Drithius
Magic & Loss
I was reading through the latest Pool of Radiance troubleshooting installment from Pessimeister, and I was reminded again of this feeling I've had for a while: the ability to alt-tab out of a game and search for the answer to a game's puzzle or quest has really diminished the magic in many a game. Disclaimer: this post is not a criticism against Pessimeister - having never played the original PoR, I was actually intrigued by many of his posts
I remember playing Stonekeep for the first time and, despite being completely lost much of the time, I was immersed in the world. Although the 1-900-tip-line phone numbers at the back of manuals still operated, there were truly no easy/cheap go-to locations for outside help. The internet was in its infancy, there were few messageboards simply devoted to gaming, and navigating web pages on a 26,400 bit connection was tiresome at best anyway.
Lack of abundant internet content is why, in my opinion, I became so enraptured with Everquest when it initially launched. The game's content changed so often that it was impossible to get the lowdown on how to beat a boss or solve a quest if they were not already several months old. Instead, you had to work together with your friends trying out different strategies and/or talking to different NPCs. It built camaraderie.
Overall, gaming mental challenges of days' past seem to be gone these days. Even if a developer takes the time, effort, and resources to implement something truly challenging, it will never have the same impact as it did before our lives became saturated with the internet. Could this be why fewer developers don't even bother with such attempts now? Instead relying on more personal, twitch-based mechanics?
I remember playing Stonekeep for the first time and, despite being completely lost much of the time, I was immersed in the world. Although the 1-900-tip-line phone numbers at the back of manuals still operated, there were truly no easy/cheap go-to locations for outside help. The internet was in its infancy, there were few messageboards simply devoted to gaming, and navigating web pages on a 26,400 bit connection was tiresome at best anyway.
Lack of abundant internet content is why, in my opinion, I became so enraptured with Everquest when it initially launched. The game's content changed so often that it was impossible to get the lowdown on how to beat a boss or solve a quest if they were not already several months old. Instead, you had to work together with your friends trying out different strategies and/or talking to different NPCs. It built camaraderie.
Overall, gaming mental challenges of days' past seem to be gone these days. Even if a developer takes the time, effort, and resources to implement something truly challenging, it will never have the same impact as it did before our lives became saturated with the internet. Could this be why fewer developers don't even bother with such attempts now? Instead relying on more personal, twitch-based mechanics?