
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/...ss_Effect_challenged_my_definition_of_RPG.php
Kind of tangentially-related but I just wanted to point out how insufferably incorrect this man is about every goddamn thing he writes.
I really liked the debate you had with him. I like how he thinks his article is so long, and that people that disagree obviously haven't read it! He seems to get snippy with anyone who disagrees with him too, which is entertaining reading material. It seemed like he backed down because you overwhelmed him with your knowledge of the subject.
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I will start by saying that I dislike most of the popular games out right now. This is just my personal gaming preference though, so don't take offense to what I say. I am a jaded bastard, so take that for what it's worth.
I am beginning to feel like a miserable prick when I go to Gamestop to buy games (or not buy them). I don't know if I have some kind of problem or what. Everyone praises Mass Effect, Elder Scrolls, or Call of Duty, every time I walk in a game store. It pains me to hear people do this. I get anxious and want to run screaming out the door when people praise Mass Effect as the "King of RPG's", as many have on quite a few occasions. I actually started to get into a debate on how overrated Skyrim was with one of the employees at Gamestop, and he basically acted like I was a fucking moron. He actually stopped listening to what I had to say, pretended like he was doing some paperwork, and totally blew me off because I disagreed with him! I felt like a fool for even attempting to continue the conversation, so I just wandered out of the store in a daze.
My girlfriend even commented on it.... She said, " You don't agree with many people about games do you? That guy totally blew you off he was so annoyed."
No one can argue that Mass Effect is an insanely popular series which has a rather large (and sometimes odd) fanbase, but some of the changes made to ME 2, and especially ME 3, hurt RPG 's in my opinion. If uninformed gamers think that ME is the perfect example of a RPG it kinda worries me. Some might argue that the game isn't marketed as a RPG anymore, but it seems to me that many gamers are confused about what the game is to begin with. The blending of genres has a lot to do with that I suppose.
I actually enjoyed Mass Effect 1 a bit, but they raped everything I liked about it with both the sequels. I know I am not the only one who feels this way, but I also know I am in the minority. Now I'm not saying that the games are horrible, or people are stupid for liking them, but I am saying that I can't make myself enjoy these games for some reason. I feel like I am missing out in a way though. I have been in the biggest gaming rut in a long time. Fewer and fewer games are being released that I give a fuck about. Many of my most beloved franchises are being mishandled.
Anyway, I kinda ranted a bit there. Please forgive me. No offense intended to anyone who enjoys those games either.
