Topic: The Trophy Discussion Thread

So I’ve been playing Control in the manner I usually play games that I really am enjoying — that is, I am exploring every nook and cranny and doing all the side content merely because I’m enjoying the game and don’t really want to see it end. When I looked at the trophy list (I honestly hadn’t really been paying attention to it) I see I’m only like 3 trophies from the platinum. And I think two of those are probably story related because they’re are hidden. So the only one that might take some grinding is “spend 100 ability points” and then I should have the plat. I wasn’t really planning to platinum this game, but it looks like it will come about through just natural dedicated play. My favorite kind of platinum!

My game time will be cut short today though. Hopefully it pops today, because otherwise it might be next weekend until I get enough time.

@Th3solution sounds like you’ve enjoyed it about as much as I did, such a cool game. Really interested to see what Remedy have up their sleeves next.

@colonelkilgore Definitely. They have some real talent over there.

I downed Mold-1 and Mr. Tamassi this weekend. Both were really tough. Mold-1 I was able to spam my shield and make the fight a little more fair and so I beat it in about 3 tries. With Tamassi, sheesh that’s a difficult fight. You can’t cheese it with the shield or just spamming dodges because he sends all those minions after you. I was able to finally beat him (maybe like 4-5 tries) by utilizing the environment as cover and getting into a corner so the other enemies couldn’t get me from behind. It was proper intense!
But I think the hard part is probably over now. I’ve powered up enough that most common enemy encounters are pretty easy, so I’ll just truck through the end of the main story.

@Th3solution think I remember Mr Tamasi... and that he was quite tricky. It’s been a while though so I’m not 100% sure I’m thinking of the right one. so damned playable though, totally different game from Bloodborne but I felt it rewarded aggression, as did Bloodborne (be it in different ways). As someone who can be naturally more of a careful player, I appreciate the opportunity to play in a style that doesn’t come naturally.

@colonelkilgore Never fun, hitting a gaming wall, especially in a huge commitment like Skyrim. Here's hoping your wife can get through it okay!

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@Thrillho Glad to know it's a viable tactic, cheers! And yeah, that's pretty much what happened to me, as well. I forgot all about the new takedowns and the trophy requirements for them were quite high, so I got almost all of them during my post-game tidying (but it's weird, because I'd always wondered why Pete couldn't web people to walls and ceilings in the original game).

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@BearsEatBeets Awesome, totally agreed. I'm really hoping for the sequel to share time between Pete and Miles, because the latter was just such a joy. They can't put him back in his box now but, even if they do, I'll still be pre-ordering right alongside you!

And thanks, yeah, my PS5 was a bit of a surprise. Hope you've been okay of late, and at least you're back in time for Mass Effect next week!

@Thrillho @RogerRoger I responded over here on this thread since it seemed to fit into trophy discussion —
I too am consistently amazed at how discordant the trophy percentages are with what I would expect. Some platinums for very hard games have pretty high trophy percentages, like in the double digits; while sometime the easiest automatic trophies early in a game are surprisingly low, like the one you mention in FF7R for getting through the first enemy.

I’ve noticed on my friends list that some people have just dozens of games on their list with 0% or 1% trophy completion, often on games that aren’t even PS Plus titles. I’m amazed that some people are so quick with a game so as to pass judgement on whether it’s worth their time just based on seeing the loading screen, menu, and opening music. 😅 I think we all do this occasionally where we try games and then stop them really quickly, but some people seem to play the opening few minutes of 10-15 games before finding one they stick with.

In seeing that a surprising number of games have less than 100% of a quick introductory trophy, I can only assume that you’re correct about borrowing the game, playing it through the game sharing function, or perhaps renting it from a GameFly like service could explain why so many load it and never play it. Also, I know some retailers have something like a 7 day ‘no-questions-asked’ return policy whereby you can return a game you don’t like. I think the intent of that kind of policy is for the Cyberpunk 2077’s of the world or situations where you’re just blindsided by a game being not what you think it is. But I think some people use return policies to effectively ‘rent’ a game for a few days then return it. If the game doesn’t grab them in the first 10 minutes then sayonara 😄

And it’s fine, I’m not passing judgment. If anything, I’m probably guilty too much of being the opposite. Regarding my trophy list, I’m not as fastidious as some, but I hate starting a game and then abandoning it with no trophies or anything less than 2-3% completion. It’s just a character flaw I guess but it mucks up my game and trophy list and until Sony creates a way for us to organize and categorize (or even remove games from) our trophy list, then I’ll continue to only start games that I’m confident enough that I’ll at least play them for a few hours and get a couple introductory trophies before deciding to leave it.

@Th3solution Yes, good call moving here, and thanks for confirming that I'm not alone in my dismay at some games' uptake beyond the main menu. Since trophies only register when you select to play a game (just having it installed doesn't count) it really does mean that there are folks out there who'll boot something, watch its opening cutscene and decide to go no further.

And yeah, I'm not passing judgement either, and circumstances could be anything, but it's still something I find a teensy bit bizarre. Like you, I do my best to see everything a game has to offer me, and so I think my lowest trophy percentage is around 18% (because sometimes, games have tough lists) but still, even in that case, I saw the credits roll. But then I'm picky about what I play anyway. I won't buy something I'm not interested in, and I won't try random things on the off-chance I'll like 'em, whereas I understand some folks have to experience something for themselves, even if only for a few minutes.

Your example regarding, er... let's call it "creative renting" is also noteworthy, for sure. I think our only remaining brick-and-mortar game shop here in the UK (imaginatively called GAME) has stopped accepting opened returns of brand new games, unless there's an obvious manufacturing fault with the disc or box, and will instead give you its full trade-in value, in an effort to stop such practices. Online retailers, specifically Amazon, will just accept a return, no question.

Games with 0% trophies can be deleted from your PSN profile, by the way! When I got my PS4, I accidentally opened The Playroom and had its trophy-less trophy list associated with my profile for a couple years, until Sony patched the deletion ability in. My OCD was so relieved!

@RogerRoger I have a friend who buys games on day of release and then rushes the game as quickly as possible to sell it onto CEX before the trade-in price drops 😂

@nessisonett Hey, if you're gaming on a budget, it's an option! There are certainly a few games on my shelf which I haven't touched since launch. They'd be worth pennies if I tried trading them in today, so I figure I'll keep 'em as reminders not to pre-order as much.

@nessisonett @RogerRoger Remember the days when you could return an opened game to Electronics Boutique and then GAME within 30 days of purchase? I only took advantage of that once. I got Super Smash Bros., played it to completion but didn't really like it much as my siblings weren't interested, and then exchanged it for Donkey Kong 64.

@mookysam I don't remember the policy, but I do remember Electronics Boutique! They were around the same time as GameStation. Was nice to have a few options on the high street.

@mookysam My local game store closed down during the pandemic and they used to be brilliant. If you wanted a game imported you’d go in there and there’d be a massive selection of games that never released over here along with consoles and merch from different regions. It’s a shame brick and mortar game stores have gone the way of the dodo, I used to love that store.

@RogerRoger I have a handful of games which I am ashamed to have in the single digits on trophy percentage. And looking back, I think I’ve become more selective over the years as to which games I start. Either that or I’ve become more disciplined in sticking with games longer. Batman Arkham Knight (4%), No Man’s Sky (9%)... there are some of these that I hope to rectify my shortsightedness this year. The ship has sailed on some of these — Drive Club (3%), Guacamelee! (5%)...

And I do appreciate the ability to delete the games which are 0%. It helps my fixation on keeping the list relatively clean.

@Th3solution It's funny you mention No Man's Sky, as that's one of my low percentages (perhaps even the lowest) I was referring to earlier. It's at 18% and I can't really see it climbing any higher.

It's a shame you've had some of your single-digit lists blocked off forever, thanks to server closures and whatnot, but I'm sure you'll earn a few more on things like Batman: Arkham Knight when you're able to muster giving them a second shot. No shame in any trophy percentage, though; at least you've earned a couple, proving that you got beyond the main menu!

On the subject of games stores, there used to be one in my town called The Video Game Centre. They were really good! They would let you try any game before you bought it and they had consoles set up at the back of the store where you could pay £1 and play whatever games they had set up at the time for 15 minutes. My brothers and I spent a lot of time playing multiplayer South Park on the N64. They also had several imported games. I remember buying the American version of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Walker months before it was released in the UK. Ahh, good times!

@Bentleyma- Must've been an independent, or a regional chain. Sounds like a really cool place! I sure could've used that "try before you buy" scheme, considering some of the dreck I purchased as a kid.

Please send help.

@Matroska I got 91 trophies in 82 hours. Much more efficient 😉

@Thrillho I bet you were cheating by playing Telltale games or something. 😤

@Matroska My stats from PlayStation must be broken, as they are always incorrect. My email said I played 100 or so hours online, but I've been playing Final Fantasy XII for the past two months almost exclusively. I mean, my console has been online during that time, but surely that does not count towards online play.