Gaming Owning a flash card = Not appreciating any games

[CraddaPoosta]

I should have known that history would repeat itself. I cut my teeth as far as modding/hacking when I got my first Flash2Advance cart for the original, non-backlit GBA. By the time that handheld was officially dead in the water, I had hundreds of games on my hard drive, but had only ever played a handful of them.

Same thing when I got my first PSP. By the time that system hit the end of its life cycle, I had hundreds of games, but played less than 40% of them.

Then, again when I got my first DS, but that was even worse. With smaller games than the PSP, and MUCH MUCH MUCH more shovelware, I wound up maybe playing a quarter of the games I acquired.

Now that I have a Gateway 3DS, here we go again.

I've probably spent twice the amount of time fiddling with my ROMs, copying new ones to my card, then replacing it with a different game ten minutes later when I get bored with it, than I have actually PLAYING any games on my 3DS with my new flash card.

The newest Zelda and Phoenix Wright games are the only ones that really managed to capture and keep my attention. Even though I now have pretty much the entire library of games that I could buy at GameStop, I usually can't be arsed to even bother playing most of them.

I wonder how common this phenomenon is. Is anyone else here essentially a ROM hoarder, but not really that much of a hardcore gamer?

 

[Foxi4]

This is a well-known phenomenon - once you get something for absolutely free, you begin judging it by its actual merits instead of finding excuses for mediocrity to validate your purchase while the price you paid for the product looms in your subconscious.

In addition, you also care less because you're not trying to milk the product for whatever entertainment value it's worth because you literally didn't pay for it, so the expectations bar is much lower. You're not nearly as extatic when the game meets expectations and not nearly as disappointed when it doesn't because you can just move on to something better with no additional expense - the only thing that suffers is fan pride when a product from a franchise you particularly like is terrible.

 

[Arras]

I do that with Steam games. It's the same thing except you pay for them. It doesn't really help that I have osu sitting on my desktop and I go "oh I'll just play this for 20 minutes or so" and then it's suddenly four hours later.

 

[GamerzHell9137]

That might be the pirate syndrome, i had that before.
But it might be that ur not enjoying games anymore.

Buying games increases the enjoyment of them, dunno why ;o I guess cause u got the money from working hard and then the games look like a reward or something.

And nowadays games are medicore so that might be too.

Off topic: Games that you should look in the 3DS are Rune Factory 4, DSOverclocked and Project Mirai if you like Rhythm game( even if you don't, just try it[The 2nd one] )

 

[Subtle Demise]

I don't know if buying games necessarily helps you enjoy them more. Hell, the last game I actually bought was AC: New Leaf and I haven't played it in months. I've put more hours on pirated BF4 online than I have on anything I bought lol.

 

[Cortador]

The same can be said about anything that comes easy. You name it, women, games, cars, money.

 

[Foxi4]

It doesn't only concern piracy - I have a huge backlog of PSPlus games at this point, but I haven't touched my PS3 in ages, partially because I don't have a whole lot of time at the moment, but partially because the log is going to grow each month regardless of whether I touch it or not. It's almost like hoarding at this point.

Normally, when you pay $60 for a video game, you will naturally play it to get that $60 worth of entertainment out of it. When you paid the symbolic $1-5 on a Steam Sale or literally nothing if you pirate or get a game for free by any other means, you won't play it nearly as much.

It's very bizzare as the price point doesn't make the game any better or worse, but it's an observation many gamers have made in the past. You have to wonder if a study was ever conducted concerning this apparent correlation.

 

[Mariko]

Buying games increases the enjoyment of them

Does it, though? Games aren't prohibitively expensive these days, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that for every ten games that I buy I finish one, at most. It's not that I don't enjoy them. It's that there are so many games out there and I can afford them, but playing all of them start to finish would equal no socializing, no gym and maybe less work, but then again, how are you supposed to pay for the games?

 

[enigma85]

The only reason I hoard roms is because I'm tired of wasting my money on crap games.

edit: also I've noticed if I try to play a game for more then an hour or so, I usually can stick to playing it. Its the initial, "damn gotta start a tutorial before the real game starts" type of thing. So just push through the first hour or two and you'll be fine.

 

[CraddaPoosta]

This is a well-known phenomenon - once you get something for absolutely free, you begin judging it by its actual merits instead of finding excuses for mediocrity to validate your purchase while the price you paid for the game looms in your subconscious.

NAILED it. I actually favor my PS3 and Vita games over my 3DS and Android games, because I HAD to pay for each and every one of them, even if I don't like them as much as I like other games that I acquired by other means. The money I spent necessitates that I get as much "value" out of them, or I feel as if I cheated myself.

Well said.

 

[aXXo]

Does it, though? Games aren't prohibitively expensive these days, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that for every ten games that I buy I finish one, at most. It's not that I don't enjoy them. It's that there are so many games out there and I can afford them, but playing all of them start to finish would equal no socializing, no gym and maybe less work, but then again, how are you supposed to pay for the games?

Well I just bought about 12 games for $5 from a "Humble Bundle-like" website for my Steam account, and at about 150 games, I only ever played about 10-15 of them, and maybe only 4-5 until completion, with most of those played only a few hours, or never played again after reaching a little bit into the game. And that's after 4 whole years of having a Steam account, even though I am still stock-piling games for myself. It seems like there is just one game that you are interested in that takes up all of your time (Skyrim), and every other game just seems to be taking away time from playing that one game you actually want to play.

 

[Arras]

The only reason I hoard roms is because I'm tired of wasting my money on crap games.

edit: also I've noticed if I try to play a game for more then an hour or so, I usually can stick to playing it. Its the initial, "damn gotta start a tutorial before the real game starts" type of thing. So just push through the first hour or two and you'll be fine.

It doesn't work that way for me. I can drop games (or rather, put them on hold for an indefinitive period of time) no matter how far I am in them, lol. I stopped playing Okami for a very long time when I had 30 hours put into it.

 

[CraddaPoosta]

But, here's another odd thing; at least six of the 40+ 3DS games that I currently have on my laptop, I actually bought and paid for. Of course, I traded them in at GameStop the same day my Gateway 3DS arrived, but I DID buy at least a half dozen of the games that I currently have available to me for my 3DS.

Even so, I wind up skipping past them, mindlessly throwing Mario Tennis Open on my card (because it's casual and won't get me addicted and take up my entire night), playing it for ten minutes, then replacing it with something else I won't play for more than an hour.

It's an endless cycle of, "I KNOW I have something more fun than this."

 

[DarkKnigh_t]

People keep forgetting that not all games are "worth" what they cost. For example Nintendo charging for remakes that are pretty much the same game full price, zelda ocarina of time, mario bros 2 is a ripoff of the first one which basically took probably not long to make. What about pc and console games, Call of duty? every year a new game which has a epic fail 5 hour max campaign with no graphical improvements. Sim city (the last one) they take out content what was in the game since sim city 2000 and then give it to you in later installments that are called DLC's for more money. Good thing that sim city didnt work properly for some time since it launched and you couldn't save your cities. What about diablo 3? You couldn't play it properly for weeks cause the servers keep crashing, pvp and trading post (for real money) wasn't available right from the start (which they promised and alot of people bought it because of that) and then they removed the trading post(real money selling). Game companies are becoming cocky and they sell us the same crap with slight changes. I don't feel bad for pirating them. On the other hand I buy games like Bravely default which is about 100 hours gameplay long and has original story and characters and you can actually see all the hard work that was put in the game so I'll buy it to support the developers.

 

[Arras]

People keep forgetting that not all games are "worth" what they cost. For example Nintendo charging for remakes that are pretty much the same game full price, zelda ocarina of time, mario bros 2 is a ripoff of the first one which basically took probably not long to make. What about pc and console games, Call of duty? every year a new game which has a epic fail 5 hour max campaign with no graphical improvements. Sim city (the last one) they take out content what was in the game since sim city 2000 and then give it to you in later installments that are called DLC's for more money. Good thing that sim city didnt work properly for some time since it launched and you couldn't save your cities. What about diablo 3? You couldn't play it properly for weeks cause the servers keep crashing, pvp and trading post (for real money) wasn't available right from the start (which they promised and alot of people bought it because of that) and then they removed the trading post(real money selling). Game companies are becoming cocky and they sell us the same crap with slight changes. I don't feel bad for pirating them. On the other hand I buy games like Bravely default which is about 100 hours gameplay long and has original story and characters and you can actually see all the hard work that was put in the game so I'll buy it to support the developers.

Many people get the same thing even with games that are actually good though. I had this with Okami even though I loved that game and finished it twice now. I pretty much had to force myself to go play it. It was always like "meh I don't feel like it, I'll go play something else".

 

[CraddaPoosta]

I played Link Between Worlds twice in a row, because that particular game was just THAT good. That, and I wanted a deathless run on Hero Mode. Also the deep nostalgia factor. Same with my retail copy of Kingdom Hearts - DDD. Good games stand out, regardless if you paid for them or not.

To that end, think about games you receive as gifts. Even though YOU didn't pay for them, you still value them more because you know that SOMEONE did.

It just makes me remember my childhood of cutting grass to save up to buy new NES games (I am pretty ancient), and only getting new ones as gifts on Christmas and birthdays, and even then, a year where I got five new games was a banner year. I remember playing the same dozen games, ALL THE TIME, and never really getting bored with them.

Now that I have the entire library of every generation of games from the second gen through the sixth at my fingertips, though, it dilutes and diminishes the perceived value and fun factor of ALL of them. That sucks.

 

[DarkKnigh_t]

Many people get the same thing even with games that are actually good though. I had this with Okami even though I loved that game and finished it twice now. I pretty much had to force myself to go play it. It was always like "meh I don't feel like it, I'll go play something else".

I know everyone has their own taste something to me might be super boring to someone else. I just hate seeing new need for speeds, most sports games and a lot other games, that have been almost identical for the last couple of years asking for full price.

I played Link Between Worlds twice in a row, because that particular game was just THAT good. That, and I wanted a deathless run on Hero Mode. Also the deep nostalgia factor. Same with my retail copy of Kingdom Hearts - DDD. Good games stand out, regardless if you paid for them or not.

To that end, think about games you receive as gifts. Even though YOU didn't pay for them, you still value them more because you know that SOMEONE did.

It just makes me remember my childhood of cutting grass to save up to buy new NES games (I am pretty ancient), and only getting new ones as gifts on Christmas and birthdays, and even then, a year where I got five new games was a banner year. I remember playing the same dozen games, ALL THE TIME, and never really getting bored with them.

Now that I have the entire library of every generation of games from the second gen through the sixth at my fingertips, though, it dilutes and diminishes the perceived value and fun factor of ALL of them. That sucks.

Thats the problem Nintendo lives of people like us who are nostalgic and buy remade games.

 

[CraddaPoosta]

I have now purchased or acquired at least 7 different versions of just Final Fantasy IV. I know precisely what you mean.

I bought that game for Super Nintendo, then again for the PSX, once more for GBA, again for NDS, again for Android, again for Wii, again for PSP. As in, I actually paid for all seven copies of the same game. Almost all wound up getting traded in at some point, but, still. I am a sucker for nostalgic games.

 

[enigma85]

the issue sounds like you're growing up and the games made now a days, except for a select few, dont play like you enjoyed. Different gaming generations bring different types of games. They cater to the young teenagers more than older folks. I love rpg's, I love grinding, final fantasy 7 & 9 are classics I paid for multiple times, same game not remakes. But kids nowadays hate those types of games. They want something they can pick up, kill things, and make fun of each others moms with. Times have changed. Your just getting old and you hate change! XP

 

[mr allen]

I find that when i pirate a game I have less of a drive to actually play them. That being said, that's not true 100% of the time. When i downloaded Kingdom Hearts Birth by Sleep that's all i played all the way until I beat it. Monster Hunter Freedom Unite is also my most played PSP game despite being pirated. But there is all those other games i downloaded, I rarely ever touch half of them and the other half i just spend most of my time switching between them that i make next to no progress because i start getting bored of what i was just playing. This is the whole reason on why I'm not going to buy flashcart for 3ds, I can spend the same amount of money on 2-4 games that i will actually play rather than buy a flashcart and only actually finish 2-4 games with it.