Achievement Unlocked 08.29.08: Spreading Things Out

Posted by Rod Oracheski on 08.29.2008

This week in Achievement Unlocked, 411mania's Rod Oracheski takes a look at progress pacing - how a good game does it well, while a poor game doesn't bother with it at all, and what it can mean to a title's longevity. Then there's a quick comparison of the respective NHL-licensed game Achievement lists, and we close with Ubisoft confused about Trophies.



It's been a busy week for Achievements, with a Gears of War 2 Achievement list getting leaked and the NHL lists both coming out. The Gears list was later reported to be fake, so we'll just ignore it and somehow move on with our lives.

I've talked in the past about various elements of Achievements, and this week we'll look at a new one: pacing. Some games don't do it very well, tossing Achievements around like candy at a parade and leaving nothing for gamers to come back to. Others parcel them out like a miser, leaving gamers frustrated and walking away unfulfilled. Most games do it pretty well, and we'll look at what that means.


Pacing - it's an important element in any form of entertainment. How many times have you been to a movie that dragged on and on, long past it was time to wrap it up? Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, I'm looking at you! It's also possible to have pacing that's just too quick for its own good - pulling you through the narrative at a breakneck pace that's just impossible to follow. Just like the pacing in books or movies, Achievements have their own progression rate - and it can be done poorly...very poorly.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

Take a game like Avatar: The Burning Earth, for example, where you can unlock every Achievement in the game - all five of them - in the first few minutes of the game. Achievements in that game, or games like it, are pointless. There's no feeling of accomplishment for having 1,000/1,000 in a title like that - and it should actually be a badge of shame on your Gamertag. Keep telling yourself you rented it for your kids, we all know better.

Then there are games like Final Fantasy XI, where you'll get Achievements at rate that could be considered glacial. There are no 'easy' Achievements at play in that one, where you'll invest hours and hours before getting a single Achievement. Blue Dragon is another, with Achievements that aren't as bad as FF XI, but still punishing. Maxing out all your characters to level 99, for example.

On the good side of the ledger are games like Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Crackdown, Half Life: The Orange Box, or Too Human. These games dole Achievements out at a regular pace, keeping gamers going towards that next 5/10/15 point score. Keeping that carrot dangling just out of reach is important - having Achievements that are achievable, but not quite yet, helps keep people interested.

Players, at least the ones who like Achievements, like to feel like they're making progress. Go too long without delivering an Achievement and they'll start to think they've hit their 'Achievement ceiling' for the title. Look through your own collection - how many games do you have that are sitting at some plateau you just couldn't get past? If you check the Achievement list, how many of those ones that were left locked did you have a shot at? Chances are pretty good that there are a few you could have gotten, if you'd just been motivated enough to check on them back when the disc was in the tray.

Would that have kept you playing until the next unlock? It's tough to say for sure, but companies are willing to try anything to keep your eyes on their product - not their competitors. As a previous column covered, that's also the reason more and more lists are hitting that 50-Achievement mark. They want variety on offer, looking to hook as many gamers as they can.

NHL 2K9

NHL 2K9 vs NHL 09 - Achievements on Ice
While NHL 2K8 had just 19 Achievements, I considered them far better than NHL 08's list of 26. They were more interesting, for starters, and largely avoided online-only Achievements. Of course I also considered NHL 08 the better game overall, so the Achievement list only goes so far...

This time around the NHL 2K series is seeing a revamp in the gameplay, including a move to a Skill Stick-like system of controlling the players and puck. They've also revamped that Achievement list, beefing it up to 38 Achievements, while NHL 09 gets 27 Achievements - with a good deal focusing on Xbox Live play.

As I pointed out earlier, pacing is important, and it's something that the 2K devs seem to have covered. There are Achievements doled out at regular intervals, for hitting marks like 10 assists, then 40, 100, 200, and 1,500. In addition to those 'keep you going' Achievements, you'll also find surprise ones like 'Skillful Skater' - unlocked by scoring a goal after performing a 1-on-1 deke special move. There's even a funny one in there called Lumberjack, though I won't spoil it for those that crave secrecy and surprise.

NHL 2K9 might match up to NHL 09 on the ice, it might not. We'll find out in a few weeks. There's no doubt, however, that the 2K team does a better Achievement list. Step it up, EA!



Well the PS3 has another Trophy-toting game this week, as Warhawk received a patch that included 57 Trophies. The list, as I mentioned in a previous column, is a mixed one - some decent ones, but also a good number of 'farm or never get them' ones as well. At least they generally have good names.

Ubisoft's upcoming Prince of Persia title, "confirmed" last week to not have Trophy support, may have Trophies after all. In an interview with Eurogamer, level designer Michael MacIntyre apparently "confirmed" there will be Trophies in the game.



I spent a lot more time with Too Human this week, trying to get a score locked down in my head. The review should be up tomorrow, possibly the next day, but I can say that I'm continuing to really enjoy the game. Playing through the story a second time revealed more than a few things I didn't catch the first time through - references that aren't obvious until you've seen the rest of the story, but the real meat to it remains in the loot-gathering replay of levels in their special 'variant' mode, whether by yourself or with a friend.

I have a level 50 Commando with several pieces of the epic armour, along with a rapidly leveling Bio Engineer - created to see what the other side plays like. I'll touch on the gameplay in the review once the Bio is higher level, but I can say that there's a really distinct gameplay deviation there - even from the other melee classes that I've played in the game. Being able to respec on a whim is also nice, offering up the chance to try out different builds at any point and avoiding that 'locked in' feeling if you've inadvertantly gimped yourself.

Other than that, I tried a round or two of Tiger Woods 09. The game seems a little more difficult this year, though you're still going to be homing in on the pin with startling accuracy. Playing as Tiger still seems like a cheat code, especially when you drive the green on a Par 4 - every time. The game looks amazing, at least the environment does. The players are still a little iffy by comparison, and the celebratory animations need to be put out of their misery. It wouldn't hurt to record some new golfer chat as well.

Played something else, but I can't talk about it yet. Look for more on that next week.

Until next week, I'm out.