There’s been a recent shift in the way developers approach games. In the days of the arcades and the early consoles, gaming felt like a war against the developers. They would make games as mind-numbingly, quarter-stealingly difficult as possible, and gamers would do their best to not cry. This was a relatively simple way to make games. Traditionally, developers had just increased the speed or difficulty of a game’s early levels, drastically limiting the actual amount of content that had to be coded. This was fine when it was only 25 cents to play, but with the advent of pricey home consoles, this practice just wouldn’t fly. As a result, developers had to start making more complex, content-rich games. And thus was born the item-find.
One of the easiest possible ways to add hours to a game without creating additional content is to include an item-find. Placing items in the gameworld requires little time or additional coding and, depending on the number of items, can seriously increase the length of a game.
In the last 15 years, item-finds have become a gaming staple. They show up in FPSs, RPGs, puzzle games, adventure games, etc. In traditional level-based games, they’re typically limited in number whereas in sandbox-style titles there can be hundreds. We’re typically told their meant to show off the game world and make the player think a bit, which may be true, but the fact that they’re cheap-n-easy content is number one in the developer’s mind.
The Grand Theft Auto series is a great example of both the ups and downs of item-finds. The hidden packages in Vice City and gang tags in San Andreas were fun to hunt down because they showed off parts of the game that the player would normally miss, often highlighting small jokes left by clever devs. Admittedly, they were a huge pain. There were so many items, spread over so much area, and hidden so well, that it was exhausting work. Nevertheless, the richness of the gameworld and the relaxing quality of these item-finds made them a nice reprieve from the main story mission.
Then came GTA IV, featuring 200 well-hidden pigeons. Though the number of items was bad, it was comparable to what players faced in San Andreas. What made this little task nearly unbearable was that fact that, due to the lack of silenced weapons, shooting the flying rats often alerted the police, significantly lengthening the process. The problem with this was not the item-find itself, it was the fact that Rockstar had made an already tedious task much more difficult. Quite simply, GTA IV represents blatant disregard for consumer enjoyment.
Luckily for us, we’re seeing another paradigm shift in the gaming industry. Recently, developers have actually been giving us a fair shot at item-finds. Take Arkham Asylum, for example. There’s 240 Riddler Clues scattered about. That’s a lot, sure, but they’re actually interesting. Most are simple statues to be picked up, but a number of them are challenges that make the player think a little. What’s even better, the player can find in-game maps that show the approximate location of the items. Genius! There’s still plenty of challenge but the player isn’t left bored and frustrated. What a novel concept!
New Super Mario Bros. Wii even ups the ante a bit. The Mario games are notorious for hidden items and endings that are only uncovered through fanatical guess-and-check sessions. In the newest iteration of the franchise, though, the player can unlock hint videos! The fact that its optional whether the player use these videos means that the hardcore fans can still have their fun while less patient players can skip the tedium and enjoy the themselves.
I know that many hardcore gamers find the notion of hints appalling. I’ve heard the arguments. Game are getting easier, casual gamers are whiny, there’s no challenge left, etc. And I understand the underlying sentiment. Yes, older gamers had it rough and resent younger gamers who don’t have to work as hard as they did. But, quite frankly, we should be thrilled that developers are cutting us a break. There’s a big difference between playing to have fun and playing because you refuse to give up. Developers are helping gamers enjoy gaming and that’s something we need to applaud.
——————————————————————————
As always, I’d love to hear what you have to say. Keep a closer eye on me by following me on Twitter, and hit me up on Xbox Live (XBL: Broken Luck) if you’re looking for a co-op partner. Don’t forget to subscribe to the site and follow Fragmatica on Twitter and become our fan on Facebook for even more site related updates.
0 Responses to “A Kinder, Gentler Approach to Item-Finds”