Lunchtime Discussion: Trophies & Achievements
How important are they to you?Published 30/11/2009 at 12:00 by Gastos84
As of this morning I’m still waiting for my Trophies to sync. I didn’t think I would be that bothered by it as I’m not overly fussed about hunting down Platinums. I do have a fair few overall with my Uncharted 2 Platinum taking pride of place and I always like to use it to annoy my brother and, whilst news is coming through that syncing is now possible, the problem made me think of today’s discussion.
There are probably some of you that are still having problems but my main thought was: How important to you are Trophies/Achievements?
Do they give you a reason to finish a game (or start one for that matter)? Do you use them as an ego boost (not necessarily a bad thing) and do you go hunting for Trophies? Do you see them as just an extra perk for the games you play or do you see them as pointless and irritating?
From a personal point of view, I like hearing the ‘bling’ upon doing something special and whilst I don’t ‘hunt’ them, I think they are almost an essential part of both consoles. The only thing that really gets on my nerves are the pointless ones that certain games like Prince of Persia offered. In that game you recieved a trophy for watching the intro movie!
Comments
Please note that all comments are the opinion of the individual author and not TheSixthAxis.
Gamoc | 30/11/2009 12:02
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It’s extremely rare that I care about Trophies or Achievements. I only usually go for them if they’re directly along my way (like bile-bombing tanks in L4D2).
I’m doing all of Assassin’s Creed 2’s achievements though.
Vandix | 30/11/2009 12:06
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It’s all about the game for me, if I like a game I’ll try to get the Trophies, unless they are too hard to get.. But if the game is mediocre I won’t even be bothered to get all Trophies.
cam the man | 30/11/2009 14:10
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Same here.
If it’s a good game I will try a bit harder to collect all the trophies. If the game’s crap I won’t bother.
debasemasonsgrog | 30/11/2009 12:07
have a nice day!
716 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
I love trophies. I see them as a way of making you play games in different ways like in the FIFA games for example, I never would have played online.
There are times when it goes a bit too far, like having to buy a camera for the PS2 to get a picture (Burnout: Paradise) or playing online enough to reach the highest level possible (GTA4)
Then again, I am one trophy away from the platinum for GTA4. It’s really frustrating since I’ve put a lot of work into getting the trophy mentioned above and just need the one in which you play and win in EVERY variation of multiplayer for the platinum. So yeah, I find myself trophy-hunting quite a bit.
Sting_HP | 30/11/2009 16:20
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I will finish the game first and then go back and trophy hunt the game. Currently I am working on the 360 of finishing lego indiana jones.
bunimomike | 30/11/2009 12:13
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Can’t stand them to be fair. It’s kinda fun seeing them pop-up but I’m hoping the game itself is the rewarding feature. I loathe the feeling of “I haven’t played the game properly” if I have say 60% of trophies and I’ve finished the bastard-thing! However, when I look at the trophy requirements on the hypothetical remaining 40% I usually end up thinking “oh, you’re bloody joking aren’t you? Wow… way to make me resent things” and catch myself not wanting to return to the game. So in summary, it makes me negative towards to the game itself. Arses. Not cool.
Oooo… that doesn’t stop me enjoying trophies if they’ve been implemented properly and as debase mentions – it can get you to play the game in a different way but have it still remain fun. Just seems most developers miss the last three words “still remain fun” from their thinking.
ZenTerrorist | 30/11/2009 12:14
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I normally will just play the game to enjoy it & finish it ignoring trophies. If I thoroughly enjoyed the game and want to give it a second go, I will go hunt for some trophies as this can give the game a different perspective and give great replay value as something to work towards other than finish the game. Given that these trophies are not an ‘un-enjoyable effort‘ to obtain. Fun should never feel like work.
illogicology | 30/11/2009 12:14
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I don’t really go after them but I won’t pretend I’m not happy when that little icon blinks onto the screen.
dirtyhabit | 30/11/2009 12:21
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I’m the same.
I think the best use of trophies was Warhawk, It really made you play the game in a certain way and set specific tasks. I know other games do to, but Warhawk for me, had the best goals.
dirtyhabit | 30/11/2009 12:23
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Contradicted myself then!!
What I meant to say was Warhawk is the only game I’ve really bothered to chase the trophies.
arodmell | 01/12/2009 05:16
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Same here mate. Not an essential feature but I do think they add an element of gameplay that appeals to a LOT of people.
cc_star | 30/11/2009 12:14
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Not at all important, waste of my time.
I like the way they encourage some people to play the game in different ways, but I do that for my own enjoyment anyway, not an un-syncable piece of virtual bling.
Surely they’re just about e-penis’ aren’t they?
masoke | 30/11/2009 12:16
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I love them. I’d complete games anyway before they came out but I’d have little incentive to explore the game further. It’s unlikely I’d spend any time at all hunting for feathers if there weren’t trophies dependent on them, but this is why I like them. They encourage me to spend more time getting deeper into games I’m enjoying playing, and often double the amount of time I spend playing something. For this reason, I love them.
chall5 | 30/11/2009 15:36
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I agree totally with this
Kevling | 30/11/2009 12:16
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Trophies are a bonus for me, a little extra to get something out of the game I might not have considered.
I’ll always check the trophy list for a game I’m playing, but only go for ones that look within my grasp, or fun to do. I’ve only ever platinumed one game (Burnout) and can’t see me doing another any time soon.
Having said all that, my PS3 YLOD’d just over a week ago – I replaced it with a Slim pronto, and I was surprised (thanks to the sync errors) how much I missed having my virtual silverware on my PS3.
double-o-dave | 30/11/2009 12:23
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The main reason I quite like the idea of trophies is the competitiveness. If me and 2 other mates are playing the same game and 2 of us manage to platinum it before the 3rd they get completely ripped!
Raen | 30/11/2009 12:26
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I don’t mind them, although I dislike the ‘You completed a level’ ones, that’s just lazy. I also don’t understand people who play a game cause it’s got easy trophies/points. People play games that they don’t enjoy/aren’t good for them. Why?! I know it’s normally only rental, but it’s crazy.
Ducer15 | 30/11/2009 13:06
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I can’t understand it either! I have a friend (IRL) that does exactly that. Hannah Montana trophies, really?
Gastos84 | 30/11/2009 12:28
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I will attempt to get as many trophies as possible on games that I love playing like Uncharted 2 or God of War but if the Platinum looks too hard or there are excessive Online trophies then I won’t bother.
shields_t | 30/11/2009 13:08
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I’m with you on that, I suck at online games, the majority of missing trophies from my game collection have been from the online components.
Aitrus | 30/11/2009 13:16
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I feel the same: in the games I like I will hunt for Trophies, but I would never buy a game just for easy trophies.
I do face a dilemma in some games, though. I like Fat Princess and I have played a fair bit. It has a trophy for slapping people and making them drop stuff 20 times. It’s fine to have a trophy to point out that you can actually do that, but it isn’t very productive for the team to just run around and slap the enemy instead of just killing them.
To sum up: I like trophies in the games that are good, if the trophies are also good and make sense.
Manorhowze | 30/11/2009 20:39
Driving God
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I am the same, I enjoy getting trophies on good games whereas if its a bad game (or even a good game that I cant be bothered with, looking at you Fallout) then it goes back to Lovefilm.
m4rkst4rling | 30/11/2009 12:28
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I’m a big fan of trophies – they add an extra level of playability to any game. Before trophies I would complete a game, put it back in it’s case, and leave it there whilst I complete the next game. Whereas I now spend a lot more time playing a game for the trophies and, as debasemasonsgrog mentions, some trophies make you play the game in ways you wouldn’t normally – including persevering with crappy games!
I also like the level of exclusivity of owning a platinum for a title. It’s pretty easy for most people to complete a game, but it’s not so easy to gain the platinum trophy for most games!
I know that in the real world the trophies mean nothing, but it is nice to be rewarded for being good at a game – although it would be cool if trophies unlocked things on the store!
m4rkst4rling | 30/11/2009 12:34
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I will add though that some trophies are just rediculous, and as ZenTerrorist mentions, gaining a trophy shouldn’t feel like work – it should still be fun!
djdustb | 30/11/2009 12:28
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I love hearing the bling and seeing what I have carried out that has caused this, but they are not a reason for me to buy or complete a game.
oMega-W | 30/11/2009 12:36
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I don’t play games to collect trophies; I collect trophies because I play games. An important distinction, I feel.
djdustb | 30/11/2009 12:53
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Nicely put.
TheShepanator | 30/11/2009 19:33
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What he said ^^