Many games of various genres have hit a stunt in their ability to grow/growth. This isn't the genres fault but instead the expectations that has been placed upon them. When a new game launches the servers are usually always over capacity and many are unable to login. "They should've known it would be big, why didn't they expect this?" BAM, instant negative point that will plague it forever.
Whenever all the current content is consumed by the rushing player base, "Why didn't it launch with more content? They should've added more!" BAM, another negative point that will follow it with every patch with somebody in the comments possibly saying "This should've been in the game earlier!".
Whenever there is a bug that isn't game breaking but is a noticeable defect, "Why isn't this fixed yet? It's been 2 patches already!" BAM, a negative point again. The game has been out for only a few months and already players are leaving En masse calling the game a failure at launch and warning others not to try it.
Nowadays games are never a pristine product at launch and expecting it to be is just a silly notion. These newer types of games are meant for long term playability and these issues are minor at best and will be fixed. (Unless the development/support team stops responding entirely!)
The narrative of what these games bring has been greatly misrepresented. Games like these bring an experience, something that no other game can truly offer because this game is meant for that EXACT setting.
The way I look at these games sometimes is similar to a book: They offer me an outlet to explore a whole other world/setting. Yes, it's all chained down to a game engine with rules and restrictions to allow fairness/prevent exploitation, but it's there! I can move around in it and I can read up on the lore or carve my own path inside it without having to spend the time/energy creating every aspect of it myself. Some company has already done that with good intentions of presenting an actual playable world inside of a game for players to interact with.
Before my previous post about 'Retiring in Gaming' I sort of had this idea when concerning gaming. I mean why the hell do I always gravitate towards fishing? Oh it's because the game gives me the opportunity to do it when it's slightly difficult for me currently (In the Real World) to pick up a rod and go fishing. But now I can go fishing in this other world/setting that was curious to me before but now has my interest because who knows what type of fish are in these virtual waters.
There's this Youtube Video where an avid Fantasy Warhammer fan,(PancreasNoWork, No affiliation) explains in detail about why he enjoys the Fantasy setting more than the 40k universe, he is making a different point than what I am making in this post. But it's still a really interesting perspective about setting and one that has slightly opened my eyes to the 'Game setting experience' as a concept.
Yes, I know that first and foremost, A Game should be playable/enjoyed from the very beginning and having all of the systems work fluidly is critical to ensure players keep returning,(This is why I have trouble staying frequent with Web3 Games), but the experience the game gives it's players shouldn't be thrown away by the wayside entirely. There are many jank ass looking game but yet they have a diehard fanbase that continue to return for more. It's probably not for the gameplay anymore but just for the experience that the setting offers them.
-What Inspired this post?-
I am looking up different games on Steam(Valve) and reading the many reviews just to get a better sense of the game but reading the negative comments for small infractions just hit me the wrong way. I started type this out to get it out of my system but lo and behold there is this monster of a post. I'm not saying every game should be held to this standard or to ignore every flaw, bug, or bad design. But just to look deeper into the development and the vision for the game as a setting, experience, and place to be in.
Okay. I'm done! Going to play some games now.