Does this Xbox One - PS4 generation seem terribly boring to anybody else ?

[WCP]

So, I've been gaming for a very long time, and I've seen generation after generation.... First gaming system was an Atari VCS in 1977. Got my NES for Xmas 1986. I've basically seen every single generation of gaming come and go since then.

I'm honestly struggling to think of a more "boring" generation of gaming. I bought both the Xbox One and PS4 on their respective launch days. I was super hyped for both systems. Ultimately, since their arrival in November 2013, it just seems like both of these systems are such a waste.. I can't think of one specific game that makes the Xbox One or PS4 a mandatory purchase. Here we are in 2016, a number of years after their launch, and I really can't think of a single game release that truly blew me away.

Doesn't anybody remember when a new video game would come out that would just blow everybody the F away ? It just seems like it's been so freaking long since this has happened. The last time it "truly" happened was GTA 3 on PS2 back in October of 2001. But, if I'm a bit more lenient, I guess I could say Bioshock, Crackdown and Fallout 3. Certainly nothing from this generation. There doesn't seem to be anything in particular on the horizon either that has me really excited. I'd like to check out Uncharted 4, but I'm guessing it's just going to be a really, really purdy version of Uncharted and nothing truly ground breaking. What the heck happened to this industry ? Is it just the law of diminishing returns or something ?

[celerystalker]

I have also been uninterested in the current generation, but it's been on a decline for a long time for me. There's just kind of a same-ness among modern games for me. Most games have a very realistic, almost simulation bent to them, but I know I've ranted about that in other threads. Most games feel very similar to me these days, like there's an 80% overlap in control schemes, similar graphics and physics engines... the difference between games seems to be the degree to which RPG elements are emphasized and story.

What I like about old games is that they abbreviate the filler. I don't travel Final Fantasy III's overworld in real time to marvel at the level of detail put into each tree. I scurry over to the next area to do what I'm going to do, with sights and sounds that give me enough to build atmosphere and engage my imagination, but omitting the boring stuff. If I play, say, Guerrilla War, I run and shoot shit, and I don't watch detailed, lengthly cutscenes that are there to expand on the drama and gravitas of the situation. I just blow everything up in a setting that gets its own point across until I'm done.

For people who love the modern, dramatic style, that's cool for them, but it doesn't engage my imagination or capture my attention with its style. I get a similar satisfaction by watching a movie, which takes up far less time. I'm not saying that modern games have no gameplay, but rather that everything feels so literal and simulated that I rarely have any sense of wonder from them beyond in the moment. I've always felt like gaps between the game and reality are where my imagination gets involved and latches on to games that catch my interest. I need something to keep me engaged, though, whether it's a graphical style that leaves me interested but with room to imagine, quality unanswered questions in storytelling or untouched plot points that leave room for worthwhile consideration, or intriguing secrets so densely populated that Ibwant to dig into the nooks and crannys of the world.

[Leo_A]

My want lists are quite full, so while I'm only a Wii U owner, I don't anticipate having any trouble finding lots of games that I'm looking forward to playing. My concern is affording it all and actually having time to play at least a good chunk of it in a reasonable amount of time.

I'm especially happy to see what I've seen described as the "middle class game" make a rebirth. For a while there it seemed like there was precious little on consoles except AAA releases all trying to be the next Call of Duty sales hit and very small scale digital releases like $5-$10 standalone classic arcade games.

It seems that it's finally affordable again to develop and publish fairly ambitious titles on consoles that aren't out to be the next game to move 8 million units a year. You can work to make a good niche game that if it's a runaway sales hit will hit maybe a million units for a best case scenario, and actually have a chance of surviving as seen by scores of games like Firewatch coming from smaller outfits.

[calthaer]

I would really suggest checking out the "indie" game scene. You might have to go to the PC to get it; IIRC the Xbox line isn't as much a home to this as they once were. The most memorable gaming experiences from the last decade for me have been small studios making great games. Things like Terraria, Braid, Bastion, Costume Quest, Fez, FTL: Faster Than Light, La Mulana, Aquaria, Mark of the Ninja...there really is a lot to choose from.

[Tanooki]

Yes it has. It's not I think as much for a lack of games exactly, but a lack of anything one, interesting, and two, that hasn't been also shoved on the last gen stuff so they don't lose profit. WiiU was a sad bust unless you're just a Nintendo brown noser so that unique value isn't there this time as it was with Wii far more. PS4 and One have nothing strongly of value just tied to them other than a very select few key titles. Had I not paid $200 but $400 on the PS4 I'd be upset.

I have 10 games for it, got rid of probably 4 I had that I got cheap that were not better than average and I got bored with, and then I have an 11th sealed I'm not sure why I don't get rid of other than feeling like a hypocrite or something (RCR DX) as I have it on other formats as it is now. Other than Destiny with my nephews I can't recall using it much all year and well into the last other than spurts with Godzilla, GoW3 remaster, FF10 remaster(which I got rid of as I got bored and distracted), Uncharted Trilogy (detect a pattern?) and that Wolfenstein sequel. I have Uncharted 4 coming whenever they stop delaying it, but other than that I don't know. No Man's Sky is coming on GOG which will perform better on my laptop anyway and also not being stuck on the TV be far better used hours wise I can tell you. Odin Sphere I missed out on originally so that I'll do, and if I got that Gravity Rush remaster (again another remake) at some point I can't think of anything else I'd bother with.

I think I could be happy if I even sold it and just bought a cheap blu ray player which is kind of sad or just moved the PS3 back in my room.

edit--forgot that more budget priced TMNT game and also Mighty no 9 were popping up on here too in June. I may pop on those considering the 3DS didn't get either.

[Colorado Rockies]

Yeah this generation is pretty boring to me. I was excited for The Witcher 3, Fallout 4, Just Cause 3 and all of them let me down. MGSV was amazing but that was still on 360/PS3 as well. The Vita is the only next gen console that hasn't let me down so far.

[Gameguy]

Yeah, there's not a lot that interests me on consoles this generation. Some mildly interesting things on portables or the PC, but not all that much either. Really for most modern stuff just watching someone play through it on youtube is enough to satisfy my interest with it. With older games I would have some drive to actually play it, seeing a video makes me say "that looks like fun, I want to play it". Now I don't really feel that for most modern games.

People buy current consoles for Bluray players and streaming boxes. They just also play some video games as a bonus.

[T]

So, I've been gaming for a very long time, and I've seen generation after generation.... First gaming system was an Atari VCS in 1977. Got my NES for Xmas 1986. I've basically seen every single generation of gaming come and go since then.

I'm honestly struggling to think of a more "boring" generation of gaming. I bought both the Xbox One and PS4 on their respective launch days. I was super hyped for both systems. Ultimately, since their arrival in November 2013, it just seems like both of these systems are such a waste.. I can't think of one specific game that makes the Xbox One or PS4 a mandatory purchase. Here we are in 2016, a number of years after their launch, and I really can't think of a single game release that truly blew me away.

Doesn't anybody remember when a new video game would come out that would just blow everybody the F away ? It just seems like it's been so freaking long since this has happened. The last time it "truly" happened was GTA 3 on PS2 back in October of 2001. But, if I'm a bit more lenient, I guess I could say Bioshock, Crackdown and Fallout 3. Certainly nothing from this generation. There doesn't seem to be anything in particular on the horizon either that has me really excited. I'd like to check out Uncharted 4, but I'm guessing it's just going to be a really, really purdy version of Uncharted and nothing truly ground breaking. What the heck happened to this industry ? Is it just the law of diminishing returns or something ?

I agree 100% with this post. My history is the same as yours. Maybe we are getting too old.
I play my WiiU more than my PS4 and XBOX one combined but that's not saying much because I play
last gen. systems even more.

[shadowman]

I find that I'm less interested in the big commercial releases these days - doesn't really help that many of them launch broken (or at least really glitchy) and requires patches for games to be in half decent states. This gen got so bad that I just stopped buying games at launch bar a couple from trusted developers (Nintendo for one, and the Sega published Yakuza series). I also prefer strong single player games, not a fan of multiplayer games so all these new multiplayer focused games do nothing for me.

I find myself gravitating to indie releases more and more. I'm a huge fan of most of the recent 2D platformers on offer, and there are loads more that I want to play. Despite it being rather mishandled at points I'm really hyped for Mighty No 9 next month (loved the PC demo's) and the concept of No Man's Sky sounds cool.

The only big exception on the PS4 (and why its still my primary console) is for the Yakuza series - I could play those games forever (in fact - I'm playing the PS4 remake of the first game now and I'm completely addicted to it, its fantastic).

For the Wii U - its probably one of my lesser played Nintendo consoles, I'm mainly just not a fan of the game pad at all (much prefer the great pro pad) but it has a nice line up of titles. I've got a nice backlog of stuff that I need to finish on this console.

As for the Xbox One - its basically a paperweight. I barely ever use it these days and just can't really get hyped about any of the titles on offer. The only two games I need to play this year on it is the definitive edition of Ori and the Blind Forest (amazing game) and Cuphead (which looks fab). Again, these are indie titles.

[Tanooki]

I'm finding it's not the years, it's the mileage. Indiana Jones said it best.

The mileage used to be a fun road of gaming and equal parts finding and discovering stuff. Things in the last five years in particular have become worse and worse from multiple angles. If you're a classic game player, Nintendo predators make that an un-fun mess and various others like the TG16/PCE, Sega CD/32X/Saturn stuff greatly so, and a few other screw ball things. I mean seriously, now that I'm schooled on what MVS carts (Neo Geo Arcade) go for it's nauseating what was once considered 'the expensive shit' now look like a deal.

Then you have the modern stuff, greatly so the MS and Sony stuff, though Nintendo has their own issues too. The first two clowns push out crap 90% of the time before it is done using people as $60 guinea pigs -- bullshit on that. All three of them are living off franchises but they're all taking them down a darker road where it's a prettier package with a crappier or at least more boring/contrived re-run under the surface. You have MS/Sony doing the me-too games in some shoving match, and Nintendo decided to go sit in a corner and put one thumb in its mouth and suck it while shoving the other in their ass and spinning on it considering they're deaf and blind to the complaints, yet offer people nothing worth buying unless it is there stuff and they wonder why the WiiU rots on the shelf.

3 Years ago now I came to the conclusion that I can't play in this pond as much anymore, and progressively it is now to where I can't tolerate it much at all anymore as a generalized blanket statement. As it stands I have 15 3DS games and 10 for the PS4. I should have more, but the games aren't that good and I finish them and dump them for another except a few, and even then I really haven't rolled over that many titles on either so it's not like I own 10 but sold 30 which isn't the case. 2 days later, still Uncharted 4 sits wrapped up and I know I'd enjoy it, but I have no care to open it now. Why? I could guess, but I'd rather not. Truth be told I get more fun out of non-touch based bite sized stuff or at least portable stuff mostly now with some PC thrown in. I'm more into the non-standard stuff like my MVS cabinet and Pin-Bot than the traditional. If I go down the normal road I have DOOM 2016 going on PC, and I'm screwing around really just with Gameboy and Game Gear stuff passively because I don't want to deal with it anymore.

That's why I'm selling off my collection currently as far as about 95-98% of it goes that I didn't buy up before the year 2000 as far as consoles go. It doesn't mean I'll dump it all, nor does it mean I may not want Goemon's Great Adventure for N64 some day again and just grab it, but I've pushed the Start Button to pause this game for now. Maybe my mood will improve, maybe it won't. I'd rather get rid of the unused stuff if it's gaming or whatever, and throw it towards something I can use like some MVS carts for my Neo Geo, or if I can ever track it down Konami GB Collection Vol4 (UK GBC) for Gameboy Color.

[calthaer]

Yesterday I started playing Conduit for the Wii. And I started thinking to myself: why did I buy this game? It was unique and indie and whatever, but it's kind of a boring shooter. Are all shooters this boring? I think I am going to sell some of my games, too (although looks like nobody wants Conduit). Backloggery.com is a good motivation - if I don't like a game, get rid of it to get it out of my backlog.

[FieryReign]

I find it hard to believe anybody pays full price for games nowadays. Just wait a couple months and it will be on the bargain shelf for less than 20. So why buy these new games just to keep them wrapped in cellophane for months on end sitting on the shelf? They will most likely need some kind of patch or install. Is it some kind of horniness to buy games brand new and let em collect dust? I guess people like throwing dough away, whatever.

Ps4 and xbone games look lame and I'll never own either. When I want to play a game I should be able to fire it up and go. Only recently got a ps3 and it's bullshit for most games. I guess it's cool to release buggy games and patch them later, because y'all suckers keep buyin it all up. Impatient game players and greedy corps are a match made in heaven.

[Spartacus]

I'm honestly struggling to think of a more "boring" generation of gaming.

Considering there was speculation that this might have been the generation that games went mostly digital, how could I possibly complain as a collector. Games are being printed on disc with print runs of only a few thousand. I think this generation has turned into a pleasant surprise for most collector's.

The Xbox One had a very collector unfriendly plan to eliminate used games. That plan failed spectacularly and a once popular brand was re-branded by the public into the Xbone, sending a pretty clear message on the subject to publishers and console makers alike.

I do collect for the Xbox One and there are a few digital games that made it onto disc that I've found; State of Decay, Killer Instinct, Raiden V and the Goat Simulator.

I felt the Day One Edition Console was collectable, it has Day One 2013 printed on the controller and includes the once mandatory Kinect sensor that has since been discarded. I thought the white Special Edition Sunset Overdrive console looked pretty nice and hoped it's color would stay unique, but that didn't happen. I don't have it yet, but there is a blue Forza Limited Edition console also. Of course, if you're going to collect for the Xbox, then you have to have the Limited Edition Halo consoles - The Master Chief Collection and Halo 5 Guardians. They aren't all that much to look at though. But what I really dislike are those gaudy green box's that most Xbox One consoles are sold in. YUCK!

It's a little better on the PS4 side of collecting.

The Limited Edition Destiny: The Taken King Bundle is gorgeous! And I really like the design of the Limited Edition Batman: Arkham Knight, Star Wars Battlefront and Uncharted 4: A Thief's End bundles. I just hope they don't overdo that series.

Here's some of the Digital/Mobile/Steam games that I've found on disc...

We have:
Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris
Awesomenauts Assemble!
Tiny Troopers: Joint Ops
Kromaia: Omega
Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Terraria
Ether One
The Last Tinker: City of Colors
Toki Tori 2
Ziggurat
Tower of Guns
Teslagrad
This War of Mine: The Little Ones
Flockers
Infamous: First Light
Saturday Morning RPG
Retro City Rampage
Oddworld: New 'n' Tasty!
Pure Pool
Pure Chess
Pure Hold'em Poker


And here's some Kickstarter/Indie games I found on disc.

We have:
Wasteland 2: Director's Cut,
The Book of Unwritten Tales 2
Shovel Knight
Republique
Broken Sword: The Serpent's Curse
Battle Worlds: Kronos
Giana Sisters: Twisted Dream
The Pinball Arcade 1 & 2
The Escapists
The Escapists: The Walking Dead
The Talos Principle
Stick It to the Man
Zombie Vikings
Futuridium

Ohhh - and I just realized Shovel Knight fell over. Son of a B...!

The Hotline Miami: Collected Edition (JP) included both Hotline Miami and Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number. The Bloodborne Game of the Year Edition included the Old Hunter DLC on disc.
Some interesting imports include indie developer Dracue's remake of Target Earth (Assault Suit Leynos) and a game that I think was only sold in Spain but that I've heard plays in English, Tadeo Jones And The Lost Manuscript. There's also a PS4 version of ZombiU, of all things. And there's a spiffied up PS4 version of the Journey Collector's Edition indie games.

Speaking as a collector, it's sure nice seeing all these games on disc!

[kupomogli]

The Hotline Miami: Collected Edition (JP) included both Hotline Miami and Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number.

I own this but it's sealed, did some research before I bought it(I own both games on all PS consoles because Cross Buy and own the first one on PC.) Hotline Miami is on disc while Hotline Miami 2 is just a digital code that will only work on Japanese PSN. The disc will be in English or Japanese depending on what language your PS4 is set to.