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Monday, April 13, 2020
Daily tasks
So I have been playing Animal Crossing: New Horizons for like 10 days now. It was fun for a while, but it definitively is getting repetitive now. And while a certain amount of grind in games is okay for me, I have a certain dislike for games that not only tell me that I have to grind, but also tell me when to grind. In Animal Crossing the in-game time is parallel to real time, and days in game pass as in the real world. So as you can gather certain things only once per day, unless you "time travel" by changing the day on your Switch, you end up doing a daily routine of tasks. And I don't like it.
For me the problem is that it adds up. There are daily tasks in many of the games I play now, from PC games like World of Tanks, to Switch games like Animal Crossing, to various mobile games. It isn't so bad if you just have one game like that, but if you have a bunch, you end up with a long daily "to do" list of repetitive game actions. It gets even worse with some games where if you miss days, you not only not get the reward from the day you missed, you also reset some reward chain and get punished for not playing every day.
As game design I find daily tasks questionable. Clearly they were not designed for the good of the game, but to keep players hooked in games that either have a subscription or entice you to spend money on stuff. Daily tasks are a marketing feature, not a game feature. So I don't really understand it in Animal Crossing. Does Animal Crossing really have to reset my bonus Nook Miles if I don't get around to play for a day?
Anyway, I don't think I will play Animal Crossing for much longer. I got really disenchanted with the game at the point in the game where they start rating your island, and you need to get a 3-star rating for the main events to continue. Whatever time I took to make my island look pretty didn't count for much. But when I took all my unused furniture and dumped it in the corner of my island, I got the 3-start rating. The AI simply can't judge aesthetics, so it just counts the number of decorative items you have placed. I had to make my island look worse to get a better rating. And I much rather would like a game that I can play when I want for how long I want, rather than a nanny game that tells me when to play and for how long.
For me the problem is that it adds up. There are daily tasks in many of the games I play now, from PC games like World of Tanks, to Switch games like Animal Crossing, to various mobile games. It isn't so bad if you just have one game like that, but if you have a bunch, you end up with a long daily "to do" list of repetitive game actions. It gets even worse with some games where if you miss days, you not only not get the reward from the day you missed, you also reset some reward chain and get punished for not playing every day.
As game design I find daily tasks questionable. Clearly they were not designed for the good of the game, but to keep players hooked in games that either have a subscription or entice you to spend money on stuff. Daily tasks are a marketing feature, not a game feature. So I don't really understand it in Animal Crossing. Does Animal Crossing really have to reset my bonus Nook Miles if I don't get around to play for a day?
Anyway, I don't think I will play Animal Crossing for much longer. I got really disenchanted with the game at the point in the game where they start rating your island, and you need to get a 3-star rating for the main events to continue. Whatever time I took to make my island look pretty didn't count for much. But when I took all my unused furniture and dumped it in the corner of my island, I got the 3-start rating. The AI simply can't judge aesthetics, so it just counts the number of decorative items you have placed. I had to make my island look worse to get a better rating. And I much rather would like a game that I can play when I want for how long I want, rather than a nanny game that tells me when to play and for how long.
- posted by Tobold @ 11:40 AM Permanent Link
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That was predictable.
Any thoughts on why, although Animal Crossing doesn't work for you, it clearly works so very well for so many others?
Any thoughts on why, although Animal Crossing doesn't work for you, it clearly works so very well for so many others?
Well, it isn't a very stressful game, unless you are a completionist (then it drives you crazy, because you get things like fruit or recipes at random, and always end up with having the recipe without the resources, or vice versa). If you can get into the idea of passing a part of your day, every day, on a peaceful, sunny island, where everybody is friendly and there is no conflict, then Animal Crossing might be the game for you. I can see how that is attractive, especially in times like these.
I find it strange that you seem to dislike daily tasks in Animal Crossing when you seem to enjoy the same type of thing in World of Tanks.
Animal Crossing seems to me like one of those games that will be worth getting a year down the road when it has more content and varied activities. As it is right now I'm not surprised you got bored quickly.
Animal Crossing seems to me like one of those games that will be worth getting a year down the road when it has more content and varied activities. As it is right now I'm not surprised you got bored quickly.
The difference is probably that in World of Tanks the daily tasks are fighting battles with tanks, which is what you would have done for fun anyway. The daily tasks in Animal Crossing are not inherently fun, and you wouldn't do them if it weren't for the reward.
P.S. After reaching 3-star rating, the next day there is an event in which you get the "end credits" of the game. Of course you can play on afterwards, but it does feel like a good place to stop as well.
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