As most of my Destructoid compatriots know, I await RPGs with intriguing storylines more than any other type of game. I enjoy nothing more than to sink myself into a rich plot, get to know the characters, and most of all, experience some form of emotional fulfillment at the end of the story for the work I've put into playing it. To my surprise, the last few I have looked forward to I've gotten fifty to sixty hours into and then simply never picked up again. Why this sudden transformation from game committment to total disinterest?
Hit the jump to spiral deeper within my addled psyche.
I clearly remember finishing a lot of the games I played for the NES, and I can't blame it on scarcity of product. Between friends that generously shared large cartridge collections and the game rental store down the street (Performance Hobby! I salute you), I played hundreds of games released for the system during its lifespan. Since I started playing often when I was about ten or so, I know I had the free time to complete them, but it seems to me something more was at work as to why I finished those games.
In the case of the games I was most driven to complete, I was so absorbed in them that I thought about them even when I wasn't playing them. Other new releases didn't get in the way because I wasn't interested in them until I completed the one I was playing. Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy X were great examples. I held them akin to reading a great book - by reading other books at the same time, you distilled the purity of the experience of the story.
In the current state of gaming, releases come out so frequently that we constantly have new "stories" to choose from. The biggest catalyst of "Endgame Syndrome" is definitely this factor. Since production values and budgets have risen to new heights, most games are gorgeous to look at. Some argue that one must wade in a sea of pretty games to try to find the ones that are worthwhile, so consumers are constantly sifting through large amounts of content and don't have the patience to spend on completing a game.
Another major factor seems to be length. BioShock was completely engaging, yet presented the story in a shorter timeframe. The more time you have in which to tell a story, the more challenges one faces to keep a gamer engaged. Considering the average attention span is twenty minutes, it's no small feat to create a game that can remain interesting to a player after 40 hours of play. Structural variance is also a key -- If you're doing more or less the same actions for the majority of the game, are they fun to do?
Most difficult of all is the experience of playing an enjoyable game and then abandoning it after committing many hours to the storyline. Eternal Sonata, I'm sad to say, fell into this category. I was pleased with the story, but I didn't think about it when it wasn't in front of me. It leaves you feeling disappointed when Endgame Syndrome kicks in in these instances. I did want to see the ending, but the drive to do so just evaporated, leaving me as confused as waking up naked with an otter. ( I need to stop drinking at those Zoo-To-Do events.)
Is it that games aren't what they used to be, or is it that gamer attention spans have shortened over time? I fear that some of both are present, although I am always hoping to be pleasantly surprised. The shape of the industry that creates these games has dramatically changed. In 1985, few people would have dreamed that games would one day rival the film industry. As a result, more experimental projects may have turned into playable results, which at the very least promoted creativity.
Whatever the secret formula is, recent feedback proves even RPG giant Square-Enix can't always hit the nail on the head anymore. Avoiding Endgame Syndrome is simply a matter of being choosy about what titles you take home -- and even then, there's no ensuring you'll feel the spark. For me, those unforgettable stories that are worth finishing are worth the search, no matter how many duds I have to sort through to get there.
[Thank you, Dtoid team!]
Contest:
12:15 PM on 10.14.2007
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It's not like it was back in the days of N64/PS1/PS2 for that matter.
I would be fully engaged in a games story, and now.. I don't even know.
I blame achievements.
I'M SO ASHAMED. ;_;
On the other hand I recently completed Bioshock, GRAW, Battalion Wars and I'm almost done with Phoenix Wright 2. All of the first 3 are fairly short, and I think that's the key here. Phoenix Wright is longer, but I tend to look at each case as a separate game, which make them short as well. It boils down to this: I'd much rather have 5 hours of great gameplay and 5 hours of padding in a 10 hour game, rather than 10 hours great and 30 grinding in a 40 hour one.
Of course, now I am an adult I can go and buy games at any time but before when my money was limited I would really make it count. I cannot say how many times I've completed Resident Evil 4. Maxed out everything in FF7 and looked shocked when Tomb Raider 2 ended and I just had to get all those achievements (;s).
But now I've completed Halo 3 and the only thing I can think of the story I really enjoyed was the car bit near the end. I'm so excited about Call of Duty 4 that I haven't touched 3 and not even completed 2. So much new stuff coming out stopping me from really getting into my other stuff :(
"Complete the task"
Alot of older gamers have to face this too.
Better to just leave the last boss for another time, and check Dtoid for new articles ;)
During a summer in high school, I was able to blow through Tales of Symphonia in a few days because my activities were eat, sleep, read, ride bikes and play Tales. It was a constant cycle, and I was kind of disappointed that it was "too short" when the credits started rolling. Final Fantasy V, however, is probably half the length, but I can't bring myself to finish it today. Part of it is school, but even when I have free time I just don't feel like sinking hours into an RPG anymore.
then i blaime my fustration with rpg's with fucking world of warcraft, which never fucking ends..
What's strange about that statistic is that I can play a good online multiplayer game for a year or two, several times a week, without giving up. Except WoW.
What I've found is that I only play a game until I find a way to beat whatever systems it implements. The designers can put in as many plot eleements or levels as they want, but if I find a way to beat the system then I'm done. Take Star Wars Galaxies (someone, please... hehe) as an example. I started playing with a group of friends who were concentrating on the grind. I soon discovered I could carry the equivalent of several heavy goods trains worth of mined ore in my pockets. Within a couple of weeks I had so much money I could buy anything I wanted. I'd beaten the MMO, job done, thankyouverymuchgoodnight.
I'm convinced this is why online multiplayer games with their heavy PvP bias have longer shelf-lives. You might know TwoFort inside out, but the fact that you're playing against real human beings means that it's impossible to "beat the system". This keeps the game minty fresh as real people constantly evolve new ways to beat each other.
If game developers want to get people to finish their games then perhaps they ought to spend less time on "whoops there goes my plot point" stuff and more time on building and unpredictable game mechanic that keep the player on their toes.
But as of late, I havent picked up any new titles in awhile. The last game I picked up from a retail store was Spider-Man 3. And that's been months ago.
Right now, im striving without a job, coming back from visiting family for a month. And I refreshed myself into what else I enjoy. With games, its always been an escape, but leaving it alone for so long, I felt like I was missing something.
I did dive into a small segment of Halo 1 gunplay with a nephew, and his dad in a match of sniper for a good 3 hours. I haven't played that gametype in forever. later I dove into Oddworld Munch's Odyssee, sadly I could only get past the first few areas, but what I did walk through, I felt satisfied.
To tell the truth, I havent beaten some of my xbox, to 360 gaming library. For one, time, and 2nd, maybe my focus isnt what it used to be. But I do have intiative to hang in there for awhile, and come back after awhile. Although it may be sometime till I play the said title again, it will definitely be more than a few hours at best.
Foremost, i've held off finishing Castlevania - Curse of Darkness for some reason. Everytime I get farther, I seem to be pushed away. Yet it grabs me again, wanting me to divulge until my uneasiness is waned. Maybe its the controls, or the setting, but I know my progess is meaningful. And that's my goal for today, completing, and writing about it.
I was engaged with Bioshock from start to finish, but Eternal Sonata could not hold my attention, it didn't help that a massive chunk of Eternal Sonata opens up during your 2nd game, which brings me to a question.
Who jumps back into RPG's as soon as you finish them? An RPG is one of the longest game types around, the last thing on my mind is playing through again right after I've finished it.
Personally I think the endgame syndrome might have more to do with some us getting older, I use to be able to play through any game I played, regardless of its quality, now I longer have the patience for long-winded stories, gameplay that is far to difficult and generally just tend to play either simple games or just something that catches my eye and makes me want to finish it. There's still one or two hard games I like going through, but its a lot less than it used to be.
also, "back in the day" (80's and 90's) most gamers were still kids. today, the average gamer age is over 30, which means most gamers are now grown up and have these pesky things called priorities (job, (to pay) bills, wife, kids) which leads to less spare time to devote to any one game.
Trends eventually fade till the next one!
Yes Wii... Trends!
Right now its a different story though, i've got ZOE, Killer 7 and RE4 lying unfinished. Considering i had to go through the hoops to procure them i feel kinda bugged. Hence my "to buy list' for this year is cut by half. Less games to buy, more games to finish.
I'm just glad I haven't fallen victim to E.S with ALL of my games...
What's even worse is that a lot of gamers have a complete library of games that need to be finished that may never be attended to.
When you're 10 and looking for achievable goals to structure your days around, videogames are as good as anything else. Catching them all brings a real sense of achievement. But we don't play games for the sense of achievement like we used to. Now it's supposed to be "fun," which is a far more nebulous concept.
I've wondered about this phenomenon, also. Now that I'm spending my own money, you think I'd actually be finishing the damn things.
I do like to play older games with really good story's every few months, its like a good old book, you know whats coming but you still play on.
Good article! but i couldn't finish Biosohck either haha
(...Or is it LATHER, RINSE, REPEAT?)
Like, most of the Final Fantasy Games.
(All Mario games until GC and DS, Secret Of Mana, Secret Of Evermore, Final Fantasy 6|7|8 , Sword Of Mana, Tekken 1|2|3|TT|4, Grandia, Metroid Prime, Sonic Adventure, Illusion Of Time, some MegaMan games, Zelda games.)
And long time after that I wasn't able to finish any game anymore (years).
Well, and now I'm on the roll again^^ beating every game I get into my hands (Lost Planet, NFS U|U2|Carbon|Most Wanted, God Of War 1|2, Final Fantasy X, Monkey Island 1|2|3|4|5, Broken Sword 1|2|3|4 ....)
The search for good games is worth it, it's best to not always hope for new games, just look for old ones, there are many^^
A large portion of my collection of games I haven't finished, but occasionally, when I love a game enough it gives me the drive to pluck through it to the end.
Games I've not finished that stick in my mind are FFVII, VIII, IX and X. These have great stories but when that's hampered by annoying stuff, it kills my will to play.
Last games finished. RE1, RE2, RE3, Code Veronica and RE4 on GC, GRAW, Gears and GRAW2 on 360.
I also play less because I'm 29, with other stuff to do, but I try my best to find time for doses of gaming.