I remember the Avengers game’s announcement trailer. How hyped I was the moment I realized what it was. This was coming off the success of the Infinity Saga in the MCU and the popularity of Insomniac’s first Spider-Man game. I thought, “There’s no way they can mess this up, right?”
Wrong. The game was eventually revealed to be another of the growing list of Games as a Service, and I knew then it was doomed. All that being said, I bought the game (discounted) and played it because I wanted to be wrong. And I’ll be honest, the story was pretty good, but the gameplay was as shallow and repetitive as it gets.
But the biggest sin? Hands down — being a Games as a Service offering. I am not a fan of this style of game. Don’t let my high hour count in Destiny 2 fool you. I eventually put that game down because I realized the flaws of this realm of gaming no matter how much I loved it. Destiny 2 is the example of a good game in this style, but the flaws remain.
‘AVENGERS’ COULDN’T AVENGE MY TIME
The biggest flaw in this style of gaming is there’s only so much time in a day, only so much time people are willing to devote to a game and its systems. So, to get to a point where you feel like the juice is worth the squeeze is almost impossible when the leveling systems and collection are so dependent on time-based events and filling up a bar over time.
Avengers asked this of people while dumping them in the same levels with the same enemies with no change, no story reason to keep going. It’s no surprise people stopped playing. And to be clear, this isn’t the fault of the devs. It’s the fault of the companies who have locked in on this style of gaming.
And this is where I think these companies have this all messed up. GaaS isn’t a genre, it’s a business model. But we keep getting these games at the same time as if they’re Fighting games. When Mortal Kombat 1 and Street Fighter 6 came out the same year, I didn’t feel like I had to choose. Those games can be enjoyed separately with no encroachment on the other. But a Destiny 2 and Avengers? A choice has to be made because of the time commitment necessary to actually play the game.
I’m hoping that a time comes where we slow down on GaaS and take a good look at it. Rocksteady shouldn’t have had Suicide Squad fail on them — the same for Crystal Dynamics and Avengers. We don’t have to make these games this way, it’s not sustainable. It’s bad for devs and gamers. And those are the two most important groups of people in this. It’s time to do right by them.
The post The ‘Avengers’ Effect: Games as a Service Is Not Working appeared first on VICE.
The post The ‘Avengers’ Effect: Games as a Service Is Not Working appeared first on VICE.
