![]() Through them, one can monitor progress through the game by oneself, one’s friends, and the Steam community generally. Principally, they are worthwhile as a method of tracking for both players and developers. What these achievements are, though, is far more intuitive than how they can possibly be virtuous or laudable inclusions in a game. Spelunky 2, for instance, has achievements denoting the first time one reaches each new 4-level zone of the game, as well as achievements for beating each of the game’s two primary end bosses. These are simply achievements that unlock as one plays through the normal campaign content of a game, marking events like completing levels and defeating bosses. Of the three most plainly useful types of achievements that exist, progression achievements are the most straightforward and the most common. Today, we’re just focusing on the utility of achievements themselves. ![]() This will have the additional virtue of preventing me from appealing to extrinsic virtues that achievement systems have on some platforms, where they can be used to unlock cosmetic customizations and the like. Thus, in each section of this article, after presenting the possible virtues of each prominent achievement type (with reference to Spelunky 2), I will also cover the vices and corruptions to which each type is vulnerable (with accompanying examples from other titles).įor consistency’s sake, and because it is the platform through which I personally access the majority of games, all of the examples in this essay will be restricted to achievements on Steam. Achievements are often an afterthought, tacked onto a game by weary developers at the end of long projects, and-even when implemented with intention-may nevertheless include tedious, unappealing, or even exploitative goals. ![]() There are a great many weeds and poisonous herbs to be found growing there. The garden of achievements, however, is not filled exclusively with roses. My main example in making this argument shall be Spelunky 2, as I believe that it and its predecessor represent nearly perfect implementations of achievements across all three categories to be covered. In this article, I shall be covering the three clearest ways that achievements can be used for potential gains in terms of player experience and engagement. And if nothing else, purposefully attaining 100% achievement completion for a game can be a method of paying tribute to a game of exceptional quality-or of feeling that one has reached a satisfactory conclusion in otherwise endless affairs like roguelikes, arcade-style games, or even normal linear games that one can not seem to cease replaying. In fact, far from being impediments, I have often found that certain types of achievements lead to goals and playstyles that enhance the experience of a game. In games that I am already enjoying, I actively make an effort to get achievements provided it does not impede that preexisting enjoyment. ![]() This essay begins with a confession, one that feels on-par with admitting that one collects rocks or baseball cards or a similarly useless class of artifacts: I like achievements. ![]()
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