Why does anybody really care about the Xbox achievements?

I have an xbox360 and I couldn' care less. Its for people who have no life and need to do every possible thing they can within a game. Sure it extends the life of a game, that is it you care about repeating some action a 1000 times over.
 
[quote name='ironmouse']I have an xbox360 and I couldn' care less. Its for people who have no life and need to do every possible thing they can within a game. Sure it extends the life of a game, that is it you care about repeating some action a 1000 times over.[/QUOTE]

What's the difference between getting satisfaction out of beating a game and getting 1000 achievment points? It's how a person enjoys the game they spent their own money on. Don't be so smug, everyone on the internet knows you have an amazing life that leaves time for trolling on a message board but not getting achievment points.
 
[quote name='Mr Unoriginal']What's the difference between getting satisfaction out of beating a game and getting 1000 achievment points? It's how a person enjoys the game they spent their own money on. Don't be so smug, everyone on the internet knows you have an amazing life that leaves time for trolling on a message board but not getting achievment points.[/quote]

QFT
 
I dont really understand the fuss (I dont have a 360) but if people want to collect these points then more power to them.

Cant you look and see which acheivements someone else has gotten? If so you could really see who are the hardcore 360 gamers. Some of those points are hard as hell to get Ive read, and if you see someone with all those specific acheivements, you know their a serious gamer. Or a loser with no life, depending on your veiw of the situation. :roll:

Since they dont cost anything extra, I dont see the harm in them. Collect them if you want, or ignore them if you think its stupid right?
 
[quote name='Mr Unoriginal']What's the difference between getting satisfaction out of beating a game and getting 1000 achievment points? It's how a person enjoys the game they spent their own money on. Don't be so smug, everyone on the internet knows you have an amazing life that leaves time for trolling on a message board but not getting achievment points.[/QUOTE]

I like this post
 
I don't want them, I just...need them! I don't know why they're so damn addicting, they just are. I like looking at people's profiles and looking at the achievements they've earned.
 
[quote name='ItsTrueItsTrue92']Every time I read a pro-360 post, they mention the achievement system. I have a 360 and I don't see why anyone would really care.What is the big deal?[/QUOTE]In many ways, achievements are the modern-day equivalent of getting a high score and entering your initials in an arcade game. It's a record of your accomplishment that will be visible to fellow gamers. Similar core idea, and I'm sure the haters back then had a simlar mindset to that of Mr. ironmouse here.
 
It's just kinda fun. Not a huge deal, but it's kinda neat, especially if the achievements in the games are creative.
 
For me, the best thing about achievments are that they can open up my mind to interesting "out of the box" ways of playing games that I probably would have never tried.

(See Crackdown - Top of the Agency and Dead Rising - Walk 20(?) feet on zombies shoulders achievements for examples)

Some of the online achievents can get people playing online that otherwise wouldn't have. If they get their "play 10 games online" achievement and hate every minute of it, then thats all they have to play. However, if they love it and they originally played online because of the achievement, then they would never have found a gameplay mode that they love and lets them get more value out of the game had it not been for the achievment system.


IMO, the points themselves are secondary to this function. I dont care about incrementing an entry in a database somewhere.
 
[quote name='Puffa469']

Cant you look and see which acheivements someone else has gotten? If so you could really see who are the hardcore 360 gamers. Some of those points are hard as hell to get Ive read, and if you see someone with all those specific acheivements, you know their a serious gamer. Or a loser with no life, depending on your veiw of the situation. :roll:

[/QUOTE]


Yeah, you can check other people's achievments. Now < insert douchebag friend's name> can't lie about finishing Gears of War on Insane or getting 1 million points in one life in Geometry Wars, etc.
 
I think achievements are a nifty little thing. It's fun to watch your gamerscore slowly grow. It's also fun to check other people's cards, and see what they have accomplished.

Is it critical, by no means. But, it's something a little extra that give a bit more for a game, and honestly, I would like to see something similar instituted on all systems.
 
I don't really care about the points...but if they came up with some kind of "trophy room" thing, like in FFXII or SSBM, I'd be into that. as it is, points and a list of what I did isn't that enticing.

Also, I wish developers would be more creative with achievements. "Get 1000000 kills in online mode" or "Beat chapter x in x difficulty" are not my idea of fun achievements.
 
[quote name='Mr Unoriginal']What's the difference between getting satisfaction out of beating a game and getting 1000 achievment points? [/quote]

The end actually rewards you (hopefully) with an ending. There's a feeling of self satiisfaction sure, but why do most people play to the end of most games? The answer is to see how the story ends. There's many games like vast RPGs, fighters, racers, etc. that once I got past the main story/quest I never picked up again except for some multiplayer. I had nothing IMO to complete the game 100% for. Even on the rare occasion where you do complete a game fuly you are often rewarded with some kind of unlockable which to me differs from points I can't use for anything. Most of the achievement pts I have are because I wanted the unlockables that come along with it. If they netted something more tangiable than that then I'd def. be more interested. Now don't misunderstand, I've got nothing against achievement points or the people that play for them, if you enjoy then that's you thing. However myself as a gamer, I play to the end for a different reason than what you stated, the two aren't totally synomous (sp?) IMO.
 
I think it's just something to look forward to. It's a bit addicting and a bit motivation. Currently I do not own a 360, but if/when I do (or if/when I get a PS3 and they copy the same system), I can definitely see myself trying to get the achievement points. Why? As it is, when I start a game, I won't put it away and start another one until I finish the game I've already started (unless it really REALLY sucks!). So as it is, I'd be getting a bunch of points that way. But what's so bad about getting more out of the game. So I have to do a few other "sidequests" or what have you to get some more points. Now, the achievements where you have to beat the game on super-duper hard mode after beating it on really hard 10 times first... ummm, yeah- not gonna happen.

But my point is simply this- it gives a little bit extra motivation to those of us who like to colelct unlockables, get high scores, and just feel good about beating a game. It's kind of like comparing penis size as well. But in a less "hey look how big my penis is. HEY WTF? STOP STARING AT MY PENIS YOU FAG!" kind of way.
 
As a new 360 owner with a very low gamerscore I like the idea of the achievements but I don't really have the time to devote to getting them. I do however find it fun when I'm playing and I get the achievement earned balloon. I also agree its kind of like that old school arcade look what I can do kind of a thing. It's a nice extra.
 
[quote name='Mr Unoriginal']What's the difference between getting satisfaction out of beating a game and getting 1000 achievment points? It's how a person enjoys the game they spent their own money on. Don't be so smug, everyone on the internet knows you have an amazing life that leaves time for trolling on a message board but not getting achievment points.[/QUOTE]

QFT on that one.

i like the achievement system. as the other posters in here, i like that its the fact that its a high score system. im also a new 360 owner and it feels good to get rewarded for something you did..besides the ending of a game.i
 
Just about every game out there is about having a goal or goals, about achieving something. The Achievements merely deepen the experience. Please note that this 'deepening' is totally optional (save the King Kongs of the 360's library that just give you the points for beating the game). And whether it's beating Ninja Gaiden on its hardest difficulty or surviving 1,000,000 in Geometry Wars, it all gets you the same thing: the gratification of reaching what you were striving for. No, really, it's all the same in the end.

By extension, if you don't 'get' Achievements, you might as well not even bother with one single sidequest in an RPG, or one secret path in a racing game. Don't bother collecting those golden bolts in Ratchet & Clank games or the heart containers in, well, you know, either.

EDIT: I might add that for just about all of us, there's a point where an Achievement is deemed no longer worth pursuing. It might be far too time-consuming, it might be beyond one's abilities, or it might be because it requires enduring hours of insufferable Live opponents. Just because I like getting them doesn't mean I have to get every single one. I know when to cut my losses, if you wanna call it that.
 
Achievements are just one more way to have fun gaming. It's like the side stuff some games offer anyway, but instead of just getting in-game currency or whatever you get a sort of badge and bragging rights.

Take Zelda: Twilight Princess. The game is chock full of extra stuff: collecting bugs, heart pieces, and that damn cave of ordeals. If you're a completist with all that stuff, you got nothing to show for it. If you got achievements for it, it'd motivate you more and you'd have proof that you did them which also would add to a cumulative score.

If you've never experienced achievements or have very limited experience, you can't really judge it properly. When you get a large friends list and you compare where everyone else is in the latest game, it's pretty compelling. I'm currently competing with a friend over gamerscore, and also seeing where I rate on Crackdown among my friends. It makes gaming more fun for me, and that's not a bad thing.

I'm pretty sure nobody ever had LESS fun with a 360 game because it contains achievements. If you're not into them, it's no big deal. Play the game your way. But I think it's kind of ridiculous how people trash the Achievement system and those who like it.
 
I think achievements rock for a couple reasons.

1. I like comparing my friend's list. I just like to so what they are playing and how much they are playing of it. Also Me and My buddy went back and forth on GRAW for a while that was fun. I like seeing who has beat Gears on Insane. Who has beat CoD2 on Vet.

2. I like getting achievements. My world doesnt revolve around them, but its cool to try and strive for something in a game you like. Rewards have pretty much always been a part of gaming. (Ranks, Leaderboards, High Scores, Achievements.)

3. Sometimes you get things. A few times I have gotten cool little things like gamer pics from getting achievements. Beat gears on Insane and you get a gamercard that only people who have acheived that get. Same thing in other games. Also with the Rewards program I should get a Free $50 game, Contra for XBLA, 200 pts and a tshirt.

In closing I'm not saying achievements mean the world or even show how skilled a gamer is (some do). However, why not have em? They are fun. And just a little something extra.
 
The achievements are so awesome. I would not have bought or rented/played many games if not for the achievements system.

King Kong? Easy, easy achievements, also happens to be a fantastic game. College Hoops 2k6? Easy Achievement points, also had a ton of fun re-creating our college's basketball team because a lot of those guys are my friends, and ended up having more fun than expected with the game. Same goes for FEAR. Achievements? Hard as hell. But it got me hooked on the online game.

I also never would have bothered with COD2 on veteran if not for achievements, which effectively doubled or tripled my time and enjoyment of the game, since Veteran is so relentlessly difficult. Achievements extend the life of titles and add value. Being able to brag to friends and back it up is a huge advantage to the 360.

Anyone who says achievements don't matter only says that because they haven't experienced them. It's going to help 360 versions of games sell better, and it's going to keep 360 gamers more loyal to the platform.

There's a reason Sony's copying this on PSN sooner or later, because it was a good idea.
 
[quote name='Mr Unoriginal']What's the difference between getting satisfaction out of beating a game and getting 1000 achievment points? It's how a person enjoys the game they spent their own money on. Don't be so smug, everyone on the internet knows you have an amazing life that leaves time for trolling on a message board but not getting achievment points.[/QUOTE]


Oh look my opinion pissed you off. How special.
 
[quote name='ViolentLee']

I'm pretty sure nobody ever had LESS fun with a 360 game because it contains achievements. If you're not into them, it's no big deal. Play the game your way. But I think it's kind of ridiculous how people trash the Achievement system and those who like it.[/QUOTE]

Great Point. That pretty much summarizes my overall feeling about achievements. People can seem to be personally affected by the presence of achievements, but I dont get why it's such a big deal. Maybe it's a slight case of envy if you only own a ps3/wii and are buying cross platform games and not getting achievements.

Achievements have affected one thing in my buying habits though: All other things being equal between a cross platform 360/Ps3 game, i will buy the 360 version for the achievements. (Maybe this will change with PS Home, we'll see...)


edit: i before e except after c...
 
Achievements are retarded.

It's bad enough I waste hours playing videogames, but now there's proof of it and it's something to brag about? I guess I live in a different world.
 
I too love achivements, and it's for a good reason: Incentive. I hardly ever try playing games on Hard, but now I at least have some reward for it. I'm also a sucker for any game that has a "% complete". I don't always get 100% of course, but still like it.

I don't even do this to compare friends scores, since I'm not a big online gamer. I just like the satisfaction, plus it breathes new life into these games. Best achievments are ones that make me do things I wouldn't normally do. (Dead Rising is the best at doing this. It's going to be hell, but I'm going try getting most of em.)
 
[quote name='trip1eX']Achievements are retarded.

It's bad enough I waste hours playing videogames, but now there's proof of it and it's something to brag about? I guess I live in a different world.[/QUOTE]

a world in which you participate in a hobby that you think is a waste of time and are embarrassed of? I dont know how that makes Achievements retarded.
 
[quote name='trunksx34']Great Point. That pretty much summarizes my overall feeling about achievements. People can seem to be personally affected by the presence of achievements, but I dont get why it's such a big deal. Maybe it's a slight case of envy if you only own a ps3/wii and are buying cross platform games and not getting achievements.[/QUOTE]
I think the reason some people hate on Achievements is because they feel it's making other people thnk they're "better" than them. Like, because they have a lower gamer score than someone else, that does something to their self-esteem or may cause them to be ridiculed. By nature, Achievements are bragging rights, and some people are offended by others bragging. I can see people not wanting things unimportant to them rubbed in their face, but I've honestly never seen it happen with achievements. A little friendly competition maybe, but that's it.

Digressing a bit, what point total do most people consider a good one for a game? I used to consider 150 having officially put in some time, but I've recently bumped that up to 200. That means many different things for different games, but I view that as an average. I mean, I think I only got 160 for beating Quake IV, but I got 150 for winning one tournament in Fuzion Frenzy 2.
 
All depends on the game Lee. Look at Fear, most of the achievements are damn hard, and only net you 5-10 points from what I remember. In other words, you can't compare Fear to King Kong, can you?

I'd say around 200-250 tops.
 
I don't care per se about the points, but some of the acheesements are lots of fun to get and some have funny names. Now that there is a reward for having a higher gamer score, I have been trying to get mine higher. There is also the challenge that some bring that make them worth trying to get. All in all, I think it is a fun extra.
 
I think some people hate because they see the "achievement whores" and it leaves a bad taste in their mouth. They hear about someone playing a game they don't even like just to get some easy achievement, or just generally sucking the fun out of a game just go increase their gamerscore, or being an ass and actually using their score as some sort of leverage in an argument. Sure, it can turn into an unhealthy obsession, but that is not the fault of the Achievement system itself.

And I look forward to the upcoming fanboy flamewars whenever PS3 unveils their "Accomplishment" system, or whatever they plan on calling it. :D
 
I've been a very strong opponent of achievement points for one reason:

Points external to the game have no place in game design philosophy.

This has nothing to do with the arcade-y feel of an online leaderboard. Saying, here is the top 50 players in Pac-Man, why dont you try to beat it.

This is about developers having a task in the game and not having to necessarily ask themselves whether or not this is fun or relevant to the game. They just tack points on them and people will do it.

For example, getting points for getting to the end of one of the guilds in Oblivion. If you made it interesting or worthwhile, you wouldnt have to bait them into doing it.

There have always been people who have challenged themselves as a completionist to find all of some THING or play on a hard difficulty or do a high score/speedrun. To need points to do such things says that you lack this general motivation.

Affecting game development affects the game even if you choose not to care about achievements.
 
[quote name='jer7583']The achievements are so awesome. I would not have bought or rented/played many games if not for the achievements system.

King Kong? Easy, easy achievements, also happens to be a fantastic game. College Hoops 2k6? Easy Achievement points, also had a ton of fun re-creating our college's basketball team because a lot of those guys are my friends, and ended up having more fun than expected with the game. Same goes for FEAR. Achievements? Hard as hell. But it got me hooked on the online game.

I also never would have bothered with COD2 on veteran if not for achievements, which effectively doubled or tripled my time and enjoyment of the game, since Veteran is so relentlessly difficult. Achievements extend the life of titles and add value. Being able to brag to friends and back it up is a huge advantage to the 360.

Anyone who says achievements don't matter only says that because they haven't experienced them. It's going to help 360 versions of games sell better, and it's going to keep 360 gamers more loyal to the platform.

There's a reason Sony's copying this on PSN sooner or later, because it was a good idea.[/quote]

I'm going with you ont his one. COD2 is a great game regardless of achievements, but because of them it increased the replayablity of the game because it made me that more hungry to beat it on Veteran. I'm in the middle of the last British mission on Veteran, but I can't beat D-Day on the American side. I know it shouldn't be that tough, but I can't get across when they start shooting you down with those AA guns.
 
There are a couple of things I love about achievements. They usually are awarded for trying things in games I usually wouldn't try, so it opens up a game a little more for me. Also, having two kids doesn't leave a lot of time to sit down and finish games like I used to. Getting the achievement pop up makes it seem like I'm actually getting somewhere in a game. However, I don't like these "be ranked #1 in the world" ones. I can't imagine ever being able to put the time into earning those. It would be nice if they had 1k for offline and an additional 1k for online.
 
Lets see...
GoW(Insane)
CoD2(Vet)
Hitman(Professional mode)
Splinter Cell(Hard)

Thats why i care about achievements. I barely used to beat games and now im playing through them on the hardest difficulty.
 
There's no reason to hate achievements. They only add to games. The arugement about them being extra motivation, yeah, so what? They are extra motivation to get that much further or accomplish something in a game. That means more replay value, and last I checked, that was a good thing.

Sony's Trophy Room will be the same thing (except possibly ignored by some developers) and even they can't deny that achievements were a good idea.
 
[quote name='Dr Mario Kart']I've been a very strong opponent of achievement points for one reason:

Points external to the game have no place in game design philosophy.

This has nothing to do with the arcade-y feel of an online leaderboard. Saying, here is the top 50 players in Pac-Man, why dont you try to beat it.

This is about developers having a task in the game and not having to necessarily ask themselves whether or not this is fun or relevant to the game. They just tack points on them and people will do it.

For example, getting points for getting to the end of one of the guilds in Oblivion. If you made it interesting or worthwhile, you wouldnt have to bait them into doing it.

There have always been people who have challenged themselves as a completionist to find all of some THING or play on a hard difficulty or do a high score/speedrun. To need points to do such things says that you lack this general motivation.

Affecting game development affects the game even if you choose not to care about achievements.[/QUOTE]

That's like saying, "Lima beans are healthy for you -- they don't have to taste good!" What's wrong with getting extra benefits to something?

Games have been doing stuff like this for YEARS. The NBA 2K series had tasks before achievements were around; as did SmackDown. Like I said before, Zelda's got a ton of achievement-like objectives. Honestly, I probably would've been more motivated to collect bugs/hearts/etc. in Twilight Princess if I would've gotten points for it. Likewise, I wouldn't have tried the Agency Tower achievements in Crackdown had I not known I'd get points for them. That doesn't make them un-fun by themselves, but a little motivation doesn't hurt.

I wouldn't say achievements affects development. If I understand correctly, one person on the team handles the achievements. It's a matter of setting up ways to track things like enemies killed or points scored, rather than altering the development of the games themselves. In the grand scheme of game development, that's a very tiny bit of work.
 
If they are such a good idea, then there is no reason to have to MANDATE that all developers use it. They would use them simply because its a good idea.
 
[quote name='Dr Mario Kart']If they are such a good idea, then there is no reason to have to MANDATE that all developers use it. They would use them simply because its a good idea.[/QUOTE]

Companies will cut non "required" features whether they are a good idea or not in order to hit their ship dates (see Japanese Motorstorm w/o multiplayer)
, even something as "minor" as achievements .
 
[quote name='trunksx34']Great Point. That pretty much summarizes my overall feeling about achievements. People can seem to be personally affected by the presence of achievements, but I dont get why it's such a big deal. Maybe it's a slight case of envy if you only own a ps3/wii and are buying cross platform games and not getting achievements.

Achievements have affected one thing in my buying habits though: All other things being equal between a cross platform 360/Ps3 game, i will buy the 360 version for the achievements. (Maybe this will change with PS Home, we'll see...)


edit: i before e except after c...[/QUOTE]

How about, you have friends who won't leave the house anymore because they are too concerned with getting "achievements" on X-Box Live and/or World of Warcraft, etc...
There CERTAINLY is a negative to wanting to compare gaming experiences with everyone in the world, it can drain the life out of you, and you can end up rotting away in your house while the world goes on without you...
I'm not blaming these achievements fully, but I'm just saying, how can you say there's absolutely no negative to this...
And to say someone is jealous if their system doesn't have achievements, you must be a some kind of fool, if someone REALLY wanted them, they'd just go out and get an X-Box 360...
-Goatman
 
[quote name='goatindaruffness']How about, you have friends who won't leave the house anymore because they are too concerned with getting "achievements" on X-Box Live and/or World of Warcraft, etc...
There CERTAINLY is a negative to wanting to compare gaming experiences with everyone in the world, it can drain the life out of you, and you can end up rotting away in your house while the world goes on without you...
I'm not blaming these achievements fully, but I'm just saying, how can you say there's absolutely no negative to this...
And to say someone is jealous if their system doesn't have achievements, you must be a some kind of fool, if someone REALLY wanted them, they'd just go out and get an X-Box 360...
-Goatman[/QUOTE]

How about, you have friends who won't leave the house anymore because they are too concerned with drinking water...
There CERTAINLY is a negative to wanting to drink water, it can kill you, and you can end up rotting away in your house while the world goes on without you...
I'm not blaming water fully, but I'm just saying, how can you say there's absolutely no negative to this...
And to say someone is jealous if they don't have water, you must be a some kind of fool, if someone REALLY wanted it, they'd just go out and get a glass of water...


Yeah, you can pretty much insert anything you want in there if you look at doing something in excess.

Achievements are fun. I play video games to have fun.

There really isn't too much else to this guys.
 
[quote name='goatindaruffness']How about, you have friends who won't leave the house anymore because they are too concerned with getting "achievements" on X-Box Live and/or World of Warcraft, etc...
[/QUOTE]


That is not a problem with achievements, that is a problem with your friend.

Like most things in life, I don't believe that achievements are a bad thing in and of themselves. It's what people choose to do with them that can be harmful or stupid.
 
[quote name='goatindaruffness']
And to say someone is jealous if their system doesn't have achievements, you must be a some kind of fool, if someone REALLY wanted them, they'd just go out and get an X-Box 360...
-Goatman[/QUOTE]

Last I heard, this site was not RichAssGamer. Even working full time, a 400 dollar 360 purchase wasn't a no-brainer for me.

I know I REALLY wanna play Crysis in DX10 with a dual Geforce 8800 and Quad core proc system on a 100+ inch 1080p projector, but I can't just go get it. Is it within my price range? Yes. Is it a smart purchase? Probably not.

Does that mean i don't feel some jealousy when some dude posts a setup like that on CAG or on some other forum? Of course I feel a little bit, though not enough to affect me in any significant way. I think that this response to interesting stuff that one doesn't have is completely reasonable and not a bad thing for a normal person, but if that makes me a fool in your eyes...
 
Personally, I just find it really fun to unlock the achievements and watch the score grow. I call it the Pokemon syndrome: gotta catch em all. Its like collecting all the stars in Mario 64 or all the swimsuits in DOAX. Its fun to know you are mastering a game AND now you are getting something to show for it. I still find it hard to motivate myself to 100% games, but achievements definitely give me motivation to try longer than I used to.
 
[quote name='Mr Unoriginal']What's the difference between getting satisfaction out of beating a game and getting 1000 achievment points? It's how a person enjoys the game they spent their own money on. Don't be so smug, everyone on the internet knows you have an amazing life that leaves time for trolling on a message board but not getting achievment points.[/quote]

Dude, you took the freaking words out of my mouth.
 
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