Favorite Element of A Game? The Soundtrack

About a year ago, I decided to stop playing FIFA online. It was a decision that I believe needed to happen in order for me to expand my gaming experience. I could go on and mention why exactly I did this but, that's an article for a different time. For now, I would just like to say that not playing FIFA as much made me miss the game. The gameplay, the competitiveness, even the silly physics, I missed it all. However, there was one element that I missed the most. That element was the absolutely superb soundtrack.

Any gamer can tell you that the soundtrack is one of the most crucial elements in a game. A lot of times we tend to remember games based on the music we listen to when we're not near a controller. Personally, every time I would hear my friend's brother play Goldfinger's "Superman," the first thing that would come to my mind would be Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2. Whenever I listened to Godsmack's "I Stand Alone," I couldn't help but think of the PoP: Warrior Within. Even in the radio when a local R&B station played Leona Lewis's "My Hands," I was reminded of Final Fantasy XII. Games and music often times have a strong relation to each other and this allows us to experience games even when we're not playing them.

The soundtrack's purpose isn't necessarily to just be background noise either. These sounds are meant to add emotion to the overall gaming experience. I can recall playing Persona 3 Portable and absolutely loving every battle in Tartarus. It almost seemed like every time a battle sequence would start it would suddenly be a party! In the same way, who could forget the classical tunes from Shadow of the Colossus? The added music made fighting a Colossi more monumental. Game developers I would say are focusing more than ever on making deeper soundtracks, and for us as gamers that is a phenomenal thing. Think about the game Journey for example, imagine if it hada soundtrack filled with dubstep. We would certainly feel something different about the game than what we feel now.

This is why I felt as though I lost something when I stopped playing FIFA. I missed the soundtrack that made the online experience my favorite part of the game.  Luckily, there is always an official soundtrack with each new game release, so even though I don't play the game as often anymore I never miss a great tune.  

All in all, my favorite element of a game is the soundtrack and I have already built a great video game music library on my computer. With this in mind, I can't help but feel that others the same way. So how about you?

What are some of your favorite game soundtracks or tunes?

Why I Decided To Turn Off My Trophy and Friend Notifications on My PS3

As soon as I started playing The Last of Us, I knew I was in for something special. I had been waiting for the game for some time now and as soon as I finished the first chapter, I knew that it was going be a great experience. The hype that surrounded the game before its release had also been monumental. High scores and high praises from everyone in the industry, this was one game that everyone agreed was a masterpiece. So I dived in, ready to be immersed like never before. But then something happened, something that removed me from the experience in bits and pieces. After playing for a couple hours I just wanted to know, "When am I getting my first trophy?"

Before I played Ellie and Joel's adventure I had already read a couple of reviews to prepare me for what was coming. The reviews raved about how great the visuals looked and how the story telling had surpassed their expectations. The reviews also mentioned that obtaining a trophy in the game was not going to be as common as in other titles.

Now, I'm not one to simply buy games for the mere collection of trophies. Before I start any game, I never look at the trophy list and I make the attempt to not make trophies my main objective. As soon as I finish a game though I don't mind looking through the list and earning the trophies I may have missed. That's the way that trophies should be approached. They are simply an added bonus that (hopefully) allows you to experience the game in new and exciting ways.

But even with not looking at my trophy list and not making it my main goal to collect them, they are still there. Every time you finish a chapter, "ding!" Every time you you achieve a gaming milestone, "ding!" Worst of all, any time you are engaged in your game, "ding!" The trophy's default notification will interrupt your experience to let you know that you have acquired your tenth bronze, "ding!"

However, that isn't to say that the trophy notification entirely removes the player from the game's core experience. A lot of players probably don't even notice the trophy notifications and many of them can have a great experience with the default notification setup. But when I am deeply immersed in a game where immersion is key and important, personally I would prefer to skip the trophy notifications all together.

Granted, it's not only the trophy notifications that interrupt that immersion but also the friend notifications. Look, as much as I enjoy chatting and playing multiplayer games with my friends (okay, not really), I don't need to know that they are logging in or out when I'm in the middle of an important cut scene. It's just annoying.

This is why I have decided to turn off notifications for trophies and friends whenever I'm about to start a new game. That way, I can experience the game without any interruptions on-screen. If I end up getting a trophy for something I do in the game, at least now my immersion won't suffer because of it. It's not that it entirely removes a player from the experience, but those small chunks where it does certainly add up.

In my experience with The Last of Us, it wasn't the "ding!" that annoyed me but rather the lack of. This is an attempt to put an end to those notifications and experience a game in a richer way. Congratulations, you have finished reading this article, "ding!"

Image: Wikimedia Commons

What Infamous 2 Got Right (That Other Games Didn't)

Infamous 2 is a great game, let me state that first to get it out of the way. If you haven't played it already, you should just stop reading this article and go buy it right now. In fact, it's free on PlayStation Plus! So go on, check it out.

Now, if you're still reading this I'm assuming you already finished the game and for that I say great job! Even though the game is a little old now it has stood the test of time quite well. However, this short piece isn't about raving on about how great Infamous 2 is but rather I am going to discuss with you one of the game's features that outshines many other titles. In short, that feature is "Blast Shard Sense."

Within the past generation we've all played great titles such as Bioshock, Uncharted, Call of Duty, or Assassin's Creed. In each one of those games there has been what I like to call a "Collection Achievement," by which I mean, there is a side quest in the main story that requires you to collect particular items in order to unlock an achievement or get an extra dose of story information.

By the titles that I mentioned above you can already recall the collection achievement mission that I have described, Bioshock has the tape recorders, Uncharted has the treasures, Assassin's Creed has the feathers/flags, and even the ever popular Call of Duty has the intel. All of these games including many other popular titles have these collection achievement missions.

In each one of those games I would argue that collecting the required items ended up being a chore and in worst cases, it removes the player from the entire experience. For example, as much as I love the Uncharted series, sometimes I found myself moving the camera in odd places just to see if there was a treasure that I might have missed. The same can be said about Assassin's Creed. Whenever there was a mission that involved chasing after a target or simply trying to be stealthy, a feather or flag would appear and for a moment I would switch my attention on trying to obtain the item. Now, this doesn't break any game by any sense, but it is something that many games still have and honestly, I don't feel that it should be that way.

Infamous 2 on the other hand does something great with it's own collection achievement mission. Yes, it still has you collect a particular item (Blast Shards), but the entire collection process is remedied with an ability that Cole gets midway through the game called "Blast Shard Sense." This ability allows the player to pin-point the exact location of the remaining blast shards without having to search for them on your own. If you want the Blast Shards, go get them. If you don't, leave them be. If you're playing as Cole while on a mission, it becomes a whole lot easier to leave a blast shard that you passed by because in the end you know that you can always come back to get it. This ability allows the player to remain engaged in the experience without having to worry about missing a collection item.

Infamous 2 did genius work with "Blast Shard Sense," and other games should take note on how to take on these collection achievement missions. As a player, you want to be engaged in what you're playing and anything that breaks that engagement should be remedied.

Image: Wikimedia Commons