Computer games you really don't like.

[Duggeh]

As I mentioned in the other thread I don't like Deus Ex 2. Not only is it a piss poor sequel to one of the best ever made its a piss poor game in its own right and one of the finest examples of what a fuck up it is to design a game for a console then port it to the PC.

Also worthy of hate is:

Halo.

This one is probably going to draw a few ranting fuckwits out of the carpet, because theres no shortage of people who think that this game (and its slightly shinier but mechanically identical sequels) are the best thing since Dizzy the Egg. The combat is grossly oversimplistic, the enemies are both stupid and ill-versatile, the plot with a bit more polish would have been worthy of one of Arthus C Clarkes weaker books, but it lacks the polish that a paedophile as well loved as him could have provided and is fed out to the player poorly ruining any real sense of experience. The main character is impossible to connect with and so are all the other characters. Brain dead shooter game for basic blasting by Carling drinking XBox owners in tracksuits who lack the small amounts of actual skill needed for good examples of other such games like DN3D or Quake 1.

Crysis also belongs in the basket with Halo.

[Haunted]

Axe to grind?
I enjoyed Halo precisely because it was a relatively simplistic FPS. Obviously you got the most out of it from the multiplayer experience which, at it's original release, was unlike anything else. If you have not tried Blood Gulch on at least 3v3 then you can't give a fair criticism of the game.
There's just something about you and you're mates jumping into a warthog, each assuming a specific role to help the team.
Single player wise, there are still some great levels, The Maw on legendary being a good example.

Bad games:
ALMOST EVERY GAME RELEASED WITH/AFTER A FILM.
e.g. Transformers, Iron Man, E.T. etc

[munchingfoo]

Championship Manager.

Maybe it's useful as a training tool if there ever exists a job that requires a user to artificially modify data in a database using a set of rules and some random numbers.

[Jormungand]

I can concur with Halo and to an extent Deus Ex 2. I actually really enjoyed the original Halo, and my thoughts about it were basically along the lines of 'this is an enjoyable, polished shooter with a moderately entertaining plot.' It was never brilliant, though, and I agree it's been massively overhyped.

Fable 1 (I can't comment on 2 since I haven't played it, but I've been reliably informed it's exactly the same in these regards) I found atrocious. Unimmersive, endless hack-n-slash, with absolutely no narrative or character payoff when I played it right through to the end. I mean, I almost put it down at the part where the Guild of Heroes says that you can be good or evil since they don't really care. I mean, seriously?

Since we're talking about games that are overrated too my award goes to both Oblivion and Fallout 3. Perhaps it's simply that I look for story, immersion, good characters, and excellent dialogue in a game, and that all of these Bethesda are terrible at.

[munchingfoo]

I wouldn't say that it's because Bethesda are bad at those things, it's just because that type of game doesn't lend itself well to those attributes.

[Haunted]

The RPG is the best possible adaption of story telling to an interactive medium. The problem with RPG's such as Oblivion and to a lesser extent FO3, is that there are an overwhelming amount of possible situations to find yourself in, eahc requiring a fairly unique dialogue solution, which usually amounts to more much work than is worth putting in. IN Oblivion you can see this the most because there are only about 6 different voices in the whole game offering the same vague phrases. I didn't notice this in Fallout 3.
Both games seem to suffer from bad script writing, with the actors almost certainly not knowing the context of their lines.

Now, for a game that executes this beautifully I suggest Saints Row 2. Not strictly an RPG, but let's be fair, at the end of the day you are playing a role no matter what else the game has you doing. Don't get the PC version, they seem to have cocked up the porting, get it on Xbox.

[Power Metal Dom]

Also worthy of hate is:

Halo.

Hardly, it's more the online Halo players surely? Anyway taking a pot-shot at the story or character development is like shooting spacefish in a spacebarrel, I can't speak for everyone but the only time I ever want to play Halo is multiplayer with friends which it does very well. You're trying to fault it on it's lack of depth when the majority of Halotards want the simplicity of jumping around a map sticking energy swords up each others arses.

As for bad games...hm...most turn-based games, most of Guitar Hero 3, Timeshift, MOH Airbourne, Turok, etc.

[Humphrey]

Sim Ant

[Zanbato]

Halo and its spawn.

I had just come from playing Unreal tournament (and the newly released UT2004) and Quake 3 to play Halo. *Sighs*.

Whilst I admit I really liked the ability to smack people with the guns, I hated the dynamics of the game. I'd played pretty much every FPS up until Halo came out and it really bugged me how in Halo, a pistol and sniper rifle could completely ruin multiplayer. Entire games could turn into sniper wars, and the vehicles were a poor addition - invincible vehicles? Oh, good idea. There's a reason you could destroy them in games like UT2004.

The weapons were poorly balanced - entire clips from SMGs could be emptied into the head, followed by wanton gun-face-plant of said weapon, only for the person you were shooting to turn around and blow you away with 2 pistol hits. Bollocks. Even the most unfair of unfair Counter-Strike moments felt like complete bliss in comparison to how often you could be killed in such a manner in Halo. The sword I also resented so much - stupid weapon, silly game.

[Delts]

Any game with the silly "If I duck I regain health" system when you aren't in a futuristic full body suite of armour.

[Jormungand]

I wouldn't say that it's because Bethesda are bad at those things, it's just because that type of game doesn't lend itself well to those attributes.

I think have to disagree on both counts.

Even though much of Oblivion and Fallout are free-roaming, there are also plenty of quests, some of which are banal and some of which are genuinely interesting concepts - but Oblivion manages to mangle the writing in many cases. Likewise, free-formness and good writing are certainly not mutually exclusive - an example is GTA which is generally well-written, and if you want RPG examples Baldur's Gate and Fallouts 1/2 are both very freeform and both have very interesting settings, stories, and backgrounds.

[creepy old man]

Pretty much all games that are single-player. Educational games like Civilization, Sim games, etc., are good because they give kids something fun and worthwhile to do on a rainy day. But I just think it's really sad that the majority of men now seem to be spending all their free time sitting alone in front of a computer screen trying to satisfy their macho desires by running around shooting people and choosing either slutty female characters or homoerotic armoured male characters to design and dress. If things were to end between me and my boyfriend and I was back out there looking for someone new, that time around I'd enact a strict no-gamers rule for choosing dates. Hate to offend, and I know sometimes gaming is just an innocent little pastime, but a lot of the time it's something people choose as an alternative to living a real life.

[RedCelt69]

Pretty much all games that are single-player. <snip> Hate to offend, and I know sometimes gaming is just an innocent little pastime, but a lot of the time it's something people choose as an alternative to living a real life.

I have to say, you're painting an overly-bleak picture of the male gamer. Whilst you're (obviously) free to list whatever criteria you so wish concerning the personality-traits of your next partner... don't tar all male gamers (for I am such) with the same brush.

It is true that playing computer/console games can, for some, be an all-encompassing pasttime... but the same can be said for many other hobbies which take place in the "real world". I know of many men who spend every evening down the pub. Others who sit vegetating in front of the TV. Even the more athletic (read outdoorsy) pursuits can be just as damaging to a relationship. The golfing nut who is on the course come hail or shine... or the blokes who have footie practice 2 or 3 times a week and who spend most Saturdays/Sundays playing competitively. The list is as long as the available pursuits men find to occupy their leisure time.

At least the PC/console gamers are at home (mostly) and are available for conversations, cuddling and whatever-else-you-find-wholesome in a healthy relationship. You could always pull up a chair and challenge him to a multiplayer game.

[Thalia]

Final Fantasy XII - it's been described as an offline MMORPG, which is silly in and of itself. The story was okay but horribly short and your main character is just some guy who's tagging along with the others for no real reason (the only plus being that you can switch him out of your party at will and pretend he's not the main character). Though it did fill about 80 hours of my time, the majority of that seems to have been in side quests and the ending was a let-down.

[creepy old man]

Hence the final sentence in my comment.

At least people who spend all their time in the pub or on the golf course are interacting with people and seeing their friends. I know it doesn't apply to everyone, but both my brother and my boyfriend, the two men I know the best, regularly choose playing one-player computer games over seeing their friends or generally engaging in anything that isn't the screen in front of them. Considering the nature of this website, I figured one mean-spirited comment wasn't going to kill anyone.

[Thalia]

The thing that i find amusing is that if i find a really good book that i can't put down, i'll choose reading it over spending time with my friends but for some reason reading doesn't have quite the same stigma attached to it as gaming does

[creepy old man]

I'm really sorry if I offended people. You just have no idea how frustrating it is to see someone spend their whole life in front of a screen. The thing about books is that they end! And since coming to St Andrews I think there actually is kind of a mini stigma attached to staying home and reading instead of going out and getting drunk. I know there are some good games out there like the Age of Empires ones and that people are entitled to a bit of fun on their own, I was just saying that personally I don't like single-player games because of the negative effects they can have on people. The thread topic IS of course games you don't like! Sorry though, didn't mean for the rage to pour out that much, or to make generalisations about all gamers.

PS yes I know I am spending a good part of my morning in front of a screen myself. It's freezing outside and there's no one around. Not an every day thing!

[Bizarre Atheist]

I dislike all computer games. I prefer to go outside and play, possibly encounter some real humans, breathe fresh air, have an adventure, quote Mark Twain...

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than the ones you did do. So throw away the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover"

(I won an Xbox 360 in the Rule in Freshers' Week this year - bought two games, played them for a bit, then abandoned the whole shebang. It's still in my flat for drunken attempts to shoot stuff/race stuff)

[Jormungand]

I dislike all computer games. I prefer to go outside and play, possibly encounter some real humans, breathe fresh air, have an adventure, quote Mark Twain...

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than the ones you did do. So throw away the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover"

(I won an Xbox 360 in the Rule in Freshers' Week this year - bought two games, played them for a bit, then abandoned the whole shebang. It's still in my flat for drunken attempts to shoot stuff/race stuff)

Good for you.

The hobby-snobbery is a bit much though. Especially since you'd probably think someone a dick if they came along and said that Mark Twain quote to you when you were getting drunk instead of doing something 'better' with yourself.

[Senethro]

Spending too much time on games/computer/whatever is a symptom, not a disease. Not that its any less cause for concern, but you should identify the root cause.