NAPALM13092 Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 (edited) I don't find "simplification" as some people call it to be a bad thing depending on what aspects of the game are affected. There is a difference between frustrating and difficult, confusing and complex, etc. Most changes that people perceive as "dumbing down" or "simplification" of the game is just the rational evolution of a game franchise and that evolution can be good or bad. Skyrim seems to be making all the right choices from what we have seen so far. They streamline aspects of the game that where clunky and dated like the meaningless classes and unused talents, bring back some aspects from earlier titles people liked such as the discovery and immersive RPG elements, all the while doing something new that is distinctly "Skyrim". A lot of people have this pessimistic hipster mindset that all change is bad, that if anything is made more fluid and efficient it is for stupid people, that streamlining any aspect of a game franchise is somehow an attempt to appeal to some sub human playerbase, that if something is not as grindy, frustrating, annoying, time consuming, and inefficient as possible than it is for casuals. Some people get some sense of gratification from complaining about any and everything that is popular. It goes back to the hipster mindset,"Oh man Obscene Japanese RPG 4 only sold 10k copies because of grindy buggy gameplay and terrible game mechanics? It is the best game ever and I am so cool because no one else plays it." "What Elder Maps 5: Dragons sold 10 million copies because of smooth streamlined dynamic gameplay, graphics, and an already large fan base? Must be garbage made for casuals." One thing people have been whining to no end about is Skyrim having 18 skills vs. Oblivion's 21 and Morrowind's 27, yet did you ever seriously use Hand-to-Hand? Speechcraft? How about Mercantile? I would rather have the less than interesting skills melded into the more lucrative ones. If I wanted I could make up 120 different skills off the top of my head but it wouldn't make them any good. Would you rather have 18 well fleshed out skills that evolve with different perks to your play style or dozens upon dozens of lackluster skills you won't find yourself using? A lot of these changes just make sense like rather than have 2 or 3 different skills for bladed weapons you have a single ability to govern those same skills but the one skill through perks can be specialized to create as much if not more variety in a far more efficient format. There have obviously been game franchises that have made changes not for the better such as Dragon Age 2 or World of Warcraft (In my opinion anyway but that's just me) but I wouldn't be too worried about Skyrim. Don't let other people ruin your fun. Many forums and boards on the internet are cesspools of negative sniveling little teenagers that think hating fun with a passion makes them game critics or something. Go into every game with an open minded positive attitude regardless of other opinions, game ratings, or changes. If you go into something expecting the worse and purposely trying to nit pick out every single tiny flaw you can think of you will never enjoy another game as long as you live. Edited June 4, 2011 by NAPALM13092 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndorilTheGreat Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 Kudos to you Napalm. That was a very well-written and professional post (with points that I agree with, of course). :thumbsup: On a side note, though, I am slightly disappointed to see Hand to Hand go... :confused: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacars Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 Way to go Napalm! You speak in the name of Truth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sepherose Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Personally I am holding out to make judgement until it is actually at my house and I have been playing it for a bit. On the other hand, in Oblivion and Morrowind, I liked making HtH characters and using weapons as little as possible, so all I can really hope for is that HtH has been melded into another skill in Skyrim, otherwise I'm going to have to go a completely different route, the only other characters I really like playing as were stealthy bow users, thankfully this has gotten an overhaul and sounds like it will be much better. Just my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HellsMaster Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 People will always complain anyway. :facepalm: People can never be satifised, because it can always be better :armscrossed: . It's harsh but true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimboUK Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 Todd Howard said in an interview that he thought they had made Oblivion too accessible, so maybe there is hope for Skyrim. FO3 was certainly a step in the right direction, I hope they carry on down that path. The removal of skills isn't really dumbing down, it's reducing choice but as long as there are still enough to make various classes viable then it's not a great problem. Dumbing down isn't just an issue for RPGs, it's a problem in other genres too. GTA4 for example, the missions in that game had the player following a series of on screen instructions, the player was never asked to think. Then you have Call of Duty, a game so heavily scripted that it virtually plays itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ultimatepurge Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 (edited) Well they said they would keep the old construction set. And there probably will be a skyrim script extender.So I have no doubt someone will be able to recreate the older leveling system. That's the good thing about these games. They're built in a way so that people who really dislike an aspect of a game can just hop in and change it. Personally I've stayed away from anticipating skyrim or obsessing about it. It didn't serve me well with any recent game I've done so for. Edited June 6, 2011 by Ultimatepurge Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halororor Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 So many classic serious have been utterly ruined by being crossplatform with the exception of Oblivion. I seriously lol'd. Are you serious? Serious? I just want to say it again. Serious. Big Bang Theory is quite an awesome serious. Besides that, Oblivion was about as involving as a toy rattle. It played exactly like an Xbox game, and coming from me, who enjoyed Dragon Age 2, that's saying something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hector530 Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 and coming from me, who enjoyed Dragon Age 2, that's saying something. that you have bad taste? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NAPALM13092 Posted June 6, 2011 Share Posted June 6, 2011 (edited) and coming from me, who enjoyed Dragon Age 2, that's saying something. who enjoyed Dragon Age 2 Dragon Age 2 I mean I guess to each their own but you are seriously the first person I have ever met who enjoyed that game. Even the hardcore fans over on the Bioware forums want to skin David Gaider alive for that "game". Edited June 6, 2011 by NAPALM13092 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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