tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post1057969244004352878..comments2024-03-28T02:23:34.785-07:00Comments on Experience Points: Videogames and the Culture of CollectionJorge Alborhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04857765716032886965noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-25501765149922267082008-10-09T12:39:00.000-07:002008-10-09T12:39:00.000-07:00@NismoYou bring up a good point regarding people's...@Nismo<BR/><BR/>You bring up a good point regarding people's expectations of an expansive world and subsequent protestations that they are forced to explore it.<BR/><BR/>As is the case with everything in life, you can't please everyone, and moderation is the key.<BR/><BR/>Like you, I'm fine with collection, I just worry that modern games may use it as a crutch when it may not be necessary.Scott Justerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11775296635863850847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-32655002536794532292008-10-08T10:09:00.000-07:002008-10-08T10:09:00.000-07:00To take this collection talk in a slightly differe...To take this collection talk in a slightly different direction, lately I have been rather puzzled at all the comments I am reading about collecting things being a chore. <BR/><BR/>For example, the various flags in Assassin's Creed were complained about by people who thought there were too many (and perhaps there were) or whatever. The same happened with Crackdown's Orbs. Those are just two 360 examples, that's not including Pokemon as alluded to in this post or say, the Stars/Shine Sprites in Mario games. <BR/><BR/>Granted, with my examples these objects that need to be collected tie in with Achievements (and Trophies if you include PS3) and as such, some people just want to hurry up and get their achievement to boost that score and move on but even with taking that into consideration, it still disappoints me to read so many complaints about collecting things.<BR/><BR/>Personally, achievements or not, I have always enjoyed collecting things in my games and I don't see that changing any time soon. Be it the aforementioned Shine Sprites/Stars in Mario games, the Heart pieces in Zelda or the Hidden Packages in GTA; I have always enjoyed searching every nook and cranny for them. The reason for that is obvious and has also been alluded to in this post, it allows the gamer, or me in this case, to see a game's world in its entirety and this exploration aspect of a game is something I really enjoy. I find it odd that people complain about collecting things, yet always expect a lush and beautiful world to explore when they discuss an upcoming game. Irony, much?<BR/><BR/>Anyway, as long as the collecting is done in moderation I don't have a problem with trying to find the objects (even if they don't give you anything in the end) and I will continue to collect them in the future.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00626684107210848128noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-82343887540146918292008-10-04T09:57:00.000-07:002008-10-04T09:57:00.000-07:00@ WillI think an important difference between the ...@ Will<BR/><BR/>I think an important difference between the collection of items and the collection of skills, gear, etc. is how these things can be applied to your progression through the game environment. <BR/><BR/>Experience points enable you be become a stronger character literally, and thus better able to accomplish tasks set before, some of which have narrative consequences. The same can be said for gear, which allows your character to progress through higher level encounters which fit into a larger narrative.<BR/><BR/>Collecting doodads that how no relevance to your progress through story or narrative is just a time sink. Not that collecting can't be fun of course.Jorge Alborhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04857765716032886965noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-71232510779515693242008-10-04T02:38:00.000-07:002008-10-04T02:38:00.000-07:00I'm curious about the boundaries of the term colle...I'm curious about the boundaries of the term collection. Certainly, gaining stars, cards, and all manner of other supposedly physical objects in a game can be considered collecting. But what about skills? and character advancement? For example, once you get to 70 in WoW, the only type of character advancement you can get comes in the form of objects. Intangible items, such as skills or whatnot, could be considered to constitute collections. So is there really any difference between collection and advancement? You could say that in an rpg, the only element is "collecting" exp, which lets you "collect" more skills, or abilities, etc... Getting more philosophical, in real life could we say that growth is nothing more than maintaining an accumulated "collection" of experiences? Maybe this is just me confusing the categories of physical vs. intangible collections, but collecting seems a very fuzzy concept all of a sudden.Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10941526348182802649noreply@blogger.com