Tired of collectibles and video game developers

[LoveInHell]

It depends. Getting collectibles on Rockstar Games, for example, is horrible. Collectibles that reward you in-game (bonus scenes or outfits etc.) is worth it imo.

Edited December 21, 2020 by LoveInHell

[Eagle]

I enjoy collectibles, so I may be biased, but IMO, not buying games just because of them is a bit too extreme. You don't need to complete every game you play if you're not feeling fun with it, y'know.

 

Also, why are so many people saying AC2's feathers don't add anything to the lore or give rewards? They literally do both. The feathers were a gift that Petruccio (Ezio's youngest sibling) wanted to give to Maria (his mother), and when he died, she became catatonic, keeping his chest close to her as a way to, metaphorically, have him close. Ezio collecting all the feathers is not just a way for her to move on and cope with the grief, but also a way to show Ezio still cares for her even when most of his time is spent chasing Templars. Also, for getting 50 feathers, you get the condottiero war hammer (which is a really good weapon) and, for 100, you get the Auditore cape, which is a way of adding more challenge if you want to.

Edited July 4, 2021 by Eagle

[AJ_Radio]

On 12/31/2020 at 10:05 AM, BRKs_Eagle said:

Also, why are so many people saying AC2's feathers don't add anything to the lore or give rewards? They literally do both. The feathers were a gift that Petruccio wanted to give to Maria, his mother, and when he died, she became catatonic, keeping the chest close to her to remind her of him. Ezio collecting all the feathers is not just a way for her to move on and cope with the grief, but also a way to show Ezio still cares for her even when most of his time is spent chasing Templars. Also, for getting 50 feathers, you get the Condottiero War Hammer (which is a really good weapon) and, for 100, you get the Auditore cape, which is a way of adding more challenge if you want to.

 

Everyone I've talked to regarding the feathers in Assassin's Creed 2 told me they are tedious and a bit annoying. But I can let them pass because this was back in 2009 when open world games weren't quite as saturated and sugar coated as they are today.

 

A lot of open world games seem to copy the same formula that GTA: San Andreas and Assassin's Creed 2 started, yet they fail to come up with anything innovative and creative. As a result, they feel more boring now.

[Dr_Mayus]

For me these are deal breakers.

 

1. Missable - I hate having to memorize a guide to ensure I don't walk one step too much and enter a cutscene that prevents me from getting a collectible.

 

2. No checklist - if the game doesnt care what i am picking up why should I

 

3. No map. I was OK with this when games were smaller so it was fun looking in every nook and cranny for something. Now games are so huge that I am not going to waste time going somewhere hoping that something is there.

 

4. No reward. Why am I collecting all this for? Give me some thing in game for my trouble.

[AJ_Radio]

@Dr_Mayus Well you did inFamous 1, which was one of the worst offenders when it came to collectibles since I had to print a map off the internet and cross off each Blast Shard, one by one. 
 

Newer open world games are nice enough to provide a tracker and a location for most collectibles. Still, I don’t like them all too much, because it probably means I have to watch a boring YouTube video by mute PowerPyx or monotone PS5Trophies, aka Brian.

[Dr_Mayus]

Just now, Spaz said:

@Dr_Mayus Well you did inFamous 1, which was one of the worst offenders when it came to collectibles since I had to print a map off the internet and cross off each Blast Shard, one by one. 
 

Newer open world games are nice enough to provide a tracker and a location for most collectibles. Still, I don’t like them all too much, because it probably means I have to watch a boring YouTube video by mute PowerPyx or monotone PS5Trophies, aka Brian.

At least inFAMOUS gave you a tracker of some sort

La NOIRE was one of the worst with those stupid golden reels

[AJ_Radio]

1 minute ago, Dr_Mayus said:

La NOIRE was one of the worst with those stupid golden reels

I’m sure you recall the one golden reel that was inside a train tunnel underground, and the only way to get it was driving on the tracks. 
 

The Car Fanatic trophy was worse. Very stupid way of having to track all the cars. 
 

Then they had the audacity to add more collectibles via DLC in the PS4 remaster of LA Noire. The PS4 Mafia II remaster added wanted more Wanted posters and those are required for the platinum!
 

Completely idiotic. 

[Dr_Mayus]

1 minute ago, Spaz said:

I’m sure you recall the one golden reel that was inside a train tunnel underground, and the only way to get it was driving on the tracks. 
 

The Car Fanatic trophy was worse. Very stupid way of having to track all the cars. 
 

Then they had the audacity to add more collectibles via DLC in the PS4 remaster of LA Noire. The PS4 Mafia II remaster added wanted more Wanted posters and those are required for the platinum!
 

Completely idiotic. 

The one I remember really hating was on someone's porch in an area of the game you have 0 reason to go to. Like why the hell would I go there if it serves no point.

 

At least in inFAMOUS you are a superhero so getting around wasn't so bad.

[Desavenencia]

On 17/12/2020 at 6:32 PM, HandsUp1992 said:

I look at collectibles as coded parasites infecting games.

That depends on the game in which you have to collect them. I can understand that, if the game in question isn’t entirely to your liking, you find it tedious to spend more time on it than you would like. However, I believe that if you have one of those games that you love, you will appreciate all the extra content that allows you to extend such a pleasant experience and be able to enjoy more aspects of that game. Of course, only in those cases where, as you say at the end of your full post, it is not a bland or meaningless additional content.

 

 

On 17/12/2020 at 6:32 PM, HandsUp1992 said:

How many trophy collectors find collectibles without looking at a guide? The average gamer who doesn't trophy hunt doesn't care less about them and neither do I.

With the scale of games going into this gen, it's only going become more out of control. I feel most of us would rather plat games that encouraged skill rather than investing precious time into something we do not find enjoyable.

Well, here I must begin by clarifying that I have never considered myself a «trophy hunter» or, at least, not what is generally understood when talking about them. However, I have always been a very perfectionist person, so when playing video games and appearing in them "additional objectives" such as side quests or item collection tasks, I have always felt the urge to complete everything 100% but independently of the trophies, although it’s true that, on many occasions, these additional objectives are reflected in them.

 

Having said that, and answering your question that I quote in this part of my comment, I suppose that I belong to that minority that you suggest. I don’t buy games with the main reason of whether or not they bring trophies, the difficulty of these (either higher or lower), or the time it would take to get those trophies. What I do look at is whether or not they bring trophies linked to some kind of online mode, but that isn’t the issue to be discussed here. I buy games that I like, or at least games that attract my attention in some of their aspects. In this way, the most tedious trophies and/or collectibles are more positive than negative for me. Also, you can always change the game if you get tired. In any case, I never see a guide before finishing a game for the first time. If I need help finding a collectible, I would use a guide as a last resort. Of course I value my time, but I don't care (and in fact I like that) facing challenges in which skill prevails over a large number of easy and hollow tasks.

[Desavenencia]

On 31/12/2020 at 7:05 PM, BRKs_Eagle said:

I enjoy collectables, so I may be biased, but IMO, not buying games just because of them is a bit too extreme. You don't need to complete every game you play if you're not feeling fun with it, y'know.

 

Also, why are so many people saying AC2's feathers don't add anything to the lore or give rewards? They literally do both. The feathers were a gift that Petruccio wanted to give to Maria, his mother, and when he died, she became catatonic, keeping the chest close to her to remind her of him. Ezio collecting all the feathers is not just a way for her to move on and cope with the grief, but also a way to show Ezio still cares for her even when most of his time is spent chasing Templars. Also, for getting 50 feathers, you get the Condottiero War Hammer (which is a really good weapon) and, for 100, you get the Auditore cape, which is a way of adding more challenge if you want to.

Completely agree with you.

 

I have special feelings by remembering the old days when I played with my friends to the first games that implemented Parkour as a main mechanics. (Free Running [PS2 and PSP] in April 2007, Assassin's Creed [PS3] in November 2007, Mirror's Edge [PS3] in November 2008, Assassin's Creed II [PS3] in November 2009...)

 

I started doing Parkour in 2005 and, at that time, the videogame industry had not paid attention to our discipline. So, when we discovered a video game in which we had some freedom of movement with the character (like original Tomb Raider games on PC, some Tony Hawk games on PS and PS2, etc.), we had a lot of fun experiencing with said games and squeezing the game physics and the polygon collisions.

 

Collecting feathers at Assassin's Creed II was a very pleasant gift for us, since we loved going through any area of the map and, from time to time, a new feather appeared. Eventually, the trophy jumped on the screen.

[Solid Snake]

Clearly the best collectibles are the ones from Mafia 2, it's a wonder to behold getting all the play boy magazines.?

Edited March 9, 2021 by BigBoss87Snake

[ProfBambam55]

aren't trophies basically just collectibles?...collect collectibles for more shiny collectibles...haha...

[AJ_Radio]

6 hours ago, Desavenencia said:

Completely agree with you.

 

I have special feelings by remembering the old days when I played with my friends to the first games that implemented Parkour as a main mechanics. (Free Running [PS2 and PSP] in April 2007, Assassin's Creed [PS3] in November 2007, Mirror's Edge [PS3] in November 2008, Assassin's Creed II [PS3] in November 2009...)

 

I started doing Parkour in 2005 and, at that time, the videogame industry had not paid attention to our discipline. So, when we discovered a video game in which we had some freedom of movement with the character (like original Tomb Raider games on PC, some Tony Hawk games on PS and PS2, etc.), we had a lot of fun experiencing with said games and squeezing the game physics and the polygon collisions.

 

Collecting feathers at Assassin's Creed II was a very pleasant gift for us, since we loved going through any area of the map and, from time to time, a new feather appeared. Eventually, the trophy jumped on the screen.

Those were innovative features back then. Open world was a twinkle in someone’s eye. The original Assassins Creed was very linear, you had little reason to explore other than collecting those stupid flags. 
 

Now it’s like every other western game is open world. I’m really getting tired of it. I had very strong doubts about Cyberpunk 2077 prior to its release. Now I can safely say I can and may skip that one, because it’s doing the same stuff I’ve done dozens of times before in the past. 
 

In 2005, GTA San Andreas was the exception rather than the standard. When Bully came out a year later it felt fresh, because at that time video games in general were largely linear.

[Desavenencia]

On 10/3/2021 at 3:34 AM, AJ_Radio said:

Those were innovative features back then. Open world was a twinkle in someone’s eye. The original Assassins Creed was very linear, you had little reason to explore other than collecting those stupid flags.

While it’s true that the original Assassin's Creed hasn’t aged very well, it’s also true that it’s a matter of taste. In my opinion, that game is a classic now. The origin (without forgetting Prince of Persia, of course) of one of the sagas that I have enjoyed the most.

 

Video games that implement Parkour as their main mechanic, mean much more for me than for other players. It’s the same as a professional bus driver playing Bus Simulator, (YouTube video: Bus Simulator - Gameplay | PlayStation Underground) or a professional Formula 1 driver playing F1 2020. In all three cases, we can appreciate the details, value the game in greater depth and with greater knowledge. A knowledge that isn’t available to other players. That’s why I can understand you when you say that «you had little reason to explore other than collecting those stupid flags» but I can't agree on that. As I said in my last post, my friends and I enjoyed a lot exploring the game back in 2007. Fun fact: the PS3 version had no trophies so there would be no reason for you to suffer collecting the flags. Back in 2007 I collected all the flags both on PS3 without trophies, and on XBOX with achievements. And a few years ago, when I replayed the entire saga on this new PlayStation account, I went back to collect all those flags. It was nice all three times, to be honest.

 

When I say that my point of view, talking about this type of video game, goes further and has nothing to do with the opinion of any other player with no experience controlling their own body, I mean precisely this: First Person Parkour - Mirror's Edge. That video was produced in 2013, inspired by the Mirror's Edge video game. The folks behind the Ampisound channel declare themselves fans of the original Mirror's Edge (for obvious reasons, just like me) and created that video when Mirror's Edge Catalyst was announced by DICE and EA.

 

I have been doing what appears in that video since 2005 and Mirror's Edge is from 2008, so imagine if I know what I’m talking about that I have been dedicating myself to this for 16 years.

I could be for hours mentioning videogames that have Parkour as the main mechanics. Videogames that are currently on the market and others which have more than 30 years. Free Running, Prince of Persia, Tomb Raider, Assassin's Creed, Brink, Crackdown, Dying Light, FreeJack, Hover: Revolt of Gamers, InFamous, Jet Set Radio, Mirror's Edge, Prototype, RunBot, Titanfall, Vector, etc. Hell, even Call of Duty ended up implementing Parkour as one of the game mechanics! (Although the physics are not too credible...).

It’s as obvious as that Techland worked with David Belle for the 2015 game Dying Light: IGN video here. There was even a collaboration between Techland and Ampisound (yes, the same people from the Mirror's Edge video): First Person Parkour - Dying Light.

 

So, yes, collectibles in video games are susceptible to like or not to the players, according to how pleasant they find the game itself.

 

Well, I think I have described my opinion about this quite clearly and extensively enough; in my first post, in my second post, and now in this third post. Still, I’m open to continue writing around here if necessary. So let me know and such.

[Dreakon13]

For what it's worth, this is what gamers want.  The industry wouldn't lean so heavily on open world tropes if there weren't such an emphasis from gamers on "hours played vs dollars spent", and if there weren't so much money to be made (and saved) in microtransactions, DLC and live service mechanics extending a games life cycle out months/years.

Edited March 12, 2021 by Dreakon13

[MikeCheck--]

Collectibles suck, period. The only exception is if they are on your path and far and few between. Nothing worse than 100 collectibles! 

[AJ_Radio]

12 hours ago, Desavenencia said:

While it’s true that the original Assassin's Creed hasn’t aged very well, it’s also true that it’s a matter of taste. In my opinion, that game is a classic now. The origin (without forgetting Prince of Persia, of course) of one of the sagas that I have enjoyed the most.

People on this website want to think I’m someone who doesn’t want to do stuff that doesn’t has trophies attached to it, but that is far from the reality of how I play games. 
 

The story is very intriguing and strong in the original Assassin’s Creed, but the gameplay aged poorly. It’s a long series of stealth bits until you confront the target Al Mualim asked you to assassinate. Every assassination had a story behind it, which enhanced the lore of what would become a franchise. 
 

12 hours ago, Desavenencia said:

I could be for hours mentioning videogames that have Parkour as the main mechanics. Videogames that are currently on the market and others which have more than 30 years. Free Running, Prince of Persia, Tomb Raider, Assassin's Creed, Brink, Crackdown, Dying Light, FreeJack, Hover: Revolt of Gamers, InFamous, Jet Set Radio, Mirror's Edge, Prototype, RunBot, Titanfall, Vector, etc. Hell, even Call of Duty ended up implementing Parkour as one of the game mechanics! (Although the physics are not too credible...).

That’s a very broad range of games encompassing several genres.

[Rejim]

On 17/12/2020 at 6:46 PM, DrBloodmoney said:

For me, the only problem collectibles are the ones where you need 100% of them for a trophy.

 

Changing the trophy to less than 100% - even just to 80 or 90%, instantly changes thrm from a chore to a fun distraction. The Far Cry games for example, do this - the trophies are collect X no of Y, where the total number of Y’s available is more than X.

 

when the trophy is ‘collect everything’ it just encorages guide use, creates anxiety in completionists about missable ones, and actually - in some cases discourages people from naturally exploring the game world, as almost no one could ever find every single collectible in a playthrough without looking at a walkthrough / guide.

 

When it is ‘collect some of, or even collect most of’ that actually does encourage exploration, as use of a guide is not seen as so necessary for the trophy, as it allows people to miss a few without punishing them for it.

 

 

Totally on par with you there. Recently played Control and getting the collectibles felt a part of the gameplay, probably because there was no pressure of getting them all. I even collected them after getting the trophy, cause I do like collectibles, but if they are done in a logical manner, and not thrown to you all together.

 

But the worst of them all is needing 100% but being missable, where your only solution is to go trough a guide, cause you don't want to have to go through another playthrough just for that. And that for me is where it breaks the game, cause in the end you are not 'playing' it, you are just replicating someone else's gameplay.

 

The Tomb Raider trilogy wasn't that bad to be honest. You could actually just go on with the game as you would like, collecting as much along the way, and then after completing it, you could give it another go, or directly go for a guide to get the missing ones. They were a lot, but at least they didn't ruin the gameplay.

[plafix68]

When they're done right, I honestly kind of enjoy collectibles. Like others have stated, there are many scenarios where they definitely become more of a chore and take away from the fun a little. I enjoy them most in open world games when the number of collectibles isn't too overwhelming. I don't even mind having to use a guide as long as the collectibles aren't super hidden and there's an easy way to track what you've already collected. Half the fun in open world games is the exploration and to me collectibles can heighten this experience. In Spiderman, I found myself going for the collectibles pretty early on when they became available because it was so fun to swing around NYC and check out the city.

 

It's also nice when the collectibles yield some benefit to your character like enhanced weapons, armor, or skill points. I also enjoy collectibles that add to the story in a meaningful way. Bioshock and HZD are some that come to mind.

 

Having said that, I have noticed more and more that collectibles have started to become a chore in a lot of games. Especially for games that are more linear. It's annoying having to bust out a guide to make sure you don't miss the dozens that are crammed into each level. A handful are fine, but it starts to distract from the game when every minute you're having to check to make sure you didn't miss one before you can progress. Even going back through chapter select is a little tedious if you essentially still need to play the level all over again. That's why I like them in open world games because you don't necessarily have to replay levels, but they don't distract from the main game.

[zero3extreme]

they could have make it more rewardable like extra skills/powers/unlocks/easter eggs/funny stuff after collecting collectible instead of trophy only(or even for nothing sometimes)...

[CodGodFlame]

I 100% agree these collectibles are ridiculous. Resident Evil is my second favorite video game franchise of all time but ive only got the platinum for 5 & 6 for two simple factors

1. CO-OP

2. Chapter select 

if every resident evil had 1 of the 2

i would have the platinum for all Resident Evil games and Resident Evil is just 1 example the collectibles in Resident Evil specifically are awful every game except 5 & 6 you miss 1 collectible just 1 stupid collectibles you gotta start all over imagine missing just the first collectible in the beginning of the game and then getting everything else you get the last collectible at the end just to find out you missed the collectible in the beginning and now they want you to start over at 1 that’s right collectible #1

and you gotta get them all again.

[Astray404]

9 minutes ago, CodGodFlame said:

I 100% agree these collectibles are ridiculous. Resident Evil is my second favorite video game franchise of all time but ive only got the platinum for 5 & 6 for two simple factors

1. CO-OP

2. Chapter select 

if every resident evil had 1 of the 2

i would have the platinum for all Resident Evil games and Resident Evil is just 1 example the collectibles in Resident Evil specifically are awful every game except 5 & 6 you miss 1 collectible just 1 stupid collectibles you gotta start all over imagine missing just the first collectible in the beginning of the game and then getting everything else you get the last collectible at the end just to find out you missed the collectible in the beginning and now they want you to start over at 1 that’s right collectible #1

and you gotta get them all again.

Compare to any of those garbage-recycling-simulators published by Ubisoft, I would say RE and RE2 are still acceptable and manageable

[Guest]

I feel like in some games collectibles are a way to add lore to the game (Horizon Zero, Control etc) a way that devs have found to add something outside the cutscenes and that is more directly linked to the gameplay. Death Stranding has a vast and profound lore, countless rich documents that detail events and the game universe. most people won't be able to stop playing gameplay to read things, and I understand who doesn't appreciate it. some collectibles like infamous are really fun, they make you explore the scenarios and cities, I really liked the collectibles of infamous 1. i also liked the collectibles from crash, like twinsanity, finding all the colorful gems captivated me, opening the menu and seeing all of them shining. from a completist and trophy-hunting point of view, this activity can become laborious and boring; i hate watching videos while i'm playing, i hate even more collectibles and missable things that you need to be aware of all the time (Star Ocean, Murdered: Soul Suspect) the collectibles in Jak 2 and 3 were also a disgrace, even more when there is NO signal of their lives, there is no indication of scenarios where they are, so it is an almost impossible task for a normal player. However, Sly Cooper's collectibles have always been interesting and fun to find.

 

Edit: It reminded me of an old story involving a friend. he found exactly 99 feathers in AC 2, and gave up on finding the last one until today lol

Edited May 26, 2021 by kevao97

[Maverick6146]

On 3/12/2021 at 8:30 AM, Dreakon13 said:

For what it's worth, this is what gamers want.  The industry wouldn't lean so heavily on open world tropes if there weren't such an emphasis from gamers on "hours played vs dollars spent", and if there weren't so much money to be made (and saved) in microtransactions, DLC and live service mechanics extending a games life cycle out months/years.

Agree with this totally. Along with those "popular" opinions like "how big the map is" or "how much freedom I have playing this game".

[TalalHmd]

There are backlog games that I’ve yet to play because I’m not in the mood for collectibles 

 

Assassins Creed 2, inFamous, the last Tomb Rider games