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Criticising PC Gamer's "We're in an FPS golden age" article
- Thread starter Plumpbiscuit
- Start date
I wouldn't say it's a golden age, but perhaps a form of renaissance for the genre after years of its console adaptation that led to its decline. We're starting to see new FPS embrace speed and skill-based movement, creative new game types by users through mods, and some great adaptations of class-based shooters.
Overall the future looks positive. I can't agree with most of the OP's reasoning however.
Overall the future looks positive. I can't agree with most of the OP's reasoning however.
Jesus OP.
I don't entirely agree with the article but this OK is nitpicky at and shows a fundamental misunderstanding of modern MP fps'.
If today's offerings aren't to your taste that's fine, but to go point by point each time thinking you've found that "gotcha!" Point us just kind of... sad.
Maybe you're mourning the way some.of your fave fps' used to be, or maybe you just think you obviously know way better the articles author, but if I were you I'd try to embrace some of the stellar offerings we have today.
Golden age it may not be, but a much needed revival it definitely is.
I don't entirely agree with the article but this OK is nitpicky at and shows a fundamental misunderstanding of modern MP fps'.
If today's offerings aren't to your taste that's fine, but to go point by point each time thinking you've found that "gotcha!" Point us just kind of... sad.
Maybe you're mourning the way some.of your fave fps' used to be, or maybe you just think you obviously know way better the articles author, but if I were you I'd try to embrace some of the stellar offerings we have today.
Golden age it may not be, but a much needed revival it definitely is.
spindoctor
Member
With this thread I believe we have entered the golden age of nitpicking gaming articles.
It's actually amazing how consistent the TF2 player base is despite the lack of a major content update (besides the time limited Halloween update) in over a year.
Hopefully Valve will stick the landing with the upcoming Pyro/Jungle update and it will grow the player base.
Theodoricos
Member
FPS golden age was 1993-1999, starting with Doom and ending with Quake III Arena.
Yeah I don't even know where to start with this OP. Even if I don't necessarily disagree with the premise the individual arguments are ridiculous and "stop liking what I don't like".
Pro tip OP: long criticism isn't necessarily good criticism. And you need to remove ridiculous statements and your own viewpoints like "maps are cosmetic" "patching OW is bad" and "destiny isn't even good" if you want to make a more nuanced and informed critique. Also, you clearly have w bone to pick with multiplayer FPS and that's the crux of your salt. But that's what this post is. It's just salt.
Nekketsu Kõha
Banned
Silver age shortly after this is the bronze age we are in.
ClosingADoor
Member
Just sounds like you don't like a lot of those games. And that is OK. But a lot of people do. And the fact that you have so many different shooters around, so everyone can find something they like, kind of supports the idea this is a golden age for FPS.
I haven't got much to add other than to say that the news articles that show up in steam on the pubg section when you click on the game are 90% from PC Gamer, and most of them are incredibly amateurish and poorly written. They've made me think less of PC Gamer - an outlet that, until this point, I've had almost no opinion of.
Sales would say otherwise
And uh, what exactly is the metric for gold?
Because if it's sales and popularity, we're in it right now (though you could argue it peaked during the 360 era and the height of Modern Warfare)
If you mean innovation - look at the late 2000s, starting with Half-Life 2 and Metroid Prime, and paving the way for Portal, Bioshock, Halo's Forge Mode, Modern Warfare's Twitch Multiplayer (and again, I'd argue that we're seeing evolution today still).
If you mean nostalgia, then yeah sure.
Who is talking about sales ?
Medium is growing. Games that perform averagely will soon sell more than what UT did for example. This isn't a metric. It's about games quality and impact.
What kind of "innovation" are you talking about for these games ? They are mainstreamed version of what Quake/unreal/deus ex/system shock/CS and other mods did.
So let's see:
Miss anything?
- OP has a lot of facts wrong or has made statements he had not either bothered checking in his rage-fueled rant
- OP thinks maps are as superficial and cosmetic as skins
- OP just wants single player campaigns and hates the idea of a game going all-in on multiplayer
- OP doesn't understand the differences in audiences in old school esports and the current esport landscape in terms of audience. (Look up numbers for the PUBG gamescom invitational)
- OP tries to hate on devs being transparent after years and years of players wanting more transparency
- OP doesn't like Destiny and therefore Destiny 2 can't be good even though he criticizes the author for not even thinking Destiny is good.. just the fact that Bungie is bringing their game to PC (in an article on PCGamer)
- OP thinks giving players choice to play old games that are no longer officially supported via player-run servers is a bad thing
Miss anything?
OP doesn't see/understand fundamental differences in game design between games.
Shake Appeal
Member
Yeah, kinda scratching my head over the OP, if I'm honest. The idea that Blizzard changing and adding things in Overwatch is bad was where it started to really go south.
Half-Life 2 closely follows the template established by the original Half-Life, which is rightly considered a revolutionary FPS that inspired everything that'd come afterwards. Its significance it's hard to grasp if you weren't there. Bioshock remains a simpler System Shock with a case of consolitis. Timesplitters, a spiritual sequel to Goldeneye of sorts, already had a map editor as a console game. MW's MP was definitely very influential though, most unfortunately.
It's really hard to argue against the mid to late 90s and the very first couple of years of the 00s as an unrivaled golden age for shooters. The late 00s were great, but it just can't compare.
rakkadakka
Member
There are fantastic options right now for MP and some bright spots for SP.
The real thing is that no matter what you're looking for there is a highly polished version of that gameplay available.
This isn't the days of installing mods and finding communities anymore. Less dealing with jank and more dealing with loot boxes.
Honestly the way people talk about the past in terms of FPS's makes me think they aren't playing any current ones.
The real thing is that no matter what you're looking for there is a highly polished version of that gameplay available.
This isn't the days of installing mods and finding communities anymore. Less dealing with jank and more dealing with loot boxes.
Honestly the way people talk about the past in terms of FPS's makes me think they aren't playing any current ones.
Soulblighter31
Banned
god no. 93-99 as posted above, seems accurate. The birth of FPS as a genre, the mods, the multiplayer, deathmatch, the evolution from Wolf-Doom-Quake-Half Life. The branching of the genre with Thief, Tribes, Rainbow Six, Delta Force, System Shock, Deus Ex.
Thats immediately what I thought, nitpicky, arguing semantics and heavily opinionated.
Also for some reason using singleplayer and mp as an argument.
RumbleHumble
Banned
OP, there's solid counter arguments to be made here, but maps impact gameplay tremendously. The look of the player character does not.
A rant like that damages your credibility as to the rest of your arguments.
A rant like that damages your credibility as to the rest of your arguments.
This is the first time I've been excited about the direction of the FPS genre since post-2007. It's way too early to say if things have truly picked up again though, so this article is far too soon.
Despite that, for the reasons others have mentioned, all but a couple of the "criticisms" in the OP are pretty lol.
Despite that, for the reasons others have mentioned, all but a couple of the "criticisms" in the OP are pretty lol.
I literally laughed out loud at the absurdity of saying maps are just cosmetic. Go play some old bargain bin shoots will awful map design and get back to us on that one OP.
I do agree with his general critique of the article. It's been a good year for multiplayer shooters but it doesn't feel like a golden age. Just some solid shooters in a variety of genres and pubg is third person most of the time.
I do agree with his general critique of the article. It's been a good year for multiplayer shooters but it doesn't feel like a golden age. Just some solid shooters in a variety of genres and pubg is third person most of the time.
The à¹ÛBronx
Member
When his arguments consist of:
1. PUBG also has a third person mode
2. Patches/support is bad
3. Gambling is bad (I don't necessarily disagree with this but talk about nitpicking the wording of the article...)
4. Incorrect info about Quake
5. People only play Siege because it had customization (amongst other ridiculous claims)
6. I don't like Destiny
7. Not even sure what the point is here. Other games with similar themes exist?
8. Debatable
10. Again, not sure what the argument is here...
11. TF2 has a very healthy population and is consistently in the top ten most played games on steam.
14. Nope.
15. Then you get to the utterly ridiculous map/cosmetic point.
There's not a whole lot of credibility to lose...
Not that I agree with the article in question, I don't think this is a golden age for FPS games, despite there being a number of very good ones out at the moment. OP's counter arguments are just terrible.
Stopped reading OP when complaining about games as a service getting patches. The only reason we didn't get so many patches before was poor means of distribution. Tweaks don't mean that game didn't run as intended, they mean it wasn't perfect (and no game is perfect).
Even if there were bugs that needed fixing, if you would do a "proper" QA to catch every issue on an open platform like PC, it would just mean that game development prices would become unaffordable for such platform.
Even if there were bugs that needed fixing, if you would do a "proper" QA to catch every issue on an open platform like PC, it would just mean that game development prices would become unaffordable for such platform.
Crankshaft
Member
I think the average gamer can watch a video of Lawbreakers game play and tell right away it's not an Overwatch clone.
Magic Mushroom
Member
Deus Ex isn't an FPS. If it is, you can count the rather brilliant Prey as well. And between games like DOOM, Titanfall 2 and Wolfenstein (II) it's certainly not bad. Overall it's pretty damn good. Gaming in general is.
PhantomThief
Banned
Totally agree with the OP, great write up.
Lootboxes and microtransactions and no single player campaigns makes it all too obvious we are not in a golden age of fps games.
Not saying those games aren't fun to play, but they have a lot of problems.
Lootboxes and microtransactions and no single player campaigns makes it all too obvious we are not in a golden age of fps games.
Not saying those games aren't fun to play, but they have a lot of problems.
OfTheOverflow
Member
What spurred this... manifesto, lol
Buggy Loop
Member
/highfive
Anyone around those times for fps games on PC must've been confused as hell to see these console games getting high praise.
Nekketsu Kõha
Banned
PC Gamer lol
This is the text version of a response video where a YouTube stops the video they're "rebutting" every ten seconds to nitpick.
Pro-tip: the author of the article often doesn't get to choose the headline, so that's a real stupid place to start complaining.
Overall, yeah, multiplayer FPS offerings have never been as robust and diverse as they are now. I don't think singleplayer campaigns are there yet as we still see too many linear set-piece driven campaigns.
Pro-tip: the author of the article often doesn't get to choose the headline, so that's a real stupid place to start complaining.
Overall, yeah, multiplayer FPS offerings have never been as robust and diverse as they are now. I don't think singleplayer campaigns are there yet as we still see too many linear set-piece driven campaigns.
Basically this.
The FPS scene now is much better and diverse when compared to last gen...but its not a golden age.
PhantomThief
Banned
I dont even know where to start on your OW critique. Should we be upset that Blizzard has been supporting their game? You do realize that they STILL patch Diablo 2 and Starcraft, right? Are those games also trash or unplayable? Hardly.
Thats not even mentioning that a lot of those patches arent even for balance changes or bug fixes, at least not exclusively. Many brought in tons of free content, like maps, heroes and skins, even game types, a server browser, and events.
This much support for a AAA game should be applauded, not shamed.
Thats not even mentioning that a lot of those patches arent even for balance changes or bug fixes, at least not exclusively. Many brought in tons of free content, like maps, heroes and skins, even game types, a server browser, and events.
This much support for a AAA game should be applauded, not shamed.
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