Tanukitsune

Quitter's Club: Don't be ashamed to quit the game.

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Totally with you on Mercenary Kings, Reyturner.  It made a decent first impression, but after a few hours, the grind started to wear me down quick.

 

I'm on the verge of giving up on Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines.  I picked it up a week or two ago, on sale for $5 (I think the sale is still in effect, in fact) because I'd heard some good things.  I recall in particular Arthur Gies talking up this game.  I'm about 10 hours in on the game, and I definitely see why it got its reputation.  It is very much in the style of Fallout 3 or Deus Ex Human Revolution--a open(ish) world, lots of dialog and a reasonable amount of choice, fun times sneaking around and hacking computers and breaking into safes, and some really interesting bits of story here and there. Unfortunately the combat is just bad.  Every boss fight I've had has involved liberal use of the ability to save anywhere (get 3-4 shots in without getting injured? save save save) and hoping that the enemy will get stuck on geometry or pointed in a corner or something.  I feel like if I were playing this game in 2004 (or perhaps more accurately whenever after that the unofficial content patch had the game in playable condition) I would've been able to overlook the combat.  But it's 2014 and I think I've seen enough of the story to have a pretty good idea of where everything is going.  I'm ready for the mission that I believe will open up the 3rd of 4 story areas, so I might give that a shot just to see the next chunk of the game, but I've got a very itchy delete finger at this point.

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Ohh, I bought that last week too. Not tried it out yet but I was going to put some of the mods that update it a little. That sounds a little bit worrying about the combat, but I'm still interested in it - although it's good to go in with that in mind. Everything I've heard is that it's flawless etc, so I could have gone in with that mind set and been like "wtf is this shit?!"

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I didn't have problems with the combat, but it definitely shows its age. I thought it was still worth it myself (I played it last year) but I wouldn't blame anyone for quitting.

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I haven't decided officially to quit it, but I would be surprised if I opened up the second King's Bounty game again. I got off to a shaky start and so I'll probably just delete it and jump into the third one (the final one that I own) -- I like the beginnings of those games better anyway. =P

 

I also false-started Academagia for perhaps the fifth time. I'm never prepared for how much foreknowledge (obtained via wiki or forum) that game requires in order to be truly successful. I could just do what I'm sure the current experts did themselves and finish the year lots of times even if it's going badly, but I always feel like I'm missing so much content by failing skill checks that it makes me obsessively reload. I'm not sure if I will uninstall it again or try one more time and see if I've gained enough knowledge now to make things work.

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I didn't know anyone besides me ever played Academagia. The problem with that game is that because of the random event generation, there are some times where it's physically impossible to have obtained a high enough stat to pass a skill check, nad many many times where your chance ends up being around 10%. I eventually got frustrated that I could never see any of the minor stories to the end and quit.

 

At this point I assume they're never going to make a second year, right?

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I'd definitely still recommend checking out Vampire.  Maybe I'm just missing something on the combat?  There is a reasonably thorough tutorial to start the game, but from that point on it never explains anything about the combat again, so it's possible there's some massive oversight on my part that I just remembered Mechanic X, I would do better at the game.  Proceeding with slightly lowered expectations is probably a good idea.

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I am thinking about quitting "Yoshi's New Island" on 3DS. In two minds about it.

 

I loved the original on Super Nintendo, but this sequel feels wrong. I'm also sick of dying when the analogue stick thinks I want to slam into the ground mid flight over a bottomless pit.

 

Also, no awesome ragtime music.

 

Can anyone talk me out of it?

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Why do you want to be talked out of quitting Yoshi's New Island, up_over?  

 

You said it "feels wrong."  The feel of a game serves as an essential component.  I haven't played the game; but based on those two words alone, I would suggest ditching it.

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Yeah don't bother because it's not by Nintendo, it's by a company called Arzest (formerly Artoon). So unless you loved such classics as Blinx the Time Sweeper, Pinobee, and Blue Dragon, I wouldn't waste your time. There's just too many games to play in life as it is.

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There have also been several other attempts out of nintendo to sequelize Yoshi's Island, and they've always been somehow off the mark.

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i may quit Risk of Rain, but mostly a rage.  i was about to cross last teleporter to final boss w/Engineer after a 55 minute run (no artifacts, medium)...and accidentally hit my keyboard sleep button in attempt for a screenshot

 

it obviously closed the game, didnt keep any of the character unlocks, items, or the flippin screenshots

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Yeah don't bother because it's not by Nintendo, it's by a company called Arzest (formerly Artoon). So unless you loved such classics as Blinx the Time Sweeper, Pinobee, and Blue Dragon, I wouldn't waste your time. There's just too many games to play in life as it is.

 

Damn I loved Pinobee on the GBA. Can't remember a thing about it, just that it was a thing I played.

 

I am forced to quit Card Wars for the Android, as although it is a loving rendition of Adventure Time's Game with the same name as featured in the similarly titled episode, it crashes on loadup. Which is a shame, as I was enjoying it a lot. Flooping the pig was a joy just to say 'I flooped the pig' at BMO. Also the card game didn't totally suck. Sadly I didn't get into it much, but it felt like there was depth there. Maybe. Micro transactions in a game I paid for was lame though. Wasn't a fan of that.

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i may quit Risk of Rain, but mostly a rage.  i was about to cross last teleporter to final boss w/Engineer after a 55 minute run (no artifacts, medium)...and accidentally hit my keyboard sleep button in attempt for a screenshot

 

it obviously closed the game, didnt keep any of the character unlocks, items, or the flippin screenshots

It's a common misconception that the sleep button makes screenshots.

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I am ashamed to say I've quit Link to the Past probably 10 times over the years.  I keep saying I'm going to go back into it, but the results are always the same.  I get about as far as the Dark World and something else gets my attention.

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South Park the Stick of Truth

 

If i was flicking through the channels and South Park came on i would think "Cool!" and watch it for 5 minutes and then turn over

 

I started playing this game and it was just like a episode of South Park "Cool!" i played it for 2 hours, now i want to turn over

 

Searching through cupboards and draws was tedious and i don't like having to use my brain during the combat.

 

Yeah, that game is dull. I finished it over the weekend after recommendations from friends and it really outstays its welcome. Surprised that you had to think in the combat. I played as the Rogue and basically backstabbed my way through the entire game.

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I think I quit that too (South Park). Not intentionally, but I stopped and I don't care enough to go back. I also played a rogue, and upgrading all my bonuses into increasing my attack when the enemy is stunned, only to find out that all the bosses are immune to stun. Great. 

 

I was laughing at first, but it's just not really a good game. It'd be a decent TV show though! It's a shame, I really wanted to like it, but the gameplay was just bland.

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Man, at this rate you guys are going to convince to not but the South Park game...

 

Isn't it general gaming knowledge that most bosses are immune to status effects?

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They made a big deal about status effects working on bosses. You can make them bleed/poison etc. I assumed that given all the possible damage increases with a stun, it'd work, since the stun is completely pointless against normal non-boss enemies - you can kill them in one or two turns.

 

Plus, why the hell shouldn't they work on bosses? It's lazy design to put something in the game that only works in situation X because it wouldn't be fair in situation Y. In a giant ever changing MMO I can sort of forgive it. PvP and PvE are two fundamentally different things, but in a relatively short single player only game it's inexcusable. They don't even bother to come up with a narrative reason, I'm trying to stun another kid, not a giant fuck off dragon.

 

Personally, I'd say get it if you like South Park. I got a few chuckles out of it, but I regret not waiting for it to be on sale. 

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Quitting Monaco!

 

Came as part of a bundle; I don't think I would have bought the game otherwise.  Curious nonetheless.

 

I enjoyed some of the art (mission briefing screens), but it mostly didn't appeal to me.  Characters had an abstract design that didn't communicate clearly.  I had trouble parsing who were civilians, who had weapons, who would just run around and alert people.  I also had trouble figuring out when I was carrying an item, how it worked, etc.  I just ran through the early levels, and the fact that between levels/floors in a stage the guards don't carry over meant it didn't feel like there was much reason to not cause a bunch of chaos if you had a clear path.

 

I also wasn't necessarily in the mood for stealth gameplay, so I wasn't as receptive to the game as I could otherwise be.

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Quitting Monaco!

 

Came as part of a bundle; I don't think I would have bought the game otherwise.  Curious nonetheless.

 

I enjoyed some of the art (mission briefing screens), but it mostly didn't appeal to me.  Characters had an abstract design that didn't communicate clearly.  I had trouble parsing who were civilians, who had weapons, who would just run around and alert people.  I also had trouble figuring out when I was carrying an item, how it worked, etc.  I just ran through the early levels, and the fact that between levels/floors in a stage the guards don't carry over meant it didn't feel like there was much reason to not cause a bunch of chaos if you had a clear path.

 

I also wasn't necessarily in the mood for stealth gameplay, so I wasn't as receptive to the game as I could otherwise be.

 

I bought it at release and have tried it three different times now.  By myself, with one co-op partner and with two co-op partners.  I've wanted to like this game soooo much.  Everything about it is appealing to me...except actually playing it.  As much as I love the art style, it also makes my eyes bug out after about 15 minutes.

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Man I really wanted to love Monaco.  I just didn't find (in the beginning at least) that it was forcing my team to work as a team.  Anyone seemed totally capable of just running the map alone.

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Man I really wanted to love Monaco.  I just didn't find (in the beginning at least) that it was forcing my team to work as a team.  Anyone seemed totally capable of just running the map alone.

 

It's what I like, but what also really falls down about it. I've done multi-person co-op several time with people from the forum and, while it can be a hilarious madhouse, it was often more effective for the last surviving player to complete the level, then revive everyone so that we could all leave together. That was often me, playing the Gentleman, and though I enjoy the game a lot, it takes a really strange coincidence of things to make it tick, most of all a deep understanding of the stealth mechanics and an almost ridiculous willingness to buy into the fiction of the game.

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It's what I like, but what also really falls down about it. I've done multi-person co-op several time with people from the forum and, while it can be a hilarious madhouse, it was often more effective for the last surviving player to complete the level, then revive everyone so that we could all leave together. That was often me, playing the Gentleman, and though I enjoy the game a lot, it takes a really strange coincidence of things to make it tick, most of all a deep understanding of the stealth mechanics and an almost ridiculous willingness to buy into the fiction of the game.

 

As one of those people, I agree.  Monaco to me is like a couch co-op party game, sans the couch part.  The hilarious, Benny Hill-esque chases and chaos are just stupid moments of outrageous ridiculousness.  They're a lot of fun if you're in the right mood and have the right company, but not enough to sustain a long term experience.  I like that it rewards silliness with MORE silliness, but at some point that gets old and you want a game with more substance.

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As one of those people, I agree.  Monaco to me is like a couch co-op party game, sans the couch part.  The hilarious, Benny Hill-esque chases and chaos are just stupid moments of outrageous ridiculousness.  They're a lot of fun if you're in the right mood and have the right company, but not enough to sustain a long term experience.  I like that it rewards silliness with MORE silliness, but at some point that gets old and you want a game with more substance.

 

I think Monaco actually has a lot of substance. The line-of-sight and stealth systems are sophisticated and intuitive, once you understand the means by which the game's communicating with the player. The problem for me is one of overall design. The better you are at the game, the fewer mistakes are made, so the less silliness happens and the less fun the game is. I've even played it on the couch with some friends who had basic competency and it still felt similar to shepherding lowbies through an MMO dungeon. Do this, do that, stop messing around, wait here, don't run, fuck it, I'll just do it myself.

 

The best parts of Monaco are when the heist goes horribly wrong, so a perfect game with skilled players is noticeably inferior to a bunch of idiots fucking up. But even then, you can't fuck up too much, or the game ends prematurely. Those are some pretty damning cross purposes and a virtual guarantee that Monaco will never stay on anyone's rotation very long.

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I think my saying it lacks substance is incorrect wording on my part.  You're right in that the substance is there, it's just really obfuscated behind flashy lights, silly piano, goofy characters and plots, cartoonish chases, etc.  The game's mechanics want you to be patient and plan out a perfect heist, but the game's presentation wants you to fuck up that plan so you can indulge in the chaos that follows.  It's a weird tug of war and I don't blame people for not being able to find the balancing point.

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