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What are your unpopular gaming opinions?

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Iceweasel

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(it has the best ost of the series, too)
lolnope

LoZ had, what, 4 tracks in the whole game? There was the overworld theme, the title theme, the game over theme, and the dungeon theme. There were a few short jingles, like the secret sound, the death jingle, the item get jingle, and the Triforce get jingle, but those don't really count. It's good, but every other Zelda (except maybe 2) has had an infinitely better soundtrack.
 

finalark

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Eh, The Binding of Isaac is one of my favorite games of all time so I'm predisposed to liking it. (it has the best ost of the series, too)
"Talk all the **** you want about modern games holding your hand" I have no issue with that, lol
So this, this and this are all inferior to this?

Given your poorly defined reasons for disliking the series I'm guessing you've either never played a LoZ game for more than an hour or just can't get into them and aren't quite sure why.

Although saying you only like LoZ 1 because it reminds you of binding of Isaac is pushing that hipster cred hard.
 

swampthingcs

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lolnope

LoZ had, what, 4 tracks in the whole game? There was the overworld theme, the title theme, the game over theme, and the dungeon theme. There were a few short jingles, like the secret sound, the death jingle, the item get jingle, and the Triforce get jingle, but those don't really count. It's good, but every other Zelda (except maybe 2) has had an infinitely better soundtrack.
Well, it wasn't completely serious, but I do enjoy the original's soundtrack.
 

KimKarsmashian

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I am so glad other people think LOZ1 is hard to get through without a walkthrough because I tried playing that game for hours and I was so confused. I got into a dungeon by accident. I had no clue how I could advance in the game. Everyone spoke in very short, confusing sentences. I thought I was just a failure as a gamer.

I don't like the subscription based model. For the same reason I don't like subscription based music services. I don't like not owning a game/song/book/movie/whatever. I feel like I'm essentially renting whatever it is I'm paying for, and that's okay if it's something I'm not really committed to. But if I like something a lot, I want to own it and use it whenever I want. I feel like subscription models also go hand in hand with internet connection being necessary, and being that I occasionally have issues with the internet, I don't want my enjoyment of games to be tied to whether my Wi-Fi decides to work that day.

I miss physical game-renting services like Blockbuster. Actually looking through boxes and stuff. I felt more likely to actually take a chance on a game and rent it when being in a place, seeing and holding the box, than just scrolling through a list of games with tiny box art and little blurbs. This is probably just stupid nostalgia. But I honestly don't like the digital-everything path everything is going nowadays.

This is a weird one, but I sort of... don't like the gaming community much anymore. If that makes sense. Let me put it this way - I used to say, without hesitation, "I'm a gamer." I no longer attach that label to myself. There's so much pettiness, snobbism, and unnecessary competitiveness among "core gamers." That's part of every community, sure, but it's especially prevalent among people who proudly call themselves gamers. Moreover, there's a set of ideologies that have bizarrely become associated with the label 'gamer,' when all it should mean is "I spend a considerable amount of time on video games." I basically checked out of gaming for a while because I was done with the people.

Obviously #notallgamers, bla bla bla. It's just a trend I've noticed. Maybe it's always been this way and I've only more recently become aware of it. But I can't call myself a gamer anymore. I say "I love video games."
 

finalark

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I am so glad other people think LOZ1 is hard to get through without a walkthrough because I tried playing that game for hours and I was so confused. I got into a dungeon by accident. I had no clue how I could advance in the game. Everyone spoke in very short, confusing sentences. I thought I was just a failure as a gamer.
LoZ1 is a directionless mess that hasn't aged well. My friend and I sat down and played through the entire game together, but we had my laptop up with a walkthrough open the entire time. Nearly every NES era adventure game/RPG is an esoteric test of patience.

But I honestly don't like the digital-everything path everything is going nowadays.
I'm not a fan of it either. Not to make myself sound like a crazed conspiracy theorist, but it puts too much control into corporate hands. For example, had MS been able to go through with their original plans for the Xbone they would be in a position where they could force consumers to buy new products but completely shutting Xbone support, effectively turning Xbones into paperweights and their games into Frisbees.

Basically, I don't want to live in a world where I lose all my games because a service went offline.

This is a weird one, but I sort of... don't like the gaming community much anymore. If that makes sense. Let me put it this way - I used to say, without hesitation, "I'm a gamer." I no longer attach that label to myself. There's so much pettiness, snobbism, and unnecessary competitiveness among "core gamers." That's part of every community, sure, but it's especially prevalent among people who proudly call themselves gamers. Moreover, there's a set of ideologies that have bizarrely become associated with the label 'gamer,' when all it should mean is "I spend a considerable amount of time on video games." I basically checked out of gaming for a while because I was done with the people.

Obviously #notallgamers, bla bla bla. It's just a trend I've noticed. Maybe it's always been this way and I've only more recently become aware of it. But I can't call myself a gamer anymore. I say "I love video games."
I prefer the term "gaming fan." It gets the point across without evoking images of 20something year old manchildren trading obscenities with actual children over Xbox Live.
 

Minato

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While it's not my favorite, I love the original Zelda. I feel like it had a great sense of adventure to me compared to the 3D ones. Creating maps or making directions as a kid was really fun in some ways. I think a Zelda can still do something such as that again, but with better hints. Just give me a sense of exploration while adding a good amount of hints and I'd be satisfied.

Having exploration but being directionless don't need to go hand in hand. I feel like ALttP and the gameboy Zeldas had the perfect balance. Anything on the 3D ones I had little sense of exploration outside of Wind Waker and to an extent OoT since you can go out of order.

Edit: Thinking about it, Wind Waker did it so well on all the optional stuff. The more you explored, the more things started to click on discovering the contents in each square. It's probably why I rank WW pretty high despite its issues.
 
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Iceweasel

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Just give me a sense of exploration while adding a good amount of hints and I'd be satisfied.
Zelda did that already. It's called A Link to the Past.

There's also Wind Waker to a lesser extent, but the "reward" for exploration is usually Rupees, which... Are kinda necessary, thanks to Tingle being such a jerk, but they're not satisfying rewards. At least, not when compared to LttP's love of giving you new toys to play with.


I've been moving away from the series for the last few years, thanks to several lackluster titles in a row. IMO, the last great console Zelda was either Wind Waker or FSA, and except for Phantom Hourglass (my unpopular opinion) and Link Between Worlds everything since Four Swords Adventures has been passable at best. As I've been playing more games, I've come to the conclusion that other games are doing Zelda better than Zelda does Zelda. Whether you prefer the dungeon-heavy LA/OoT style or the exploration-heavy LttP/MC style, other game series have taken what Zelda did and improved on it, yet the actual Zelda series has stuck hard and fast to the less-refined methods of 20 years ago. Zelda U had better wow me, because it's the last chance I'll give the series to convince me that it's worth paying $60 for. (Remember when a new game was $40? I miss those days.)
 
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Minato

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Zelda did that already. It's called A Link to the Past.
Agreed, I even mentioned that in the sentence after that ALttP and the Gameboy games pretty much nailed it perfectly for me, haha. I think the 3D games are getting better at their puzzles at least. As much as I dislike Skyward Sword and even Twilight Princess to an extent, they had some creative areas. It's just everything in between the dungeons, I haven't been interested since Wind Waker days.
 

windlessusher

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I really don't like Super Smash Bros. Melee.
The character movement didn't mesh well with me at all, everyone moved too sporadically and fell like rocks, as if they got lead on their shoes or something.

I do love watching others play it tho.
 

finalark

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Twilight Princess is the exact point where I felt like LoZ began stagnating. I absolutely loved the game when it first came out but these days it's one of those games I like less and less every time I play it. In hindsight, it's pretty clear that the game is caught somewhere between new ideas and trying to recreate OoT. As a result it comes off more as an awkward retread than anything else.

It's been three years since it's release, but I still haven't played Skyward Sword. It was high on my priority list due do a number of reasons I just never got a chance to play it. The last new LoZ I played through was A Link Between Worlds, which had the same exact problems as TP only replace OoT with ALTTP. Since then my enthusiasm for the LoZ series has been in sharp decline.
 

windlessusher

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Twilight Princess is the exact point where I felt like LoZ began stagnating. I absolutely loved the game when it first came out but these days it's one of those games I like less and less every time I play it. In hindsight, it's pretty clear that the game is caught somewhere between new ideas and trying to recreate OoT. As a result it comes off more as an awkward retread than anything else.

It's been three years since it's release, but I still haven't played Skyward Sword. It was high on my priority list due do a number of reasons I just never got a chance to play it. The last new LoZ I played through was A Link Between Worlds, which had the same exact problems as TP only replace OoT with ALTTP. Since then my enthusiasm for the LoZ series has been in sharp decline.
Funny, I only started caring about the LoZ series after Twilight Princess and didn't care for anything that came prior.
However in my case it's just a matter of coincidence. I never liked puzzles as a kid, but I grew an affinity for them now, so I started with the most recent game and am working my way downwards.
 

finalark

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Funny, I only started caring about the LoZ series after Twilight Princess and didn't care for anything that came prior.
However in my case it's just a matter of coincidence. I never liked puzzles as a kid, but I grew an affinity for them now, so I started with the most recent game and am working my way downwards.
I suppose it's a matter of perspective. By the time TP came out I had been playing LoZ for what had amounted to all my life and it was just kind a "been there, done that" kind of deal.

For example, kicking your game off with Forest Dungeon/Goron Dungeon/Zora Dungeon in that order isn't all that refreshing to long time fans.
 

windlessusher

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Design fatigue is real, like how most Sonic games start in greenery or a beach.
Fortunately I don't mind that kind of thing.
 

Minato

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ALBW was a Zelda game that I really enjoyed. Game allowed some freedom and even played little tricks for those too familiar with ALttP. My only problems was the weaker puzzles. Each dungeon pretty much relied on one item. Without tiered dungeons, the puzzles are a lot more straight forward which hurts. The ability to explore with minimal handholding was great however. 100 percent the game without the help of a guide.

Now just take what they learned from this and hopefully the new Zelda title is solid.

Twilight Princess was more like OoT 2.0 which was a solid formula, but one that was lacking when you put current expectations into play. ALBW worked better because I feel like the base of ALttP is a lot stronger than most of the 3D ones for me.
 

Iceweasel

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Design fatigue is real, like how most Sonic games start in greenery or a beach.
Fortunately I don't mind that kind of thing.
It's not that it starts out with these levels, it's that the entire game was built using Ocarina's blueprint. Three dungeons (forest, fire, water), then plot event, Master Sword, then more dungeons. The biggest differences are that Ocarina had more dungeons after the Master Sword, and that Ocarina's part 2 dungeons are more element-based than in TP.

ALBW was a Zelda game that I really enjoyed. Game allowed some freedom and even played little tricks for those too familiar with ALttP. My only problems was the weaker puzzles. Each dungeon pretty much relied on one item. Without tiered dungeons, the puzzles are a lot more straight forward which hurts. The ability to explore with minimal handholding was great however. 100 percent the game without the help of a guide.
That's a pretty popular opinion. Almost everybody that's played ALBW loves it, or at least likes it better than the last few entries. Overall, I felt like I was playing a much weaker version of LttP, but at least it was something different from what Nintendo has been doing with the series for the last ten years.
 

Kurri ★

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I miss physical game-renting services like Blockbuster. Actually looking through boxes and stuff. I felt more likely to actually take a chance on a game and rent it when being in a place, seeing and holding the box, than just scrolling through a list of games with tiny box art and little blurbs. This is probably just stupid nostalgia. But I honestly don't like the digital-everything path everything is going nowadays.
Never used them but I hear RedBox and Gamefly are pretty good, although I suppose it's not the same.

This is a weird one, but I sort of... don't like the gaming community much anymore. If that makes sense. Let me put it this way - I used to say, without hesitation, "I'm a gamer." I no longer attach that label to myself. There's so much pettiness, snobbism, and unnecessary competitiveness among "core gamers." That's part of every community, sure, but it's especially prevalent among people who proudly call themselves gamers. Moreover, there's a set of ideologies that have bizarrely become associated with the label 'gamer,' when all it should mean is "I spend a considerable amount of time on video games." I basically checked out of gaming for a while because I was done with the people.
I blame GamerGate. They don't know it, but they paint a really bad picture for video games.

Obviously #notallgamers, bla bla bla. It's just a trend I've noticed. Maybe it's always been this way and I've only more recently become aware of it. But I can't call myself a gamer anymore. I say "I love video games."
There's a #NotAllGamers? Well I can already imagine it being flooded with putrid comments about how "eeeevil" SJWs are and how developers shouldn't "pander" to minorities because we all know everyone wants to play rugged 25 - 40 y/o white man who talks with his fist #2021, or sexy bombshell woman who moans with every hit.
 

Substitution

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2D Platformers > 3D Platformers. To me they just feel a lot better and tend to have less hassle.
 

Iceweasel

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I blame GamerGate. They don't know it, but they paint a really bad picture for video games.


There's a #NotAllGamers? Well I can already imagine it being flooded with putrid comments about how "eeeevil" SJWs are
I know! How dare they try to get corruption out of games journalism and stop censorship of artistic vision! Screw them, right?


and how developers shouldn't "pander" to minorities because we all know everyone wants to play rugged 25 - 40 y/o white man who talks with his fist #2021, or sexy bombshell woman who moans with every hit.
Great strawman! 10/10 SOTY. For starters, don't try to pretend that women and minorities don't exist in video games, or that they don't have a significant role, or that they're not playable. That's simply untrue. Anyone who says otherwise is either clueless or lying. Gamers get annoyed at the PC police because they come in and try to remove everything that's not a panexual transspecies demigirl AOC (anemone of color), or failing that try to change something that already exists so that it makes them feel less insecure. We wouldn't oppose SJWs nearly as much if they'd stop trying to impose their will on everything and everyone else and make their own games if that's what they want to play. If this cult wants to play morality police, there's a problem. But if it wants to make its own culture, not too many people are going to have a problem with that.
 

Spak

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2D Platformers > 3D Platformers. To me they just feel a lot better and tend to have less hassle.
I would rather play Ratchet & Clank, Jak & Daxter, or Prince of Persia than Super Mario World or any of the Yoshi games, but to each his own.
 

Substitution

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Eh, to be honest GamerGate may have had good intentions, but just became a muddled mess that went around in a bunch of directions. Whether it was truly about ethics in gaming journalism, or Anita Sarkeesian, or misogyny, or depression, or lack of diversity, or Social Justice Warriors, or reviewers lying, hell I wouldn't be surprised if it was about an actual gate.

And it got to the point any sort of reasoning both sides were trying to bring where either lost or swept under the rug of insults and childish arguments that everyone came out with their hands dirty.
 

OnettGirl

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It's funny that I'm the complete opposite of that.

I absolutely can't get into 2D platformers. Their just so... boring to me. I'd much rather take Sonic Adventure 2 over any 2D sonic game any day. The only 2D games I can get myself into are RPG's like Pokemon or Mother/Earthbound. But even then Pokemon has [finally] moved into the 3rd dimension. I even have a problem with most top down Zelda. I really want to get into Mario Maker but again...it's all 2D platforming and I just...uhhhggg [waits patiently for another SM64 style game or for another 3D World]. Though I don't really think that's an unpopular opinion...


Unpopular opinion: Fire Emblem Radiant Dawn was the best Fire Emblem game and had the best mechanics.
 

Iceweasel

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Whether it was truly about ethics in gaming journalism, or Anita Sarkeesian, or misogyny, or depression, or lack of diversity, or Social Justice Warriors, or reviewers lying, hell I wouldn't be surprised if it was about an actual gate.
It started as being just about ethics, but because we dared to criticize a woman the white knights came out in force. There was also some drama and censorship led to /pol/ being involved, and when /pol/ gets involved you know things are about to get messy. :/

Eh, to be honest GamerGate may have had good intentions, but just became a muddled mess that went around in a bunch of directions....

And it got to the point any sort of reasoning both sides were trying to bring where either lost or swept under the rug of insults and childish arguments that everyone came out with their hands dirty.
Eh, fair enough. GG mostly stopped having any real effect about April or July. At that point, pretty much everybody had had their say. The eternal vicitms claimed misogyny. We refuted them and gave a list of our grievances. A lot of companies pulled their ads. Some were afraid of being called misogynists, so they left them up.

So what did we end up doing? We cost Gawker (operator of Kotaku) seven figures. A few sites updated their ethics policy and basically said, "This is all you're gonna get, take it or leave it". We uncovered a huge network of backroom deals, collusion, and other forms of corruption. The Jeopardy guy made an ass of himself. AirPlay happened. Ian Miles Cheong apologized for being part of the problem, and tried to stop the ****flinging. He failed, but at least he tried. Moot threw a fit and there was an exodus to 8chan. Vivian became a thing. John Walker Flynt inserted his crazy self into the situation and was an epic lulzcow. Operation Disrespectful Nod is still technically going on, but as I mentioned earlier everyone who was going to pull ads has done so already. A few people had breakdowns. It was wild ride, and I wish that we could have caused a little more change, but it was a pretty good riot when all was said and done.
 

Kurri ★

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I know! How dare they try to get corruption out of games journalism and stop censorship of artistic vision! Screw them, right?




Great strawman! 10/10 SOTY. For starters, don't try to pretend that women and minorities don't exist in video games, or that they don't have a significant role, or that they're not playable. That's simply untrue. Anyone who says otherwise is either clueless or lying. Gamers get annoyed at the PC police because they come in and try to remove everything that's not a panexual transspecies demigirl AOC (anemone of color), or failing that try to change something that already exists so that it makes them feel less insecure. We wouldn't oppose SJWs nearly as much if they'd stop trying to impose their will on everything and everyone else and make their own games if that's what they want to play. If this cult wants to play morality police, there's a problem. But if it wants to make its own culture, not too many people are going to have a problem with that.
Whatever you say dude.

Eh, to be honest GamerGate may have had good intentions, but just became a muddled mess that went around in a bunch of directions. Whether it was truly about ethics in gaming journalism, or Anita Sarkeesian, or misogyny, or depression, or lack of diversity, or Social Justice Warriors, or reviewers lying, hell I wouldn't be surprised if it was about an actual gate.

And it got to the point any sort of reasoning both sides were trying to bring where either lost or swept under the rug of insults and childish arguments that everyone came out with their hands dirty.

GamerGate never started with good intentions, it was started out of hate but thinly veiled with "fixing corrupt game journalism." I think Extra Credit covers this nicely.

Edit: Oh yeah! Just remembered, 4Chan (and 8Ch) is a huge component to GamerGate, so of course the "movement" is pure crap.

If there's one thing I really hate about gaming, it's how despicable gamers can be. Gamergate and anything like it is a joke.
 
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windlessusher

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Non-Disney parts of Kingdom Hearts I prefer, and keeps me coming back.
 
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finalark

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because we all know everyone wants to play rugged 25 - 40 y/o white man who talks with his fist #2021, or sexy bombshell woman who moans with every hit.
I don't know, I've been playing Phantom Pain and that's been pretty rad.

But seriously, gamegate is probably the single most asinine thing I've ever heard of. To this day I'm not entirely sure what it's supposed to be, apparently it started as criticizing bias reviews or something. All I know is that it turned into some horribly, horribly angry abomination run be people who seriously misunderstand feminism.

Not to mention the name "Gamergate" is really, really stupid. It's like someone who doesn't actually know a whole lot about history but heard that the Watergate scandal was an infamous thing that happened slapped the name together in an attempt to make it sound way more controversial and important than it actually is.

And honestly, while diversity in games is important, diversity for diversity's take is bad. Shoehorning in a minority/female/disabled (or a disabled female minority) just for the sake of having them comes off as trite at best and offensive at worst. IMO it's alright to have a diverse cast, but only if it makes sense within the context of the narrative. Don't set your work medieval China and then expect me to accept your multinational cast.

Besides, being able to relate to character has very little to do with their race or gender. If I'm unable to empathize with your protagonist it isn't because they're different from me. It's because your writing is bad.
 

Kurri ★

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I don't know, I've been playing Phantom Pain and that's been pretty rad.
Hyperbole, but I'm sure you understood that.

But seriously, gamegate is probably the single most asinine thing I've ever heard of. To this day I'm not entirely sure what it's supposed to be, apparently it started as criticizing bias reviews or something. All I know is that it turned into some horribly, horribly angry abomination run be people who seriously misunderstand feminism.
They're whole "goal" revolves around stopping the corruption in video game journalism, which, I'll be honest, is a good goal (I suppose at least). But for every one time I see that, I find 5 different **** or murder threats. What does wanting/wishing Anita Sarkeesian gets ***** have to do with game journalism? What does Doxxing people to the point that they have to evacuate their homes have to do with game journalism?

Not to mention the name "Gamergate" is really, really stupid. It's like someone who doesn't actually know a whole lot about history but heard that the Watergate scandal was an infamous thing that happened slapped the name together in an attempt to make it sound way more controversial and important than it actually is.

And honestly, while diversity in games is important, diversity for diversity's take is bad. Shoehorning in a minority/female/disabled (or a disabled female minority) just for the sake of having them comes off as trite at best and offensive at worst. IMO it's alright to have a diverse cast, but only if it makes sense within the context of the narrative. Don't set your work medieval China and then expect me to accept your multinational cast.
No one is saying that every game must have a diverse cast. Playing a black dude name Jaquan in Dynasty Warriors would be one of the most out of place things and if anything would take me out of the experience. But why couldn't one of the lead roles in GTA V be Asian? Or why in MMOs males have various body types, but females have varying breast sizes? Why is every military FPS told through the eyes of a guy named Irish?
Besides, being able to relate to character has very little to do with their race or gender. If I'm unable to empathize with your protagonist it isn't because they're different from me. It's because your writing is bad.
Yes and no. While the most important part is to have a well written character, the race and gender still plays a large role in how relatable they are.

Non-Disney parts of Kingdom Hearts I prefer, and keeps me coming back.
Agreed. Hollow Bastion and The World That Never Was are my favorite worlds.
 
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finalark

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Or why in MMOs males have various body types, but females have varying breast sizes?
I disagree, nearly every MMO I've ever played (and trust me, that number is in the double digits) gives me two choices: either incredibly buff (if western) or incredibly pretty (if eastern). Females tend to be in the same exact boat. Either incredibly curvy bombshells (if western) or incredibly cute petites (if eastern).

Yes and no. While the most important part is to have a well written character, the race and gender still plays a large role in how relatable they are.
I disagree, I don't think I've ever read a book/watched a movie/played a game where I felt like a character's race and gender prevented me from relating to them or feeling empathy for whatever situation they've landed themselves in. Although to each his own.
 
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Kurri ★

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I disagree, I don't think I've ever read a book/watched a movie/played a game where I felt like a character's race and gender prevented me from relating to them or feeling empathy for whatever situation they've landed themselves in. Although to each his own.
Never said that you couldn't, how relatable a character is isn't exactly binary, but that it could make a character more relatable, at least for certain groups of people. I remember watching a podcast by The Black Hokage where they responded to the backlash of how Mafia 3's main protag is half Black half Italian (something like that), and talked about how nice it'd be if there were more black, or asian, or hispanic, etc. characters in video games that weren't just stereotypes. They were cool playing as white, middle aged men, and could relate with them well, but it'd be really nice if say the next AAA title was lead by someone else. I'll try to find the video when i have the time.
 

Iceweasel

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But seriously, gamegate is probably the single most asinine thing I've ever heard of. To this day I'm not entirely sure what it's supposed to be, apparently it started as criticizing bias reviews or something.
It's the 21st century. You live in a developed country. "I don't understand this" is not a valid criticism of something, especially not when you have access to the greatest information resource ever created. You have the ability to check all the sources you want. If you want to have an opinion on something, you should have an informed opinion. No other kind is worth listening to.

All I know is that it turned into some horribly, horribly angry abomination run be people who seriously misunderstand feminism.
You haven't been paying attention to 21st century feminism. There are almost no more battles for feminism left to fight in the first world, and this really shows. Furthermore, none of them seem to be all that interested in taking the fight to places that actually could benefit from feminism, like the Middle East.

Sargon of Akkad has a great video series called "Why People Hate Feminism" to explain why a growing number people can't stand these modern-day puritans. There's another amazing video about how modern feminism opposes every principle of classical liberalism.


Not to mention the name "Gamergate" is really, really stupid. It's like someone who doesn't actually know a whole lot about history but heard that the Watergate scandal was an infamous thing that happened slapped the name together in an attempt to make it sound way more controversial and important than it actually is.
Where have you been for the entire 2000s? Every minor scandal is Whatevergate. I agree that it's a stupid name, but GG is not the start. In fact, it can be traced back to an actor that worked on Firefly. I have no idea why he injected himself into this, but at this point we had discovered enough hidden connections that "Quinnspiracy" was no longer a fitting name.

And honestly, while diversity in games is important, diversity for diversity's take is bad. Shoehorning in a minority/female/disabled (or a disabled female minority) just for the sake of having them comes off as trite at best and offensive at worst. IMO it's alright to have a diverse cast, but only if it makes sense within the context of the narrative. Don't set your work medieval China and then expect me to accept your multinational cast.

Besides, being able to relate to character has very little to do with their race or gender. If I'm unable to empathize with your protagonist it isn't because they're different from me. It's because your writing is bad.
This was part of GG. When you have people ******** that a game set in medieval Europe should be diverse and trying to get it changed, those people need to be informed that they're stupid and that nobody should take them seriously.

It also brings up an interesting question that SJWs don't often address - How can you tell the race of a fictional character, especially one that's not supposed to look realistic? Can you say for certain that Crono is white? Is he asian? Filipino? If you draw a stick figure and present it to people from around the world, then ask what race it is, you'll get about one answer per culture. Most people in America consider it strange that anime people look white, but to Japan they look Japanese. Even in works explicitly set in Japan, the style is practically identical for natives and foreigners.


They're whole "goal" revolves around stopping the corruption in video game journalism, which, I'll be honest, is a good goal (I suppose at least). But for every one time I see that, I find 5 different **** or murder threats. What does wanting/wishing Anita Sarkeesian gets ***** have to do with game journalism? What does Doxxing people to the point that they have to evacuate their homes have to do with game journalism?
How many anti-GG people have been doxxed? I know we've had a few of ours doxxed. A lot of them on our spaces, no less. So, how many of these doxxers are you guys, how many are us, and how many are trolls trying to prolong the lulz? Neither of us knows. I'd like to think that most of ours were done by Anti, and you want to believe that most of Anti were done by GG, but neither of us knows or even has a good guess. However, when there have been GamerGate supporters doxxed on /v/ I think it's clear that at least some of these cases have no affiliation with either side. Likewise, a lot of harassment has been attributed to GG where there has been no actual link demonstrated. In some cases, it was made up. Flynt faked some of his harassment for publicity, taking screenshots mere seconds after posting them with a different account and even forgetting to log out of his Steam account while posting fake harassment. It all showed up under his screen name, and even had the [developer] tag.


But why couldn't one of the lead roles in GTA V be Asian? Or why in MMOs males have various body types, but females have varying breast sizes? Why is every military FPS told through the eyes of a guy named Irish?
What MMOs have you played? I've played about seven at various points in my life, and I've only ever played one with a breast slider. I never stuck around long enough to make a second character, so for all I knew the male PCs had a muscle slider. All of the others either didn't allow body customization, only face, or provided a variety of body types for male and female characters.

I haven't played GTA5 and I stopped playing FPSes awhile ago, so I can't directly address those. However, I still must question why the people so concerned about equality make such a big deal about race and gender. It seems as though the only people who care about this stuff are SJWs and unashamed racists and sexists. Nobody else cares about what the characters look like, they judge them on their actions and words.


Yes and no. While the most important part is to have a well written character, the race and gender still plays a large role in how relatable they are.
So you have a hard time empathizing with someone who is a different race or gender than you. Got it. Oh, but you're not racist or sexist because SJWs have redefined the words so that only men can be sexist and only white people can be racist

See the problem here?
 

KimKarsmashian

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I'm really regretting my post because everyone has taken it to a direction I did not want to head into. I see there's also no real point in saying what I meant, because I don't want to get into this topic, and certainly not in this thread.

Unpopular gaming opinion: the N64 controller wasn't horrible. Bad, but not horrible.
 
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I haven't played GTA5 and I stopped playing FPSes awhile ago, so I can't directly address those. However, I still must question why the people so concerned about equality make such a big deal about race and gender. It seems as though the only people who care about this stuff are SJWs and unashamed racists and sexists. Nobody else cares about what the characters look like, they judge them on their actions and words.
Yes. Wanting to see equal amounts representation for a variety of cultures, ethnicities, and genders is completely ridiculous. Black kids who are tired of seeing nothing but white dudes everywhere, with anyone like them being resorted to lazy token characters? What a bunch of racists! Indian people who are sick of convenience store clerks being the only characters they can identify with on a cultural level? Damn those SJWs! Why can't everyone just get over it?
 

finalark

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It's the 21st century. You live in a developed country. "I don't understand this" is not a valid criticism of something, especially not when you have access to the greatest information resource ever created. You have the ability to check all the sources you want. If you want to have an opinion on something, you should have an informed opinion. No other kind is worth listening to.
Okay, let rephrase that. I have an understanding of gamergate, I get what its goals are, but I don't care about gamer culture. Nobody should be harassed and threatened because of their gender, but while I love video game culture gamer culture is something I want to stay the **** away from.

You haven't been paying attention to 21st century feminism. There are almost no more battles for feminism left to fight in the first world, and this really shows. Furthermore, none of them seem to be all that interested in taking the fight to places that actually could benefit from feminism, like the Middle East.
This is what I meant when I said "misunderstand feminism." In most first world countries both genders can be whatever they want to be provided they have the skills and talents to make it so. And that's what feminism was originally about, being able to be who you want to be regardless of if you're a man or a woman (which is why I think it should be called equalism).

These days, there's no real fights left. It's just easily offended people arguing endlessly with children and manchildren who have never had a positive interacting with a woman who wasn't their mother. Unfortunately, taking feminism to to other parts of the world is an impossible dream right now. Places like parts Asia, the Middle East and Africa have way, way more **** they need to work through before they can get rolling on that whole equality thing.

Where have you been for the entire 2000s? Every minor scandal is Whatevergate. I agree that it's a stupid name, but GG is not the start. In fact, it can be traced back to an actor that worked on Firefly. I have no idea why he injected himself into this, but at this point we had discovered enough hidden connections that "Quinnspiracy" was no longer a fitting name.
Examples?

This was part of GG. When you have people ******** that a game set in medieval Europe should be diverse and trying to get it changed, those people need to be informed that they're stupid and that nobody should take them seriously.

It also brings up an interesting question that SJWs don't often address - How can you tell the race of a fictional character, especially one that's not supposed to look realistic? Can you say for certain that Crono is white? Is he asian? Filipino? If you draw a stick figure and present it to people from around the world, then ask what race it is, you'll get about one answer per culture. Most people in America consider it strange that anime people look white, but to Japan they look Japanese. Even in works explicitly set in Japan, the style is practically identical for natives and foreigners.
I always assumed Crono was white given how Euro-inspired his game's locations are. Then again, I really doubt Toriyama put that much thought into him. Although when presented with something ambiguous went to to just project whatever we're used to seeing onto it.

I feel like anime's simplistic art style works against it in this case. The only way you can tell if a character is American is if they have blonde hair and deck themselves out in stars and stripes.
 

Substitution

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Here's my stance on all this:
Do I want diversity? Sure. Do I want more variety in characters? Of course. But it doesn't make or break my experience. I'm not gonna complain because the protagonist is some generic buff white guy, nor if they're some sexy female character. Because to be honest I can give less of a crap about that. What matters to me is the gameplay.

In terms of characters being "relatable", that's always been something that I've respectfully disagreed with. I don't play Pokemon because I relate to the characters, I play it to catch my favorite Pokemon. Nor do I play Zelda because I relate to Link, I play it to swing a sword and kill things with the occasional pulling of my hair over a puzzle that I should understand.

To me, the most important of making a game, and making sure it's a good game. It's the same in any medium really.
 

Kurri ★

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So you have a hard time empathizing with someone who is a different race or gender than you. Got it. Oh, but you're not racist or sexist because SJWs have redefined the words so that only men can be sexist and only white people can be racist

See the problem here?
Yup, you got it! I'm actually a racist and a sexist, and my hair is an assortment of different colors.

Here's my stance on all this:
Do I want diversity? Sure. Do I want more variety in characters? Of course. But it doesn't make or break my experience. I'm not gonna complain because the protagonist is some generic buff white guy, nor if they're some sexy female character. Because to be honest I can give less of a crap about that. What matters to me is the gameplay.

In terms of characters being "relatable", that's always been something that I've respectfully disagreed with. I don't play Pokemon because I relate to the characters, I play it to catch my favorite Pokemon. Nor do I play Zelda because I relate to Link, I play it to swing a sword and kill things with the occasional pulling of my hair over a puzzle that I should understand.

To me, the most important of making a game, and making sure it's a good game. It's the same in any medium really.
Gameplay matters first, but there are still ideas being conveyed through video games, because in the end games are media, and media plays a large part in shaping our views. Do you really think it's not detrimental that aside from FarCry 4, the main role Indians had in video games are racist portrayals; generally a store clerk with a heavy accent? Or how, in western games, Asians are generally reserved for fighting games and given names like Kung Pao or Master Fu?
 
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Carrill

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On the subject of representation of games, I'd say there's another dimension to simply being able to relate to the characters. There's also the issue of portrayals of a particular marginalized group simply being offensive.

I'm black and I find it offensive that many black characters in games usually don't stray far from being portrayed as unintelligent, violent, or a criminal.
 

Iceweasel

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Okay, let rephrase that. I have an understanding of gamergate, I get what its goals are, but I don't care about gamer culture. Nobody should be harassed and threatened because of their gender, but while I love video game culture gamer culture is something I want to stay the **** away from.
Well, that's not even close to what you said, but I'll bite. Nobody gets threats or harassment because of their gender. I've only ever witnessed one example of gender-based harassment in my 15 years of heavy gaming, and 13 years of being involved in gamer culture, and it was from a known troll. The person on the receiving end of it didn't care, we tried to kick him out and she just told us to leave it. Misogyny is far from the norm in gamer circles, and is in fact just the opposite, as anyone who's spent time with us can tell you. Don't believe everything you hear.

This is what I meant when I said "misunderstand feminism." In most first world countries both genders can be whatever they want to be provided they have the skills and talents to make it so. And that's what feminism was originally about, being able to be who you want to be regardless of if you're a man or a woman (which is why I think it should be called equalism).
And who determines what a word means? Most self-described libertarians are more conservative than self-described Republicans or conservatives. Do we go by the dictionary definition, or do we use the word in its more common usage? I, and most people, use the word in its common usage when the common usage clashes with the dictionary definition. Language is meant to facilitate communication, and that method carries the highest chance that your message will be interpreted the way you intend for it to be. Oh, and the word is "egalitarianism".

Examples?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_scandals_with_"-gate"_suffix
http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/gate-suffix
Two lists for you to peruse.



I always assumed Crono was white given how Euro-inspired his game's locations are. Then again, I really doubt Toriyama put that much thought into him. Although when presented with something ambiguous went to to just project whatever we're used to seeing onto it.

I feel like anime's simplistic art style works against it in this case. The only way you can tell if a character is American is if they have blonde hair and deck themselves out in stars and stripes.
Okay, Crono was a bad example. Let's use Xianghua from Soul Calibur instead. She's Chinese, but you'd never know that just by looking at her. She's got more or less the same skin tone as Raphael (French) and her eye shape is also pretty much the same. Who can tell what real-world ethnic group Xenoblade's Homs parallel? What about Zelda's Sheikah? I think we can all agree that Shantae is Arabic, but most of the time what a character's race would be in real life is up for debate.



KimKarsmashian KimKarsmashian I think the problem is that some people don't know how to start a constructive discussion. Case in point.

To actually address your post, you still haven't established that having a different skin color actually changes who a character is. If this hypothetical character comes from a different culture that just happens to look different, that's one thing. But if a game takes place in modern-day America it doesn't matter what color everybody is because that doesn't affect their thoughts, actions, or feelings during the game. Things like growing up poor, what the character does for a living, or whether a character has ever been married does affect their thoughts, feelings, or actions during the game.

Gameplay matters first, but there are still ideas being conveyed through video games, because in the idea games are media, and media plays a large part in shaping our views.
Yeah, don't you remember all those kids' deaths in the 1950s? Looney Tunes had convinced the poor saps that dropping an anvil on someone's head was funny and harmless.

Most people can tell the difference between reality and fiction. Not too many people think Japan is anything like how anime portrays it to be, like not too many people think America is what action movies portray it to be.

Do you really think it's not detrimental that aside from FarCry 4, the main role Indians had in video games are racist portrayals; generally a store clerk with a heavy accent?
Examples please.

Or how, in western games, Asians are generally reserved for fighting games and given names like Kung Pao or Master Fu?
I don't play Western games that often, but most of them I do play either don't take place in the real world (or at least not a defined place in it) or are in a setting where Asian characters are inappropriate. Just off the top of my head, Deus Ex had a long segment that took place in Hong Kong.

On the subject of representation of games, I'd say there's another dimension to simply being able to relate to the characters. There's also the issue of portrayals of a particular marginalized group simply being offensive.

I'm black and I find it offensive that many black characters in games usually don't stray far from being portrayed as unintelligent, violent, or a criminal.
lol this post

First of all, I'm going to assume you live in America. You posted this at about 7:30 Eastern, we have a lot of English speakers and we have a lot of black people, it's not a stretch.

You are not marginalized based on your race. In fact, you get benefits the majority of the population doesn't, thanks to affirmative action. Don't even try to lie like that, I'm not buying it.

Almost every PC in every game ever, and quite a lot of NPCs could fit one or all of those characteristics. It's vidya, everybody's violent and most are guilty of assault. Please give examples of what you mean, and how frequent these are.
 
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Substitution

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You know, I think we're getting off track with the topic. Maybe it'd be better to either settle this somewhere else or leave it to rest because I don't see this going in a healthy direction. And with that said...


I find Animal Crossing to be boring. Lord knows I tried, but all I got was boredom. It just felt like nothing got done, and often very demanding that I play it at certain times to get things. Which isn't fun. Plus I couldn't really get into the characters, they were just kinda there to me and I couldn't care less for them. Maybe it's because I was in the wrong mindset, or I did something wrong, but I tuned out after a while.

I'll give it this though, there was some joy in the Gyroids. I even had a whole plan thought out of making a Gyroid church worshiping their death god Applus Televisor.
 

Carrill

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Iceweasel Iceweasel

You sound like you're being defensive because you secretly feel guilty for not being a person of color. That's okay because I'm not trying to accuse you in any way personally. I was simply trying to offer a perspective I didn't feel was here in this discussion yet.

Also, affirmative action exists to correct the injustices of the past. And despite it, there are many African American individuals less fortunate than me who are trapped in poverty and other bad situations.

I mainly mean characters like C.J. and Franklin from the GTA series. Even Barret from Final Fantasy VII (a character I actually like) is angry, swears excessively, and just doesn't drift far from stereotypes. Sazh from Final Fantasy XIII was great though.

Edit: And I never tried to paint myself as some victim. I was talking about video games... not myself.
 
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