Now the new year is well and truly underway I have come to realise, or more come to face the realisation that I, as well as a copious number of other people, am trapped within a mental mind game that I seem to be unable to escape from. That perplexing, unpropitious mind enslaving phenomenon that is better known as “Achievements”. Yes, Microsoft’s answer to sliced bread. They have me, entangled within a second realm where hysteria embraces my body whenever I hear that oh so fulfilling “ping”, followed by the ever more so satiating confirmation I have unlocked an achievement.
Now before you swiftly label me mentally unstable, I would like to reiterate I do have a certain degree of sanity. It just appears these achievements have had an adverse effect on me, giving me a deplorable addiction. My Xbox 360 life began blissful; I would play my games taking brief breaks to wipe my mouth as I uncontrollably salivated at the high definition graphics and texture that was being placed before my eyes, admiring the advance in technology, though nevertheless the games were still simply games. I would play them, and if the game exceeded a gratifying level, I would play them until completion. Never would I replay my way through the same game again just because I had unlocked legendary level though, this seemed tedious, irksome and all in all very boring.  There’s 20 Easter eggs scatted throughout certain locations of the game you say? And you really believe I’m going to waste valuable moments of my time finding them? What good comes from completing a game on veteran when the added bonus involves reaching inconsolable levels on stress and a broken controller? This was my dull, rather despondent attitude to gaming until I discovered achievements.
At first I thought little of these whole accolades, but as the number of achievements began to flourish up on screen my mindset began to change, I became deranged, greedy, I needed achievements.  And now I find myself at the bottommost, sunken level that I am now.  An example for you now:  “Seriously 2.0”, Gears of War 2, the bastard of all achievements. The achievement is inane, absurd and quite literally ill-advised to anyone clear minded. Unfortunately I fall way short of a clear minded description. Hour after hour I find myself playing Chapter 5 Aftermath – Closure, shooting locust after locust from a Brumak. I’m at the way too wayward point now where I feel unjust as to why an achievement hasn’t popped up after completing the ironing.  After spending hours finding gargoyles within the wonderful fantasy world that is Fable 2, I find myself looking for  gargoyles on the local church spiral while out shopping, which then leads me thinking, wouldn’t that be a great high spot! (Many thanks there to Assassins Creed).
Now I may be exaggerating a little, or at least writing in the hope you believe I am, but my point is how much achievements have changed the way many people like me play games. Obviously there are the more shrewd, more well-reasoned family gamers who play with little focus on achievements, and there are those “die-hard” gamers who have played to complete every last ounce of gaming juice the game can hold. But to a lot of casual gamers the introduction of achievements has made a big difference most notably in how much more people play the game. Producers can now add achievements to allure and induce players to explore parts of the game that they, if achievements were non existent, would never or unlikely visit or skip. Knowing the whole of Xbox live can see your every achievements, viewing what you have (or haven’t) achieved creates competitions and rivalries in itself, which really makes a difference. For the most part I really do believe these achievements are the way forward for both gamers and producers. It is just a shame they may cause a rather fallacious, addictive denouement on people.  Now leave me be while I order “My Horse and Me” for a quick millennium of achievements!