Hey everyone! This thread was suggested by snoop. Don't know if he was serious or not, but too bad

Anyway, to start this thread off, how do you feel about the Achievement system (Xbox 360) and Trophy system (PS3)? Do you feel that they make you want to play a game more than if you wouldn't get any type of in-game reward? Personally, I like working on achievements, but I'll only play a game if I enjoy it. In other words, the achievements don't influence my decision on if I want to play a game or not.

Hope to hear other people's opinions on this and if you have any other questions or topics of discussion, by all means, join in!

I'm not familiar with either of those systems in particular, but I think certain "reward programs" can be an inventive way to create replay value for different games.

For example, "Ocarina of Time" had the Gold Skulltulas, which were 100 gold spiders that infested the country of Hyrule. Every time you killed one of them, it left a token behind. For every ten of the first 50 you killed, you'd get a reward in the Skulltula House, located in Kakariko Village. If you managed to destroy all 100 of them (or found a way to cheat, as some did), the head of that house would give you unlimited amounts of money, removing the need to go "Rupee hunting" for potions and such.

Another example is in the more recent "Mortal Kombat" games, where every battle would give you a certain amount of "Kombat Koins", which could then be redeemed in the Krypt for different secrets (such as video clips or alternate character costumes).

My point is that when used correctly, these inventions can serve as a wonderful addition to an existing game...but sometimes, different programmers can wind up featuring them way too much, which can frustrate a lot of gamers who aren't into "side missions".

I definitely agree. I'm the type of person that when I go through a game, I like to collect everything. I actually went through OOT and collected all the Gold Skulltulas (with no cheats ) and the heart pieces.

I just feel that the game isn't complete without doing so.

I also agree with the part where too much of the feature can frustrate gamers who aren't into that sort of thing, but if they don't like it, they can stick to the main quest.

I just wish that the descriptions for some of these achievements were a little clearer on what's expected of the gamer.

By the way, if anyone would like to play some 360 with me sometime, send me a PM and I'll give you my gamertag.

I like the achievements and trophies system the 360 and PS3 have

It encourages the player to go deeper into the game or to follow the requirements necessary to achieve such achievement. Without the achievements and trophies most just play the game once and done with it, with it you tend to go back again and again to achieve them.

I have to say though some can be frustrating and too much work to get but you feel like you accomplished a great victory when you get it

It also shows the skill of the player when you see they got a achievement of beating it on the hardest difficulty or pulled off a 40 hit combo


I prefer the achievements more on the Xbox though, seeing they came out with it first, whereas the PS3 copied 360 by having that

Some of them are definitely frustrating (such as trying to 5 star all songs on expert on Guitar Hero 3), but once achieved, you really feel like you accomplished something.

I also prefer the achievements to the trophies, because with achievements, you get a certain amount of points for each, whereas the trophies, you either get bronze, silver or gold.

I kind of sick of achievements right now. All you get is points which do nothing. I like trophies more since it a RPG style system(It has a level system as well). Plus you have different levels of Trophies(Bronze, Silver, Gold & Platinum).

Both companies are starting Rewards. First game was Infamous on PS3 & Halo ODST on the 360.

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btw, Trophies to have points attached to each one. Public just can't see them. Their for the developer.

I was going to say there's a gamertag thread but it's gone. Maybe we need another one and sticky it.

That would be a good idea. I'll participate if someone wants to start one up.

OK, here's another chat topic: what are your favorite things about the different video game systems that you've owned in your life? What are your favorite accessories, or game-related memories, and why?

For me, one of my favorite memories was the first time I beat "Super Mario Bros." I remember this huge adrenaline rush, followed rather quickly by a "Huh?!" moment, and then a grim satisfaction that I'd actually accomplished something cool.

As for my favorite system aspects, the NES is what I really grew up on (I didn't get a Super NES until Christmas 1996 or so). I remember going to my local FuncoLand one year (long before it became GameStop), with $50 for my birthday, and you'd have thought I had a million bucks. According to my mother, I was hyper as ever, and had a blast shopping around for a couple of NES games. I don't remember which ones I finally settled on, but I do recall enjoying that day.

My other favorite memory was when I got that Super NES for Christmas. Apparently, my Mom and a couple others pooled their cash together for it, and I got the "Killer Instinct" combo set. I played the living daylights out of that game for what seemed like an eternity. When I forst opened it, I remember shrieking with joy like a small child...and I was 17 at the time!

I will respond to this with a separate post for each system.

I remember when I first got my NES and thought Super Mario Bros was pretty difficult, especially world 8. I remember when my mom would play NES with me and in world 4-2, at the start where you have a little platform to jump to in the middle of the gap, she's always move her arms, thinking it would make him go further and one leg would always kick up, almost as though she was jumping too. It was really quite funny.

I also remember one Christmas, about 2 years after I got my NES, I was really upset that I hadn't gotten any games for it that year and all of my gifts were opened. Suddenly, I saw another gift hidden in the tree and it had my name on it. I opened it, and it was the Ninja Turtles game! Still to this day, I can't beat that game

Lastly, I remember one year on my birthday (I was 8-10 I think), I got a birthday Card from Mario!! Inside was a $20 discount for any game that was on the list that came with it. With that, I got Super Mario Bros. 3. I loved that game and still play it to this day!

Those are my greatest memories with regards to the NES. I will post more system memories over the next few days.

Oh wait! There's one more. When I was 7, my family and I went to visit some friends and so my brother and I were in the bedroom playing NES. We were playing various games that came on the 31-in-1 game. I remember that we were playing "Circus" and when I beat him, my brother got mad and pushed me off the bed, causing me to hit the table that was in the room, breaking my collar bone. Not my greatest memory, but it's a memory none the less.