Quality of games

[Monk]

Yes, it does. They started the whole "achievement rush" and many ppl are playing it just to get those achievements.

You're playing on the wrong servers then, or just haven't played recently. New weapons are no longer tied into the achievements and now drop on a random basis, the only thing that folks "grind" for now are the hats which offer aesthetic changes only. Most servers have plug ins that reward all hats if you donate to them.

I'm just pointing out the fact that having achievements and unlockables has taken out the whole "substance" of the game, the aim is not to have fun, but to show off how good you are. And how pretty those badges look on you!

For some people that IS the fun of the game. Any MMO player can tell you that putting time into and getting a nice shiny badge is something to be proud of. The badges and hats are a way to say "Yeah, i've played tf2 for [time], I really like this game." But I don't think you should let it ruin your fun. The game is still focused around team oriented combat and is still pretty fun to this day. You shouldn't let the fact the heavy has Elvis hair get you down imho, you should hit him in the face with a rocket launcher.

Oh come on, how is that ridiculous? Ok, fine, leave the achievements out - what is your idea of a quality game?

Memorable gameplay - something that works, a mechanic that the game is built upon that lets you interact with other players or the world around you. It could be the Portal gun from Portal or battle to survive in L4D. Whatever it is, it needs to be fun.

Eye pleasing graphics - They dont need to be state of the art, but I like my games to be pleasing to the eye. This is the year 2010 and I expect that any game i spend money on to not be hideous to look at. Even if the graphics consits of a risk-style map, it should be a well done risk-styled map.

Sound - Gun blasts, explosions, and music. It all needs to come together in some way, shape or form to enhance the experience. If the sound does not work with the visuals to convey meaning, emotion or weight then the overall experience suffers. Nearly every game of quality nails this down in spades. Even some terrible games have given birth to beautiful soundtracks.

Story - This is one that is the easy mis-step for many games and its often the hardest one to nail down, but a believable story or fun narrative are what give meaning to your game time. The gameplay might be shooting people in the face, but the story is the reason. Lacking a story, a good setting suffices. Left 4 Dead manages that, instead of giving you a story it instead gives you a character piece. Four humans out to survive, interacting with each other and a world that is out to kill them all.