sports news Achievements and Trophies: Portrait of a Useless and Necessary Attribute

Success or trophy, the two terms are now firmly rooted in video game jargon and are valued by fans of the concept independently of the game itself, and by a simple notification, based on the completion of additional objectives. base.

Xbox, PlayStation, Steam… have their own success stories

Historically speaking, if the origins of the successes can be traced back to the Activision badge era in 1982, It is specifically the seventh generation of consoles that debuted and especially Microsoft that innovates with the Xbox 360 in 2005, The principle is relatively simple, all you have to do is focus on a list of challenges to earn points, the goal is to display the best gamerscore on your profile. It was then that the competition became increasingly fierce and the enthusiasm among the players grew rapidly, so much so that this real success was encountered, Sony counteracts and copies the system with adding trophies on PlayStation 3, A different term for the same principle except that the points are replaced with bronze, silver, gold, and platinum trophies, the latter denoting that you’ve gotten all the trophies in a game. Super Stardust HD is therefore the first title to benefit from a list of trophies in 2008, pending implementation on all games from 2009. A real fashion phenomenon, the system is also expanding to PC with successes on Steam or Epic Games., or even achievements dedicated specifically to Blizzard games such as World of Warcraft, Diablo III or Hearthstone. For its part, Nintendo has not adopted the system in such a configuration and prefers to leave the studio the freedom to integrate (or not) the breakthroughs directly into the game.

In short, whatever name we give them, successes are now legion in video games. Varied and varied, some are directly linked to the main story or require you to complete a mission or a side quest, while others require you to perform specific tasks in the game or collect collectibles. example among many others but this was without relying on some games that offer completely insane successes for a concept that has something to divide: on the one hand, the predator and on the other, the cynical.

When successes become the object of a compulsive pursuit

An addiction or almost … Behind this word “hunters” hide the most tireless players. Beyond bringing replayability, a different angle, giving meaning to side activities or extending the lifespan of a game, achievements or trophy hunters go even further,

As we mentioned above, successes create a real buzz among players as soon as they arrive on the Xbox 360, so much so that some of them start buying more games in order to achieve maximum success. A fashion influence that persists with the proliferation of “small” games available today and easy and quick successes to achieve, as evidenced by My Name, for example Mayo, a game based on clicks where one You can complete all in hours. successes.

Then there are some players, perhaps more reckless (or crazy, who knows) in nature, who use achievements to put their nerves to the test. It’s a good way for them to take on challenges, to tickle their pride without having to beat the game on its maximum difficulty or improve their skills. Want a good example? The Evil Within properly combines the two aforementioned obstacles, or even Dead Space 2, which requires you to complete the game in berserk mode to succeed. Here, if the difficulty is equal to normal mode, resources are reduced and above all, the player is limited to a maximum of three saves.

You will understand, from the simplest to the most difficult, All successes are coveted and there is something for everyone! But in the long run, doesn’t this addiction reduce the enjoyment of playing?

But let the useless side ruin the gaming experience

In any case, so do the other players, cynics who like to take advantage of the scenario and highlight the interest of the game. Seeing this system of rewards as an artificial extension of sporting life, according to him, achievements bring nothing more than forcing himself to spend time on the game., not to mention hours of wandering through multiplayer modes abusing boost techniques. Likewise, the maximum difficulty required to obtain certain achievements is more a matter of frustration than satisfaction, without forgetting that the replayability sometimes becomes too difficult, with the need to restart the game several times at different difficulties. Is. We especially think of zombies or BioShock whose successes are independent of their difficulties. And there’s no shortage of examples when it comes to overcoming the fatigue caused by certain achievements, such as the trophy for Dead Nation, an exclusive PlayStation game where you have to kill exactly 53,597 zombies, which cuts the adventure short. Needs to be completed at least 4 times. With the addition of DLC to finish a mission in a loop.

In contrast, some games are full of simple and quick trophies to obtain, like the My Name is Myo we mentioned earlier in this article. vanity prevails hereJust like achievements that require standing still (like this minute of reflection in Prince of Persia) or watching the end credits (like in Call of Duty: Vanguard or Guitar Hero Live to watch twice) also says for).
Be that as it may, these players are more reluctant to regard this success system and, far from being convinced, see it simply as a waste of time, even a form of frustration to the detriment of the enjoyment of playing. for the game.

But there is also no need to choose sides, there is a balance. Without getting too carried away, unlocking an achievement can always be fun, as it is possible to hunt them down without extremes, enjoying the game and prioritizing the lists of achievements., So… inevitable? useless ? Useless and necessary at the same time? Don’t hesitate to give us your opinion on the question in the comments.