Wednesday, 23 December 2009

• What Influences The Characters You Keep On Playing As?

  Who we select in a game says a lot about us, especially when we continually pick that character (or in competitive instances, 'main' that character). For me, there are a number of things that automatically influence why I stick with someone.

  

  Handling
  The first thing I look for in a character is that he or she handles comfortably. I play games for fun, but even when I play for fun, winning comes a close second to my list of priorities. I'd prefer someone who won't have me fighting with the gameplay or controls, since I already have to worry about my opponents. What constitutes this varies from game to game. I use Bowser in some iterations of Mario Kart when I feel I know the tracks well enough to put his max speed to use, but I use other characters when I feel I'm going to be running off-course or get pelted by items all the time.

  

  Learning Curve
  Of course, some characters take time to play with second nature, and I would actually be willing to use Bowser all the time if I were good enough with him. A character's learning curve can occasionally sway my choice if I've been playing a game for a while. Sometimes I want to get that little bit better with a certain character, but if I find myself hitting a wall and unable to get to a certain level of skill, I jump ship to someone else. I gave Noel a try in Blazblue at one time, but I was tired of breaking my hands learning combos that took off only 1/3 of a lifebar when Hakumen could deal more damage in a laughably easy two-hit.

  

  Character Design
  Of course, the other reason I switched to Hakumen was because I found him cool. The style, appearance, mannerism, and even backstory of a character are probably the main reason anyone picks up a character. In a game like Guitar Hero where the characters are merely cosmetic , this is going to be anyone's only reason, but it becomes deeper in a game where the characters play markedly different from one another and have a good bit of history behind them. He's a low-tier character, but I refuse to stop using Kenshiro in Jump Ultimate Stars for this reason, he's just such a badass.

  

  Self-Attribution
  Related to this, my main reason for sticking with a character is often because I want that character as my trademark. I don't like picking someone everybody chooses even if that character isn't particularly overpowered, unless I really like aspects of that character. As I said earlier, who we pick says a lot about us; the more you invest yourself in a game and try to specialize in a character, the more that character is an extension of yourself. Some people joke that I have the tendency to use characters who resemble me, and this is a little true. But to a realistic, healthy extent, I also like to imagine it the other way around, especially when I'm one of the only people in my group of friends or at a tournament who uses said character.

  

  Fairness
  The last thing I consider though IS how game-breaking a character is. I don't like unfair advantages, whether it's from my end of the spectrum or another person's. If some characters inherently suck against another due to some kind of rock-paper-scissors effect, I'd look it over, but I'd much rather not be winning because the character I use is a step or two above everyone else in the game. That's right Sentinel, get off of your rockets, my Spiderman wants to have a talk with you.

  So, what's your reason for picking who you do?

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