What makes a good game? What makes a game worth playing?

[BlackSpaceCowboy]

As I get older and my time becomes more valuable I think about what games are worth my time. What makes a worthwhile game?

I think of games that have withstood the test of time. Games like chess and basketball (of course chess is much older).

1. Unlimited mastery potential

Both chess and basketball offer an almost unlimited potential for mastery. Very few people can reach the level of a grandmaster or an NBA player.

2. Strategy

Both games require strategic planning.

3. Competition and cooperation

Competing is fun and social especially when you're cooperatively competing.

But the above doesn't cover single player games. I think for a single player #3 is replaced by immersion. The story and mechanics of the game have to be immersive and engaging which is very subjective. It has to make you feel like you're part of the story.

I'll add

4. Immersion

I've been playing IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad online. It's not very fast paced but it allows for unlimited mastery, requires strategy and is both cooperative and competitive. Also, it can be very immersive as you feel like a WW2 pilot.
I also enjoy sim racing which is very competitive and allows for a great deal of mastery but lacks strategy and cooperation.

Whatever makes a game fun and worthwhile is difficult to define. I can't quite put my finger on it. Any other thoughts and insights?

 

[Dsign]

Interesting how we all reconsider our take on gaming as we get older

I personally found interest in the visual aspect of games, both as a player and as a "creator". While I still really enjoy many of the things you listed there, the thing that I find myself doing the most (and didn't do before) is simply stop and observe.
From the little details up to the big picture. I could probably spend hours playing a game I don't really enjoy simply to take the perfect screenshot !

So I must ask : Is a game really supposed to be fun ? Or is it that YOU should find the fun in it ? [noob]

 

[Jenner]

-Immersion (graphics, music, UI, lore)
-Interesting and meaningful choices (be it choices in an RPG changing the story to deciding what load-out in Elite you want for your ship)
-Cohesive design (systems working together to support and complement each other)

 

[Mole HD]

I don't feel I have to 'master' any game I play...simply enjoy the interactive experience. Getting older for me has got rid of the need for a competitive edge and drift toward what I previously got from books or a good film.

I'm quite visually and audio oriented but I also need that story to interact with. The Witcher series gave all this in spades...ED too to a lesser degree since there's little to no interactive story involved although an experience of using imagination similar to reading a book along with excellent visual and audio make it compulsive...

IL2 BoS has improved for me along with the addition of a career mode...which helps the immershun of course

 

[lysan]

Graphics and sound need to be so good you can immerse yourself into the game world.

Take ED, the graphics are good, but the sound is awesome, together they make you immerse into the game world.

Regarding SP games, it's the story the drives the game forward, the "just one more turn" do not only reply to turn based games, it also
fits very well to other types of games.

IL-2 is one great example of how to make a good game, the player who like to play these type of games want the realism, and the game provides this in buckets. There are other simulators that does the same, but that would be a long list.

It all depends on what type of game it is.
SP is divided into FPS, RTS/TB strategic, and crossovers of different game types. So what makes these games great is several things combined.

You need to look at your customer base, and then try to figure out what can be done with the money dedicated to the project.
Then communicate clearly to your customer what they are going to get. It is here most companies fail in the project planning.

 

[Iori]

For every game that has fans, those fans could tell you a variety of reasons as to why they play their games, that may or may not resonate with you.

There are players who only play one type of game.
There are those that only go for popular games.
There are those who have a wide variety of taste and needs.

For example I despise movie-like games like The Last of Us or Uncharted, yet they are widely popular for a reason probably only their players can understand.

There is no single answer to the question other than maybe:

A good game and what makes a game worth playing is a game that fulfills the psychological needs of its target audience.

 

[MickyG1982]

What makes a good game (to me) is a game I enjoy playing.

It doesn't matter what Youtuber X or vengeful steam reviewer Y say about it, to me it is a good game. It's subjective and it's personal there really is no right answer.

 

[Agony_Aunt]

Tetris is a good game.

Minesweeper is a good game.

Lots of good games out there, and i don't think you can pin down any specific things that make a good game. Sometimes games even have anti-patterns (or whatever the correct term is), things that shouldn't make a good game, yet somehow do.

 

[Iskariot]

As I get older and my time becomes more valuable I think about what games are worth my time. What makes a worthwhile game?

For example I love stealth shooters and I play Ghost Recon Wildlands. I will use that as an example.

Solid, satisfying game mechanics are an important aspect of a good game.
What is satisfying about Wild Lands for me is that I can quietly take the time to scout an area, mark the dozens of targets and then plan a way to take them out one by one without alarming the rest. It's like a puzzle. I play the game on hardest difficulty, on my own, and I wish it was more difficult.
When I fail alarms go off, troops get called in, helicopters appear, I get attacked by mortars etc etc.
Often enough something goes wrong and I have to retreat and circle around, but even such a failure is satisfying, because I have to find another approach.

Good and satisfying tools.
For scouting purposes the devs of Wildlands have given me all kinds of tools. I can use a drone or binoculars, I have different viewing modes, I can distract enemies and of course the game has extremely satisfying weapons. All these tools can be upgraded and modified.

A sense of progression could be important too.
In Wildlands you can find new tools and new weapons all over the place and you can upgrade your capabilities and weapons.
It is extremely cool to find a new weapon and to discover it is the right one for your play style.

Depending on the type of game I love an Open, and diverse and detailed and immersive game world.
I also love it when random, unpredictable things can happen.
Good music can add a lot to a game too.

I do not care for competition and cooperation like you do.
I like to be alone in a game world. This for me also adds to immersion. Other players most often destroy immersion with their odd behavior.

 

[Navigare Necesse Est]

Fun.

 

[BlackSpaceCowboy]

For example I love stealth shooters and I play Ghost Recon Wildlands. I will use that as an example.

Solid, satisfying game mechanics are an important aspect of a good game.
What is satisfying about Wild Lands for me is that I can quietly take the time to scout an area, mark the dozens of targets and then plan a way to take them out one by one without alarming the rest. It's like a puzzle. I play the game on hardest difficulty, on my own, and I wish it was more difficult.
When I fail alarms go off, troops get called in, helicopters appear, I get attacked by mortars etc etc.
Often enough something goes wrong and I have to retreat and circle around, but even such a failure is satisfying, because I have to find another approach.

Good and satisfying tools.
For scouting purposes the devs of Wildlands have given me all kinds of tools. I can use a drone or binoculars, I have different viewing modes, I can distract enemies and of course the game has extremely satisfying weapons. All these tools can be upgraded and modified.

A sense of progression could be important too.
In Wildlands you can find new tools and new weapons all over the place and you can upgrade your capabilities and weapons.
It is extremely cool to find a new weapon and to discover it is the right one for your play style.

Depending on the type of game I love an Open, and diverse and detailed and immersive game world.
I also love it when random, unpredictable things can happen.
Good music can add a lot to a game too.

I do not care for competition and cooperation like you do.
I like to be alone in a game world. This for me also adds to immersion. Other players most often destroy immersion with their odd behavior.

I never played Windlands but your description makes me want to play it.

I always loved the Far Cry series because it allowed you to observe and scout a target and plan out how to take the base down. I enjoy that so much more than linear games that just throw enemies at you.

But for me that's an example of combining skill mastery and strategy. You have basic shooting and stealth skill plus an element of strategic planning.

I also enjoyed MGS V because of this. There were so many ways to take on an objective and the mechanics of the game allowed for a great deal of mastery.

I also think giving the player tools allows for more emergent gameplay because players can combine and use these tools in different ways. Very few games allow you to be creative in terms of how you play.

 

[BlackSpaceCowboy]

IL2 BoS has improved for me along with the addition of a career mode...which helps the immershun of course

I've been playing online using teamspeak. I find that communicating with other human players (cooperation and strategy) also adds to the immersion of being a ww2 pilot.

 

[Frank]

A good game is where when you die you want to kick yourself for making a mistake.

A bad game is where when you die you want to kick the games developer.

 

[lysan]

A good game is where when you die you want to kick yourself for making a mistake.

A bad game is where when you die you want to kick the games developer.

That is a very good explanation !

 

[ethelred]

For me it’s got to have a challenge, so I can feel like my skill level is progressing.

MP is good for this as other hoomans are infinitely more variable and I think I can always beat them eventually.

AI can be good but a range between playing a high level chess programme that is demoralising as you feel you’ll never win vs an easy to exploit bot that takes no effort to beat.

 

[BlackSpaceCowboy]

For me it’s got to have a challenge, so I can feel like my skill level is progressing.

MP is good for this as other hoomans are infinitely more variable and I think I can always beat them eventually.

AI can be good but a range between playing a high level chess programme that is demoralising as you feel you’ll never win vs an easy to exploit bot that takes no effort to beat.

I was just thinking about challenge.

I remember back in the arcade games that the fun of arcade games was the challenge. These machines were quarter munchers and you had to be good to make one quarter last. Pac Man gets hard really fast.

I remember that the fun was making it to a certain level because it was a real challenge. You got a lot of satisfaction from getting to a certain level.

Now very few games provide a challenge. The fun of defeating a difficult boss is gone.

Now we have very long experiences with little to no challenge. I usually have to increase the difficulty to enjoy most games.

 

[Demascus]

I thought loot boxes are what makes a video game fun?).

 

[Vasea Azure]

Very subjective and I can only speak for myself.
I like good amount of re playability eather with mods, new game plus or different choices for each play through. So when I buy a game I allways look if its one time thing or if I can get more out of it.
Good story and memorable characters also welcome.

 

[Deleted member 110222]

Cobra Mk III.

 

[Strangepork]

As I get older and my time becomes more valuable I think about what games are worth my time. What makes a worthwhile game?

I think of games that have withstood the test of time. Games like chess and basketball (of course chess is much older).

1. Unlimited mastery potential

Both chess and basketball offer an almost unlimited potential for mastery. Very few people can reach the level of a grandmaster or an NBA player.

2. Strategy

Both games require strategic planning.

3. Competition and cooperation

Competing is fun and social especially when you're cooperatively competing.

But the above doesn't cover single player games. I think for a single player #3 is replaced by immersion. The story and mechanics of the game have to be immersive and engaging which is very subjective. It has to make you feel like you're part of the story.

I'll add

4. Immersion

I've been playing IL-2 Battle of Stalingrad online. It's not very fast paced but it allows for unlimited mastery, requires strategy and is both cooperative and competitive. Also, it can be very immersive as you feel like a WW2 pilot.
I also enjoy sim racing which is very competitive and allows for a great deal of mastery but lacks strategy and cooperation.

Whatever makes a game fun and worthwhile is difficult to define. I can't quite put my finger on it. Any other thoughts and insights?

Missions are crucial to Elite, my guess they balled them up with spaghetti code, now we're stuck with this rubbish.