Gaming can be a great release from day-to-day struggles. A way to focus on a goal without distractions. While you’re hooked on a game, nothing else seems to matter. But gaming isn’t without its faults. Here are some things that gamers wished would not be an issue.
One for the PC Gamers: Game Won’t Run
PC Gaming can be a bigger joy than console gaming. Get the right setup and you are running games with fewer loading screens and better graphics. But have the wrong setup and it won’t even boot. Or the game becomes unplayable. Even if the PC has the equivalent specs, it doesn’t guarantee that it will work. Many years ago, my family had a PC that should run Spiderman (From the first Sam Raimi movie) but no matter what we did it wouldn’t run. But on the odd occasion, it would work with no explanation.
Recently I downloaded Conan Exiles as part of the PC Game Pass, and looking at the requirements I knew my PC should have no issue running it. It booted the first time but failed to log in to the servers and pushed the PC back to the desktop. The next time I tried, I got stuck on the splash screen and it wouldn’t get any further. It’s a frustrating aspect of PC gaming. Luckily I have an Xbox One that can play the game fine.
One for all gamers: Platform Specific
You’ve bought the latest console, and you promise yourself you won’t buy the other console. Fast forward at least six months and the other console is receiving all the best exclusives. Yet if you trade in your console and buy the other one, the story repeats itself. To the point, you have to bite the bullet and have both.
It’s painful and an expensive hobby. Microsoft, Sony and Nintendo each have their exclusive IPs which are not to be missed. Should another game company come into the mix, it will become even more expensive. But, there seems to be a solution in sight. With Xbox Game Pass you can play Xbox games in the cloud on a PC. While with PS Now you can stream PlayStation games. We need Nintendo to do the same and then all we need is a PC.
One for all gamers: Game Passes
There used to be a time when there was no downloadable content (DLC). You’d buy a game and that would be all the content you have access to. Now there is a vast array of DLC depending on the genre and the developer of a game. A sizeable amount of it is worth the price asked, while others are questionable (Skins, etc). But now you can purchase Season Passes which gives the consumer all the content that is released for that game. But a recent change has taken place. Borderlands 3 is the best example. Consumers bought the more expensive version of the game expecting to have access to all DLC. But then Gearbox announced season 2 content. Those that spent over £100 were in an uproar. It also didn’t help that gamers did not review the game highly.
That’s why I would recommend for titles such as Fallout, Elder Scrolls and Borderlands to wait until they release their Game of the Year Edition. Which always contains all the content at the fraction of the total cost of the game. If you can’t wait, rent the games and then buy the GOTY edition.
One for All Gamers: Buggy Releases
You’ve been waiting for years for the latest release of your favourite game. You never normally preorder, but since you know the game is going to be great, you do on this occasion. Game booted up, you play for hours on the first day. Click save and call it a day. When you return to the game, your saved data is nowhere to be seen. This has happened to me occasionally, and it’s enough to put you off starting again. It could be because the saved data is corrupted or a new patch means you can’t access the saved data as it was created before the patch. Other issues can cause your character to fall through levels or be booted to the desktop. While if you’re lucky, it is only graphical glitches that you experience. In recent years, this has become the norm, with Battlefield 2042, GTA Trilogy and Cyberpunk being prime examples. Again, the solution is to wait a few months before getting the game. Even if it means missing out on preorder bonuses.
Conclusion
Gaming seemed to hit its peak during the PlayStation 2, Xbox and GameCube era. There was no downloadable content, no need for patches and games worked out of the box. Now it seems it’s a challenge for many developers. Unfortunately, once you have a large company, developers have deadlines they must meet in order to make sure they paid their staff and other expenses. With many titles costing developers a few millions of dollars/pounds. I don’t see the issues above being fixed soon.