Is it just me, or are newer video games making it more difficult to save when you need to?
We had a little problem with this over the weekend. When we tell the kids to get off the GameCube, we generally give them a few minutes to wrap up what they’re doing and save. This has worked well in the past, but it’s built up an expectation in the kids that they have the right to save, however long that takes. This resulted in a half-hour of extra playing time for Jon on Sunday, followed by some hurt feelings when he was forced to lose all that playing time.
Some older games (especially level-based ones) wouldn’t allow saves at any time, but they generally compensated by having short levels. The new games, by contrast, don’t have anything about them that would preclude saving at any time, yet they often have save artifacts you have to manipulate in the game in order to save. Which is fine, as long as you provide them at the right times, such as right after a difficult portion of the game.
I don’t want to be unfair, but I also don’t want to give game makers a veto over the rules I set over my children. If the game manufacturers feel a need to force their players to play for long stretches before giving them a place to stop, then we may not be buying very many more games.
I completely agree on this!
Sometimes I dont have more than about 20 minutes. I want to be able to save the game when I need to not when the game wants me to.
Carrot.nl
The obsticals set for saving a game are their so a player is sure he wants/needs to save at that point. Not because the game designers want to get a hole 10 more minutes of play time out of your kids. Most games these days are ment to be played for an extreme amount of tima and most children cant reach the end of a game before they want a new one with better graphics and better game play. The point is to try to make the player invest as much time as possible into a game that they can. So a save point isn’t there as a road blocker its there to prove that the player can get it and is willing to invest the amount of time to get to the save point…bitch.
“Most games these days are ment[sic] to be played for an extreme amount of tima[sic]…”
Wasn’t that my point? Only put, er, more correctly, and less rudely?
I suppose you’re going to tell me next that I have an obligation to raise my kids the way the video game vendors tell me to.
Sorry Jeff, I was in a bit of a rush, and no I am not going to tell you that video game vendors know how to raise your kids. I was simply remarking on the fact that if you spend the money to purchase a video game for your children that you should be ready for the consequences of doing so. The need to get to the next level or get to a save point is all a part of that. If you are going to spend money on these trinkets you should like to be rewarded in some way, and your kids making progress in the game is that reward, however hard that may be for you to see. With that note I will again be rude…bitch!
“The need to get to the next level or get to a save point is all a part of that.”
I’m encouraged to learn that not all game developers think this way. (New Wii, and Zelda, over Christmas, which allows you to save whenever you want.)
“If you are going to spend money on these trinkets you should like to be rewarded in some way…”
Exactly. If I am going to spend some money (and it’s my money getting spent here), I expect a “reward”. Like, for example, a flexible save system.
Sure, game developers have a “right” to do their games however they want. One would think they’d want to maximize sales, though, and getting all elitist and “you must not really deserve my game if you can’t play it for hours at a time” doesn’t seem like sure-fire sales tactics to me.
But, as I said, it’s a relief to learn that the game people aren’t that dogmatic.
Deleted due to abusive and profane language.
Well, that was interesting. Some people, I think, should spend a little less time gaming and a little more time brushing up on their social skills.