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Do you remember when you had all the time in the world to play video games, and you sat in front of the television all day (or at least until your father kicked you off so he could watch Law & Order)? It was better than Saturday morning cartoons because the experience didn't have to end at the end credits; you could just start another game and keep on playing, and those Health and Safety Precautions Booklets could go screw themselves for all you cared!
But time goes on, children grow up, and those 10 to 15 minute breaks after every hour of gaming became 10 to 15 minutes of gaming after every day, because you'd be too busy working in an anonymous cubicle at work from 9 to 5, and then taking work home with you to do on your own time. Or maybe you're taking care of kids now and while the kids are playing video games, you're looking over the finances or cooking dinner when you're not working. As the commercials say, life comes at you fast.
And so, with their long time supporters suddenly faced with no time for video games, why are video game companies coming up with ways to keep someone playing for far longer than they have time for? One could argue that games are being made for the younger generation, the ones with all the time on their hands. But what about the older generation, the one that grew up gaming? Are they now too old to be considered part of a game company's demographics?
Gaze, if you will, upon Star Ocean: Till The End Of Time. The latest in the small series of games about a Star Trek-like Pan-Galactic Federation boasts a lot of save points and ample opportunity for those who want to leave the game to take care of more mundane affairs. But it also boasts a system designed specifically to discourage gamers from turning off their PlayStation 2: the bonus gauge. As you fight, it slowly fills, and when it is full, it allows you to receive bonuses such as extra experience and money, a greater chance to receive an item, etc. However, included in the bonus gauge is a stipulation that the gamer must not quit the game or they will lose their bonus gauge. For some reason, the developers of the game decided it would be a good idea that the bonus gauge would not be included in the game's save data. Being as a full 1/8th of a standard Sony brand PS2 memory card is being taken up by the game's Battle Trophies (which aren't mentioned on the game case, by the way, it only tells you how much memory you need to save the game itself), you'd think they wouldn't suddenly be stingy about the amount of memory they're taking up on a card.
Another PlayStation 2 game seems to have a similar aim to encourage gamers to keep playing. Capcom's Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter features a system wherein you can't just save whenever you wish; you must have a Save Token in order to do so. While it is fortunate that there are enough tokens for a normal player to save the game, one who can play for only about a half an hour a day will not have enough Save Tokens to get through the game, and will be forced to constantly restart the game if they want to receive any benefit from their gaming sessions at all. Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter would only be able to be played if the gamer has ample enough free time to do so.
It's no wonder handheld gaming is so popular, especially from Nintendo. DS games feature a pause function enabled simply by closing the system. Flip the top screen down and the system goes into a power saving mode that allows you to pick the game up again a reasonable amount of time later. Many GBA (and earlier) games featured a save anywhere feature, and many of those that didn't still featured a temporary save file that one could use if the system was running low on batteries. And many of the GBA games I purchased last year feature a reminder before you start that you need to read the Health and Safety Precautions Booklet that came with your game. The DS reminds you as soon as you turn on the system. The booklet advises you to take breaks every hour, and to see a doctor if you constantly develop pain or soreness from playing a video game.
The only warning I've seen on a PlayStation and PlayStation 2 video game is that if you're prone to seizures, you might not want to play their games. There are no indications of safe amounts of time for playing a game, nor are there any indications that prolonged exposure to video games can be harmful. It is fortunate that games which seem to encourage people to Keep Playing Now are very few and far between. Can you imagine if Final Fantasy X had said in the instruction manual that five spheres in your sphere grid were randomly deleted if you saved and quit? Or if you suddenly lost all your T-Points in Xenosaga Episode I? Or if half your munny was taken from you in Kingdom Hearts? The point is, you shouldn't have to feel as if you're being punished for having a life outside of video games. Save Tokens and the bonus gauge both make me feel as if I can't just put the game down, or I am forced to play at a disadvantage the next time I pick it up. I would like to play all night gaming sessions at my discretion and not the discretion of video game companies.
It is my hope that this kind of flaw in the design of video games can be nipped in the bud before it can become mainstream. Can you imagine Cloud telling you that he can't save the game because he forgot to pick up Save Tokens at the train station?
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