"Modern" FPS vs Classic Boomer Shooter: My take

[CrowRising]

Neither is better, they're both good but for different reasons. More "Modern" FPS games such as Battlefield, CoD, Borderlands, etc. to varying extents lean more into immersion, even if only through their own self-contained logic. They're usually a slower and often more tactical approach that rewards patience. Unfortunately the subgenre has been starting to get plagued with crappy, predatory business practices lately, but the subgenre itself is plenty functional and enjoyable without such things. They also often have some good or at least enjoyable narratives attached to them, which is always a nice bonus. At least, when you don't pull a Borderlands 3.

More classic "Boomer Shooters" as they're often called appeal for an entirely different reason; they're video games first and foremost. Movement and resource management is the key element to their game design. They're fast paced, with an emphasis on growing your skill at quickly clearing a room with as little damage as possible instead of taking a slower and more tactical approach. When you know what you are doing in these games they can be an exhilarating experience that really lets you get into that zone state. These games are basically made with speedrunners in mind, and can be a lot of fun to do just that in.

It's understandable why someone might be a fan of just one of these two subgenres of the larger FPS genre. When you get used to one as your first and preferred experience, the other is going to be very jarring to play in and might even be hard to understand at first. They're entirely different styles and speeds of gameplay. However, with an open mind and given enough time to start knowing what they're doing, some players might start realizing what others see on the other side of the fence that makes both of these things so great.

[SpoopyPooperDööter]

ok

[Etchasketch]

Modern boomer shooters are played out.

[ReBoot]

Naming CoD and "tactical aproach" at once invalidates this whole ordeal. On the shallowest of surface level, yeah, sure. When it comes to how it plays, there's absolutely ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ nothing tactical to it.

[CrowRising]

Originally posted by ReBoot:

Naming CoD and "tactical aproach" at once invalidates this whole ordeal. On the shallowest of surface level, yeah, sure. When it comes to how it plays, there's absolutely ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ nothing tactical to it.

You disagree with one detail, and that somehow invalidates literally everything I said? You don't think CoD is tactical, therefore Boomer Shooters aren't fast paced? You don't think CoD is tactical, therefore Modern FPS games aren't slower paced in comparison? You don't think CoD is tactical, therefore many recent business practices haven't been predatory?

Your logic is terrible. Disagreeing with one point does not invalidate the entirety of what someone has to say. There is such a thing as partially agreeing with each other without having to agree with every individual point.

[Kman]

Why do they call them boomer shooters? they were made by Gen Xers, and played mostly by Gen Xers.

[Etchasketch]

Because the education system has failed millennials.

[CrowRising]

Originally posted by Kman:

Why do they call them boomer shooters? they were made by Gen Xers, and played mostly by Gen Xers.

Because "boomer" doesn't just refer to baby boomers anymore, but is simply just slang for "old". Gameplay like Wolfenstein and the original DOOM predates the newer modern FPS playstyle, therefore it's a more catchy way of saying "old shooter" to distinguish from the new shooters.

[Omega9872]

I thought that Half-Life (98) was quite immersive, but that might just be me. Have you tried it? I would really recommend it.

[CrowRising]

Originally posted by Omega9872:

I thought that Half-Life (98) was quite immersive, but that might just be me. Have you tried it? I would really recommend it.

Yeah I've played through it a bunch of times. I personally prefer Black Mesa (the fan remake) in almost every way with the exception of the soldier AI. They were less realistic and more video-gamey in the original game, but still had rather impressive AI for the time and more importantly felt more engaging and balanced to fight against. In Black Mesa they're much smarter and more brutal, making encounters against them much more difficult than they should be in certain sections of the game. It's more realistic that way, but less fun as a result in my opinion. That sort of AI works better in Half-Life 2 in which areas with similar enemies are designed more with dealing with them in mind.

[dat_potatoe]

Here's where this falls apart for me:

Quake not only has better gameplay than Call of Duty but is also by far more "immersive" as well. It is immersive in ways that games like CoD, with their spoonfed narrative meaning and grounded unimaginative settings, could never hope to be. In fact, I would call Quake one of the most immersive games I've played period.

https://youtu.be/ShzLGHxPj_c?list=PLoxV-no_tlqxpbANfk4eCLYPnl_JubVm9

Exiting those doors to that ominous sight and that soundscape just drenched in atmosphere, how could you be anything but intrigued? It's a game that presents you with a bizarre and surreal world then gives you room to breathe, to experience and interpret it on your terms without some cringe protagonist inner-monologue, annoying quipping sidekick, or intrusive cutscene telling you what to think in the moment.

The annoying thing is developers and consumers alike conflating immersion with level of realism like they're one and the same.

I mean yes, roleplaying as a boots on ground soldier with all the physical limitations on gameplay that entails can be immersive for some. Definitely not for me, and for sure not the only way to approach immersion.

[Delabane]

I think PC games have become more in tune with consoles. In the 1990's and first half of the 2000's they were quite separate.

[Pertinax]

I was going to read your take but when i read boomer shooter my eyes rolled so far back in my head that i need to go to the hospital instead.

[Unseen]

Originally posted by Delabane:

I think PC games have become more in tune with consoles. In the 1990's and first half of the 2000's they were quite separate.

Turok, goldeneye, perfect dark, doom 64, quake164, quake264, siphon filter, forsaken, pretty nice list of shooters consoles had.

And games like goldeneye and pd had completely different engines than Id and 3d realms stuff. Console shooters were actually gathered around and played by people from all walks of life not just the tech PC crowd. Where many of us started on shooters. Halo is arguably more successful than doom.

[CrowRising]

Originally posted by Unseen:

Originally posted by Delabane:

I think PC games have become more in tune with consoles. In the 1990's and first half of the 2000's they were quite separate.

Turok, goldeneye, perfect dark, doom 64, quake164, quake264, siphon filter, forsaken, pretty nice list of shooters consoles had.

And games like goldeneye and pd had completely different engines than Id and 3d realms stuff. Console shooters were actually gathered around and played by people from all walks of life not just the tech PC crowd. Where many of us started on shooters. Halo is arguably more successful than doom.

Goldeneye in particular has a legendary status, and Perfect Dark is a direct spiritual successor. Both are very good console games for their time. Halo was alright but I think it was Halo 2 when the series really cemented its legendary stature within gaming culture.

[TARINunit9]

"Modern shooter" became a dirty word not because of anything CoD4 actually did, but because of what everyone else ripping it off was perceived of doing. And that thing was "ruin Duke Nukem Forever." They were a scapegoat blown out of proportion

There were plenty of "modern" (which really just means "between CoD4 and Doom4") shooters that leveraged their modern tropes as strengths, not weaknesses: Crysis 2 (2011) is my favorite example. And these tropes were present in lots of earlier shooters too: Republic Commando (2005) was linear as all get-out with tons of Halo rip-off mechanics, and it was great