Non-RPG General News - Is Fun overrated?

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer

I agree to that. A game is a game, not a drama or a prophecy. It is an inherent part of games not to be part of any kind of literary genre, for example.

A comedy is a comedy, for example, but not a game.
A drama is a drama, for example, but not a game.

Especially concerning board games.

And RPGs are RPGs.

Originally Posted by Alrik Fassbauer
A comedy is a comedy, for example, but not a game.

No.
A "modern" comedy with toilet jokes is… Gimme a break.
A comedy from golden era of Hollywood when they still knew how to make one is a game I'd play any day.

Originally Posted by joxer
No.
A "modern" comedy with toilet jokes is… Gimme a break.
A comedy from golden era of Hollywood when they still knew how to make one is a game I'd play any day.

Seen the British sitcom "Black Books"? Highly recommendable.

pibbur who promises not derail the thread any further

Originally Posted by BoboTheMighty
There is not enough games oriented on purely being fun and kind of feels some elements from other genres have wandered into other games that actually diminish it ( bloated crafting and inventory managements, survival elements, weapon durability, management, etc).

I feel like the inclusion of crafting often diminishes games that already have a lot going on.

'Fun' in videogames is overrated

Josh Sawyer wrote this article.

Games are played because we are looking for a form of enjoyment. That doesn't mean we can't learn, develop new skills, be challenged, be emotionally stimulated or lord knows what else. In fact, a truly good game will engage you on multiple levels, and this will make your enjoyment all the greater.

At the end of the day however, if you're not enjoying the game … then something is wrong.

The reasons could be as simple as bad design from the developers (like systems that are illogical or more complex than they need to be) or as complex as you feel pressured to play the game in a way that you do not enjoy (this applies to multiplayer games).

End of the line … fun is not overrated.

It's just everyone defines it differently, and too often the various game companies don't truly understand what the players they're targeting consider "fun". This is a constant struggle that the game companies can never truly win. They can however break even if they are willing to accept that their idea of "fun" and their players idea of what is "fun" may be completely different.

Fun and learning can go together well. Animals in the wild play when young to develop important skills. Even older animals play although then it may be to relieve boredom, relax, or just as a form of enjoyment.

I found the whole article a bit odd. Is being happy over-rated? Is life over-rated? What do they even mean by such a statement. Emotions and thoughts are complicated and can't be easily distilled.

The boundary between fun/work, pain/pleasure, etc. are often thin and very different for different people. I sometimes have fun at work enjoying a good challenge when writing a report to pull difficult data. I have fun creating a new website and seeing it come to life.

I also have work and not-fun times in games - like when maybe I have to grind for something or I get very frustrated with a battle cause I keep dying and have to reload over and over. I do not find that fun at all.

Most every hobby, for me, has some fun and not-fun elements. It isn't over-rated or under-rated. When it comes to activities I enjoy I do them because the overall balance is a pleasurable one that I enjoy enough that I feel motivated to do the activity.

Only speaking about things I see as fun of course … we all do many things for many different reasons - survival, escape from depression, increase our knowledge, etc. But I think it's important to have fun in life as otherwise not all that much point to existing in the first place.

First these journalists are complaining about "difficulty" in games, and now they complain about "fun"?

Anyway, I would replace "fun" with "enjoyable", and say that it is essential to games.

Also, there are different types of genres:

1. dramatic genres: comedy, tragedy, romance, mystery
2. settings: historical, scifi, fantasy, contemporary/modern
3. gameplay genres: FPS, RPG, strategy, vehicle sim

You can pretty much mix and match and combine these however you want. For instance, "dramedy", "modern fantasy" or "strategy RPG". There are few limits.

Originally Posted by pibbur who
Why is it a troll article? It discusses whether games can have other purposes/functions than just being fun, to which (correct English?) you can agree or disagree. As I understand "troll", a troll article would be something written only to provoke. Can't say I find much of it here.

…DartChien…

PS: I won't say fun is overrated. But it doesn't have to be the only, even the main purpose of a game. DS.

Of course I didn't click the article. Its a troll article. Duh!