Sunday Thoughts: 14/06/09
Chasing Trophies: have virtual trinkets changed the way we play games for ever?Published 14/06/2009 at 17:00 by nofi
Sunday Thoughts: 07/03/10 [72]
Sunday Thoughts: 28/02/10 [18]
Sunday Thoughts: 21/02/10 [74]
Chasing Trophies
Back when I first got my hands on a shiny new Xbox 360, the ubiquitous chirp of the Achievement Unlocked notification was a welcome surprise. People had told me about these new so-called Achievements and the associated Gamerscore, but I was still too wrapped up in my PS2 and Dreamcast to notice; once I’d seen Fight Night Round 3 running on the big white box I had to have one, though, and I distinctly remember my first achievement which was on the original Condemned. One down, and I was hooked.
When the PS3 launched I traded in my 360 (to be accurate, by then it was my third due to hardware problems) so I could afford the new PlayStation on day one and didn’t miss not having a Microsoft console until Gears of War 2 surfaced: I was more than happy with the PS3 and it’s gaming output, but I was missing some kind of token reward for my gaming efforts. Thankfully, Sony had the Trophy system in the pipeline and when it was finally time to roll out Firmware 2.40 I was hooked again. After that first ‘ping’ of the Trophy Unlock noise was in my blood we set up the Trophy page on the site, and apart from the home page it’s still the 2nd most visited page on TSA.
Since then, despite being only an average gamer, I’ve always kept one eye on the Trophy list as new games surface. Despite Sony moving to a secure server for their Trophy database, the Trophy details of some games still manage to leak out early (and usually resemble the equivalent Achievements anyway) and although I’m never going to go as far as to play through dross like Hannah Montana or Terminator to bag some silverware, I have started using the lists as a way to get more out of the games I do enjoy playing.
Take, for example, GTi Club+, recently brought back into the daylight via Chris’ 7th Challenge TSA post yesterday. I’d previously assumed I was done with the game: I hadn’t played it for ages and would only really ever concentrate on the Easy track as that was the one I remember from the arcades, but after a few laps trying to set a decent record I glanced over the Trophy list and found there was a couple I hadn’t manage to get the first time around, and then spent another 15 minutes getting another bronze and a silver.
Why? I have no idea. The Trophy cabinet in Home isn’t ready yet (if indeed it ever will be) and I don’t currently use Home enough to warrant the investment in displaying my gaming prowess even it is was. I also think the current method of comparing Trophies on the XMB is far too slow. As my TSA signature (on the forums) will attest, I’m (I think) either a level 6 or 7 which means I tend to collect all the bronze Trophies during a review run-through of a game and then don’t go back once the review is live on the site. This, naturally, means I’m missing out on a huge amount of silvers and golds, and I have precisely zero platinums.
I’m not terrible at FPS, I can hold a good racing line and I’m a dab hand at the odd platformer, but the path of least resistance for my incremental climb up the Trophy food chain appears to be firmly fixed on nibbling at bronzes. This probably won’t change, I don’t have either the time or the willpower to be great at any game in particular so I can kiss goodbye to ever bagging a platinum. Gold’s tend to be awarded for completing a game on hard: again, not going to happen until I’m forced to try the game on it’s trickiest setting for review purposes.
What I am keen on though, is developers using Trophies (and of course, Achievements) to suggest alternative play-styles for gamers, or help them get more of a game. A recent run through of Ghostbusters The Video Game for the site was sidetracked by some nicely positioned Trophies meant to make you stop and think once per level – they weren’t cryptic enough to need a guide but their implementation was clever, and again back to GTi Club: this morning I stopped, put the car into reverse and backed up over the line. Why? Because you get a silver Trophy for doing so.
What I don’t like is the way some publishers entice you to buy downloadable content for their game with Trophies. Although my card got bounced this morning when I tried to buy Big Surf Island I was intending to, but I’m kinda glad I didn’t because a cursory glance down the Trophy list for Burnout Paradise revealed that the game had blocks of the damned things for each DLC Criterion has put out this year, and they all seemed rather banal and easy to obtain. Buy the pack, get the Trophies – doesn’t seem in the spirit of things.
But that’s not the point. Now that Sony have enforced Trophy support on all games going forward, even if you don’t have prior knowledge of the unlock criteria for each reward, you do still have some kind of sense as to when that Trophy pop-up will appear: at the end of a level, after finding the first thing of a hundred, after beating the top lap time, and when it doesn’t (which is obviously the case on other consoles) it all seems a little empty. Trophies, then, have changed the way we play games, and most of us would argue it’s for the good.
Comments
Please note that all comments are the opinion of the individual author and not TheSixthAxis.
toutski | 14/06/2009 17:11
Legend
4159 TSA Points | Member since: Oct 2008
They have definitely changed the way I play games, for better or for worse I’m not sure. Probably spending more time on a game constantly repeating a section for a bronze medal, making it one step closer to a platinum.
Not sure wether you get any more enjoyment at it but getting that first platinum was wicked!!!
DarthSharkey | 14/06/2009 17:11
Member
1044 TSA Points | Member since: Feb 2009
I like trophies, they make me replay through games I have completed and it takes a while longer to finish to get that elusive platinum.
Although I often hear the ‘ping’ of a trophy when I’m watching TV etc and not playing my PS3. Weird.
theshockwave | 14/06/2009 17:13
Member
1873 TSA Points | Member since: Nov 2008
Yep, definitely for the good. I love trophies. I don’t buy games for trophies and won’t in the future. But I find they are great fun to collect, addictive and not only give a different way to play a game but create more playability for games. They are great.
Boomshanks | 14/06/2009 17:43
Member
1302 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
My feelings exactly. Trophies for a game mostly equals tons of replay value which is a good thing. I most like the trophies that are a bit hard to get, as the ones in WipEout. They really make you feel you achieved something.
Also can’t wait for the Hall of Fame. I’d love to see all my silverware in 3D shining their awesomeness upon whoever enters
Lorcan | 14/06/2009 17:19
Team TSA: Writer
1248 TSA Points | Member since: Oct 2008
Yeah, I agree. Trophies used to suggest alternate play styles are great. Resistance 2 was fantastic and one of the things that made it so was the “Exotic Weapon Collector” which meant you had to get 20 kills with each weapon. A lot of weapons only appear once or twice in the game so when you found them, you had to keep them! I thought it added a lot of fun and strategy to each fight because I knew what I needed to use and I had to look at how I could use it most effectively.
Mirror’s Edge was also great with the trophy for completing a game without shooting anyone.
I love trophies which mix things up. They’re fantastic.
What I don’t like is things like Buzz. “Play this many rounds” for basically every single one. Ugh!
FruitOfDoom | 14/06/2009 17:20
Member
481 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
Trophies do encourage me to do things in games I wouldn’t really bother with before. They give me more hours maybe even days with a game once I have completed the main core of the game.
I dislike online trophies, and more so – online trophy whores. People asking you in a pre-game lobby to let them kill you 50 times, or let them capture the flag. It is really annoying to have a great multiplayer game mode ruined by some prat after virtual silverware.
I would like to see games with two sets of trophy lists. A platinum for single player completion, and a platinum for multiplayer completion where appropriate.
But then, I have had more fun playing Killzone multiplayer with no desire to hunt for the trophies, then I ever did getting my xbox live gamerscore up to 29000. So trophies/achievements do need to be well implemented. “Revive 5 people on xyz level” – please, that’s hardly worth a trophy.
My proudest official achievement is a 1000 gamerscore on COD4 and specifically the Mile high club on veteran achievement. My proudest un-official achievement, is hours and hours of fun in Boot camp and not giving a rats backside about the trophies.
yogh_wayne | 14/06/2009 17:33
Member
2851 TSA Points | Member since: Oct 2008
Agree, online trophies can spoil the game. Best example are the myriads of trophy levels on LBP (not to mention the whole H4H stuff). I love that game, but there’s so much spam due to people trying to get the trophies without effort!
djdustb | 14/06/2009 21:31
Member
1308 TSA Points | Member since: Nov 2008
I couldn’t agree more. Splitting the trophies for online and offline would be a great idea.
Manorhowze | 14/06/2009 22:05
Driving God
2031 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
I like the idea of splitting trophies into online and offline.
yobrenoops | 15/06/2009 09:48
Member
471 TSA Points | Member since: Nov 2008
Hell yeah! Well said Fruit. I will only complete the single player side of trophies. I have no interest in going on line and getting 10,000 kills (I’m looking at you Resistance 2) or winning every variation of every game mode (GTA4). I don’t see that as a challenge but a slog.
Mirror’s Edge is my favourite and most warmly held Platinum!
yogh_wayne | 14/06/2009 17:22
Member
2851 TSA Points | Member since: Oct 2008
I love that sound when you get a trophy
Oh, and one on my friends list actually has a platinum for Hannah Montana
theshockwave | 14/06/2009 17:24
Member
1873 TSA Points | Member since: Nov 2008
Is it cc_star, he has it!
slickhenry | 14/06/2009 19:39
Member
360 TSA Points | Member since: Jan 2009
I’ve got that sound as an sms-notification on my cell.
I received a text during lunch the other day and one of my co-workers looked up and said “huh? who got a trophy?”
hannes_truce | 14/06/2009 17:27
Member
2919 TSA Points | Member since: Sep 2008
trophies are a good thing imo. The ping of getting a trophy is always satisfying, especially ones that require some hard work. I’m looking forward to the rf platinum
billygoat | 14/06/2009 17:28
Member
718 TSA Points | Member since: Feb 2009
A great read, I can see the comments bringing some good discussions too!
I’m glad that trophies have come along, but I’m almost at the point where I won’t buy a full price game without trophies. I’m still happy to buy games in sales without them, but even then I’d probably go for one with trophies than one without.
I really do like it when games make you play differently in order to get the trophy, it definitely adds more depth to the game. My favourites are the ones where you have to do something completely against the norm, the example in the article of reversing over the finish is a great one. I’m not a huge fan of online trophies though, they depend too much on other players and should perhaps be treated separately. Also, can’t wait for the trophy cabinet in Home
Long live the trophy!
pOOpInFlames | 14/06/2009 17:34
Member
851 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
I’m not even an average gamer,but I’ve resently found out that I really enjoy hunting for trophys. I don’t have alot of them now,but I think there will be more to come.
I think it just adds to the value of the game as mentioned above here several times.
gazzagb | 14/06/2009 17:38
Master of speling mitakse
2760 TSA Points | Member since: Feb 2009
I must admit it really dont get trophys. I think i have 2 gold ones…wow. I can never be bothered to go through and get every single trophy as i just cba. I dont complain when a trophy pops up but i dont read all the descriptions and go out of my way to achieve them, execpt for Fifa 09’s infamous duo-hedidecimal trophy. I didnt exactly want the trophy but i wanted to play with my fellow TSAers in a good fifa match. Maybe if trophys meant credit in Home or on the PS Store, i would actually give a crap but for now, there just some shiny pictures with a number next to them on my portible id.
LiquescentShadow | 14/06/2009 17:44
Member
1576 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
I enjoy collecting trophies (as is evident from my trophy card), but only on games that I enjoy. If I don’t like something, I won’t bother. Take KZ2, for example. I could have gone through the levels collecting intel and symbols, or played online to get those trophies. I didn’t because I don’t like the game enough.
There are obvious problems with the system, though. It means that people will get so obessessed with trophies that that’s all they can play a game for. If it doesn’t have trophies then they aren’t interested, and thus some great games will be overlooked.
Then there are the lazy arsed devs. They know they’ve released a below average game, so why not just stick some easy trophies in there to give people a reason to buy it? Seeing as Sony have made trophies mandatory, they should really introduce some sort of QA, a bit like Nintendo’s Seal of Quality. It would put an end to complete pish like Terminator.
Dafro1989 | 14/06/2009 17:50
Member
629 TSA Points | Member since: Sep 2008
I like the way some trophies encourage you to play differently, use weapons you might not use or make you think differently about how to approach situations. On the other hands, trophies that you get for no good reason (Prince of Persia – start the game) are silly, and could easily have at least slightly better trophies.
JAKE911 | 14/06/2009 18:00
Member
217 TSA Points | Member since: Oct 2008
Trophies add WAY more playability to a game. I have 445 Trophies now and I’m about to get my first Platinum. Just needa finish the new X-Men game on hard, which I’m nearly half way through in 2 hours.
The ‘ping’ of a Trophy is addictive.
Wish I had a ping:P
colmshan1990 | 14/06/2009 19:57
Member
1102 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
Whore
haza103 | 14/06/2009 21:42
Member
489 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
Nothin wrong with being a whore, as long as you don’t start using trophies as an extention to your e-penis.
cc_star | 14/06/2009 18:26
Team TSA: Writer
7852 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
My fave Trophy game is Flower, I played the game through without knowing what the Trophies were, I loved the game and the way it made you feel, however once I saw the Trophies and played through again it seemed like a completely different game, one with aims and goal and a sense of failing that wasn’t there on the first ‘blind’ play through.
Trophies actually added to the game, saying that I don’t play for Trophies I like to play a large variety of games and generally only pick up the bronzes and the odd silver which you get from a few hours play before my low level of patience sees me move on to the following weeks release.
stefhutch20 | 14/06/2009 18:46
Member
371 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Whenever I get a new game I always go for as many trophies as I can which is why I have quite a lot. However, I don’t see myself as a trophy whore – it’s more that if I’m enjoying a game I want to get as much out of it as I can, and trophies normally allow me to do that.