AllGloryIsFleeting.mp4
[Hide] (9.7MB, 1280x582, 01:05) Lately I find that when I play a game, I run through my head all the similar/same game, notice the clichés, how it's likely going to end up for me, and it kills the enjoyment before I even start.
>Looking at Cities Skylines
SimCity OG/2k/3k/4, LinCity, etc.
It's probably going to devolve into a traffic simulator. I'm probably going to find a road network pattern that works. Then repeat that pattern until I fill up the map. Then I'll satisfied at a large population number for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Looking at Tropico
Caesar, Anno, etc.
I'm probably going to get stuck trying to solve an optimal packing problem. Then once I find the combination of overlapping radii of buildings that work, I'll copy paste that pattern to fill out the map. It'll be a little be interesting in the small pieces where topography doesn't allow that, but that'll be it. Then I'll be satisfied at a large population number for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Looking at Civ
Civ OG/2/.../7, FreeCiv, etc.
I'm going to bumrush to railroads and exhaustively micromanage every single tile on every single city every turn. It'll feel nice for the first hour, and then it'll feel like a chore. Sometime, on 3 am on Sunday I'll finally finish one game, see the cinematic for a rocket to Alpha Centaurii. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Looking at EUIV
HOI4, Viccy, etc.
Paradox game spreadsheet minmaxing. It doesn't matter which game, because at some point when I'm invading Russia or playing Russia being invaded I'll be micromanaging every single troop across an endless, vast swath of territory and think, "Holy shit is this tedious." I'll stop and look at how large and vast my armies are. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Looking at Lunar
Skies of Arcadia, Tales of Symphonia, Lufia, Super Mario RPG, Final Fantasy, etc.
After about the 10th fight, I'll get the mechanics, and then it's grind town. I space out until eventually I finally hit a nice bit of story or cinematic. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Looking at Fallout
Skyrim, Morrowind, and oddly enough Diablo, .Hack, and Baldur's Gate I'd throw into here.
After about the third dungeon, my pack will be full. I'll spend 99% of my time not playing the game, but instead managing my inventory space. I'll have a brief period inbetween selling/trading/storing gear where I'm actually able to play the game. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Looking at Rime
Shadow of Colossus, Eco, the one about your dog, etc.
The puzzles feel interesting for the first hour of gameplay. Then I realize they repeat the same mechanic from the first three puzzles ad nauseum for the rest of the game. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Looking at Subnautica
Astroneer, Terraria, Minecraft
I'll make the equivalent of a neat couch fort. Like legos. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Harvest Moon
Harvest Moon OG/64/It's a Wonderful Life/etc., Stardew Valley
After an initial crop layout, I'll hit a daily chore routine. Eventually, I'll end up marrying someone out of sheer boredom even though I oddly feel like I'm constantly rushing (TOO CLOSE TO REAL LIFE, JFC). They'll give me a few snippets of dialog that seem interesting. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
>Mario
If I list the games I thought similar, It'll really piss people off.
I'll memorize a sequence of button presses to get through the stage. Then, I'll memorize a pattern of a boss. Once I show that I'm able to spit out a rote set of actions, I'll win. I'll be satisfied for a few minutes and the glory will quickly fade.
In the end, it all feels the same. It all feels empty so quickly.
Like horseshoe theory, only two games have managed to consistently break this cycle for me in totally opposite ways:
1 - Zelda, by being so genre diverse. It'll be a puzzle game for a few minutes before it's a Mario game for a few minutes before it's an RPG for a few minutes. It switches enough that I'm not caught in the malaise of the tediousness of existence.
2 - Yume Nikki walking simulator, by absolutely soaking in the malaise. It'll be so wallowing in the malaise of existence that I'll forget the sameness and just sort of turn on, tune in, and drop out.