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Added Value: 10 Great Achievement Lists

Silver Linings #25

By Adam WallacePublished 5 years ago 5 min read
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Hello, and welcome back to Silver Linings where I pop up the maligned, forgotten, and ignored.

When the Xbox 360 launched in 2005, one of the features that raised eyebrows was the concept of Achievements. Basically a set of merit badges that can be unlocked for completing various in-game tasks named by the games' developers and saved to gamer profiles for display, gamers were initially puzzled, and the competition was initially dismissive. However, those little meta-rewards caught on so effectively that it actually hurt Sony and their Playstation 3. The original Assassin's Creed sold far better on the Xbox 360 despite the PS3 version being technically superior because of the GamerPoints that can get on GamerCards, and other multiplatform games fared the same way. Within a couple of years, Sony had their similar Trophies system running, and Steam was putting Achievements into PC games.

While Achievements/Trophies can be gimmicky much of the time, I've found that they can add value to a game. While there are those Achievements that simply encourage playing on harder difficulties and completing certain subquests in RPGs, the ones that please me most are those that encourage playing in a new way, trying things that may not have been considered. The ten games featured below show how much additional value those little rewards can add to a game beyond just finishing it.

NOTE: I'm only mentioning platforms that have Achievements for them. That's why I'm (mostly) ignoring the Switch.

While opinions were mixed about this spy RPG (mostly due to technical issues), I actually enjoy it mainly because of how open-ended it is. The Achievements/Trophies reflect that. Not only are there various rewards for mastering different skillsets, but also there are different ones available depending on how each mission is completed, whether through stealth, persuasion, or force. It is actually impossible to do everything in one playthrough, and the rewards reflect that. Bravo!

The original Dead Rising is one of my favorite games of all time, and part of the reason is because it encourages players to try everything. The Achievements reflect that. Sure, there are basics like killing a bunch of zombies or surviving until the end, but then there are the weird ones like knocking down ten zombies with one bowling ball and putting masks on a bunch of zombies. It's a shame that the sequels play it safer with their Achievements. :-(

The game based on "The Merc with a Mouth" is one of the funniest games to release in recent years, and the Achievements/Trophies play into Deadpool's sense of humor. While there are ones for normal combat, there are also ones for slapping around Wolverine, making too many pancakes, and even shutting Wade up. The rewards are just as funny as the game itself!

All of the Far Cry games are enjoyable with lots of things to do in huge open maps, but the fourth entry has the most creative set of Achievements. This list encourages trying all the various mission types, looking for all the various collectibles, and even dispatching foes in the most unconventional of ways. How many other games ask players to carjack an enemy from a chopper or run people over with an elephant?

This PS4 exclusive is an excellent open-ended mystery designed to be played with a group. The Trophies reflect that, encouraging playing all modes and doing different decisions each time to open the different story threads. Supermassive's previous game Until Dawndid that, too, but Hidden Agenda did it a bit better.

Minecraft is one of the most open games in existence, designed to be played virtually any way players want. Fortunately, the hundreds of Achievements that are in the various iterations of the game (even the Nintendo Switch!) reflect that. From riding pigs off of cliffs to staying underwater for days to just making a cake, the Achievements show almost everything that people can do beyond just building houses and fighting Creepers.

South Park: The Stick of Truth is on this list for the same reason as Deadpool. Its Achievements reflect the humor of the show, making them fun to get. They can also be just as ribald as the show. We're talking a game that gives GamerScore for using poo as a weapon and summoning Mr. Slave while inside Mr. Slave (unlocking the "Inside Joke" Achievement). So wrong, yet so right!

It would have been very easy to take the remastery of the original Spyro the Dragon trilogy and just put cookie-cutter rewards in it for just racking up collectibles and completing stages. Thankfully, Toys for Bob showed more imagination than that. Almost every stage has an Achievement for it, and most of them involve doing something different like making Gnasty Gnorc run laps and letting enemies moon you.

The Stanley Parable is an absolutely genius adventure game that goes extremely meta. Even its Achievements break the fourth wall as much as the rest of the game does. There's an Achievement that actively mocks you for doing something for an Achievement! There's one that involves hacking the game itself! The game and its rewards are some of the most creative I had ever seen!

I love the Yakuza games! I think I've mentioned that before. Even though Yakuza 0 is my favorite in the series, #3 has the best Trophy list. While there are plenty of Trophies for just completing the chapters of the game, more of them revolve around trying everything the game has to offer from playing darts to fishing to bowling. I lost so much time fiddling around with the extra activities, and the Trophies provided extra incentive to do so.

I know I left a lot of games out. These are just the first ten that came to my mind. Can you think of any others that provided extra value through their Achievements? Let me know, and game on!

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About the Creator

Adam Wallace

I put up pieces here when I can, mainly about games and movies. I'm also writing movies, writing a children's book & hosting the gaming channel "Cool Media" on YouTube! Enjoy & find me on Twitter!

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