While there are naysayers in the gaming world about the advent of achievements and trophies, I’ve fervently maintained that they send us back to a simpler and more community-oriented time in gaming. The era of high scores is something that was lost as games migrated from the coin-op to the couch or computer chair, left behind as some kind of relic in the arcade graveyards. What I’ve loved about achievements and trophies is that they feel like a return to that mindset of gaming gone by.
On top of that, I just like seeing where my friends are in the games they’re playing, and vice versa. It’s like displaying your marvelous feats of gaming for your friends to see – not so much for the e-peen factor (as many of its detractors claim), but for conversation and joining in on the shared experience and joy that only gaming can bring.
How awesome would it have been for your friends to see that you completed Super Mario Bros. 3 without the fabled whistle? Or that you located Cloud and Aeris in Final Fantasy Tactics? Or that you can beat Metal Gear Solid in under 2 and a half hours if you skip cut scenes (I swear, it can be done)? The idea that someone could look at one unified profile and see everything I’ve done in games would be incredible. This is sadly not possible, but it got us thinking: what if classic games had achievements?
It might look a bit like this: Continue reading What if Retro Games had Achievements?