Have achievements changed the way we game?

There was a time when the rewards we gamers got from our countless hours of playtime were simple, a time when all we needed from our games was a high score or flashy cut scene to make us feel like we`d accomplished something with our hours of effort. Literally hundreds of hours were spent by gamers on the likes Final Fantasy or Gran Turismo or even more old school endeavours like Mario and The legend of Zelda for nothing more than a very impressive game save that no one outside of their bedroom would ever see.

However that’s all changed since the arrival of those shiny statistics of excellence known as achievement points, or trophies to followers of Sony`s gaming powerhouse. On the surface these points have acted as way for gamers to show people just how good they are at handling a joy pad and to show off their hard earned accomplishments. But for many achievement points have changed how we look at gaming. No longer do gamers simply play for entertainment or that fuzzy sense of accomplishment that comes with completing another title, now achievement lists must be conquered and ‘gamerscore’  must be harvested in order for a gamer to feel like they`ve gotten the most out of their purchases.

Achievement lists may be one of the best things that has ever happened to hardcore gaming. The extra challenge presented by achievement lists give gamers more of a reason to revisit games and to hang on to them for longer before sending them to the trade in wasteland. They give us motivation to attempt things in games we may not have thought of on our own, use weapons we otherwise would have left back at camp or drive cars we may have considered ‘too French’. In most cases achievements are created by developers to entice gamers into exploring the full fruits of their labour, and that’s not a bad thing at all.

And while they may give gamers a way of getting more out of their games achievements can turn more sinister when they start to affect how they play. Countless online matches across the world are spoiled by players, for lack of a better term, dicking around with an ineffective weapon or cowering behind well placed boxes, in pursuit of some obscure achievement. When a player stays awake until the early hours of the morning aimlessly collecting flags or some other item achievements turn from fun obtainable extras into soul engulfing burdens.

Is a full achievement list really that essential in modern gaming? Ten years ago we did just fine putting in the hours for those final credits and shiny secrets, just to make ourselves feel that sense of accomplishment. In the world of modern gaming where we can all see what the other is playing and how well their playing, achievements seem to have become the unofficial ‘Street Cred’ of the hardcore gamer. However this may be a cynical view of a system that allows gamers to get more out of their games and gives them something to show for all the hours they’ve spent in front of their TV’s

So next time that achievement flashes up at the bottom of your screen. Ask yourself ‘did I unlock that for me, or for everyone else?’