Spending extra hours on that game means you love it
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It's true. Be it farming for unlocks on a competitive multiplayer, farming XP for your character, or earn all those trophies/achievements to see that 100% complete, you absolutely love playing that certain game over and over. Ok maybe that last one some of you just love your chievo hunting, damn virtual goals. For me, it's currently Dark Souls which is getting so close to being my top game for 2011.
My official review of Dark Souls will be out soon but I can't help but say how it sucks most of my free time. I finished Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception's single player last saturday(which by the way is an amazing game) and the next day I went straight back on working on my second character in Dark Souls. I'm really determined to get all achievements and fix up my character for PVP. I don' usually get all the achievements or bust out those extra hours playing the game differently, but if it's a game that I really enjoyed, I'll definitely try.
Going that extra mile
Uncharted 3 will be one of those games, but Dark Souls comes first. The achievements on the third game is almost identical to the last two games which means it should be a piece of cake. Not having that 100% though doesn't mean I didn't like the game that much to go that extra mile. I currently have two games that I just loved and is stuck on either 98% or 99%. Demon Souls and Red Dead Redemption. I've spent at least 100 hours on each game but those last achievements for these games are taking too long to unlock that I sometimes simply forget to get back and try to earn them.
In Demon Souls, I just need one special upgrade - A maxed moonlightstone weapon. The drop for that item I need to max out a moonlightstone weapon is pretty damn rare and I have two tries to get it in a Demon Souls playthrough. Believe me, I've spent four extra playthrough to just head over to that spot and take my chances. Each time, no luck. As If those damn Crystal Lizards(Where the item drops) are purposely not dropping it to mock me. Maybe I should have increased my drop rate, or actually asked a friend to lend me the weapon for the achievement to pop. Well, all I can do now is just regret not getting it since I've already let go of Demon Soul's copy. I'm so considering in getting a second hand copy just for that damn trophy.
Red Dead Redemption is another pain in the ass. I actually got all the hard ones done, it's just my laziness is getting the best of me. All I need is 500 kills in a mounted gun and win 4 straight times in a online team match, that's it! I consider Red Dead Redemption as one of the best games last year, but the online aspect of that game wasn't that fun for me so it felt hard for me to gather a good group of friends to just get that achievement. The 500 kills in a mounted gun, easy, just haven't bothered. You have to know when it's time to stop trying for now, hopefully I get back to it.
When achievements started, I always thought the concept was dumb. But when I got my PS3 and was exposed to it, I see it's purpose. It's technically extra content in a way. After finishing the game and enjoying every second of it, you have that urge to spend some extra hours challenging yourself to earn some achievements. It also is a good reference for those secrets in the game. Some gamer's though take it overboard by being competitive about it which is fine. Seeing who has the higher gamerscore, or the most platinums. People have like 100 Platinums, and the highest gamerscore in the world I believe is close to 700,000 in gamer points. Absolutely crazy.
Some of you might not like earning all those chievo's but I'm sure there are some games that you cherish in a way that it's like you owe the game that much to at least try and get a 100%. For me, when I finished Enslaved: Odyssey to the West and L.A Noire, those games blew me away and right after the credits stopped rolling, I just had to try. It it necessary? Not really, but if a gamer spends at least 10 more hours thanks to achievements, that's a win for game developers.
Typing about that 99% in Demon Souls is tempting me to just run out now and get another copy, but screw it. I'll just keep playing it's sequel instead.
