What annoys you in video games?

[Flying Mint Bunny!]

I hate games where the direction buttons are mixed up and you have to press the down button to go up.

My brain just can't handle it.

I also agree with the unskippable cut scenes. It's really annoying when you know how you fucked up and want to go straight back to the game, but instead you just feel the knowledge slowly leaking out of you whilst you rewatch a cut scene for the billionth time.

[Ultimate Paragon]

Bad voice acting. That can really ruin an experience

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5FTJxfV3pc" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5FTJxfV3pc</a>

I don't think that counts, since it was intentionally awful.

[Alehksunos]

They fucked that up on purpose?

Wow.

[Igor]

If you watch the scene in context, it's quite obvious. Tidus is upset, and Yuna says that forcing a smile/laugh always helps her feel better, so he does, but you'll notice it's so ridiculous they break into real laughter right afterwards. Also he rest of the group looks at them like they lost their minds right after, so..

Why yes, it is one of my favourite games, why do you ask?

[Ultimate Paragon]

If you watch the scene in context, it's quite obvious. Tidus is upset, and Yuna says that forcing a smile/laugh always helps her feel better, so he does, but you'll notice it's so ridiculous they break into real laughter right afterwards. Also he rest of the group looks at them like they lost their minds right after, so..

Why yes, it is one of my favourite games, why do you ask?

Exactly.

[Patches]

Buying really expensive equipment that turns out to be worse than what you've already got, due to not being able to see the equipment's stats before you buy it.

Along the same vein, buying a really expensive item, then proceeding a little ways into the game only to have an NPC give you the same thing or better for free.

[chitoryu12]

Surprisingly, the most annoying unskippable cutscenes for me are the ones in Call of Duty. Specifically the Black Ops series.

Why?

Because it's not really a game you play for the cutscenes. Black Ops II made better strides toward an interactive experience instead of being 100% scripted from start to finish and has the most detailed storyline of all the games, but you still play them because they're dumb action movies where you blow shit up and shoot a dozen people as a response to a stubbed toe, and if you get shot in the head with a .50 BMG rifle you just duck behind a wall to catch your breath for a few seconds and it heals itself.

The games are basically the next step up from the original Doom in terms of gameplay and are meant to be replayed multiple times, and unskippable cutscenes just break up the fun parts. Black Ops 1 is a major offender, because the game will suddenly flash forward to the interrogation room in the middle of gameplay.

[Igor]

Also, as long as were talking about cutscenes, one word for ya: Xenosaga.

[Sleepy]

Bad AI can really kill a game. The worst is when your goal is to keep another character alive, usually during an escort, and the character enjoys blindly walking towards your enemies rather than having any sort of sensible reaction like fighting or fleeing. The game becomes painfully frustrating and difficult at that point, and you end up hating that potentially likeable character.

[SpaceProg]

^  "Dammit, woman!  Stop hitting those baby head things and come the hell on!   That's it, no purse or riding crop for you..."

If you play lots of horror type games and don't know what I'm talking about... you're probably more sane for it.

[Alehksunos]

And yet another set of current pet peeves of mine in gaming:

• Games with sepia-tone graphics, which are grungy and depressing. I like my games full of life and not as soulless visually as soulless in content.
• Games that overuse the colors blue/teal and orange, or should I day, looks like the DVD box art of blockbuster films. This is the same complaint I have with movies, not just video games. Why must Hollywood do shit like this? It makes most movies look terrible and video games look like those mediocre or shitty movies! Roger Ebert must be rolling in his not a year old grave.
• Games that try to follow nostalgic graphics, notably from the NES and SNES era. It does not turn me off outright, but I have had enough of these games and almost everything faux-retro as it is becoming so overdone. Also, if you developers are all are doing "Retraux" graphics games, where is my faux-Playstation-era game of my dreams?

[Dakota Bob]

I hate that I found out pretty much all DVD covers now use the blue/teal and orange combo, because now I CAN'T STOP SEEING IT

[chitoryu12]

• Games that try to follow nostalgic graphics, notably from the NES and SNES era. It does not turn me off outright, but I have had enough of these games and almost everything faux-retro as it is becoming so overdone. Also, if you developers are all are doing "Retraux" graphics games, where is my faux-Playstation-era game of my dreams?

You ever noticed how the "retro" games exclusively go for 8 bit or more primitive? When are we going to reach the point where "retro" games are copying the graphics and style of the Nintendo 64?

I'll be happy when "retro" is like, PS2.

[Stormwarden]

Any game where you have to lose a fight to progress the story. I like the Disgaea games, but can't help but hate the fact that I have to throw fights in order to progress the plot.

[Askold]

Any game where you have to lose a fight to progress the story. I like the Disgaea games, but can't help but hate the fact that I have to throw fights in order to progress the plot.

That can be done in a good way or bad way. If it is just a fight that starts and cannot be won it has to be over quickly. Maybe have the fightscene start and the main villain one hit KO's everyone. At least then it won't be a long and painful experience and it does the job of showing that the villain is just so much better than the hero.

EXAMPLE: The player is some 10 year old brat who has just seen his parents murdered by the BBEG and picks up his/her fathers sword and challenges the villain. 10 second fight and later he wakes up being treated by some old guy who becomes his mentor and helps him/her through the tutorials (which can be skipped,) Insert themontage of hero growing up and you have a decent (if cliche) start of an adventure rpg.

Or if it is dragged out fight the objective should be something other than winning.

EXAMPLE: A pretty good one is one of the Lich king fights in WoW. The players finally reach the Lich king and try to defeat him but it turns out that they are utterly outmatched and instead spend the rest of the fight running away. I like the whole idea of that fight as it shows that the villain is really powerful but the players can "win" as  they fight their way through the lesser mooks and escape from the BBEG.

EXAMPLE B: The base of the heroes is attacked by a superiour enemy force and they must fight their way out and evade capture. Again, this would either be near the start of the game and the next part would be rebuilding the forces of the heroes (maybe this is the point where the player takes command of the ragtag bunch) or it would be near the end and the next part would be the final desperate push at the enemies main fortress.