Monopoly. If it wasn’t a classic, and someone was looking for a publisher with that concept, they’d be completely trashed.
What is a game you can’t understand why its so popular ?
Submitted 2 months ago by 64bithero@lemmy.world to games@lemmy.world
Comments
Treczoks@lemmy.world 1 month ago
plutopos@lemmy.zip 1 month ago
That’s because Monopoly (well, the game Monoopoly ripped off from) was designed to be bad (like Undertale’s genocide route). It wanted to show how shitty the stock market is
rodneylives@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I used to like Monopoly, before its many problems became evident to me. I notice that even in the official excessively mythologizing biography of supposed-creator Charles Darrow, it notes that Parker Brothers didn’t believe the game would sell well, and it had to be proven to them from the sales of 5,000 units of the game through department store Wanamakers.
The reasons Monopoly is popular are several, most of them pretty dumb. At this point Monopoly is a part of the culture and lots of people buy it because they don’t know there are many much-better games out there. Hasbro merchandises the hell out of it, there’s over 4,000 themed versions of Monopoly now. It pushes a pleasing narrative that people can pull themselves up by their bootstraps and become successful (ignoring that all but one of the players will go bankrupt during the game).
What positive attributes does Monopoly have? Well it’s ultimately a game about trade, what causes someone to win at Monopoly, in ideal situations, isn’t how they move but what trades they make. In nearly every game of Monopoly I’ve ever played few people ever traded, causing games to run long and winners ultimately decided by whoever managed to make a natural color group, but in principle it’s an interesting idea. And it’s open-ended, as that mythologizing document I mentioned notes at the time of its origin you couldn’t get a game published unless it adhered to certain dogmatic rules, one of which being that it had to have a clear ending. Open-endedness is interesting in a board game, even if, as in Monopoly’s case, it can make a game excessively long.
I sometimes muse about how Monopoly could be improved. I think it’d be interesting to make the trading less ad-hoc and random. Maybe only allow trades at certain times, so players would have to think more about when to make them or else lose the chance, and make trades more formalized, maybe with a randomized element? Maybe fewer properties, reduce all color groups to two, make railroads and utilities a bigger part of the game. Maybe an explicit mechanism by which a player can resign from the game. Definitely make bankrupting a player less of a windfall for the person causing it. Definitely increase the costs of owning lots of properties. Definitely set an end point rather than just meander on until all players lose. Maybe add additional reasons to play than just winning; at their best board games tell these little stories about how the game progresses. Maybe have awards for players who circle the board the most times, who spend the least time in Jail, etc. Maybe one or more of these could be a “bar goal,” by which I mean, if the players agree ahead of time the players might have to buy the player who wins/gets a specific award a drink or some other minor forfeit.
leftzero@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
What positive attributes does Monopoly have?
Well, it’s supposed to teach the players that for most participants capitalism’s a mug’s game. 🤷
agent_nycto@lemmy.world 1 month ago
No one’s touched analog games so…
Monopoly. It’s tedious, it’s a grind, it was stolen from a last trying to say that landlords are shit, and it just ruins families.
Also the Outer Worlds is shit. It had cool art Nouveau style aesthetics, and had a great premise, but completely dropped the ball on practically everything. The art Nouveau ideals are counter to the world where everything is commodified and automatic. It starts off trying to be funny, but isn’t really, and does nothing to get you to feel like you’re stumbling into a capitalistic nightmare. You have no investment in the world or people or anything. It throws in the aliens and rebels like an afterthought. A fan made music video did more for the theme and feeling of oppression. Utter disappointment and they are going to make another for some reason
nickiwest@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Monopoly is the absolute worst. Almost everyone I know grew up with a copy of it in their house, and almost every family made changes to the rules because it’s such a terrible game. Yet somehow it’s a “classic.”
vagrancyand@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
It being ‘bad’ is kinda the point. It is a critique of capitalism, even in its current neutered form. It is a simple intuitive proof that if everyone started out on the same fair playing field; which is impossible in capitalism but would be the ‘idealized’ state that anarchocapitalists, Laissez-faire capitalists, and neoliberals would love to pretend the world has ever had or can ever had, capitalism will still end in an absolute collapsed state of a brutalist monopoly.
You have to add random cheat rules to even have a little fun with it, but there is no effective way to make capitalism have an end state that isn’t a total monopoly.
Parker Bros (and the various companies that bought it out after parker bros did) just didn’t really care that it criticized them as much as any other capitalist entity, because they made money.
Siethron@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Most super mainstream games especially ones that are loosely based on reality in the modern era GTA, COD for example. I’m not saying these are bad as games, but they are so RIDICULOUSLY popular and I do not see the appeal.
nexguy@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I grew up with doom/unreal tourn/quake…all with mods etc… so now every single first person game feels like just a mod of a generic first person shooter. Halo, skyrim, bioshock, rdr… it’s like I’m ruined for an entire section of games.
007ace@lemmy.ca 1 month ago
I think what’s happened here is, you are playing the games as shooters, room quake and unreal were not story driven games. It was either get the coloured key to progress, or kill everything between point a and b. All the newer games you listed have great story that drives the gameplay. And halo being the first real controller multiplayer experience brings a lot of nostalgia to people.
However it’s the same reason that I haven’t gotten on the ‘boomer shooter’ trend. They are essentially doing what you bring up. No added function or feature, they just feel like a reskin or mod of quake.
kshade@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I don’t understand why The Elder Scrolls series has so much goodwill, there are many better RPGs out there. The sandbox factor has the depth of a puddle as well.
Holytimes@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
Morrowind for it’s time is very deep. And VERY broken. Half the fun is how unreasonably broken the entire game is.
The sandbox isn’t just in the scope of what your allowed to do. But how easily you can do things you arnt allowed to do.
BoosBeau@lemmy.world 1 month ago
This is what turned me into an ES fan. I played Daggerfall when it came out, but didn’t really get it (was a kid). When Morrowind came out, I was old enough to really get into it. One-shotting an entire city with a custom spell was fun as hell.
leftzero@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
Can’t speak for the older ones because… well, they’re not before my time, I was an avid PC gamer back then, but I somehow missed them (no Internet yet, and maybe they weren’t sold where I live?)… but Morrowind was great. Janky and broken as all fuck, but great. Fantastic setting, great magic system where you could make your own spells, terrible but useable skill system, no handholding whatsoever (the game doesn’t give a flying fuck if you don’t know what a “foyada” is even if such knowledge is essential to find your way around, and that’s great, modern games almost play themselves, so what even is the point of playing, then?), and you could wear mismatched pauldrons. Haven’t found a game that topped that yet. Way too many cliff racers, sure, but still, it was a fantastic game.
Then Bethesda got downhill from there. Modders saved TES IV and V and Bethesda’s Fallouts, but not even them could do anything for Starfield.
AFallingAnvil@lemmy.ca 1 month ago
Out of curiosity, what alternatives in the genre would you recommend?
rodneylives@lemmy.world 1 month ago
(sits in the corner wearing a sign that reads “Ask me about Nethack”)
kshade@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I haven’t played that many fantasy action-ish RPGs lately, but I always thought that Gothic II was way more engaging than Oblivion or Morrowind. More compact world (which to me means less filler), also janky and just a hand full of voice actors, but a lot more personality IMO. Not a perfect game by any means though.
I’ve been meaning to play Kingdom Come 2 because it seems to be cut from a similar cloth, including giving NPCs things to do when you’re not around. For the exploration factor there’s some great RPGs without the action mechanics out there, I liked Wasteland 2 and Caves of Qod. My favorite has been Cyberpunk 2077 (2.0), but that’s probably too far removed from what TES is doing.
brucethemoose@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Nostalgia is huge with them.
I loved Oblivion. I used to appreciate players being into the lore, the little corners of the game. But then Starfield came out with so many defenders. It made me realize the sheer number of players that are just… I dunno. “Shills” doesn’t feel like the right word, but I do not understand why they go to such lengths to defend BGS.
kshade@lemmy.world 1 month ago
The only explanation I have is that it’s mostly people who never tried something else/never found something else they liked in the genre. And people who are really into TES games seem to also be heavily into modding them, so there’s that.
Valmond@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 months ago
Old RPGs.
They shouldn’t be popular, they should be wildly popular.
Canconda@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
I love old RPGs but they’re too grindy for me now or something.
Like I bought the Final Fantasy Tactics remake. Original is easily my favorite game of all time. And a HUGE Quality of Life improvement the remake added was the ability to fast forward the gameplay and the cutscenes (IYKYK).
Every time I try to pick up my 2nd all time favorite FF6(Snes) I find myself losing interest after my 10th random encounter. I like the story, the characters, the music(!), the puzzles/exploration.
But the gameplay itself, sadly, just doesn’t do it for me anymore. Like I burned many hours on my gameboy colour playing Dragon Warrior. So it’s not like I never liked the genre.
Cid@lemmy.world 2 months ago
You might enjoy the FF6 randomizer: ff6worldscollide.com It has a very active development and community (and most settings start with a moogle charm or 3 in your inventory)
Valmond@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
Yes😔 Always hated the unnecessary grind so my favourites are more Icewind dale than pokemon (it was so grindy it’s insane IMO).
But yeah, did knights of pen and paper 2 on mobile, most underwhelming story but like no grind so I even finished it (it’s not very long though).
LovableSidekick@lemmy.world 2 months ago
As a D&D grognard since 1980 I’m baffled by why people think they have to keep upgrading to the newest version, and depending on a company to fix whatever’s wrong with old versions. There are other ways to make choices in life besides clicking on menu options.
jacksilver@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Back when I could only afford a game every once in a while oldschool rpgs were great. They took forever and some had decent replayability (like pokemon or classes in FF). Nowadays they just feel like a slog.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 1 month ago
cough ORAS extremely grindy, i played pre-2007 and post 2007 and getting certain stuff was insane, im guessing thats why rs3 came out to mitigate that but pissy-gatekeeping fans wanted the old game back. and they never stopped complaining either, especially towards the rs3, especially what happened to rs3 recently.
ms_lane@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Cardbuilders - just why?
It’s just simulated gambling.
Nelots@piefed.zip 2 months ago
I don’t even like deck builders but I gotta disagree with you were. I mean sure, if its a poker game like Balatro I could see it. But how is Slay the Spire gambling? That’s like calling DnD-like games simulated gambling because everything is decided through a dice roll.
MagnificentSteiner@lemmy.zip 2 months ago
How could Balatro be seen as gambling? It’s a game you purchase once with no DLC or microtransactions and there’s no gambling in the game.
lime@feddit.nu 2 months ago
probably the same reason gambling is popular tbh
Zaraki42@lemmy.ca 1 month ago
Red Dead Redemption 2 for me.
The mechanics and controls just piss me off to no end.
bhamlin@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I don’t have enough fingers and toes and penises to count the number of times I’ve tried to talk to someone on rdr2, and shot them instead.
whelk@retrolemmy.com 1 month ago
I wanted to love this game so bad. I loved the setting and the feel and the music. After a few days of trying to play it, the last straw was when I accidentally like grappled/threatened to rob a random guy in town when I was trying to wave and say howdy, and I just turned it off and never booted it up again
yermaw@sh.itjust.works 1 month ago
Im sure Rockstar is popular because its popular. The turning circles on every game have been ass.
It was acceptable up to Vice City because 3D and physics was fairly new and pretty much every game had its foibles, but at this point its just frustrating.
Canconda@lemmy.ca 2 months ago
the one you just lost.
GerardsGuitar@retrolemmy.com 2 months ago
damn it. well played-
Senal@programming.dev 2 months ago
Life
neidu3@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
Yeah, the graphics sucks
Scio@lemmy.world 2 months ago
The Grand Theft Auto series, especially GTAV. The multiplayer one I understand, but the rest of them. Not a clue.
Skyrim, and to a much lesser extent, Oblivion.
I do understand the appeal of Expedition 33, I think. I shall leave it out of the list.
neo2478@sh.itjust.works 2 months ago
For me GTA is the opposite. I really enjoy the story and gameplay of the single player part, but can not stand the multiplayer. I find it chaotic and pointless.
psx_crab@lemmy.zip 2 months ago
I have no idea why you’re being downvoted for a post asking about personal opinion, and you’re simply stating your personal opinion non-toxically.
As for GTA, i can see how it doesn’t appeal to people, there’s a video dissecting GTA franchise and it kinda open my eye a bit, not sure if your complain is the same or not but a lot of people do dislike the franchise for multiple reason, the mission structure being one.
Scio@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Eh, I should expect some downvotes. It is a popular series after all…
The only GTA game I played through fully I did so at a pretty young age, and don’t really remember much to be critical of their mission structure, to be honest. And the early ones didn’t have that rich of a story to begin with.
My complaint is more like a lack of interest in the main gameplay of the series: the roaming around a relatively realistic city being a nuisance to people. It never appealed to me. Even when it’s just crimes, I just kept feeling like I’m doing a job rather than playing a game. I guess open world games set in the modern day world just don’t have any hooks me. I’m just surprised that this is not a common opinion, clearly! :D
Zombiepirate@lemmy.world 2 months ago
a lot of people do dislike the franchise for multiple reason, the mission structure being one.
I played Dragon’s Dogma 2, and realized that has the kind of mission structure that I would really love in a GTA or RDR game. Even if the missions in DD2 weren’t all that great themselves, they didn’t end the mission and send you back to the start even if an important character died. The quests weren’t quarantined off in a part of the open world, they were embedded within it.
Strider@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Oh yes so on board with you regarding Bethesda stuff. And it’s always technically a mess, for premium price. Often multiple times!
I think some people like to set their own rules and live in those worlds while I can not oversee the deficiencies and exploit the hell out of it out of spite (eg looting a shop standing on the merchant because he can’t see me doing it there)…
Zahille7@lemmy.world 2 months ago
What other game could I actually go into anyone’s home and see exactly how they live? What other game could I play that lets me pick up and look at, in detail, anything that isn’t nailed down (forks, pieces of paper, charcoal, etc)? What other games create a living breathing world where characters have full schedules and lives programmed into them (more games are coming out with these types of features though)?
People just like being able to exist in a detailed world like that, and almost no other game comes close to that level of immersion imo.
Scio@lemmy.world 2 months ago
In case of E33, I’m mostly surprised how much mainstream popularity it gained despite being a timing-based JRPG. Is that not weird? I find that to be a small miracle how popular it got given the pretty niche genre.
(Admittedly I also found the E33 combat system to be rather dreary, but the story was an unquestionable ride.)
Korhaka@sopuli.xyz 2 months ago
I liked Skyrim, but I don’t really see why it deserves to be released so many times.
orochi02@feddit.org 2 months ago
You Even played gta? Genuinely interested
Scio@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Yep. Played Vice City a lot as it was popular among my peer group when I was starting out. Played San Andreas for at least a dozen hours IR so. When friends compelled me to try out GTAV as it came out I couldn’t do it for more than one sitting.
The storyline aspect I should’ve mentioned in my original comment that I understand the appeal of, even though it’s very much not for me. But so much of the game is the sandbox rather than the scripted plot, yet it’s the sandbox that I can’t find any interest in whatsoever.
The funniest thing is that I played through Saints Row 4 in its entirety and enjoyed it a lot. Not because of its cheesy comedy, but simply because stomping around a city destroying alien armies with superpowers was still fun for me. I can’t imagine playing that series before it jumped that shark.
Strider@lemmy.world 2 months ago
I also think gta is way overrated and I have the vice city cd soundtrack box 😉.
I find more entertainment in saints row, but the whole open world stuff brought me to the conclusion there are people like me where open world is a negative attribute.
LemmyEntertainYou@piefed.social 1 month ago
Breath of the Wild. A big empty open world with a few fetch quests thrown in. The shrine puzzles are all trivially easy they’re just not fun and the four main dungeons are just a joke.
BiteSizedZeitGeist@lemmy.world 1 month ago
It’s beautiful. That alone transforms the emptiness and thin challenge into a wonderful exploration game for me. Tarry Town has such a cute, wonderful story.
LemmyEntertainYou@piefed.social 1 month ago
That’s about the only positive I can think of for the game but mindless exploration really doesn’t appeal to me.
luthis@lemmy.nz 2 months ago
Beat saber. There’s 1001 better games for VR that are so much more fulfilling
Klear@piefed.world 2 months ago
Beat Saber is the VR equivalent of Tetris. Of course there are more engaging games than that, but it was among the first, with a perfectly simple yet highly polished design.
Hoimo@ani.social 2 months ago
Rhythm games though? Beat Saber has huge community support, which is important for rhythm games specifically.
Klear@piefed.world 2 months ago
I’d say Pistol Whip is better in almost every aspect, though the modding community is tiny in comparison.
deafboy@lemmy.world 2 months ago
It’s the only VR game that can distract me from how awfully uncomfortable the VR headset is.
luthis@lemmy.nz 2 months ago
What headset? I have a quest3 and got the bobo strap for it, and it’s great
graynk@discuss.tchncs.de 2 months ago
from the same genre only Pistol Whip comes to mind. the rest are not better IMO
Zahille7@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Idk, it’s just a more interactive Guitar Hero imo.
I have not played it myself.
belunos@lemmus.org 2 months ago
You offered an opinion having never played it. My response is, Ok
Rai@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 months ago
No VR music games have more maps and are as simple to just set up, pop in, and play. I downloaded over 100 songs in like ten minutes.
There’s maybe one or two comparable games and they’re nothing close to having as much stuff available as Beat Saber, and I can’t just hand them to a friend and have them already know exactly how to play.
orochi02@feddit.org 2 months ago
Genshin impact gets annoying and grindy from what i’ve seen and there isnt even gooner characters like in zzz. (Take ts with a pinch of salt since i haven’t played it much)
Oka@sopuli.xyz 2 months ago
Every popular game has a reason. The reason might be stupid, but it is a reason.
MIDItheKID@lemmy.world 1 month ago
I’ll probably be hung for this one but Disco Elysium.
And the thing is. I like text heavy dwcision-based games. Like I could go on and on about Shadowrun Dragonfall. But Disco Elysium was just do drab. It just felt like a slog of memorization, and when I gave up on trying to do that I was like “okay, I’ll just play and do whatever I feel like” the game punished me. Maybe people like that? I don’t know… Like… Maybe I like games for escapism? So playing some peice of shit alcoholic didn’t do it for me? It just felt like a depressing version of a good game. People kept telling me “you just need to keep playing it gets so good”. At like 6 hours in when it’s not good yet, you failed at good story telling and you failed at good game development. To each their own I guess.
Omegamanthethird@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Uncharted 1 and 2 (didn’t play the others)
Drake is very charming. Everything else is just kinda okay. The action is kinda floaty, the platforming feels like it’s on rails, jump to a disapproved section and you die, the supernatural stuff always feels out of place, the story isn’t memorable, some artifact or something.
Modern_medicine_isnt@lemmy.world 1 month ago
90% of the “early access” games that are so poor people spend time on mods to try and make them playable. Here’s a hint. If you need lots of QOL mods, then the game is crap. You are really just playing mods.
nycvin@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Disco Elysium
I gave it two legitimate tries. Just don’t get it.
random_character_a@lemmy.world 2 months ago
Easy Delivery Co.
Bought it because of the hype and it was cheap. Just don’t get it.
thingsiplay@lemmy.ml 2 months ago
- Mixtape: Not even a real game.
- The Sims: I never played it, but it looks boring like a TV show simulating real life.
- Most MMORPGs: Just a grind fest and you pay every month to be able to “play”.
- Cookie Clicker (and similar “games”): What even is this?
For the most part, it’s not like I wouldn’t understand why these games are popular. I mean I see why Mixtape and Sims are popular in example. I get it. So this is not literally “I can’t understand”.
ergonomic_importer@piefed.ca 1 month ago
Outer Wilds.
An indie developer that had never made a game before thinks they can just show up and drop the best game ever made like it’s no big deal?
And then you actually start playing the game and there’s no annoying partner character constantly holding your hand and feeding you hints with corny quippy voice lines? You mean to say I have to figure out how to play on my own?
And don’t even get me started on the community. I’ve never seen a group of people more concerned with spoilers to maintain the mystery for new players.
And it’s a game you can only play once and then that’s it? How does the developer expect to make any money selling microtransactions if their players only get to experience the greatest thing ever published once and then never come back but are compelled to talk about it given any opportunity until the end of time?
Luisp@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 month ago
Lol, why so many people are addicted to an inferior version of dota 2?
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 1 month ago
apparently the “POST-MASUDA midlife crisis” pokemon games, any of the swsh and on seem to be total slop.
frog_brawler@lemmy.world 1 month ago
MTG.
I played vs friends back in the day (early 90’s). Won some and lost some. Every time, wondered how the F I got into a situation where I was playing this damn game again. So boring. So not fun.
kurcatovium@piefed.social 2 months ago
For me it’s either almost all of them or pretty much none, depending on point of view.
I consider myself being quite a gamer, maybe a little old school one, but gamer nonetheless. I grew up with DOS classics like Wolfenstein 3D, DOOM, Civilization, UFO: Enemy Unknown, Quest for Glory, Heroes of Might & Magic, Ishar, Betrayal at Krondor, TES: Arena, etc. Supply was very limited so I played those plenty times. I did read game magazines at that time, drooling over pictures of games I could never get, kept informed about new releases… And I do keep quite specific taste and quirks to this day.
I do like RPG, even though they are very time consuming and there’s not that much free time. I keep hoarding them and telling myself I’ll play them later. Same goes for my other preferred genre: turn based strategies. I like me some slow paced turn based combat and exploration, but man, that time investment is brutal. My third preferred genre is FPS, either this new/old “boomer shooter” phenomenon or some good story driven game (like e.g. Half Life). Last, but not least, is something I’d call “casual games” which might include everything from Slay the Spire, Inscryption to Golf with your friends or Megabonk. Those are games I like and play (or just dream about playing) and the rest is… just what you ask.
- FIFA and other sports? I don’t like it. I might get why there are people playing it, but buying actual rooster each year for full price? No way.
- Souls like? Not for me. I want to relax, not feel like I have to work hard non-stop to not die. There’s enough of that in real life. I still get why some people might like the challenge, but not me.
- RTS? I know it’s pretty much dead genre, but I never liked it. I don’t have that fast reflexes and fast tactical decision making, so I prefer TBS where I can plan my actions in peace. Enough stress IRL, no need to add it in game…
- Competitive online games? Same as above. Too fast, too stressful, to gain what?
- Plenty of others, don’t want to put wall of text.
I do understand people are different and have different taste and that’s alright. This is just my personal take. That’s why I said it’s either all or none. If I’d be strict and focus just on my personal prefs, most games would fall into “why do people play them?” But when I look from the broader side, people play games they like, so its alright.
But man… there’s one exception, that’s despicable no matter the point of view. Grinding&gambling addict games -those should be banned worldwide for humanity’s sake.
Tollana1234567@lemmy.today 2 months ago
ORS, i prefer the new one, the old one was so grindy and annoying you can easily spend a long time while not achieving much in the game. plus they complain/gatekeep so much it nerfed RS3
Ashtear@piefed.social 2 months ago
The Outer Wilds. Completely not for me.
I’m not big on puzzle games in general and I found the ship controls infuriating.
sophie_talks@lemmy.world 1 month ago
Honestly? Escape from Tarkov.
I understand what it’s going for on paper. The tension, the risk, the realism. But every time I watch someone play it looks like 45 minutes of cautious walking followed by dying to someone they never saw in a direction they couldn’t predict.
Maybe I’m just not built for it.
hanrahan@slrpnk.net 1 month ago
Football (soccer).