Lack of Long-term gameplay in TS4

"NXOR007;c-17553050" wrote:


It’s a Game of Smoke and Mirrors.

TS4 is primarily about Young Adults, for Young adults ( but, hey let’s be honest, it’s mostly for teens and below even if the rating does not officially support the latter). The game Is being loaded with different themes and concepts and objects and it all looks snazzy and jazzy and fun, but what’s really happening is that all the fireworks are used as a distraction, so that the player does not immediately recognize the almost lack of Intelligent game play including long term goals. Why? Because the target audience may simply not have the attention span to get into intelligent gameplay and finish long term goals in games. They want to move on to the next level or the next theme or concept as quickly as possible. By keeping the game engine simple, it can support a lot more fireworks at a relatively quick turn around than if it was a complex core engine trying to deal with more demanding ai systems. That’s why we’re only being TOLD that the sims are smart and intelligent, but not SHOWN.

It’s a sign of the times. I’m involved with a lot of YA’s and younger folks and man, I’m not that old myself but I certainly feel I come from a different place in time...Short Attention Span is a serious thing...

What saddens me is that many main stream movies, ads, shows and games actually stimulate and cultivate this kind of disposable amusement, like a quick fix. Im not blaming one or the other. However, the appreciation for something simple but meaningful seems no longer encouraged.

I personally blame parents who put smart phones in their kids' hands to distract them and keep them quiet before they can even talk, and fail to expose them to intellectually stimulating media like kids' documentary programs, physical books, and tough old 8 bit and 16 bit games because they had kids for the aesthetic or the experience or because they felt social pressure to, then didn't want to actually interact with them outside of feeding them and enjoying all the cute parts. In short, a whole generation of parents that treated their kids like pets did this.