I like most game mechanics to some extent. Creativity in combining game mechanics is key to making an outstanding game imo.

However, I don’t like things that force a time limit. I play games as an escape. I don’t like feeling stressed by a clock while I’m off the clock. These can be literal timed missions or things like a food/water meter. Escort missions also suck for similar reasons.

I think difficulty in a game should come from overcoming a foe, traversing harsh terrain, or solving a puzzle. If the game is hard because I have to stop what I’m doing to feed myself, or I have to rush to complete an objective on a timer, it just becomes work.

It’s companies acting like people who play games are all middle school aged boys that’s the problem.

I have read the Subscriber Agreement, most of it is standard legal boilerplate. I don’t see anything about collection of data. Steam is a vehicle for capitalism, no one has claimed otherwise.

They do provide a good service. There’s no subscription fee. They maintain delisted games so you can download games you bought years ago that are no longer available. Not to mention steam OS and other projects like the steam deck that put pressure on other gaming companies to do better.

This could go up in a cloud of smoke at any point and it likely will as soon as Gabe passes on and the in fighting begins. So this is a “good king” situation and the system itself will not be sustainable long term by any means.

I think AI will help reduce the dev costs over time. I mean that it can assist with uprezing things and generative placement of objects and textures is only going to get better.

I do not mean that ai should ever be used to creat me games or assets whole cloth.