1st May 2004, 11:09 AM
Exploration is fun. Games that keep you from being able to do that as much as you want are irritating.
-Majora's Mask, I think, I have discussed enough before... it keeps you from being able to both explore and progress. Oh, you can wander around and reset the cycle, but if you want to get anywhere you need all the time you can get and can't waste much time looking around as you go... and 'looking around' is a huge part of Zelda, so it ruins a lot of the fun...
-RPGs with random battles -- again nothing I haven't said before, but it just keeps you from wanting to really explore! Oh, sure, if you're progressing it can be bearable, but if you're lost, in a maze, or are going back for some reason... it can be extremely, extremely annoying! Like, 'I don't want do to that anymore' annoying... (oh, and there are a few PC RPGs with random battles too... it's no better there. :))
-Timelimits for whole games! Pikmin, obviously. Lazy, as OB1 said you're definitely in the minority for this... I didn't finish Pikmin, but I seem to remember either having fewer parts than days or having them be even... I don't know if I'd have finished in 30. And that worrying, that I'd have to start over, is awful... and if you DID have to start over it'd be even worse! No, it's a serious problem. Oh, and it definitely restricts exploration! I mean, how often would someone have lots of free days at the end to wander around? Not to mention how it's most fun to explore WHILE playing and not just when you're essentially done... maybe you had no problems here but that's definitely not the majority position. Oh, Fallout has a variation on this... but if you get near the end of the game you can get rid of the timer. Of course if you fail to get far enough you'd have to start over, but at least they have something there so the whole game isn't on a timer. And it's a reasonably generous one.
-Games that block you off from going back when you reach the end! Very annoying, especially when you don't notice, save, and cut yourself off from ever going back and getting all that stuff you missed!
-Majora's Mask, I think, I have discussed enough before... it keeps you from being able to both explore and progress. Oh, you can wander around and reset the cycle, but if you want to get anywhere you need all the time you can get and can't waste much time looking around as you go... and 'looking around' is a huge part of Zelda, so it ruins a lot of the fun...
-RPGs with random battles -- again nothing I haven't said before, but it just keeps you from wanting to really explore! Oh, sure, if you're progressing it can be bearable, but if you're lost, in a maze, or are going back for some reason... it can be extremely, extremely annoying! Like, 'I don't want do to that anymore' annoying... (oh, and there are a few PC RPGs with random battles too... it's no better there. :))
-Timelimits for whole games! Pikmin, obviously. Lazy, as OB1 said you're definitely in the minority for this... I didn't finish Pikmin, but I seem to remember either having fewer parts than days or having them be even... I don't know if I'd have finished in 30. And that worrying, that I'd have to start over, is awful... and if you DID have to start over it'd be even worse! No, it's a serious problem. Oh, and it definitely restricts exploration! I mean, how often would someone have lots of free days at the end to wander around? Not to mention how it's most fun to explore WHILE playing and not just when you're essentially done... maybe you had no problems here but that's definitely not the majority position. Oh, Fallout has a variation on this... but if you get near the end of the game you can get rid of the timer. Of course if you fail to get far enough you'd have to start over, but at least they have something there so the whole game isn't on a timer. And it's a reasonably generous one.
-Games that block you off from going back when you reach the end! Very annoying, especially when you don't notice, save, and cut yourself off from ever going back and getting all that stuff you missed!