Ten years ago, this game was mine and my friends’ Minecraft. We would play for hours and hours, and out of every game I own on Steam, ten years on, this game was the one with the most hours logged at 114 (low to many others, I’m sure, but a lot for me). I finally had an urge to go back and play this game, and when I did, I found myself intensely addicted. There is something to the exploration loop of this game that really tickles my ape brain to the point where, out of all of the games I’ve grown to love, this one has eaten up the longest play sessions. The way the caves are designed to be half-naturally forming allows for you to easily discover a path underground as you dig. With a small-sized world, too, a single player will find lots and lots to discover. For better or for worse.
I definitely appreciate this game’s exploration loop a lot more than its combat/campaign progression loop. It is so satisfying to be digging and discover another natural clearing in the map that leads you to different biomes, watching your map fill with the different colors of the different areas. There’s just something off about how one obtains better materials, etc. and how not-inuitive-at-all it is to craft things outside of the normal building/equipment that one might need during everyday gameplay. At first it’s simple but as soon as you see all of what you can craft you realize you’re dealing with a game with nearly 15 years of extra content inside of it. Once I found the first chest with a bunch of potions and bombs I realized how quickly this game can make you feel in over your head. Then I summoned the last boss on accident as I was exploring the lower depths of the world and that just made me feel a little intimidated. That was, until, after defeating only a few more bosses, I found myself in posession of items that made me feel incredibly powerful.
I guess something I didn’t remember from my youthful days of playing this is that the world of Terraria is incredibly hostile. While I didn’t have a lot of fun tracking down boss fights, there are enough surprises within the caverns of the depths of this world that even if you completely ignored every boss battle, you will still accrue a large collection of ways to die. Something I thought about a lot while playing this game is the fine line between a game that offers a difficult and sometimes-frustrating, but rewarding and sincere challenge, and a game that has at least the slightest disdain for its player base. Does a game you’re playing ever feel like it’s laughing at you? Does that make you have less fun?
Terraria is definitely having a chuckle to itself, especially when you activate the billionth boulder trap and find yourself hiking back meters and meters to wherever you lost all that coin. There is something to say about creating new scenarios and adjusting the entire game around the power creep caused, naturally, by years worth of new additions. I found myself constantly cycling through different weapon options throughout the game. Magical staves, muskets, maces, lances, lasers, yo-yos, bee shooters. That doesn’t even scratch the surface of all of the different accessories and equipment that you’ll cycle through, as you explore different biomes each with their own hazards and own personal hells.
I do have to wonder if the overall design of this game is a failure since the driving force of my play was revealing as much of the map as possible until it looked full enough that I was satisfied, and once I had I found myself a little tired of it all. Just for now, though, I do kind of find myself curious in playing an older version of this game on an older console without the latest updates. Though, for now, I definitely need to cut out this timesink from my life so I can focus on better things.
I definitely appreciate this game’s exploration loop a lot more than its combat/campaign progression loop. It is so satisfying to be digging and discover another natural clearing in the map that leads you to different biomes, watching your map fill with the different colors of the different areas. There’s just something off about how one obtains better materials, etc. and how not-inuitive-at-all it is to craft things outside of the normal building/equipment that one might need during everyday gameplay. At first it’s simple but as soon as you see all of what you can craft you realize you’re dealing with a game with nearly 15 years of extra content inside of it. Once I found the first chest with a bunch of potions and bombs I realized how quickly this game can make you feel in over your head. Then I summoned the last boss on accident as I was exploring the lower depths of the world and that just made me feel a little intimidated. That was, until, after defeating only a few more bosses, I found myself in posession of items that made me feel incredibly powerful.
I guess something I didn’t remember from my youthful days of playing this is that the world of Terraria is incredibly hostile. While I didn’t have a lot of fun tracking down boss fights, there are enough surprises within the caverns of the depths of this world that even if you completely ignored every boss battle, you will still accrue a large collection of ways to die. Something I thought about a lot while playing this game is the fine line between a game that offers a difficult and sometimes-frustrating, but rewarding and sincere challenge, and a game that has at least the slightest disdain for its player base. Does a game you’re playing ever feel like it’s laughing at you? Does that make you have less fun?
Terraria is definitely having a chuckle to itself, especially when you activate the billionth boulder trap and find yourself hiking back meters and meters to wherever you lost all that coin. There is something to say about creating new scenarios and adjusting the entire game around the power creep caused, naturally, by years worth of new additions. I found myself constantly cycling through different weapon options throughout the game. Magical staves, muskets, maces, lances, lasers, yo-yos, bee shooters. That doesn’t even scratch the surface of all of the different accessories and equipment that you’ll cycle through, as you explore different biomes each with their own hazards and own personal hells.
I do have to wonder if the overall design of this game is a failure since the driving force of my play was revealing as much of the map as possible until it looked full enough that I was satisfied, and once I had I found myself a little tired of it all. Just for now, though, I do kind of find myself curious in playing an older version of this game on an older console without the latest updates. Though, for now, I definitely need to cut out this timesink from my life so I can focus on better things.