The one thing I learned to avoid in the last 5 years is multiplayer games. My big problem with them is that you can play them literally for ever. I played dota since 2005 and around 2015 I realized it's just swallowing up all of my free time and making my life empty. But I really liked playing it and could not stop my self from just playing one more game. Nowadays I prefer single player games because they have a clearly defined ending point and don't try to keep you hooked for ever. Well at least most of them don't.
Yep, same here. Since I stopped playing MMORPGs and started avoiding multiplayer games aside from the casual Monster Hunter/Vermintide matches with friends, the size of my backlog has reduced VERY noticeably. Honestly it has rekindled my love for gaming. It's so sad that because our brains are wired to build habits we often act in ways that go against our own enjoyment of life.
Very well said. I had to do the same thing I had to stop playing strategy games because they have no end really, MMORPGs, anything like battlefield or Red Dead online. Erased like half my backlog and was so nice. I still wasted that money but not my time.
I myself am a dedicated rpg-lover and I found grand strategies to be appealing because of their... Story and roleplaying element. Like I feel that Stellaris is not about managing an empire, it is more about roleplaying as an empire. And it feels to me that those management parts are more like skill trees, than complicated systems. The same goes for HOI or Crusader Kings. When I start a new game in CK it Is not about how to be the most efficient in those systems, it is about how I can write a story of some random nobleman.
I play a similar way. I’ve realized what I actually like is sandbox strategy games where I can make my own characters and story like bannerlord or stellaris. What I actually don’t like is linear rpgs where the characters are all fixed parts of the story like pathfinder or other crpg or jrpg style games
Considering he goes for 100% he'd end up needing to spend thousands of hours to finish games like EU IV, HOI IV and CK III. Not mentioning the older games as 100% them would probably shorten your lifespan by 30 years at least.
Funny thing is that while I don't spend a lot of time playing Grand Strategy games, I love learning about them and their underlying systems. My favorite thing about stories is the world-building and the way that those mechanics are built into 4X games lets me imagine the various ways that a world could be structured.
That's such a bummer because the Total War series is my favorite of all time. CRPGS used to be my "grand strategy" but your channel actually got me through the intimidating learning curve of both the Pathfinder and Pillars of Eternity games and I ended up enjoying them an insane amount. But I totally get where you are coming from
I'll cycle through genres. I tend to lean towards RPGs, but I get burnt out easily if I play too many titles with similar mechanics back to back. I also like to attempt to surprise myself occasionally playing titles I've heard little to nothing about.
That's what I do and part of the reason is I already spend so much time on videogames instead of something productive in my real life that I at least want to try to avoid my brain going stale from engaging in the same patterns all the time. Learning a new game or genre you're uinfamiliar with can sprout new ideas and thoughts and sometimes games you thought unintresting end up being fun anyways so even if you have a favourite genre I think it can be helpful to try out new things too and not become too conservative and close-minded.
This is true, but unfortunately there is a worrying trend towards homogeneity regarding AAA dominated genres as publishers try to push developers to make the most widely appealing and marketable game possible.
@@AveSicarius In some genres, sure. In 4x right now we have some very innovative game play options in Humankind and Old World, among others. And Stellaris' trend of constantly refining and rehauling the same base game, with modular DLC for customization, has worked rather well over the last 7 years.
@@AveSicarius At this point, I'd argue AAA is just a genre in it of itself. It's the mass-marketed 3rd person cinematic melee/shooter collectibles overarching design that permeates nearly all last gen AAA games. It's no longer the pinnacle of what's possible with games, just a single slice of the whole video gaming medium. The fact that Morti is able to only play RPGs for years proves that you can ignore AAA games and still have fun.
@@Hrafnskald I wouldn't really relate 4x games with the mainstream AAA market. 4x is a relatively niche genre which isn't considered to be widely accessible or marketable, and as such remains rather free of the marketing focused BS forced into the "open world RPGs" and other genre's that dominate the AAA publishing catalogue. It's like CRPGs are thriving now precisely because they aren't seen as mainstream material, but wait until BG3 is a major financial success and see what happens to the genre.
As a GM that struggled with both Pathfinder and Crusader Kings in the past, I really advise you to give CK a try. It’s more of an Roleplay game than management game, and honestly, it’s freaking amazing (you are taking control of medieval dynasty, not exactly control of country itself). It was really hard for me to start, so I understand your point, but it’s really worth it. My motivation to play came from really amazing mod to CK3 that recreates Roshar, world from amazing book series by Brandon Sanderson - Stormlight Archive. It was insanely cool to dive into rosharian politics, meet characters I love, change the history of the world while roleplaying a member of Kholin Dynasty. One of the best experiences in gaming I had for a long time, and it was really worth the rocky begging
@@jorisgarcia6927 Honestly get a CK2 bundle when it's on sale. Paradox has a strategy of putting half of the finished game in DLCs. That gets expensive and CK2 is really good and fairly low on the micromanagement aspect.
I can't really think of a genre of games I avoid. I used to be like that about music, said I could not get into country music. Then I heard 'Jolene' from Dolly and fell in love with the song. Hell I never played a crpg until after watching some of your videos on the subject. I guess what I'm trying to say is don't let genres stop you from trying new things out.
While it broke my heart to hear you don't like Grand Strategy, you have an extremely valid reason. As someone who plays Grand Strategy the most, I can agree that these games are daunting. I mainly play Europa Universalis and after 2k hours in that game I still find myself learning and having to figure things out. Especially when the studios like to introduce a new element into the game with major DLCs. But that is also in a way what keeps the game fun and replayable. I look forward to seeing the next game review you come out with! Keep producing great content, sir!!
@@lennonc2024 I play both EU4 and HOI4 and found EU4 easier to get into and thus learn from. HOI4 is a tougher nut to crack and i'm still trying to figure out how to have a decent army after 140 hours.
I personally have most of the same thoughts, with the exception of total war and the paradox strategy games, they make achievement hunting so much fun with their systems, and hunting those achievements is what always brings me back
Its not fun……….. its WAY too time consuming in most cases, and tedious. I can give plenty of examples, one of which is for example Total War makes you beat same campaigns with every single faction, while the unit rosters especially in older titles such as Attila are almost identical and copy paste. I dont think you really thought thru your comment, but to each his own. Its not fun a tiny bit, objectively.
@@ensar3752 everyone had their own definition of fun. I have been playing eu4 and other Paradox titles regularly for the last decade and still find this game fun and enjoyable. And I can understand why people don’t see any fun at all in these games.
I mostly play the CK series and Hoi 4. Mostly for the mods, though. Honestly I feel like a lot of Mod makers make better paradox games than paradox. For instance Elder Kings and Old World Blues.
4X games are the bomb. You need a guide to give you a tour through all the menu's, but once you're there they are truly some of the best out there. Games like Crusader Kings 2 genuinely have great emergent gameplay, and they are surprisingly some of the best social experiences I have had in multiplayer. Whereas in Dark Souls or Wasteland you focus fully on the game, in 4X games you can talk casually and have deep conversations and from time to time go bananas because something crazy happened. Come to think of it they are a lot like fishing in that sense. I recognize they are not for everyone but they are a lot more casual than most people think.
Crusader Kings 3 is one of my favourite RPGs besides DOS2 and the Witcher 3, also the closest thing to a Song of Ice and Fire game adaptation where you can jump into any character and guide and follow through their whole life with unexpected events, plot twists and relationships which makes it a true rpg experience
I mostly agree. Unless your dynasty gets reduced in power, and you find yourself stuck ruling over a single chiefdom, getting shat on by all of your more powerful neighbors, and accumulating 0.1 gold and 0.1 prestige a month. Maybe I'm just bad at game, but at some point I felt like the game only rewards the very ambitious/power hungry players.
Age of Wonders is the only grand strategy I like because of the focus on the heroes, and SSB Melee is the ONLY fighting game I can play and enjoy. Nice video Mort
Honestly most games I play are either cRPGs or Grand Strategy. I think I like them both for the same reasons such as complex systems and having to think. You should give some strategies a chance Mortym I think you would enjoy them. Im currently playing CK3 and enjoying it a lot, even paused my WotR playthrough for it.
Warning to people do NOT buy CK3 on console its a total scam. Over a year since console launch and we've had 3 lackluster updates and 1 cosmetic DLC and we still don't have a date for the promised season pass content. I bought CK3 thinking it would be like steallaris where we got 3/4 updates a year catching up rather close to PC. Well that didn't happen.
@@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 Why? Only CK i ever played is 3 and its not that hard. I know some DLC functionality from 2 is still missing but 3 is still newer and has other stuff even 2 with all DLC doesnt.
@@vuky258_ Why? Because it's got all its DLCs. CK3 is still in development in regard to DLCs. I've also yet to play it, so I cannot currently recommend a game I'vet yet to play.
I totally feel you with the rule density of grand strategy games. I'm often attracted to the fantasy being sold, but the learning curve is too steep for someone of my limited patience. The one exception I managed to get into is Crusader Kings, which I like to think of as the Persona to Paradox's Shin Megami Tensei. There's still tremendous depth to the simulation, but much of what's being simulated is human character and interpersonal relationships, which makes it much more intuitive than an equally deep simulation of economics or warfare. Strategy games typically feel to me like outlandishly complex board games without the joy of playing with friends.
I have nearly the same exact sentiments on these genres. Hifi Rush is the exception for me this time, and I can see why. I just can't help but smile and tap my foot constantly when playing it, and I'm not compelled to be good at it. It's even kind of like a Fighting game too, without any sort of competitive side to it. This is giving me a new perspective on playing some fighting games like Injustice 2 and Smash Ultimate for the single player aspects and mastery of characters in my own way.
Interesting. I honestly felt that total war was less micro managey than crpgs like poe, until the late game when you have many armies. Before that it's actually really chill, with only a few battles and a few cities you have to pay attention to.
@@logansaxby7224 quite a few campaigns can be won before the endgame portion, depending on playstyle and factions. Some of the more extreme examples will be total war three kingdoms playing as LuBu, you can pretty much blitz through the game with just his army and barely any management haha.
RPG's and fighting games are my two favourite genres. While they cater to very different moods and intensities they're built on great characters, Getting good at a fighting game is very rewarding. Street fighter 6 is looking like far more than just the barebones online and arcade mode that has been served up in recent years. World tour mode is looking like a create a character driven RPG/story/learning tool to help you learn without sitting in training mode for ages. The online also has a social space that can hold up to 100 people in a lobby that only makes things more fun.
These are exactly the genres I avoid too. I suspect most people follow you here is because of similar interests in gaming genres and how well you cover our common interests!
Pretty much the only two genres of dames I play are the RPGs and 4Xs, mostly of tge Paradox variety. There is a lot of similarities between the two, I feel. He is not wrong about learning cliffs, though.
I only really play the "Portal-type" puzzle games, those are the best ones imo. Others like this and Talos Principle is Antichamber and maybe The Witness.
I thought the same about Grand Strategy Games for a long time. I bought CK2 back in the day without any idea how to play, so I did the tutorial. And still didn't understand anything, was really confused and didnt get anything done. One year later I actually watched some tutorial videos on youtube and started to play again. Still didnt understand much though, got more questions than before. Took me another year until it finally "clicked". After that it became easier and easier to understand and learn other games like CK2. Especially the Paradox games share many similarities
You mentioned in your last video that you were having a harder time keeping up with the comments, and this video already has a fair amount, so I would propose that you opt out of conferring any recognition to this one. Making it an exception to the rule should achieve the same outcome. Onward to 200k. All glory to the algorithm.
Fighting games do require considerable amount of time to get good. But, if you're good at one of them, you pretty much can do well in other titles too. I think the real fun starts when you nail down all the mechanics and executions and you start approaching it more like hyperactive chess match. There's actually a lot of strategy involved in fighting games.
You dont have to get good at fighting games, the same way you can fumble your way into understanding grand strategy games. I have been with them (FGs) for very little and I am obviously not great at them but I think I am decent enough to play and get whooped or the whooping or teach friends and make it an enjoyable experience.
I was always curious why you never did a Crusader Kings review after the 3rd came out. Figured it would take waaay to long to 100%, but I can get the intimidating factor. But, I will say that CK is probably one of the best RPGs I have played, because the actual RP part plays a really big role in that game, beside just the way you build your character.
From the way he describes the genre in general, which is accurate enough, it is quite obvious that has no idea how CK3 (or CK in general) is different to those others.
Apart from CK 2 and 3 being different from the other grand strategies, it is also way more accesible than RPGs such as Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity Original Sin 2. Just hover over any UI element and it will simply explain it for you. At first, I was scared of grand strategies as well, but it did not appear to be so difficult. Then, because I figured out it was unnecessary to be scared away from a game, I took my chances on any hardcore RPGs out there, and learned that it is not that they are very complex, but they are just bad at conveying the system of the game (or assume that you have information about the system through DnD and any similar systems).
Interesting take on grand strategy. I like them for the same reason I like crpgs, I see them as essentially country rpgs. But of course in order to get invested you have to enjoy map staring and have a little angry warlord or politician inside yourself.
Just got back from a big fighting game tournament in Chicago where I managed to top 8 at Street Fighter V. I can understand not wanting to take the plunge for sure. The thing I'll say for not playing fighting games is once they get you, they ruin all the other genres, so enjoy your freedom haha Your channel is how I get to enjoy all the games I know I would've loved if I hadn't been sucked into this black hole.
Congrats, I actually don't think they ruin any other genres, honestly. They are great as a sport or a hobby which is how I consume them but with the constant lack of "other" content. It's hard for me to treat them like games unless you go party mode where nobody knows anything about the game.
@@chillaxboi2109 I think they can ruin other genres by being too engaging. Seriously they're the perfect combination of depth, challenge and visual/audio/kinesthetic feedback
@@Jabroni_14 Not for me, they are some of my most consumed content but if everything there is in life is to constantly battle then it's kind of boring. Imagine constantly doing the same thing, same motions, etc with nothing else to look forward to. There are things to draw from in fighting games. I repeat that they are among my most consumed media BUT I can't think of a genre that has everything needed in games.
@@chillaxboi2109 fair enough, the sport comparison fits well since it technically can and is infinitely replayable and watchable but it is limited to the rules of the game. If the skill ceiling is high enough you'll never run out of shit to learn plus technically you could just learn more characters but then you'll just be stuck with the same problem of the genre being limited by its rules
This video made me feel good. I have the same issue with grand strategy. Never any idea what's happening and the idea of micromanaging crop distribution or whatever outweighs any interest I have in the story.
there are many types of grand strategy games, like in Crusader Kings you deal mostly with characters and not the economy of your realm. You can even roleplay as your character in many ways
I feel you in regards to grand strategy/4x games. The only reason why I ended up getting into them was because a good friend of mine had a good pulse on the types of games I'd like and recommended EU4 to me. I have since recently achieved 1000 hours in the game and likely will play for many more. If my friend hadn't intervened I would definitely have felt the same way as you.
The only Rhythm game I've ever gotten really into was Audiosurf(the first one) since with every new song you add to your collection the game gets new content.
I love grand strategy on paper, but very few grand strategy games these days really appeal to me for the exact reasons you mention here! Too many are "4X" titles that demand you spend your time allocating money and balancing thinly-veiled spreadsheets. Games like Dark Wizard and The Battle for Wesnoth were great because they were lean on kingdom management, instead playing like tactical RPGs with capturable side objectives and dynamic recruitment. I think it's a shame that games like that have fallen so far out of style. One day, I'd love to make a new grand strategy game in that vein. :)
Fighting Games for me I play when I don’t know what I want to play. Grand Strategy and 4X when I want to lose a lot of time but it’s gotta be an appealing setting.
Fighting games are my favorite competitive genre because the error-failure-correction cycle is so fast. You can get decently proficient at them fairly quickly. The problem is you really need to play them in person to get the best results and that is a huge limitation.
As a person who's favorit genre's are both Grand Strategy and RPG:s(and I consider our tastes in game similar, hence being subscribed), I really think you should give CK3 a chance. CK3 is basically a RPG/sandbox simulator, and it's true that you can get used to the events and have them be less interesting after playing multiple games there are so many events that it's doesnt really matter. And as far as Grand Strategy goes CK3 is acually not that bad, and it's very hard to out right lose. You might lose a war and become someones subject but that doesnt mean the game is over(as long as you have an heir when your character dies and you have atleast one county you can always come back, Infact crawling back and taking revenge might acually be fun.). You just have to start playing the intrigue game and counquer their country from within. So if you see my comment and and decide to give it a try which I hope I recommend starting as a count/duke in tutorial island(Ireland), and just see wherre the game takes you(usually try and conquer Ireland). CK3 tutorial is pretty good and Ireland is pretty isolated and you can try to conquer it without to much interference from bigger powers. Edit: Unlike other Grand Strategy game the focus isn't a contry but the characters, so the game play really isn't just "I will blob up and become the biggest and strongest country in the world!"
I loved puzzle adventure games up to a point in time.. My original love of them came about mainly because a lot of my first games were text adventure games like A Mind Forever Voyaging and Zork. Those changed into graphic adventure games like Black Cauldron and then later games like Myst, Grim Fandango, The Longest Journey, Gabriel Knight, etc. The main problem today is simply that I've become lazy and if I can't figure out a puzzle in a timely fashion I'll just look up the solution online. That pretty much makes the whole thing pointless.
If there is a great/engaging narrative attached to it, I don't think it is pointless. In Ace Attorney games, I push through the annoying puzzles to get through the interesting mysteries.
I relate to basically all of these when it comes to games that focus on those niche genres. But i likely enjoy those genres in games that merge many different ones. Like zelda's combat and puzzle focused dungeons, GTA's shooting and racing/driving loops, Portal's first person puzzle story design etc.
You might still want to try CK2 or 3, the machanics are not that hard to get and the roleplay possibilities are huge. There is tons of events for you to play your character as you want, you can be a just and mighty ruler as you can play a sadiscic drunkar, or even a lunatic. It is to the point that if you want you can kind of let aside the gestion of your realm and just focus on you and you're family stories. Not speaking of all the mod there is, the witcher, game of throne, the elder scrolls, Vampire the mascarade, enven D&D have been implemented you have world map of those univers to play in. In term of roleplay it's a great serie !
CK is one of the few grand strategy games I don't like and wouldn't recommend. I find the mechanics and gameplay extremely obtuse, and the fact you have very very little control over a huge number of things compared to a game like Total War or Civilizations really hampers the enjoyment for me. Also considering your main character is changing pretty regularly I think it rather hurts any role play potential.
@@DSzaks That's completely understandable, because CK isn't a proper Grand Strategy in the traditional sense of the genre. It's much more focused on building the story of your dynasty through the random events and personalities that your characters develop rather than winning. It's an interactive story generator in a grand strategy base.
It's yeah easier to make a list of games one does not play than what you play. Mine are: tower defence, anything multiplayer only, match 3 puzzles, zombies as sole enemy type games, fighting games. That list is of course longer e.g. Sport-Manager games etc, but just as top five.
I've tried all genres over the years. RTS, RPG and FPS games are top 3 for me, but racing games have a special place in my heart. I've even bought a wheel. Assetto Corsa in VR is mental.
Interesting! I obsessively play grand strategy games, especially Europa Universalis 4. They are the games I understand deeply. I also love CRPGs, but for them, I generally use a guide on character building as a support.
Interesting video. I always enjoy fun little videos like these that just talk about one's interests (or disinterests as the case may be). Genres I don't care for are sports games, puzzle games, platformers. For me, I'm usually attracted to games that have great stories or interesting characters irregardless of genre (old tell tale stuff, red dead redemption, mass effect, uncharted, gears of war) But I also enjoy strategy games, rogue lites, tower defense, and sim-management games (like simcity, two point hospital, etc) Shooters and fighters are something I'll play on occasion but I tire of them quickly.
I'm a fan of 4X, grand strategy, and turn-based RPGs like DOS2. You can view it as a spectrum where on one end you are managing the equipment and attacks of 1-4 people in an RPG, and on the other end you are managing the economy and military of entire societies with grand strategy. There is potentially a middle ground managing large groups of dozens to hundreds of people in games like Rimworld, Dwarf Fortress, or Kenshi.
Ah, Mortismal not caring from Grand Strategy makes a lot of sense as to why he wasn't a fan of the kingdom management in Kingmaker. As someone who loves RPGs and Grand Strategy game I really liked that aspect of the game, even if it wasn't very deep it was just a nice bit of variety to spice up the game for me. But if you don't like thinking about that kind of stuff to begin with I can see how you would find it to be a slog.
I really like Grand strategy games but I still hated the kingdom building aspects of kingmaker. Mostly because it felt like a cheap mobile game from the late 00s early 2010s.
@@jordanjames2956 Fair enough I suppose. I mean it is just a minigame inside the main game. You could throw the same accusation at something like the mech arena in xenogears or town construction in Fallout 4. They are clearly not going to be as involved as a full on game designed from the ground up solely for type of content, but they are there to mix things up a bit if you want. And when they aren't to my liking, I don't engage w/ them and that's fine. But I appreciate that they are included for those that do, and that you don't have to mess w/ them if you don't want to.
I'm with you Mort. Back in the day (pre 2000) I used to play almost everything: loved adventures, racing, flight sims, 4X/RTS, just about every crpg, some puzzle/platformers, etc. These days I only really play mmorpgs, arpgs, crpgs, some action (e.g. Warframe, fps/shooters), but generally just don't have the time or patience for things like 4X. I recently really, really tried to get into Stellaris, probably the space/sci-fi pick of the the bunch in 4X, but it just felt too slow to get going, progression was non-linear and difficult to gauge, very complex, and I just felt like it was work (fun work, but still work, eh).
I used to feel the same way about Fighting Games too, until I realized that once you understand them at a more fundemental level, that is, once you "get past" the controls and have some basic BnB combos down, you realize that fighting games are basically turn-based RPG's, played in real time against a live opponent. I defintly can understand the initial hesitation tho especially considering only lookiing at 1 screen, and only being able to fight might seem limiting to someone who is completly unaware of the actual metagame being played. Its also kind of like an RPG, in the sense that "YOU" are the character, and your improvement at the game is noticible and feels like I "level up" in real life whenever I play them, which is something I unfortunatly cant get in any othe
My big problem with adventure/puzzle games is that I pretty much always end up encountering a puzzle that I just can't get past, which means I end up having to look up the solution. The answer either something that makes you go 'of course, I should have figured that out myself', or it's a case of 'how on earth was I meant to figure that out!?'. And once you look up one answer, it kind of breaks the seal and you end up pretty much doing the rest of the game with a walkthrough, which doesn't feel great. I have maybe once done one of them without looking up any answers, and that was Grim Fandango, which is one of my favourite games of all time, but on the whole I find they generally don't get the difficulty balance right with the puzzles. I do find it satisfying when I actually manage to solve a puzzle, but what with two kids and limited gaming time, I don't really feel like I'm getting the most out of my time if I'm just staring at a screen trying to figure out a puzzle.
Strategy games are my favorite gerne, there are a lot of amazing games especially older ones that date before 2010, but i can agree with the rest of your categories. Loving your RPGs too, keep it up.
Genres I play: 1. Single Player RPG - I love getting lost in a good story and game world. Probably the best writing in gaming belongs in these and I love it. I also love modding and this genre is what modding was designed for 2. Racing - I think Mortismal actually described why these are great pretty well. 3. Sports/Sports Entertainment - I grew up watching and playing sports and sports videogames. Hockey, Baseball, soccer and professional wrestling are all fun time wasters if I have a half hour to kill 4. Fighting - Similarly to sports games, these are fun time wasters... and I am usually pretty good at them 5. 4X/Grand Strategy - Just one more turn... annnnnd its 3am 6. Turn based tactical Strategy - By which I mean XCOM/Jagged Alliance type games. Usually they have a nice blend of the 4x and RPG elements and ty fun... Also usually moddable. 7. Survival Horror - I love a good Resident Evil or Resident Evil-like game. Been playing these since my first trip to the Arklay mountains in 1996. 8. Sim games/City Builders - Much like the 4x games, but without the specific forces fighting against you. A nice relaxing experience that suddenly takes 12 hours of your weekend. Genres I don't usually play 1. 3rd Person Action Adventure - While they are generally seen as the game of the year style games, I can never get into games like The Last of Us, Tomb Raider or God of War. I know they are good, I just dont like them. 2. Multiplayer focused shooters/Twitch Shooters - CODs, Battlefields, Battlefronts all feel like lazy cash grabs to me now. I spent a large part of my youth playing these games and they really stopped evolving about a decade ago and are the most susceptible to the worst features brought over from mobile games. Halo is about my only exception to this as they at least try to have an engaging single player experience. 3. MMO ALL TYPES - The second I see massively Multiplayer Online, I am out. I hate these games with a bloody passion. World of Warcraft was such a terrible experience for me that it still poisons my opinion of the genre. 4. Souls-like - Janky unresponsive combat? Nah dude, just git gud. These are just rhythm games without the music, ultimately I get really bored really quickly. 5. Rhythm - Speaking of Rhythm... I too do not have rhythm. 6. Side Scrollers - I turn 40 this year... there was an entire decade of my life where this was the main Genre of games... Honestly, I moved past it when I was 10 and never looked back. 7. JRPGs - Inevitably these get compared to Chrono Trigger... then I realize I could be playing Chrono Trigger instead... Then I play Chrono Trigger for a few hours and I am good for this Genre for another 3-5 years 8. MOBAs - Why do these exist?
I completely understand your view on stellaris. Been playing that game for over 3 years and I've only beaten 2 full playthroughs and they are very very long. Still learning new tactics today and always have fun playing it though.
My 2 favorite genres are RPGs and Fighting Games, they compliment each other too, sometimes you want a grand time sink, and sometimes you want a short skill based burst of gaming. I primarily avoid RTS, sims, and horror games.
Understandable. I would just expect 4x games to be closely tight to RPG genre. But hey it took me a lot of time getting into that myself. Trust me, it gets really good after the first 1000 hours!
Our list is identical except for 4x games! Highly recommend checking out tw Warhammer 3. Decent mix of 4x, rts, and rpg and would be a good entry point
Thanks for covering a topic like this, I always like to hear different perspectives relating to things people do and don't enjoy as much. Also I like the way approached the topics in a way that didn't bash the genre or people who play it. With this sort of video it can pose the question of what do you enjoy in games and why you enjoy it etc.
Interesting. Grand Strategy is one of my fav genres and I have well over 5000 hours across multiples games and I think they share a lot in common with CRpgs. So, I was a bit surprised you didn't like them as much. :P
I find myself drawn to specific genres like strategy, stealth, and even role-playing despite being pretty bad at them, or at least having to endure several hours of pain before getting good at them.
100% agree about puzzle games/puzzles in games. After almost four decades of playing games I just have zero time or patience for badly designed or obtuse puzzles, which seems to be most of them. I’ll typically give a puzzle one legitimate attempt and then it’s straight to an online search to get past it.
I don't particularly like rhythm games, but Metal: Hellsinger was fun af. I played the demo and liked it enough that I bought it when I came out. It's a weird mix of feeling like I'm vibing out and also feeling like my nerves are going bad at the same time.
I used to play all the types of games listed here. As I got older I kinda just want games that I can chill, like turn-based games. Having to give a game 100% attention is exhausting thesedays. I don't play games to be exhausted.
i mainly play fighting games and rpg's but also love action games like devil may cry and bayonetta. Also like Souls games. Only strategy game i play is Total Warhammer.
Rhythm: playing my real guitar is more fun than any simulation or game can ever be. Racing: The Gran Turismo series, up to #5, I mostly played couch co-op, which was great. Now I like city racing games like Burnout Paradise and NFS Heat. Grand Strategy: The Civilization series is as deep as I go into strategy games. Anything more is too tedious to be enjoyable to me. Fighting: Having played Mortal Kombat since it was released on the Genesis, it's mostly nostalgia that brings me back in every few years. Then I quickly leave again as soon as I finish the single player challenges. Puzzle: Puzzles in games like Skyrim and Trine are fun and enjoyable. Besides them, I completely agree with you on the genre. I thought MMO and FPS games would be high on your list. You can't 100% an MMO or FPS due to the nature of the game. I mean FPS like CoD and Battlefield, obviously games like Doom can be completed.
I think this is one reason I subscribe to your channel. I feel almost exactly the same. I’ll try a few racing games and Total War but I’m just bad at fighter games and rhythm games. Instead of being immersed on an adventure I’m hyper focused on timing.
i relate to a lot of this! the genres i avoid are: -rhythm games because i’m bad at them. -fps games, because i’m also bad at them and i just can’t aim for shit in general. -racing games or actually just anything that involves a lot of car gameplay. i’m just awful at using car controls in games for some reason. -fighting games because whenever i’ve tried to get into them my friends who are good at them would just kick my ass over and over and no one ever really taught me how to play, also i don’t want to deal with memorizing all those combos and moves. i actually like puzzle and strategy games though tbh
What a great topic to discuss. For me, as a WWII buff, I always tried getting into the "hearts of iron" franchise. When I tried HOI:4, I watched youtube tutorials for over 10 hours and took notes and all. I managed to learn basic stuff but the level of management was hellish so I had to drop it all together. The same goes with "Simulation" games. I'm interested in jumping into franchises like "Kerbel Space Programs" but seeing others manage huge excel sheets just to get things going is very intimidating :(
The thing about Grand Strat/4x Games, especially paradox games like Crusader Kings and the EU games, is that you don't actually have to 'win' as such. It is a lot more open than that. Like you can have a meaningful, fun playthrough and just stop when you get to certain goal you set for yourself or a certain year, or maybe even when you 'lose'. As like many people have said, it's more of an RPG where you can create a story and follow your own path if you will, to start with I was bogged down with all the various systems and wanted to and aimed to 'win' the game, I quickly got overwealmed with this. However, this changed when I decided to set myself small goals, and treat it more like a role playing session, sometimes, losing fights and land was even fun to a certain degree! So yeah, my recommendation to new players for playing these games, especially the paradox ones, is treat it more like a role playing game in a massive sandbox world that can end up being completely different each playthrough, I think people will enjoy them more taking this approach than traditional RTS games.
Great, loved hearing your preferences, most of which are the same with me. My friends love Grand Strategy games and don't get why I dislike them in general. I say it is too much thinking, attention to details, boring visuals most of the time..they say it is ironic because I love adventure games and detailed RPGs, tactical turn-based strategies, and old games where visuals are crap, and I don't have anything to answer lol. I guess it is because they are tedious like you said.
You just listed nearly all of my favorite genres. I find it so funny that people who don't like fighting games also don't like rhythm games. You all know these are learnable trainable skills right? Like there are drummers who had no rhythm when they started. I'm definitely of the mindset that I don't want to limit myself. I'll try anything that looks cool to me, genre be damned. But I 100% agree with you on the puzzle games. They are all the same, super meh and annoying 95% of the time. Basically a dev going "look how smart I am and how dumb you are because I circumvented expectation" But fighting games, man.. there is NOTHING like going from being bad to being somewhat decent to absolutely bodying fools. It's like Rocky in real life. Highly recommend, and it'll make you better at rhythm games too!
I grew up predominately on Nintendo consoles and 90s / early-2000s PC games, so generally-speaking my childhood preferences were platformers and everything high fantasy. Toward more recent years, some genres that've now become big staples for me have been sandboxes, competitive multiplayer (though I no longer play them), roguelites, and most recently of all, strategy games. (And yes, I do also love RPGs as well. My favorite game of all time is RuneScape, which I've played since middle school.) As far as genres that I don't play, it's usually a case of not being interested in them rather than not liking them. Though I pointed to a few specific genres, as those are the ones I played primarily, I actually played a _wide_ variety of games in my childhood that I enjoyed. I played card games, sports games, racing games, adventure games, rhythm games - I found something fun in just about every genre, regardless of whether I like the genre itself or just those particular titles within that genre. So I don't really find many types of experiences that I do not like. If I don't play a genre, it's probably just that I played less of that genre compared to other when I was a kid. I fell off most of those ones I listed because I ended up wanting to play more games of other genres instead of them. One genre that I didn't experience back in the day was fighting games. In fact, with the exception of the Shovel Knight Showdown expansion, which came out back in 2020, I've never actually even played a legit fighting game once in my life. That is simply a genre that has always existed in this separate bubble that has never crossed my path, and that's the only reason for why I don't play them. Strategy games _used to be_ one that I actually wasn't a fan of. It was that aspect of them being so complicated and so hard to understand that I just didn't want to put the effort in. But I did play one strategy game as a kid, which was Heroes of Might & Magic 3, and when I came across Age of Wonders 3, back in 2019, on a free-to-keep weekend, I decided to give it a go as it reminded me quite heavily of HoMM (because they are quite similar games, in fact). And come to find out, when I was able to finally figure out how to play it, it ended up being one of the most fun games I have ever played in my life. I am now looking into playing a bunch of other 4X / grand strategy titles in the future. I think when it comes down to it, theme is a more prominent factor than genre, to me. I love feeling immersed into the experience and "being" in the world, so really it's about what the game's setting and premise are that largely determines my interest in it. The types of games I generally avoid are games that don't have a compelling theme, which for me is anything that's very heavily based in reality or something meant to represent the real world. Uncharted, Tomb Raider, Assassin's Creed, Fallout, Red Dead Redemption, The Last of Us - that's the sort of stuff that doesn't interest me. I grew up playing games that were mostly based in fictitious settings, or at the very least threw a cartoon-y / fantasy spin on things, and that's the way I've always liked it.
Learning Street Fighter V over the course of 5 years was one of the most rewarding gaming experiences Ive ever had. I never really played a fighting game seriously before, and I could not believe the nuance and subtlety involved. Also, the community was super helpful and friendly. Having a mentor and a group of friends to spar with was prob the best times i had playing it. And after all that, 5 years or so... I'm still not even good!!!!!
I absolutely agree with your list - Racing Games (I do enjoy arcade ones and not simulators... Like if I have to play one right now I will play the latest Need for Speed Indeed (as I have played many of the franchise) You know what build on Car Games? Spaceship Games :P And it is exactly as you've said if they are "proper" they are straight up MOORPGS (and no I do not mean EvE online and I do not mean the not yet released Star Citizen) I mean Star Conflict... You unlock ship threes, ship parts, you equip and level the ships with parts of your choice (you even build some of the ships with slots for the parts you will chose on them) and you PvE and ~heavily PvP (in separate~ish environments) But over time this game becomes "Too Tight" and you end up either PvPing on the highest ships you've earned trough pve (because erm you can actually pay for most of that but... stuffs) or PvEing to earn better/different ships to PvP with. Now I do need to mention... after the RPG like build up of your toon... it is ~ full 3D FPS with a lots of >speed< and Maneuvering... saying it`s no road NFS with Cars With Guns is actually not an overexaggerating much... Thus I do like car games (I btw currently ~worked as IRL delivery driver but got fired and I am now quite bummed up with the perspective of finding and working new, different job :(. I do also have a personal vehicle that is not SUV and/or front wheel/all wheel drives, not that I am saying Ferrari Pure Blood or Lamborghini Uruse are not suitable SUVs or anything... for whoever can and want to afford them). But you know what I wanna add to your list... Survivor games (I do hate stuffs where the "thrill" is based on deprivation of stuffs and Minimalism... it`s like freaking IRL where I live) a.k.a. Resident Evil, Left for Dead, Dying Light... such ~garbo in my eyes... Same as the Living dead or the TV show Last of Us after the Game Last of us... aren`t all of those 1:1:1 copy paste of each other with newer gen graphics? and Pure shooters... I mean come on... I am not saying Battlefield, whatever the current one massively multiplayer playable one currently is... is bad game... just that I have had my fare share of Quake II, III, Unreal and CS (since it exists on top of HF)... In fact most of the time I give QII of Ubisoft as FPS example of what FPS is... but than Recently I realized I am actually (and were) Unreal Fan (graphics and design wise) (and were) But QII was more common because less hardware demanding... even the popular meme (these days) FPS benchmark QIII was actually still < Unreal whatever edition was it`s rival... Quake was the budget decision somewhere in before DOOM re release, and now Unreal is taking the lead in hardware demands again with it`s 5.1 Edition and that Matrix Open World benchmark that is like medium playable non violence (yet) GTA V. For the Sake of FPSes I have played few times trough full first Medal of Honor (that is pre Call of Duty) than Call of Duty, than Possibly Call of Duty two, the first Battlefield and bunch of other shooters I can`t even remember their names of... I do remember the coolest one was Unreal based (practically Unreal Engine Mod that is called another game) FPS With Jet Packs... That had super fun in it for it`s time, but it never made it popular.
Agree with your choice of genres with the exception of puzzle games, used to be a big fan of quests as a kid in the 90s, especially the Monkey Island series. I've cooled down towards them over the years, the last one I played was Thimbleweed Park I think, and I picked it up solely due to the game director's persona. But I am planning to try the latest Monkey Island. Another one of my least favourite genres is survival games.
I hope you appreciate the irony of your own video that you posted. you put effort into thinking up, actually putting together, editing and then uploading onto the internet. you put MORE effort into saying you dont like these genres than you have into actually trying to like them. Thumbs up! it makes little sense to me BUT as somebody who subs to your channel, it was still a good video.
I can definitely understand the tediousness of 4x/Grand Strategy games. I would say Crusaders Kings might be a bit of an exception you might want to do a 2nd look at. Yes, it's a 4X/Grand Strat game, but it's really focused more on characters (your dynasty). You can get up to some seriously wacky and strange crap in that game.
I wouldn't mind if you did videos of a genre something like "Game I'm too bad to 100%: such and such game" and went ahead and did a vid on it that was something in between a reg youtube style review or one of your first look type videos. I doubt most of your fans would mind. What that would do to your channel metrics, i have no idea though.
I love 4x games usually. And they kinda scratch the same itch that RPGs do, as in you start small and weak and then grow or level up, customizing your playstyle to fit your preferred vision or to adhere to a roleplay idea in my head. Also that experience of meeting a battle that seems impossible at first, but then heading back and fiddling with your build and what you do in order to overcome that challenge is similar. That said, the kingdom management in Kingmaker and the crusade in Wrath of the Righteous are definitely the worst parts of each game for me. I used to not be into racing games very much. But a group of people I went to school with who all moved to different cities still connect through playing GTA Online together in invite-only lobbies. At first we did whatever content was there, but these days we either just mess around using the city as a playground or we do the races in the game. We even got a few people who make their own custom circuits. Every other way of playing the game went by the wayside, but racing is still something we do every time we meet up. It's something I am bad at, but I have come to really enjoy it.
getting 100% in ck3 is by far the most difficult and time consuming challenge I have ever undertaken and i can honestly say it will be years before i complete that goal
My 5 genres I personally avoid would be: - Stealth - Racing Sims (I'm totally OK with arcade racers though) - Popcorny games like Uncharted or TLoU, or whatever you call this genre. It's a bit vague, but the more scripted the whole thing feels, the worse. - Roguelikes/lites - Pretty much anything that revolves around competitive online multiplayer (ESPECIALLY MOBAs) Stealth is probably the only one in which there are some exceptions I do enjoy, like Mark of the Ninja or Deus Ex. Really, my main problem with it is that it's often a test of patience, and while I do consider myself to be patient, I don't think revolving around "being patient" makes for fun gameplay personally. It's one of those genres in which savescumming actually makes me enjoy the experience more. As a side note, I don't exactly avoid them per se, but I tend to get tired of sandbox games with no objectives. Same goes for city builders or sim games like that: I actually like many of these genres, but if no campaign or objective-driven scenarios are provided I get tired very quickly.
Funny how you mention NFS Underground introduced RPG mechanics into the racing genre with it's high level of customization. I for the most part have no interest in sports games but really enjoyed the OG Xbox version of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005 because the main mode was customizing a golfer's appearance, customizing his starting stats (there were a tonne of different stats you could invest points into) choosing from hundreds of pieces of equipment in the in-game store (which effected player stats) many of which had to be unlocked. You could even customize a fully unique swing or unlock swings with different stat boosts. You would go on to challenge a wide variety of both fictional and non-fictional golfers with varying strengths and weaknesses that you needed to customize your golfer to defeat. Over time you would use career winnings defeating these golfers to upgrade your stats and equipment. I remember being surprised the PC version was highly simplified compared to the console versions, guess they thought they put too much RPG in their golf game.
I actually think playing stellaris and Crusader kings on console makes them easier to play. Since things have to be less complicated to control they are actually faster and easier to understand.
I agree with you on four of the five. But I do love me a good Grand Strategy Game. Stellaris, Terra Invicta, CK. I think those three in particular work because there is a strong RP element to them as well. Europa Universalis has gone off the deep end in its rule set. The last version of it I truly enjoyed was EU2. But honestly, I think Stellaris is a game that ramps the complexity really well. There are simple builds that work well, you start with a small empire and grow it. You can set the map so that you have low threat in the beginning. In fact, a perfectly valid way to play the game when is to set the number of spacefaring societies in the beginning of the game to "none." So you're the only exploring faction until primitive societies advance far enough to launch their own expeditions. By which time you'll be at least a hundred years of expansion ahead of them. And CK3 in particular has leaned hard into the RP element. Almost all of the rules, per se, can be understood in the context of growing a dynasty. I would say it's slightly more complex than Stellaris. And you don't have the ability to avoid aggression you do in Stellaris. But I don't think it's a hard game to pick up. Whereas CK2 definitely was.
I can relate to this. Of course, you change the types of games you like to play over the years. But some will always stick. I avoid most Sims, RTS, MP, Fighters, and JRPGs because they don't speak to me. BR I totally avoid. Open World games are also something that has begun to bore me. Many of them copies the worst parts of Ubisoft's game design
Grand Strategy is my second favorite genre after Action RPGs. I find them very similar in terms of what is the kick I get from it. Especially EU4, you basically have a country and have to figure out what "build" and style you need to work towards. Instead of Gear you acquire provinces and trade goods, instead of skills you have ideas etc. The gameplay is always secondary for me, seeing a character or a country/state build to come together. (which is why I always stop at around 1650 - the end game has its perks, but it's not what I love about the game)
As I’ve gotten older, my tastes have changed some. I’m almost 45 now. Always have loved RPGS, that hasn’t changed., but I used to play shooters all the time, I’m just not good at them anymore, also don’t have the hours to keep playing and getting better. Occasionally I’ll play forza horizon just to scratch that itch in non simulated racing. I still play AOE2. I even struggle with god of war type games now. I do love my CRPGS. Great video
Interesting video, I have been watching your content for a while now despite the fact I don't really like CRPGs/TRPGs. I just enjoy your content and the love you have for the genres you do enjoy. Was cool to compare what genres we align/don't align on. I enjoy Grand Strategy/4x/fighting/racing games but do agree with not being that fond of rhythm/puzzle/adventure. I try out all kinds of games to see if a genre starts to click, as I never used to like Grand Strategy until I found some I loved. I will keep trying the games you recommend to see if one clicks, off to try Weird West as it looks kinda cool and unique.
I used to really enjoy puzzle games, and very occasionally someone still makes one that is genuinely fun (usually when it's a good mix of puzzles and other gameplay) but they often are just too easy or straight out sanity draining. Nobody likes hitting a brick wall and having to Google the solution.
I mostly agree with everything on your DNP list: despite the fact that I can appreciate - and, in some instances, try to force myself to play/understand - them, they all mostly fail to grab me and/or are beyond my brain to wholly grasp. That said! Two recommendations from one who, likewise, cannot get into the same games: - "Flatout: Ultimate Carnage": for those who don't care for/can't get into racing games - it's a fucking TREAT, and a game that is in my stable of "Staple Games" that can almost always find itself on my rig. It's a racing game barely and is mostly focused on enjoying the scenery and causing as much mayhem as possible along the way...but it's unlike any other game that could be described as such ("Crazy Taxi" and "Burnout Paradise" are always recommended to me, but they ain't got what "Flatout''s got). Note: I recommend "Flatout: Ultimate Carnage", rather than "Flatout" (1) or "Flatout 2", as it's the ultimate form (no pun intended) of the formula. - "Return of the Obra Dinn" for those of us who don't get along with puzzle games. Once you get the hang of the single mechanic, you can knock the entire game out in an afternoon or two, but...what a REWARDING experience. Honorable Mention: any/all of the "Life Is Strange" series, as sort of "Story/Puzzle-Adjacent", but wonderful, wonderful slices of life.
These are the kind of genres I avoid as well. Though I'm a bit surprised that sports games like NBA2K, Madden and FIFA etc weren't on your list. Also, I agree with your points on Grand strategy games but to add to it, I can't understand the appeal of just staring at UI and menu screens my whole playthrough. It must take a special kind of person to appreciate this genre.
I feel you on strategy/4X games. It's sad in a way, since it was probably my favorite genre when I was younger, sitting at the computer for hours, playing puppet master to entire nations. But now I'm older and have less time and more choice, and 4X games, though still very appealing, require a large investment from the player and the gameplay is entirely staring a menus. Plus, they're games that you usually can't "beat," which I find less satisfying these days. I'm impressed by how sophisticated the genre is now, but they're often too open-ended for me.
I feel like you would actually like Crypt of the Necrodancer, as it's like an RPG of sorts. It's quite different from Hi-Fi rush for example. This is coming from someone that avoids all the same genres you mentioned in this video apart from 4X which I love.
Haha I don't know if you've ever tried it but I'd love to see you do a video trying Puzzle Quest. A match 3 game with stat growth, gearing, skills and other "RPG-ish" elements. I grew up playing it and similar games, I think they're fun.
My favourite video game genres are RPGs of all kinds, action or strategy. Shooters of all varieties, metroidvanias, 2D sidescrollers and survival games.
I generally avoid the same genres-not always because I don’t like them, but mostly because I’m very bad at them! I loved the first few Total War and Age of Empires games, but they became so complicated and with such heavy micromanagement that they left me behind. I played the first 3 Mortal Kombat games (in arcades!)-I loved them, but even back then I didn’t have the skill and coordination to get truly good at them, and age has not improved this! Puzzle games, racing games, shooters and platformers aren’t fun because I suck at them so bad that I’m more frustrated than entertained! You get the picture! I love RPGs because I’ve always liked stories-reading them as well as playing through them. The also don’t usually penalize slow play, and I’m a slow player!
mine is all the genres that have card mechanics and i blame griftlands. i waited for it with just a handful of screenshots and a teaser trailer FOR YEARS, thinking it would be an rpg. and what do i get? a card game. i'll never forgive you klei. you broke my heart.
The one thing I learned to avoid in the last 5 years is multiplayer games. My big problem with them is that you can play them literally for ever. I played dota since 2005 and around 2015 I realized it's just swallowing up all of my free time and making my life empty. But I really liked playing it and could not stop my self from just playing one more game. Nowadays I prefer single player games because they have a clearly defined ending point and don't try to keep you hooked for ever. Well at least most of them don't.
Yep, same here. Since I stopped playing MMORPGs and started avoiding multiplayer games aside from the casual Monster Hunter/Vermintide matches with friends, the size of my backlog has reduced VERY noticeably. Honestly it has rekindled my love for gaming. It's so sad that because our brains are wired to build habits we often act in ways that go against our own enjoyment of life.
Very well said. I had to do the same thing I had to stop playing strategy games because they have no end really, MMORPGs, anything like battlefield or Red Dead online.
Erased like half my backlog and was so nice. I still wasted that money but not my time.
You hit the nail on the head!
Agreed
I'm 41 same :)
I myself am a dedicated rpg-lover and I found grand strategies to be appealing because of their... Story and roleplaying element. Like I feel that Stellaris is not about managing an empire, it is more about roleplaying as an empire. And it feels to me that those management parts are more like skill trees, than complicated systems. The same goes for HOI or Crusader Kings. When I start a new game in CK it Is not about how to be the most efficient in those systems, it is about how I can write a story of some random nobleman.
Yes. It is about stories that mechanics allows to exist in non scripted way.
I’ve done the same since civ 1
I play a similar way. I’ve realized what I actually like is sandbox strategy games where I can make my own characters and story like bannerlord or stellaris. What I actually don’t like is linear rpgs where the characters are all fixed parts of the story like pathfinder or other crpg or jrpg style games
God I love Stellaris until my computer can't handle 100k fleet battles 😩
Considering he goes for 100% he'd end up needing to spend thousands of hours to finish games like EU IV, HOI IV and CK III. Not mentioning the older games as 100% them would probably shorten your lifespan by 30 years at least.
Funny thing is that while I don't spend a lot of time playing Grand Strategy games, I love learning about them and their underlying systems.
My favorite thing about stories is the world-building and the way that those mechanics are built into 4X games lets me imagine the various ways that a world could be structured.
That's such a bummer because the Total War series is my favorite of all time.
CRPGS used to be my "grand strategy" but your channel actually got me through the intimidating learning curve of both the Pathfinder and Pillars of Eternity games and I ended up enjoying them an insane amount. But I totally get where you are coming from
One of my favorites as well. Wouldn't call it 4X either. Borderline "Grand Strategy".
I'll cycle through genres. I tend to lean towards RPGs, but I get burnt out easily if I play too many titles with similar mechanics back to back. I also like to attempt to surprise myself occasionally playing titles I've heard little to nothing about.
That's what I do and part of the reason is I already spend so much time on videogames instead of something productive in my real life that I at least want to try to avoid my brain going stale from engaging in the same patterns all the time. Learning a new game or genre you're uinfamiliar with can sprout new ideas and thoughts and sometimes games you thought unintresting end up being fun anyways so even if you have a favourite genre I think it can be helpful to try out new things too and not become too conservative and close-minded.
Perfectly understandable. We're lucky to have a huge variety of games available, no point spending time on the types you don't enjoy :)
This is true, but unfortunately there is a worrying trend towards homogeneity regarding AAA dominated genres as publishers try to push developers to make the most widely appealing and marketable game possible.
spending time on things you do not enjoy should be illegal (or something like this, I couldn't find this quote on the internet) - Daeran.
@@AveSicarius In some genres, sure. In 4x right now we have some very innovative game play options in Humankind and Old World, among others. And Stellaris' trend of constantly refining and rehauling the same base game, with modular DLC for customization, has worked rather well over the last 7 years.
@@AveSicarius At this point, I'd argue AAA is just a genre in it of itself. It's the mass-marketed 3rd person cinematic melee/shooter collectibles overarching design that permeates nearly all last gen AAA games. It's no longer the pinnacle of what's possible with games, just a single slice of the whole video gaming medium. The fact that Morti is able to only play RPGs for years proves that you can ignore AAA games and still have fun.
@@Hrafnskald
I wouldn't really relate 4x games with the mainstream AAA market. 4x is a relatively niche genre which isn't considered to be widely accessible or marketable, and as such remains rather free of the marketing focused BS forced into the "open world RPGs" and other genre's that dominate the AAA publishing catalogue.
It's like CRPGs are thriving now precisely because they aren't seen as mainstream material, but wait until BG3 is a major financial success and see what happens to the genre.
As a GM that struggled with both Pathfinder and Crusader Kings in the past, I really advise you to give CK a try. It’s more of an Roleplay game than management game, and honestly, it’s freaking amazing (you are taking control of medieval dynasty, not exactly control of country itself). It was really hard for me to start, so I understand your point, but it’s really worth it. My motivation to play came from really amazing mod to CK3 that recreates Roshar, world from amazing book series by Brandon Sanderson - Stormlight Archive. It was insanely cool to dive into rosharian politics, meet characters I love, change the history of the world while roleplaying a member of Kholin Dynasty. One of the best experiences in gaming I had for a long time, and it was really worth the rocky begging
Oh you may just have sold me a copy of CK 3!!!
@@jorisgarcia6927 Honestly get a CK2 bundle when it's on sale. Paradox has a strategy of putting half of the finished game in DLCs. That gets expensive and CK2 is really good and fairly low on the micromanagement aspect.
I hate strategy games, but the way you can roleplay in CK is insanely fun. And there are so many options and routes you can take.
@@QuinlanLJ yeah! I love creating cults in vatican xD
Just don't touch my wife you bastard! 12 years later, I wonder how many were mine?
I can't really think of a genre of games I avoid. I used to be like that about music, said I could not get into country music.
Then I heard 'Jolene' from Dolly and fell in love with the song. Hell I never played a crpg until after watching some of your videos on the subject.
I guess what I'm trying to say is don't let genres stop you from trying new things out.
Well put
That's like the most reasonable input i saw on internet in a really long time. Thanks and keep it cool!
Same I enjoy all kinds of games and all kinds of music.
While it broke my heart to hear you don't like Grand Strategy, you have an extremely valid reason. As someone who plays Grand Strategy the most, I can agree that these games are daunting. I mainly play Europa Universalis and after 2k hours in that game I still find myself learning and having to figure things out. Especially when the studios like to introduce a new element into the game with major DLCs. But that is also in a way what keeps the game fun and replayable.
I look forward to seeing the next game review you come out with! Keep producing great content, sir!!
Europa vs HOI: which in your opinion has a steeper learning curve?
@@ElieHaykal europa hoi is a lot easier to learn
@@lennonc2024 I disagree man I forgot most of HOI after the newer mechanics but remember a lot about EU
@@lennonc2024 I play both EU4 and HOI4 and found EU4 easier to get into and thus learn from. HOI4 is a tougher nut to crack and i'm still trying to figure out how to have a decent army after 140 hours.
I personally have most of the same thoughts, with the exception of total war and the paradox strategy games, they make achievement hunting so much fun with their systems, and hunting those achievements is what always brings me back
Its not fun……….. its WAY too time consuming in most cases, and tedious. I can give plenty of examples, one of which is for example Total War makes you beat same campaigns with every single faction, while the unit rosters especially in older titles such as Attila are almost identical and copy paste. I dont think you really thought thru your comment, but to each his own. Its not fun a tiny bit, objectively.
@@ensar3752 everyone had their own definition of fun. I have been playing eu4 and other Paradox titles regularly for the last decade and still find this game fun and enjoyable. And I can understand why people don’t see any fun at all in these games.
I always find achievement hunting a was of time id rather play soemthing else and just leave the game of a happy note
I mostly play the CK series and Hoi 4. Mostly for the mods, though. Honestly I feel like a lot of Mod makers make better paradox games than paradox. For instance Elder Kings and Old World Blues.
@@anaveragegamer359 In EUIV in particular achivements give you goals and reasons to play interesting nations you never would have played
4X games are the bomb. You need a guide to give you a tour through all the menu's, but once you're there they are truly some of the best out there. Games like Crusader Kings 2 genuinely have great emergent gameplay, and they are surprisingly some of the best social experiences I have had in multiplayer. Whereas in Dark Souls or Wasteland you focus fully on the game, in 4X games you can talk casually and have deep conversations and from time to time go bananas because something crazy happened. Come to think of it they are a lot like fishing in that sense. I recognize they are not for everyone but they are a lot more casual than most people think.
I think I've been watching every video on this channel lately because I like the snappy pace. He really doesn't waste our time.
Crusader Kings 3 is one of my favourite RPGs besides DOS2 and the Witcher 3, also the closest thing to a Song of Ice and Fire game adaptation where you can jump into any character and guide and follow through their whole life with unexpected events, plot twists and relationships which makes it a true rpg experience
There is a game of thrones mod for CK2 that is really a good song of ice and fire adaptation
I mostly agree. Unless your dynasty gets reduced in power, and you find yourself stuck ruling over a single chiefdom, getting shat on by all of your more powerful neighbors, and accumulating 0.1 gold and 0.1 prestige a month. Maybe I'm just bad at game, but at some point I felt like the game only rewards the very ambitious/power hungry players.
Age of Wonders is the only grand strategy I like because of the focus on the heroes, and SSB Melee is the ONLY fighting game I can play and enjoy. Nice video Mort
Honestly most games I play are either cRPGs or Grand Strategy. I think I like them both for the same reasons such as complex systems and having to think. You should give some strategies a chance Mortym I think you would enjoy them. Im currently playing CK3 and enjoying it a lot, even paused my WotR playthrough for it.
Warning to people do NOT buy CK3 on console its a total scam. Over a year since console launch and we've had 3 lackluster updates and 1 cosmetic DLC and we still don't have a date for the promised season pass content. I bought CK3 thinking it would be like steallaris where we got 3/4 updates a year catching up rather close to PC. Well that didn't happen.
I'd start with CK2 at least up to Old Gods DLC. It's probably the easiest and most fun of the Paradox Grand Strategies.
@@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 ck3 is retarded easy
@@cmdr.jabozerstorer3968 Why? Only CK i ever played is 3 and its not that hard. I know some DLC functionality from 2 is still missing but 3 is still newer and has other stuff even 2 with all DLC doesnt.
@@vuky258_ Why? Because it's got all its DLCs. CK3 is still in development in regard to DLCs. I've also yet to play it, so I cannot currently recommend a game I'vet yet to play.
I totally feel you with the rule density of grand strategy games. I'm often attracted to the fantasy being sold, but the learning curve is too steep for someone of my limited patience. The one exception I managed to get into is Crusader Kings, which I like to think of as the Persona to Paradox's Shin Megami Tensei. There's still tremendous depth to the simulation, but much of what's being simulated is human character and interpersonal relationships, which makes it much more intuitive than an equally deep simulation of economics or warfare. Strategy games typically feel to me like outlandishly complex board games without the joy of playing with friends.
I have nearly the same exact sentiments on these genres.
Hifi Rush is the exception for me this time, and I can see why. I just can't help but smile and tap my foot constantly when playing it, and I'm not compelled to be good at it. It's even kind of like a Fighting game too, without any sort of competitive side to it.
This is giving me a new perspective on playing some fighting games like Injustice 2 and Smash Ultimate for the single player aspects and mastery of characters in my own way.
Interesting. I honestly felt that total war was less micro managey than crpgs like poe, until the late game when you have many armies. Before that it's actually really chill, with only a few battles and a few cities you have to pay attention to.
Considering the end game as part of the game that would make it pretty micromanagy
@@logansaxby7224 quite a few campaigns can be won before the endgame portion, depending on playstyle and factions. Some of the more extreme examples will be total war three kingdoms playing as LuBu, you can pretty much blitz through the game with just his army and barely any management haha.
RPG's and fighting games are my two favourite genres. While they cater to very different moods and intensities they're built on great characters, Getting good at a fighting game is very rewarding. Street fighter 6 is looking like far more than just the barebones online and arcade mode that has been served up in recent years. World tour mode is looking like a create a character driven RPG/story/learning tool to help you learn without sitting in training mode for ages. The online also has a social space that can hold up to 100 people in a lobby that only makes things more fun.
These are exactly the genres I avoid too. I suspect most people follow you here is because of similar interests in gaming genres and how well you cover our common interests!
Yes, it felt like he was describing me.
For me the only ones I agree with is the kingdom simulator and puzzle games I just don't care for both genres aside from the total war series
Pretty much the only two genres of dames I play are the RPGs and 4Xs, mostly of tge Paradox variety. There is a lot of similarities between the two, I feel. He is not wrong about learning cliffs, though.
I do play fighting and rythmn casually
Rest same
Talos Principle is a puzzle game you would probably enjoy. Deeply philosophical. I don’t like puzzle games either but this hits different
You have my attention now
I only really play the "Portal-type" puzzle games, those are the best ones imo. Others like this and Talos Principle is Antichamber and maybe The Witness.
I have this strange relationship with racing games: I always enjoy playing them, but they don't bother me enough to stay there longer.
I consider that kind of games "games I like to play when I don't know what to play". Racing games and FIFA are that kind of games to me.
Save for smash bros and dissidia I feel the same about most fighting games.
I thought the same about Grand Strategy Games for a long time. I bought CK2 back in the day without any idea how to play, so I did the tutorial. And still didn't understand anything, was really confused and didnt get anything done.
One year later I actually watched some tutorial videos on youtube and started to play again. Still didnt understand much though, got more questions than before. Took me another year until it finally "clicked". After that it became easier and easier to understand and learn other games like CK2. Especially the Paradox games share many similarities
You mentioned in your last video that you were having a harder time keeping up with the comments, and this video already has a fair amount, so I would propose that you opt out of conferring any recognition to this one. Making it an exception to the rule should achieve the same outcome. Onward to 200k. All glory to the algorithm.
Fighting games do require considerable amount of time to get good. But, if you're good at one of them, you pretty much can do well in other titles too.
I think the real fun starts when you nail down all the mechanics and executions and you start approaching it more like hyperactive chess match. There's actually a lot of strategy involved in fighting games.
You dont have to get good at fighting games, the same way you can fumble your way into understanding grand strategy games. I have been with them (FGs) for very little and I am obviously not great at them but I think I am decent enough to play and get whooped or the whooping or teach friends and make it an enjoyable experience.
Theyre not as reflex intensive as most would believe either. Fighting Games have the oldest pro's in any game genre
I was always curious why you never did a Crusader Kings review after the 3rd came out. Figured it would take waaay to long to 100%, but I can get the intimidating factor. But, I will say that CK is probably one of the best RPGs I have played, because the actual RP part plays a really big role in that game, beside just the way you build your character.
From the way he describes the genre in general, which is accurate enough, it is quite obvious that has no idea how CK3 (or CK in general) is different to those others.
Could you imagine him trying to 100% EUIV, CK3, Stellaris, HoI4 or even Civ VI. Any of them would take a long time.
@@christhompson9140 Willing to bet it would take him 1k+ hours per some of those games.
Apart from CK 2 and 3 being different from the other grand strategies, it is also way more accesible than RPGs such as Baldur's Gate 3 and Divinity Original Sin 2. Just hover over any UI element and it will simply explain it for you. At first, I was scared of grand strategies as well, but it did not appear to be so difficult. Then, because I figured out it was unnecessary to be scared away from a game, I took my chances on any hardcore RPGs out there, and learned that it is not that they are very complex, but they are just bad at conveying the system of the game (or assume that you have information about the system through DnD and any similar systems).
@@echorises It took me 20 years and a Mortismal video to understand how THAC0 works and that buffs from equipment do not stack in DnD inspired CRPGs.
Interesting take on grand strategy. I like them for the same reason I like crpgs, I see them as essentially country rpgs. But of course in order to get invested you have to enjoy map staring and have a little angry warlord or politician inside yourself.
Just got back from a big fighting game tournament in Chicago where I managed to top 8 at Street Fighter V. I can understand not wanting to take the plunge for sure.
The thing I'll say for not playing fighting games is once they get you, they ruin all the other genres, so enjoy your freedom haha
Your channel is how I get to enjoy all the games I know I would've loved if I hadn't been sucked into this black hole.
Congrats, I actually don't think they ruin any other genres, honestly. They are great as a sport or a hobby which is how I consume them but with the constant lack of "other" content. It's hard for me to treat them like games unless you go party mode where nobody knows anything about the game.
@@chillaxboi2109 I think they can ruin other genres by being too engaging. Seriously they're the perfect combination of depth, challenge and visual/audio/kinesthetic feedback
@@Jabroni_14 Not for me, they are some of my most consumed content but if everything there is in life is to constantly battle then it's kind of boring. Imagine constantly doing the same thing, same motions, etc with nothing else to look forward to. There are things to draw from in fighting games. I repeat that they are among my most consumed media BUT I can't think of a genre that has everything needed in games.
@@chillaxboi2109 fair enough, the sport comparison fits well since it technically can and is infinitely replayable and watchable but it is limited to the rules of the game.
If the skill ceiling is high enough you'll never run out of shit to learn plus technically you could just learn more characters but then you'll just be stuck with the same problem of the genre being limited by its rules
This video made me feel good. I have the same issue with grand strategy. Never any idea what's happening and the idea of micromanaging crop distribution or whatever outweighs any interest I have in the story.
there are many types of grand strategy games, like in Crusader Kings you deal mostly with characters and not the economy of your realm. You can even roleplay as your character in many ways
I feel you in regards to grand strategy/4x games. The only reason why I ended up getting into them was because a good friend of mine had a good pulse on the types of games I'd like and recommended EU4 to me. I have since recently achieved 1000 hours in the game and likely will play for many more. If my friend hadn't intervened I would definitely have felt the same way as you.
The only Rhythm game I've ever gotten really into was Audiosurf(the first one) since with every new song you add to your collection the game gets new content.
I love grand strategy on paper, but very few grand strategy games these days really appeal to me for the exact reasons you mention here! Too many are "4X" titles that demand you spend your time allocating money and balancing thinly-veiled spreadsheets. Games like Dark Wizard and The Battle for Wesnoth were great because they were lean on kingdom management, instead playing like tactical RPGs with capturable side objectives and dynamic recruitment. I think it's a shame that games like that have fallen so far out of style. One day, I'd love to make a new grand strategy game in that vein. :)
Fighting Games for me I play when I don’t know what I want to play. Grand Strategy and 4X when I want to lose a lot of time but it’s gotta be an appealing setting.
Fighting games are my favorite competitive genre because the error-failure-correction cycle is so fast. You can get decently proficient at them fairly quickly. The problem is you really need to play them in person to get the best results and that is a huge limitation.
As a person who's favorit genre's are both Grand Strategy and RPG:s(and I consider our tastes in game similar, hence being subscribed), I really think you should give CK3 a chance. CK3 is basically a RPG/sandbox simulator, and it's true that you can get used to the events and have them be less interesting after playing multiple games there are so many events that it's doesnt really matter.
And as far as Grand Strategy goes CK3 is acually not that bad, and it's very hard to out right lose. You might lose a war and become someones subject but that doesnt mean the game is over(as long as you have an heir when your character dies and you have atleast one county you can always come back, Infact crawling back and taking revenge might acually be fun.). You just have to start playing the intrigue game and counquer their country from within.
So if you see my comment and and decide to give it a try which I hope I recommend starting as a count/duke in tutorial island(Ireland), and just see wherre the game takes you(usually try and conquer Ireland). CK3 tutorial is pretty good and Ireland is pretty isolated and you can try to conquer it without to much interference from bigger powers.
Edit:
Unlike other Grand Strategy game the focus isn't a contry but the characters, so the game play really isn't just "I will blob up and become the biggest and strongest country in the world!"
I loved puzzle adventure games up to a point in time.. My original love of them came about mainly because a lot of my first games were text adventure games like A Mind Forever Voyaging and Zork. Those changed into graphic adventure games like Black Cauldron and then later games like Myst, Grim Fandango, The Longest Journey, Gabriel Knight, etc. The main problem today is simply that I've become lazy and if I can't figure out a puzzle in a timely fashion I'll just look up the solution online. That pretty much makes the whole thing pointless.
If there is a great/engaging narrative attached to it, I don't think it is pointless.
In Ace Attorney games, I push through the annoying puzzles to get through the interesting mysteries.
I relate to basically all of these when it comes to games that focus on those niche genres.
But i likely enjoy those genres in games that merge many different ones. Like zelda's combat and puzzle focused dungeons, GTA's shooting and racing/driving loops, Portal's first person puzzle story design etc.
You might still want to try CK2 or 3, the machanics are not that hard to get and the roleplay possibilities are huge. There is tons of events for you to play your character as you want, you can be a just and mighty ruler as you can play a sadiscic drunkar, or even a lunatic. It is to the point that if you want you can kind of let aside the gestion of your realm and just focus on you and you're family stories. Not speaking of all the mod there is, the witcher, game of throne, the elder scrolls, Vampire the mascarade, enven D&D have been implemented you have world map of those univers to play in. In term of roleplay it's a great serie !
CK is one of the few grand strategy games I don't like and wouldn't recommend. I find the mechanics and gameplay extremely obtuse, and the fact you have very very little control over a huge number of things compared to a game like Total War or Civilizations really hampers the enjoyment for me. Also considering your main character is changing pretty regularly I think it rather hurts any role play potential.
@@DSzaks That's completely understandable, because CK isn't a proper Grand Strategy in the traditional sense of the genre. It's much more focused on building the story of your dynasty through the random events and personalities that your characters develop rather than winning. It's an interactive story generator in a grand strategy base.
It's yeah easier to make a list of games one does not play than what you play. Mine are: tower defence, anything multiplayer only, match 3 puzzles, zombies as sole enemy type games, fighting games. That list is of course longer e.g. Sport-Manager games etc, but just as top five.
Everytime I open youtube, this guy has a new video. What's more, the videos never dissapoint.
What a machine
I've tried all genres over the years. RTS, RPG and FPS games are top 3 for me, but racing games have a special place in my heart. I've even bought a wheel. Assetto Corsa in VR is mental.
Interesting! I obsessively play grand strategy games, especially Europa Universalis 4. They are the games I understand deeply. I also love CRPGs, but for them, I generally use a guide on character building as a support.
Interesting video. I always enjoy fun little videos like these that just talk about one's interests (or disinterests as the case may be).
Genres I don't care for are sports games, puzzle games, platformers.
For me, I'm usually attracted to games that have great stories or interesting characters irregardless of genre (old tell tale stuff, red dead redemption, mass effect, uncharted, gears of war)
But I also enjoy strategy games, rogue lites, tower defense, and sim-management games (like simcity, two point hospital, etc)
Shooters and fighters are something I'll play on occasion but I tire of them quickly.
I do also avoid puzzle games mostly, except for Myst games. Those games are really great!
I'm a fan of 4X, grand strategy, and turn-based RPGs like DOS2. You can view it as a spectrum where on one end you are managing the equipment and attacks of 1-4 people in an RPG, and on the other end you are managing the economy and military of entire societies with grand strategy. There is potentially a middle ground managing large groups of dozens to hundreds of people in games like Rimworld, Dwarf Fortress, or Kenshi.
Ah, Mortismal not caring from Grand Strategy makes a lot of sense as to why he wasn't a fan of the kingdom management in Kingmaker. As someone who loves RPGs and Grand Strategy game I really liked that aspect of the game, even if it wasn't very deep it was just a nice bit of variety to spice up the game for me. But if you don't like thinking about that kind of stuff to begin with I can see how you would find it to be a slog.
I really like Grand strategy games but I still hated the kingdom building aspects of kingmaker. Mostly because it felt like a cheap mobile game from the late 00s early 2010s.
@@jordanjames2956 Fair enough I suppose. I mean it is just a minigame inside the main game. You could throw the same accusation at something like the mech arena in xenogears or town construction in Fallout 4. They are clearly not going to be as involved as a full on game designed from the ground up solely for type of content, but they are there to mix things up a bit if you want. And when they aren't to my liking, I don't engage w/ them and that's fine. But I appreciate that they are included for those that do, and that you don't have to mess w/ them if you don't want to.
I'm with you Mort. Back in the day (pre 2000) I used to play almost everything: loved adventures, racing, flight sims, 4X/RTS, just about every crpg, some puzzle/platformers, etc. These days I only really play mmorpgs, arpgs, crpgs, some action (e.g. Warframe, fps/shooters), but generally just don't have the time or patience for things like 4X. I recently really, really tried to get into Stellaris, probably the space/sci-fi pick of the the bunch in 4X, but it just felt too slow to get going, progression was non-linear and difficult to gauge, very complex, and I just felt like it was work (fun work, but still work, eh).
I used to feel the same way about Fighting Games too, until I realized that once you understand them at a more fundemental level, that is, once you "get past" the controls and have some basic BnB combos down, you realize that fighting games are basically turn-based RPG's, played in real time against a live opponent. I defintly can understand the initial hesitation tho especially considering only lookiing at 1 screen, and only being able to fight might seem limiting to someone who is completly unaware of the actual metagame being played. Its also kind of like an RPG, in the sense that "YOU" are the character, and your improvement at the game is noticible and feels like I "level up" in real life whenever I play them, which is something I unfortunatly cant get in any othe
My big problem with adventure/puzzle games is that I pretty much always end up encountering a puzzle that I just can't get past, which means I end up having to look up the solution. The answer either something that makes you go 'of course, I should have figured that out myself', or it's a case of 'how on earth was I meant to figure that out!?'. And once you look up one answer, it kind of breaks the seal and you end up pretty much doing the rest of the game with a walkthrough, which doesn't feel great. I have maybe once done one of them without looking up any answers, and that was Grim Fandango, which is one of my favourite games of all time, but on the whole I find they generally don't get the difficulty balance right with the puzzles.
I do find it satisfying when I actually manage to solve a puzzle, but what with two kids and limited gaming time, I don't really feel like I'm getting the most out of my time if I'm just staring at a screen trying to figure out a puzzle.
Strategy games are my favorite gerne, there are a lot of amazing games especially older ones that date before 2010, but i can agree with the rest of your categories. Loving your RPGs too, keep it up.
The genre is in its renaissance right now. It's a lot of newer games that are even better than a clssic ones in some ways.
Genres I play:
1. Single Player RPG - I love getting lost in a good story and game world. Probably the best writing in gaming belongs in these and I love it. I also love modding and this genre is what modding was designed for
2. Racing - I think Mortismal actually described why these are great pretty well.
3. Sports/Sports Entertainment - I grew up watching and playing sports and sports videogames. Hockey, Baseball, soccer and professional wrestling are all fun time wasters if I have a half hour to kill
4. Fighting - Similarly to sports games, these are fun time wasters... and I am usually pretty good at them
5. 4X/Grand Strategy - Just one more turn... annnnnd its 3am
6. Turn based tactical Strategy - By which I mean XCOM/Jagged Alliance type games. Usually they have a nice blend of the 4x and RPG elements and ty fun... Also usually moddable.
7. Survival Horror - I love a good Resident Evil or Resident Evil-like game. Been playing these since my first trip to the Arklay mountains in 1996.
8. Sim games/City Builders - Much like the 4x games, but without the specific forces fighting against you. A nice relaxing experience that suddenly takes 12 hours of your weekend.
Genres I don't usually play
1. 3rd Person Action Adventure - While they are generally seen as the game of the year style games, I can never get into games like The Last of Us, Tomb Raider or God of War. I know they are good, I just dont like them.
2. Multiplayer focused shooters/Twitch Shooters - CODs, Battlefields, Battlefronts all feel like lazy cash grabs to me now. I spent a large part of my youth playing these games and they really stopped evolving about a decade ago and are the most susceptible to the worst features brought over from mobile games. Halo is about my only exception to this as they at least try to have an engaging single player experience.
3. MMO ALL TYPES - The second I see massively Multiplayer Online, I am out. I hate these games with a bloody passion. World of Warcraft was such a terrible experience for me that it still poisons my opinion of the genre.
4. Souls-like - Janky unresponsive combat? Nah dude, just git gud. These are just rhythm games without the music, ultimately I get really bored really quickly.
5. Rhythm - Speaking of Rhythm... I too do not have rhythm.
6. Side Scrollers - I turn 40 this year... there was an entire decade of my life where this was the main Genre of games... Honestly, I moved past it when I was 10 and never looked back.
7. JRPGs - Inevitably these get compared to Chrono Trigger... then I realize I could be playing Chrono Trigger instead... Then I play Chrono Trigger for a few hours and I am good for this Genre for another 3-5 years
8. MOBAs - Why do these exist?
I completely understand your view on stellaris. Been playing that game for over 3 years and I've only beaten 2 full playthroughs and they are very very long.
Still learning new tactics today and always have fun playing it though.
My 2 favorite genres are RPGs and Fighting Games, they compliment each other too, sometimes you want a grand time sink, and sometimes you want a short skill based burst of gaming. I primarily avoid RTS, sims, and horror games.
Understandable. I would just expect 4x games to be closely tight to RPG genre. But hey it took me a lot of time getting into that myself. Trust me, it gets really good after the first 1000 hours!
Our list is identical except for 4x games! Highly recommend checking out tw Warhammer 3. Decent mix of 4x, rts, and rpg and would be a good entry point
Thanks for covering a topic like this, I always like to hear different perspectives relating to things people do and don't enjoy as much. Also I like the way approached the topics in a way that didn't bash the genre or people who play it. With this sort of video it can pose the question of what do you enjoy in games and why you enjoy it etc.
Interesting. Grand Strategy is one of my fav genres and I have well over 5000 hours across multiples games and I think they share a lot in common with CRpgs. So, I was a bit surprised you didn't like them as much. :P
I find myself drawn to specific genres like strategy, stealth, and even role-playing despite being pretty bad at them, or at least having to endure several hours of pain before getting good at them.
100% agree about puzzle games/puzzles in games. After almost four decades of playing games I just have zero time or patience for badly designed or obtuse puzzles, which seems to be most of them. I’ll typically give a puzzle one legitimate attempt and then it’s straight to an online search to get past it.
I don't particularly like rhythm games, but Metal: Hellsinger was fun af. I played the demo and liked it enough that I bought it when I came out. It's a weird mix of feeling like I'm vibing out and also feeling like my nerves are going bad at the same time.
I used to play all the types of games listed here. As I got older I kinda just want games that I can chill, like turn-based games. Having to give a game 100% attention is exhausting thesedays. I don't play games to be exhausted.
i mainly play fighting games and rpg's but also love action games like devil may cry and bayonetta. Also like Souls games. Only strategy game i play is Total Warhammer.
Rhythm: playing my real guitar is more fun than any simulation or game can ever be.
Racing: The Gran Turismo series, up to #5, I mostly played couch co-op, which was great. Now I like city racing games like Burnout Paradise and NFS Heat.
Grand Strategy: The Civilization series is as deep as I go into strategy games. Anything more is too tedious to be enjoyable to me.
Fighting: Having played Mortal Kombat since it was released on the Genesis, it's mostly nostalgia that brings me back in every few years. Then I quickly leave again as soon as I finish the single player challenges.
Puzzle: Puzzles in games like Skyrim and Trine are fun and enjoyable. Besides them, I completely agree with you on the genre.
I thought MMO and FPS games would be high on your list. You can't 100% an MMO or FPS due to the nature of the game. I mean FPS like CoD and Battlefield, obviously games like Doom can be completed.
I think this is one reason I subscribe to your channel. I feel almost exactly the same. I’ll try a few racing games and Total War but I’m just bad at fighter games and rhythm games. Instead of being immersed on an adventure I’m hyper focused on timing.
I remember when you had like 20k subs. Congrats on your success. Great hidden gem of a gamer channel. Your a machine
Mort I think you and I pretty much have the same interests when it comes to games, which is probably why I enjoy your channel.
i relate to a lot of this! the genres i avoid are:
-rhythm games because i’m bad at them.
-fps games, because i’m also bad at them and i just can’t aim for shit in general.
-racing games or actually just anything that involves a lot of car gameplay. i’m just awful at using car controls in games for some reason.
-fighting games because whenever i’ve tried to get into them my friends who are good at them would just kick my ass over and over and no one ever really taught me how to play, also i don’t want to deal with memorizing all those combos and moves.
i actually like puzzle and strategy games though tbh
What a great topic to discuss. For me, as a WWII buff, I always tried getting into the "hearts of iron" franchise. When I tried HOI:4, I watched youtube tutorials for over 10 hours and took notes and all. I managed to learn basic stuff but the level of management was hellish so I had to drop it all together. The same goes with "Simulation" games. I'm interested in jumping into franchises like "Kerbel Space Programs" but seeing others manage huge excel sheets just to get things going is very intimidating :(
The thing about Grand Strat/4x Games, especially paradox games like Crusader Kings and the EU games, is that you don't actually have to 'win' as such. It is a lot more open than that. Like you can have a meaningful, fun playthrough and just stop when you get to certain goal you set for yourself or a certain year, or maybe even when you 'lose'. As like many people have said, it's more of an RPG where you can create a story and follow your own path if you will, to start with I was bogged down with all the various systems and wanted to and aimed to 'win' the game, I quickly got overwealmed with this. However, this changed when I decided to set myself small goals, and treat it more like a role playing session, sometimes, losing fights and land was even fun to a certain degree!
So yeah, my recommendation to new players for playing these games, especially the paradox ones, is treat it more like a role playing game in a massive sandbox world that can end up being completely different each playthrough, I think people will enjoy them more taking this approach than traditional RTS games.
I think you should try the witness. It's the best puzzle game ever and truly an impressive experience
Great, loved hearing your preferences, most of which are the same with me.
My friends love Grand Strategy games and don't get why I dislike them in general. I say it is too much thinking, attention to details, boring visuals most of the time..they say it is ironic because I love adventure games and detailed RPGs, tactical turn-based strategies, and old games where visuals are crap, and I don't have anything to answer lol. I guess it is because they are tedious like you said.
You just listed nearly all of my favorite genres. I find it so funny that people who don't like fighting games also don't like rhythm games. You all know these are learnable trainable skills right? Like there are drummers who had no rhythm when they started. I'm definitely of the mindset that I don't want to limit myself. I'll try anything that looks cool to me, genre be damned. But I 100% agree with you on the puzzle games. They are all the same, super meh and annoying 95% of the time. Basically a dev going "look how smart I am and how dumb you are because I circumvented expectation" But fighting games, man.. there is NOTHING like going from being bad to being somewhat decent to absolutely bodying fools. It's like Rocky in real life. Highly recommend, and it'll make you better at rhythm games too!
One of the greatest feelings ever
I grew up predominately on Nintendo consoles and 90s / early-2000s PC games, so generally-speaking my childhood preferences were platformers and everything high fantasy. Toward more recent years, some genres that've now become big staples for me have been sandboxes, competitive multiplayer (though I no longer play them), roguelites, and most recently of all, strategy games. (And yes, I do also love RPGs as well. My favorite game of all time is RuneScape, which I've played since middle school.)
As far as genres that I don't play, it's usually a case of not being interested in them rather than not liking them. Though I pointed to a few specific genres, as those are the ones I played primarily, I actually played a _wide_ variety of games in my childhood that I enjoyed. I played card games, sports games, racing games, adventure games, rhythm games - I found something fun in just about every genre, regardless of whether I like the genre itself or just those particular titles within that genre. So I don't really find many types of experiences that I do not like. If I don't play a genre, it's probably just that I played less of that genre compared to other when I was a kid. I fell off most of those ones I listed because I ended up wanting to play more games of other genres instead of them.
One genre that I didn't experience back in the day was fighting games. In fact, with the exception of the Shovel Knight Showdown expansion, which came out back in 2020, I've never actually even played a legit fighting game once in my life. That is simply a genre that has always existed in this separate bubble that has never crossed my path, and that's the only reason for why I don't play them.
Strategy games _used to be_ one that I actually wasn't a fan of. It was that aspect of them being so complicated and so hard to understand that I just didn't want to put the effort in. But I did play one strategy game as a kid, which was Heroes of Might & Magic 3, and when I came across Age of Wonders 3, back in 2019, on a free-to-keep weekend, I decided to give it a go as it reminded me quite heavily of HoMM (because they are quite similar games, in fact). And come to find out, when I was able to finally figure out how to play it, it ended up being one of the most fun games I have ever played in my life. I am now looking into playing a bunch of other 4X / grand strategy titles in the future.
I think when it comes down to it, theme is a more prominent factor than genre, to me. I love feeling immersed into the experience and "being" in the world, so really it's about what the game's setting and premise are that largely determines my interest in it. The types of games I generally avoid are games that don't have a compelling theme, which for me is anything that's very heavily based in reality or something meant to represent the real world. Uncharted, Tomb Raider, Assassin's Creed, Fallout, Red Dead Redemption, The Last of Us - that's the sort of stuff that doesn't interest me. I grew up playing games that were mostly based in fictitious settings, or at the very least threw a cartoon-y / fantasy spin on things, and that's the way I've always liked it.
Learning Street Fighter V over the course of 5 years was one of the most rewarding gaming experiences Ive ever had. I never really played a fighting game seriously before, and I could not believe the nuance and subtlety involved. Also, the community was super helpful and friendly. Having a mentor and a group of friends to spar with was prob the best times i had playing it.
And after all that, 5 years or so... I'm still not even good!!!!!
I absolutely agree with your list - Racing Games (I do enjoy arcade ones and not simulators... Like if I have to play one right now I will play the latest Need for Speed Indeed (as I have played many of the franchise) You know what build on Car Games? Spaceship Games :P And it is exactly as you've said if they are "proper" they are straight up MOORPGS (and no I do not mean EvE online and I do not mean the not yet released Star Citizen) I mean Star Conflict... You unlock ship threes, ship parts, you equip and level the ships with parts of your choice (you even build some of the ships with slots for the parts you will chose on them) and you PvE and ~heavily PvP (in separate~ish environments) But over time this game becomes "Too Tight" and you end up either PvPing on the highest ships you've earned trough pve (because erm you can actually pay for most of that but... stuffs) or PvEing to earn better/different ships to PvP with. Now I do need to mention... after the RPG like build up of your toon... it is ~ full 3D FPS with a lots of >speed< and Maneuvering... saying it`s no road NFS with Cars With Guns is actually not an overexaggerating much... Thus I do like car games (I btw currently ~worked as IRL delivery driver but got fired and I am now quite bummed up with the perspective of finding and working new, different job :(. I do also have a personal vehicle that is not SUV and/or front wheel/all wheel drives, not that I am saying Ferrari Pure Blood or Lamborghini Uruse are not suitable SUVs or anything... for whoever can and want to afford them).
But you know what I wanna add to your list... Survivor games (I do hate stuffs where the "thrill" is based on deprivation of stuffs and Minimalism... it`s like freaking IRL where I live) a.k.a. Resident Evil, Left for Dead, Dying Light... such ~garbo in my eyes... Same as the Living dead or the TV show Last of Us after the Game Last of us... aren`t all of those 1:1:1 copy paste of each other with newer gen graphics? and Pure shooters... I mean come on... I am not saying Battlefield, whatever the current one massively multiplayer playable one currently is... is bad game... just that I have had my fare share of Quake II, III, Unreal and CS (since it exists on top of HF)... In fact most of the time I give QII of Ubisoft as FPS example of what FPS is... but than Recently I realized I am actually (and were) Unreal Fan (graphics and design wise) (and were) But QII was more common because less hardware demanding... even the popular meme (these days) FPS benchmark QIII was actually still < Unreal whatever edition was it`s rival... Quake was the budget decision somewhere in before DOOM re release, and now Unreal is taking the lead in hardware demands again with it`s 5.1 Edition and that Matrix Open World benchmark that is like medium playable non violence (yet) GTA V. For the Sake of FPSes I have played few times trough full first Medal of Honor (that is pre Call of Duty) than Call of Duty, than Possibly Call of Duty two, the first Battlefield and bunch of other shooters I can`t even remember their names of... I do remember the coolest one was Unreal based (practically Unreal Engine Mod that is called another game) FPS With Jet Packs... That had super fun in it for it`s time, but it never made it popular.
Agree with your choice of genres with the exception of puzzle games, used to be a big fan of quests as a kid in the 90s, especially the Monkey Island series. I've cooled down towards them over the years, the last one I played was Thimbleweed Park I think, and I picked it up solely due to the game director's persona. But I am planning to try the latest Monkey Island.
Another one of my least favourite genres is survival games.
I hope you appreciate the irony of your own video that you posted. you put effort into thinking up, actually putting together, editing and then uploading onto the internet. you put MORE effort into saying you dont like these genres than you have into actually trying to like them. Thumbs up! it makes little sense to me BUT as somebody who subs to your channel, it was still a good video.
I can definitely understand the tediousness of 4x/Grand Strategy games. I would say Crusaders Kings might be a bit of an exception you might want to do a 2nd look at. Yes, it's a 4X/Grand Strat game, but it's really focused more on characters (your dynasty). You can get up to some seriously wacky and strange crap in that game.
I wouldn't mind if you did videos of a genre something like "Game I'm too bad to 100%: such and such game" and went ahead and did a vid on it that was something in between a reg youtube style review or one of your first look type videos. I doubt most of your fans would mind. What that would do to your channel metrics, i have no idea though.
I love 4x games usually. And they kinda scratch the same itch that RPGs do, as in you start small and weak and then grow or level up, customizing your playstyle to fit your preferred vision or to adhere to a roleplay idea in my head. Also that experience of meeting a battle that seems impossible at first, but then heading back and fiddling with your build and what you do in order to overcome that challenge is similar. That said, the kingdom management in Kingmaker and the crusade in Wrath of the Righteous are definitely the worst parts of each game for me.
I used to not be into racing games very much. But a group of people I went to school with who all moved to different cities still connect through playing GTA Online together in invite-only lobbies. At first we did whatever content was there, but these days we either just mess around using the city as a playground or we do the races in the game. We even got a few people who make their own custom circuits. Every other way of playing the game went by the wayside, but racing is still something we do every time we meet up. It's something I am bad at, but I have come to really enjoy it.
getting 100% in ck3 is by far the most difficult and time consuming challenge I have ever undertaken and i can honestly say it will be years before i complete that goal
My 5 genres I personally avoid would be:
- Stealth
- Racing Sims (I'm totally OK with arcade racers though)
- Popcorny games like Uncharted or TLoU, or whatever you call this genre. It's a bit vague, but the more scripted the whole thing feels, the worse.
- Roguelikes/lites
- Pretty much anything that revolves around competitive online multiplayer (ESPECIALLY MOBAs)
Stealth is probably the only one in which there are some exceptions I do enjoy, like Mark of the Ninja or Deus Ex. Really, my main problem with it is that it's often a test of patience, and while I do consider myself to be patient, I don't think revolving around "being patient" makes for fun gameplay personally. It's one of those genres in which savescumming actually makes me enjoy the experience more.
As a side note, I don't exactly avoid them per se, but I tend to get tired of sandbox games with no objectives. Same goes for city builders or sim games like that: I actually like many of these genres, but if no campaign or objective-driven scenarios are provided I get tired very quickly.
Funny how you mention NFS Underground introduced RPG mechanics into the racing genre with it's high level of customization. I for the most part have no interest in sports games but really enjoyed the OG Xbox version of Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005 because the main mode was customizing a golfer's appearance, customizing his starting stats (there were a tonne of different stats you could invest points into) choosing from hundreds of pieces of equipment in the in-game store (which effected player stats) many of which had to be unlocked. You could even customize a fully unique swing or unlock swings with different stat boosts. You would go on to challenge a wide variety of both fictional and non-fictional golfers with varying strengths and weaknesses that you needed to customize your golfer to defeat. Over time you would use career winnings defeating these golfers to upgrade your stats and equipment. I remember being surprised the PC version was highly simplified compared to the console versions, guess they thought they put too much RPG in their golf game.
I actually think playing stellaris and Crusader kings on console makes them easier to play. Since things have to be less complicated to control they are actually faster and easier to understand.
I agree with you on four of the five. But I do love me a good Grand Strategy Game. Stellaris, Terra Invicta, CK. I think those three in particular work because there is a strong RP element to them as well. Europa Universalis has gone off the deep end in its rule set. The last version of it I truly enjoyed was EU2.
But honestly, I think Stellaris is a game that ramps the complexity really well. There are simple builds that work well, you start with a small empire and grow it. You can set the map so that you have low threat in the beginning. In fact, a perfectly valid way to play the game when is to set the number of spacefaring societies in the beginning of the game to "none." So you're the only exploring faction until primitive societies advance far enough to launch their own expeditions. By which time you'll be at least a hundred years of expansion ahead of them.
And CK3 in particular has leaned hard into the RP element. Almost all of the rules, per se, can be understood in the context of growing a dynasty. I would say it's slightly more complex than Stellaris. And you don't have the ability to avoid aggression you do in Stellaris. But I don't think it's a hard game to pick up. Whereas CK2 definitely was.
I can relate to this. Of course, you change the types of games you like to play over the years. But some will always stick. I avoid most Sims, RTS, MP, Fighters, and JRPGs because they don't speak to me. BR I totally avoid. Open World games are also something that has begun to bore me. Many of them copies the worst parts of Ubisoft's game design
Grand Strategy is my second favorite genre after Action RPGs. I find them very similar in terms of what is the kick I get from it. Especially EU4, you basically have a country and have to figure out what "build" and style you need to work towards. Instead of Gear you acquire provinces and trade goods, instead of skills you have ideas etc.
The gameplay is always secondary for me, seeing a character or a country/state build to come together.
(which is why I always stop at around 1650 - the end game has its perks, but it's not what I love about the game)
As I’ve gotten older, my tastes have changed some. I’m almost 45 now. Always have loved RPGS, that hasn’t changed., but I used to play shooters all the time, I’m just not good at them anymore, also don’t have the hours to keep playing and getting better. Occasionally I’ll play forza horizon just to scratch that itch in non simulated racing. I still play AOE2. I even struggle with god of war type games now. I do love my CRPGS. Great video
Interesting video, I have been watching your content for a while now despite the fact I don't really like CRPGs/TRPGs.
I just enjoy your content and the love you have for the genres you do enjoy.
Was cool to compare what genres we align/don't align on.
I enjoy Grand Strategy/4x/fighting/racing games but do agree with not being that fond of rhythm/puzzle/adventure.
I try out all kinds of games to see if a genre starts to click, as I never used to like Grand Strategy until I found some I loved.
I will keep trying the games you recommend to see if one clicks, off to try Weird West as it looks kinda cool and unique.
I mostly avoid the cinematic games that make you watch more cutscenes than play the actual game.
Wow, man you summed up my thoughts almost exactly on each genre. This is why I love your chennel.
I used to really enjoy puzzle games, and very occasionally someone still makes one that is genuinely fun (usually when it's a good mix of puzzles and other gameplay) but they often are just too easy or straight out sanity draining. Nobody likes hitting a brick wall and having to Google the solution.
I mostly agree with everything on your DNP list: despite the fact that I can appreciate - and, in some instances, try to force myself to play/understand - them, they all mostly fail to grab me and/or are beyond my brain to wholly grasp.
That said!
Two recommendations from one who, likewise, cannot get into the same games:
- "Flatout: Ultimate Carnage": for those who don't care for/can't get into racing games - it's a fucking TREAT, and a game that is in my stable of "Staple Games" that can almost always find itself on my rig. It's a racing game barely and is mostly focused on enjoying the scenery and causing as much mayhem as possible along the way...but it's unlike any other game that could be described as such ("Crazy Taxi" and "Burnout Paradise" are always recommended to me, but they ain't got what "Flatout''s got).
Note: I recommend "Flatout: Ultimate Carnage", rather than "Flatout" (1) or "Flatout 2", as it's the ultimate form (no pun intended) of the formula.
- "Return of the Obra Dinn" for those of us who don't get along with puzzle games. Once you get the hang of the single mechanic, you can knock the entire game out in an afternoon or two, but...what a REWARDING experience.
Honorable Mention: any/all of the "Life Is Strange" series, as sort of "Story/Puzzle-Adjacent", but wonderful, wonderful slices of life.
These are the kind of genres I avoid as well. Though I'm a bit surprised that sports games like NBA2K, Madden and FIFA etc weren't on your list. Also, I agree with your points on Grand strategy games but to add to it, I can't understand the appeal of just staring at UI and menu screens my whole playthrough. It must take a special kind of person to appreciate this genre.
I feel you on strategy/4X games. It's sad in a way, since it was probably my favorite genre when I was younger, sitting at the computer for hours, playing puppet master to entire nations. But now I'm older and have less time and more choice, and 4X games, though still very appealing, require a large investment from the player and the gameplay is entirely staring a menus. Plus, they're games that you usually can't "beat," which I find less satisfying these days. I'm impressed by how sophisticated the genre is now, but they're often too open-ended for me.
I feel like you would actually like Crypt of the Necrodancer, as it's like an RPG of sorts. It's quite different from Hi-Fi rush for example. This is coming from someone that avoids all the same genres you mentioned in this video apart from 4X which I love.
You not liking 4X and puzzle games makes me happy. I always felt I 'should' like them, but could never get into them.
Haha I don't know if you've ever tried it but I'd love to see you do a video trying Puzzle Quest. A match 3 game with stat growth, gearing, skills and other "RPG-ish" elements. I grew up playing it and similar games, I think they're fun.
My favourite video game genres are RPGs of all kinds, action or strategy. Shooters of all varieties, metroidvanias, 2D sidescrollers and survival games.
I generally avoid the same genres-not always because I don’t like them, but mostly because I’m very bad at them! I loved the first few Total War and Age of Empires games, but they became so complicated and with such heavy micromanagement that they left me behind. I played the first 3 Mortal Kombat games (in arcades!)-I loved them, but even back then I didn’t have the skill and coordination to get truly good at them, and age has not improved this! Puzzle games, racing games, shooters and platformers aren’t fun because I suck at them so bad that I’m more frustrated than entertained! You get the picture!
I love RPGs because I’ve always liked stories-reading them as well as playing through them. The also don’t usually penalize slow play, and I’m a slow player!
The puzzles in Pathfinder WOTR were a nightmare sometimes, you sure had a blast with them ;)
@Vile Disturbance 🇷🇺 Obviously.
mine is all the genres that have card mechanics and i blame griftlands. i waited for it with just a handful of screenshots and a teaser trailer FOR YEARS, thinking it would be an rpg. and what do i get? a card game. i'll never forgive you klei. you broke my heart.