[geeks] End of the line for CompUSA

[Shannon Hendrix]

On Dec 14, 2007, at 1:38 AM, Nadine Miller wrote:

>
> I used to hate controllers, too.  Then I found some games I liked  
> enough
> that I played more, and I've gotten a lot better.  I find while I  
> don't
> like certain things about the controllers I have, I don't hate them  
> like
> I did at when I first started playing consoles.

I generally get good with a controller very quickly.

The problem is that no matter how good I get, I still hate it.

It sucks, period.

It has nothing to do with skill level, they just suck.  It isn't fun.

It's like getting good at games which only require reflexes.  I can  
practice until I'm good enough to beat almost anyone, but why?

About a year ago two teenagers asked if I'd play with them.  I  
declined saying I didn't like the game.  One of the little pimple  
factories made a comment about how old I was.

I joined the game and despite being twice their age in a game of  
reflexes, I wiped the floor with them, and three of their friends.

They had no smart-ass comments the second time I told them I didn't  
like the game.

Yeah, I could have been "mature" and walked away, but humiliating them  
was a lot more fun.

Anyway, the point is that even if I practice and learn to use a  
console controller, I rarely enjoy it very much.  It ruin the  
immersion factor for me too, in most cases.

Improvements in controller design might change my mind.

After all, most controllers are based on designs from the late 80s and  
early 90s, and haven't changed that much.

The built-in joysticks are too small and crappy, and there is not  
enough travel, and functions are hard to access with both hands on a  
tiny controller.

I've always thought a heavy bar that fit across your lap would work  
better, with buttons and a small hat for your left hand, and a large  
travel joystick for your right.  This would give you movement much  
closer to using a mouse, and allow for enough keys to do custom  
commands, grouping, etc.

Each hand position should be far enough apart that you aren't crammed  
into such a tiny space.

> Of course, I suck at FPS, so never play those on consoles or  
> computers,
> and the notion of a RTS like Age of Empires or similar on a console  
> with
> just a controller is too ridiculous to contemplate.  No hot-keys for
> grouping? I'm not into masochism in my entertainment, thanks.

Same here.

I also don't like how console limits impose limits on the software.

Some really great games are ruined because of this.  It very nearly  
ruined Oblivion, just for one example.


-- 
"Where some they sell their dreams for small desires."