What Makes a Game “Good”
Gamers want to enjoy the games they play.
Now, I know this is an absolutely wild, super zany statement of epic proportions, but just hear me out: personally, when I play video games, I don’t look for ultra realistic graphics that will make my PC explode, or even a never-before-seen experience. I just want to have a good time, and there are multiple ways to do that.
Some games build their fun around gameplay alone. For example, take the hit multiplayer game that was released this summer, Peak. The story of this game is simple: You (and friends in multiplayer) crash on an island. To escape, you have to reach the peak of the island’s mountain while trying not to perish. It isn’t an innovative type of game or new premise, but it’s still extremely fun because of how enjoyable and adaptive the gameplay is. Whether you’re with friends or by yourself, listening to music, it’s always fun to load into a new session and try to survive.
On the other end of this, there’s some games that treat gameplay as a secondary element such as visual novels. While some visual novels obviously have gameplay elements such as Danganronpa or Ace Attorney, some novels like Higurashi When They Cry barely have any gameplay that isn’t pressing left click to see more text. These games are still good though because of their stories. They present us with escapes from reality and a world filled with unique characters and mysteries.
Of course, I’m not saying you have to neglect one element over the other. The reason why I use both sides of an extreme is to show that as long as you have something enjoyable, you can still have a good game. You really don’t need to reinvent the wheel to have success.
