Games that aren't for me
Whenever I buy a game I usually look at reviews or opinions from creators I respect (daryl talks games, Jacob geller, dunkey, yahtzee, ect.) Even though I usually keep away from genres that don't interest me/I'm not good at like puzzle games and crpgs, some games receive enough acclaim, enough 10/10s that I end up playing them. Now that I think I've had enough of these experiences, I'm going to go through some highly acclaimed and beloved games that just didn't work for me.
- Return of the Obra Dinn
Even going into Obra Dinn, I knew it would be tough but I was drawn in by the setting, visuals and concept. For some context, I hate puzzle games. A lot. While getting stuck on a hard boss in elden ring can be frustrating, I know what I need to do and I know I can do it. But there's something about being stuck on a hard puzzle that just infuriates me, I have no clue what I should be doing, I have no clue what I should be looking for and I'm not having fun. Which brings me to Obra Dinn, arguably the most beloved and acclaimed puzzle game ever and... I wouldn't say I didn't like it. I would however, say that I didn't enjoy playing it. I found the very hands off approach the game takes to be very frustrating when it results in me wandering around the ship looking for something that I can interact with. The game didn't feel like I was a detective, figuring things out but more so a very annoyed dumbass looking for next glowing pixel so I can get on with this game. Unfortunately, due to my inability to drop a game halfway through, I ended up Googling many answers, near the end of the game I found myself bearly attempting to solve the puzzles on my own and just assuming it would bring more frustration.
- Baulder's gate 3
It was nearly impossible to escape baulder's gate 3 when it came out, there were articles after articles about it's genius design, interactivity and importance. Now, i have never played a crpg, let alone dnd but for some reason, I was positive I would like this game. I got it just weeks after it's ps5 release and I would say that i throughly enjoyed my time with it, if I were to give it a score out of ten, it would probably be a comfortable 7. However, seeing people play this game and talk about their experiences left me a little disappointed and confused. I've seen so many people talk about how interactive the game is, how every roadblock has thousands of solutions and how every build is viable. However, I found myself missing out on most of this, almost every roadblock or antagonist I met ended up in a fight. I never talked my way out of anything, I never approached a fight in a diffrent way, I just played through the game like I would any other rpg. I also nearly interacted with the open world, I found it confusing and difficult to traverse, this resulted in me missing out on many major discoveries, side quests and ever party members. Romance and party relations were another thing I missed out on, I found out how romance is inaccessible after the first act and felt like I missed out on one of the most beloved aspects of the game. All of this resulted in me having a very tough time getting through the endgame and the overall game. Who knows, maybe I'll have to revisit this with the knowledge I have now.
- Devil may cry 5
This one was surprising to me. I love action games, they're probably my favorite genre, however this was my first "character action game", a genre all about crazy combos and fast paced combat. Despite never playing a game like dmc 5 before, I really enjoyed it. I liked the combat, movement and cheesy characters, however I didn't understand the whole combo, arm and dodging mechanics. This resulted in even the normal difficulty feeling merciless, I would bearly make a dent in the very first boss before I died and even on the easiest difficulty, I found myself having to revive many times in order to survive. Since first playing dmc 5, I've bought bayonetta and vanquish (other games by platinum), so I'll have to see if it enjoy dmc more after playing some of the developer's earlier games. Another game I need to revisit.
And that's my list. I'm sure there are some i forgot and there will be more to come so who knows, maybe I'll make a part 2. I think there's a very obvious difference between games I found disappointing or subpar and games that wasn't for me. That said, I'd be interested in hearing about games you played that just weren't for you and opinions on how to enjoy games like these despite them being out of your comfort zone.
Thanks for reading!