Ignorant naive newbie beginner questions about video games, sports, and other games

The Game Room
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This is a thread for uninformed questions by uninformed questioners. I’ll start.

Video games

Why would anybody buy a video game at a brick and mortor location like Gamestop? (Motivation: Gamestop just raised $900 million in a new stock offering). Isn’t it better to read reviews on the internet and download the games?

I understand that some game designs encourage inadvertant fat-fingered purchases of in-game items for money? Have there been lawsuits? Why do gamers tolerate such abuse?

Or are all game manufacturers dirtbags?

Esports. Why?

Steam. What’s its role in the gaming ecosystem?

What’s the consensus on game subscriptions vs. just buying them?

Are video games legitimate art forms or is that a stretch?

Please link to a good overview of gaming platforms.

Please link to the best compilation of the best games of all time (reviews, not the games themselves).

What video games should everyone know about and what should they know about them? (Or just link to an article).

What game has the best AI? What does that even mean?

I’m a pacifist. Are there any recommended games or is it all first person shooter?

My basement is filled with bodies and I need a new hobby. Are there any recommended games or is it all Minecraft now?

I’ve never played/haven’t played video games for decades/well ok twice. What’s recommended?

I’m passive-aggressive. What’s recommended?

Other threads:

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I’m slightly confused: Are those example questions or are you looking for answers to each one?

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There may be games that fool you into paying real money. I’ve never seen it. It’s always been very clear when they are charging real money.

Where they get you is, it’s a little here, a little there, before you know it you are spending more than you want.

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Gamestop’s stock boom has nothing to do with the health of their business and everything to do with their becoming the fixation of a doomsday cult who are convinced that if they buy enough Gamestop stock the price will go to hundreds of millions per share and they’ll all become rich as the rest of the global economy collapses.

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The FTC recently made Epic Games refund $245mil for shady purchases in Fortnite:

Epic Games will also pay $245 million in refunds to consumers who made unintended purchases, in the largest administrative order in FTC history.

In a separate complaint, FTC alleged Epic Games deceived players of all ages into a phenomenon known as “dark patterns.” The FTC alleged, for example, that Epic Games made it easy for children and teens to purchase online credits for in-game items, such as costumes and dance moves. Yet, the company made it extremely difficult for players to easily cancel accidental charges. Other examples of “dark patterns” included players being charged while trying to wake the game from sleep mode, while the game was loading, or when a player mistakenly pressed a button when simply trying to preview an item.

The FTC alleged that Epic Games would lock accounts of those who disputed unwanted charges and warned them that they could be banned for life if they disputed any future charges. Epic Games allegedly earned hundreds of millions of dollars through “dark patterns” and billing practices. These practices also resulted in more than one million parental complaints according to the FTC’s complaint.

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I’m curious about the first 2. The remaining are optional. I’ll read all answers.

I noticed that most threads in The Game Room are directed at an audience with a certain knowledge level. This is a thread for more ignorant questions.

ETA: Maybe this is me, but I’d put Epic Games on my forever boycott list if I ever succumbed to one of their so-called Dark Patterns.

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The primary reason to buy a game at GameStop, Target, WalMart, Amazon, etc is so you can sell it when you don’t want it any longer. Some people like to collect them and collecting physical stuff is a lot more fun than collecting digital stuff in this case. Needless to say, this mainly just applies to console gaming as PC gaming is almost entirely dominated by digital stuff these days (even buying a new release PC game at Target just gets you a download code inside the box 95% of the time)

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They’re art. Even at their most basic, they require concept art, creative direction, storytelling, writing, voice acting, etc. At their best, they provide a profoundly moving experience.

To answer your other question, they’re not all shooters. I don’t tend to play shooters. If you want to not kill things, there are puzzle games, walking sims, casual/crafting games, resource management games, adventure games, detective stories, you name it.

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Esports. Why?

Because, like other sports, there is a legitimate market for it, and it is a profitable enterprise.

Steam. What’s its role in the gaming ecosystem?

Still the standard-bearer for PC gaming store platforms.

I’m a pacifist. Are there any recommended games or is it all first person shooter?

The modern gaming industry has expanded way beyond DOOM jarhead shit. Whatever it is you’re into, there’s probably not just a game or two, but a whole niche genre catering to exactly that.

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Hey! Hey! Hey! Stop hitting me where I hurt!! To be fair, I am also into the Far Cry Reluctant Mass Murderer With a Conscience shit too. :wink:

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Steam, is a digital store, cloud saves, community with friends, blah blah blah. It’s a nice, convenient way to purchase and own games.

Game subscriptions vs buying: Depends on how you play games, if you play a game through quickly, then move on to the next, then the next, then the next, a game sub could be a good deal. If you are like me and play games more than once, but don’t play very often at all, sometimes going weeks without playing anything other than the weekly game with the guys, then purchasing is a better deal than a monthly fee.

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The kind of mainstream gaming you’re asking about currently has three platforms: PC, Nintendo, and Sony/Microsoft.

Nintendo is doing their own thing. They dominated the handheld market for decades and recently leveraged that into becoming a living room powerhouse with the hybrid Switch console. The Switch is significantly behind the other platforms in terms of computing power, so its games tend to be designed specifically for it. Its software sales are dominated by Nintendo-produced games. Mario, Pokemon, and Zelda are its main franchises.

Microsoft and Sony essentially have identical consoles with identical software libraries. For the handful of titles exclusive to each platform, people generally prefer Sony’s offerings. A console will set you back $500, but you’ll have a gaming machine with plenty of great games and a good experience. Microsoft and Sony both throw massive amounts of money at creating blockbuster games so the biggest and most acclaimed games tend to work best on these consoles. Sony’s installed base is the largest so more so their consoles than Microsoft’s consoles.

My passion is PC gaming. The big differentiator with PC gaming is its anarchy. There isn’t a corporate overlord that designs experiences or otherwise acts as a gatekeeper. A gaming PC is a collection of inputs from a dozen different companies or hobbyists. Because anyone can make a PC game, it has the most games and the most kinds of games. To the point that as many PC games are released in a day as on the other platforms combined… in a month. Microsoft and Sony are both using the PC as their b-platform to help offset the rising costs of game development, so PC gamers tend to get the exclusives from each console. If video games ever get a Mona Lisa, it’ll be a PC game. The big downside to PC gaming is that it’s far more expensive than the others in terms of hardware costs. Software costs are lower, but not to the point of ever making up for the hardware costs. You’d have a good setup for $1500. It isn’t a crazy amount, but it’s more than $500. (The best setup is about $4000.)

Most people I know consider the best setup a high-end gaming PC and a Nintendo Switch. They’re all biased though.

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Gaming PC and Nintendo Switch is my preferred combination.

I’ve certainly been more of a Sony and Microsoft fan in the past, but the vast majority of games on those consoles tend to also come out on PC anyway these days. It’s not like the past where there was a clear divide between PC and console games. Consoles are essentially limited-use PC’s these days anyway considering they use many of the same components.

Nintendo is still worth it due to their unique gaming experiences and great exclusive library of games. Sony still has some interesting exclusives from time to time, but Microsoft doesn’t really have anything really worth buying an Xbox for today.

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A relatively easy way to test the waters, assuming you own a PC that can handle HD Youtube videos, is to wait for a $1 promo for 1-3 months of GamePass Ultimate. Microsoft is likely to offer such a promo next month since their big trade show is in June.

With a GamePass Ultimate subscription, you can access their cloud streaming service to play a bunch of different games without needing your own console or gaming PC.

Some titles that may be interesting to try:

  • Flight Simulator 2020. It’s absurd how well they recreated the actual world with this title. You can probably fly by your house. Simulation games like this are a form of entertainment that other mediums can’t offer.
  • Forza Horizon 5 / Forza Motorsport. Microsoft’s main racing franchises. Motorsport is a simulation game that aims for realism. Horizon is less realistic and kind of a racing theme park experience.
  • Stardew Valley. A beloved farming game. It does contain some cartoon monster slaying, but it isn’t required or a prominent part of the game. On the shortlist for greatest games ever made.

Less pacifistic stuff:

  • Assassins Creed Origin or Odyssey. Fun games with a lot of effort to recreate those ancient worlds in plausible way. Shows what can happen when $100 million+ is spent on a game.
  • Skyrim. A medieval fantasy role-playing game. A significant number of people consider it the greatest game ever made. It’s big on immersion and making you feel like you live in another world.
  • Yakuza Like a Dragon. One of my personal favourites. It’s the story about a ex-yakuza trying to get his life together after spending 20 years in prison. He runs into a bunch of wacky characters along the way. There are many jokes about gaming in it.
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On Steam, it’s worth noting that the way that they’ve been able to maintain their dominant position is by treating folks, both players and developers, basically decently. On pretty much any question, if there’s the choice between the nice way of doing something and the obnoxious way, they consistently choose the nice way. Which leads to lots of developers and gamers choosing to do business with them.

They’ve also ushered in a golden age of indy gaming, because it’s really easy for a small developer to distribute games through Steam. Most of the best games I’ve played recently have been from small-time developers, where almost the entire game is the work of one person, maybe with one or two helpers doing things like music and art assets. Such as the aforementioned Stardew Valley (the most relaxed game of all time), or the mind-bending puzzler Baba is You, or the murdery but cartoony and so over-the-top it’s funny Streets of Rogue.

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Speaking of games that are art. There are large numbers of people that credit that game to saving their lives, helping them through depression and addiction, and all kinds of stuff. It kept me sane during my pregnancy.

OP, I have a PC and a PS4 Pro. I play a wide variety of games. Other games that I I have enjoyed:

Horizon Zero Dawn (PS4, Steam): If you’d like to be a native hunting robot dinosaurs in a naturalistic post-apocalypse, this game is for you! What’s really special about this game is you become an archeologist for ruins and people roughly dating to our present time. As you uncover the ruins, you uncover bits of stories of the people left behind, and those little stories form a bigger story, which eventually dovetails beautifully into the big science fiction climax of the game. This is an example of storytelling that couldn’t be done in any other medium than a video game. The bits of writing and audio you unearth from the ruins are so compelling I thought it came from a novel. You’re mostly “killing” robot dinosaurs with a bow and arrow, but there are some bandit camps you can take out. Nothing graphic.

The Return of the Obra Dinn (Steam.) I can’t tell you how much I love this game. You’re an insurance adjustor in the 1800s when a cargo ship washes up onshore, all of its crew dead or missing. You have a magic compass that shows you the final seconds before death for everyone on board (freeze frame and dialog), you have a ship’s schematic, a crew roster, some old photos, and your brains. Using powers of deduction you have to figure out who killed who and how they died. It’s not very graphic, everything is in stylized black and white. It is however, a bit unsettling, with supernatural elements of old sailor’s myths. I loved the way the mystery unfolds. The game begins with the intriguing final moments on the ship. You’re gonna wanna take notes.

Pentiment (Steam): I haven’t finished this one yet, but it’s a very historically accurate (right down to the buildings) adventure story set in a Medieval town. You’re an artist on commission, hanging out with the monks. Someone is killed, mystery ensues. This is very heavy narrative driven, point and click interaction stuff where every decision matters. The art direction is fascinating, and you can point and click on dialog links to learn more about Medieval history.

What Remains of Edith Finch (PS4, probably Steam:) Not a video game in the traditional sense - you participate but the story is happening to you. It’s a moving, complex story about a young woman coming to terms with the fact that everyone in her family died young. You experience the life (and death) of each family member. It’s a gentle, moving story with important things to say about the fleeting nature of existence. It’s art.

I’ll keep trying to think of games that aren’t shooters and I’m assuming you don’t want to slay monsters either?

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I know someone who uses Words with Friends to treat her insomnia.

Great responses. Honestly I could have titled this thread, “Talk about your passion to an ignorant but interested outsider.” The questions present paths for that.

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I’ll second that recommendation, and I’ll add in that I love the way it blends magical realism and varying art styles into the stories of her “cursed” family - the story of a child actor known for appearing in slasher films, for example, is told as a Tales From the Crypt pastiche, while the story of a video game addict who works a boring job at a cannery is depicted as a 16-bit video game. Some of the stories raise more questions than answers, there’s a lot of background detail that fills in parts of the narrative, and I’m pretty sure nobody has ever set a game on Orcas Island, WA before, so having it take place in my backyard was a neat touch.

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Just chiming in that Horizon Zero Dawn is a fantastic example of an “open world” style story-driven game (which the OP may or may not like). Which is to say you are plopped into a big virtual world and are more or less to explore it as you feel like. The story unfolds as you meet various characters and gain access to new areas of the world. Other popular games in this genre include Grand Theft Auto series, Red Dead Redemption series, Skyrim, Metal Gear series, Farcry series, Fallout series, Ghost of Tsushima and so on. Although most of them are pretty violent.

My son got into gaming with Lego City Undercover, which is basically like a funny Lego GTA for kids.

I tend to like city-builders and colony games like Cities Skylines, older SimCity versions, Oxygen Not Included, and Rimworld (others include Factoria, Dyson Sphere Program, and the original Dwarf Fortress). Basically the idea is you are creating a functioning system like a city or colony. For the most part you don’t control your inhabitants directly, but you have them build their environmental systems and try to keep them alive.

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Traditionally this means how competent is the game as a ‘player’, usually as an opponent to you but also things like directing allied NPCs. More specifically, how “smart” can the game act without relying on juiced up stats to make up for its intelligence deficits. How this plays out can vary based on the genre of game.

FEAR is the standard bearer for enemy AI in a shooter, with enemies that attempt to flank the player, communicate with one another to warn/inform other enemy soldiers based on a soldiers experiences (spotting you, hiding, etc), using cover and that sort of thing. Even today it’s always one of the first games mentioned for excellent AI

The Rockstar games (GTAV, Red Dead Redemption 2) and Bethesda Elder Scroll (Oblivion, Skyrim) are lauded for their civilian AI and having civilian NPCs lead realistic lives. STALKER is another good one for this though it’s usually enemies leading lives independent of you.

The Dragons Dogma games features NPC party members who you can recruit from other players in an online hub. They will both learn from enemy encounters and both try to act on this knowledge (shouting advice and warnings and choosing their attacks when appropriate) and share it with other NPC group members. They’ll also learn from locations you explore to tell other players later (“In a previous world, I learned of a chest near here; shall I show you the way?”)

Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor introduced a “Nemesis System” where a select NPC opponent would develop concurrently with you as you leveled and and play the role of a recurring villain. Besides combat skills, its physical appearance would change based on previous battles, taunt you based off your previous actions/wins/defeats in game, etc. But the cool thing was that each player has a different nemesis developing differently based on some semi-random orc you beat up early in the game.

Other people could pipe in with exceptional AI in other genres like Grand Strategy games (who don’t just rely on 2x build speed and +45% troop strength), driving/racing games and so on.

It’s important to note that none of this has anything to do with “AI” as a trend from the past couple of years… yet. There’s games in development that claim they’ll use LLM style AI to have a conversation with an NPC in a roleplaying game or direct the lives of civilian NPCs, etc but nothing has come out yet in a major release game.