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Monday Tip-Off: The Myopia of Mastering Mechanics

We’re at midcourt, and the ball is about to go up…it’s Monday Tip-Off! Start your week here at the NLSC with a feature that’s dedicated to opinions, commentary, and other fun stuff related to NBA Live, NBA 2K, and other basketball video games. This week, I’m tipping things off with some thoughts on how there’s a certain amount of myopia that comes with mastering mechanics on the virtual hardwood.

I think we can all agree that there should be some degree of challenge in basketball video games. A game that is easily mastered and beaten tends to be boring, though hoops titles – even sim-oriented ones – should nevertheless be accessible, and feature easier difficulty levels. When it comes to the virtual hardwood, there needn’t be a challenge on the level of the Souls series, or games like Returnal, the roguelike that was released earlier this year. Arcade or sim, they’re about representing the sport of basketball, not being exceedingly challenging and for the hardest of the hardcore.

At the same time, a certain amount of challenge and skill is expected of the online competitive scene. The best competitors are the ones mastering the mechanics and strategies that allow them to dominate and defeat their fellow gamers, not just the AI. Even offline, mastery on the sticks will allow gamers to rise to the sometimes unfair challenges of the Hall of Fame difficulty setting. This is obviously achieved through practice and dedication, which is a fair demand for the most challenging experiences in basketball gaming to make. However, in evaluating design principles and overall appeal and accessibility, mastering mechanics does unfortunately lead to myopia.

In short, just because a gameplay mechanic or control concept works for you, it doesn’t necessarily mean it isn’t problematic in some way. There’s a tendency to look upon games and their concepts more favourably if we’re beating the AI or other gamers, and thus generally having a good time with them. Because it appeals to our preferences and skills, we myopically see these mechanics we’ve mastered as the mark of excellence. In the process, we can all too easily dismiss valid criticisms with that tried and true phrase: “get good”. Our brash myopia regarding mechanics we like often leads us to conclude that critics simply aren’t interested in mastering them.

Mastering Shot Aiming Mechanics in NBA 2K21 Next Gen

Now, it is true that some gamers will write off new gameplay mechanics because their own stubbornness and myopia closes their mind to mastering the necessary skills and techniques. However, it’s elitist to suggest that everyone who criticises a mechanic or doesn’t like an idea is wrong, or needs to “get good”. Indeed, mastering certain cheesy gameplay mechanics may be what drives someone to criticise them, seeing them as harmful to the competitive balance and overall gameplay experience. They’re not being myopic, because they can look past their mastering of those mechanics, and consider whether or not they’re truly a good idea and actually enhance the gameplay.

Rejecting criticism because you like and have mastered a divisive gameplay mechanic is akin to dismissing critique of a film or TV show under the pretence that the person criticising it “doesn’t get it”. Pretending that mechanics that are exploitable or flawed in some way are perfect just because you like them and can make them work for you, is like pretending that any criticism of plot holes, bad dialogue, and jokes that fall flat in a film or TV show you like is a sign that the story, themes, and humour are far too cerebral for the critic to understand. Our biases dictate that what we like is good and right, so anyone with a contrary stance must be ill-informed; or in gaming, unskilled.

This attitude was on display when Mike Wang (aka Beluba) ran polls on Twitter and Reddit earlier this year, with the results of both overwhelmingly suggesting that most gamers didn’t care for the approach to shot aiming in NBA 2K21. There was pushback against the results from gamers who liked shot aiming, and wanted to see it remain in the game. That’s understandable, but their reasons tended to be elitist and gatekeeping, suggesting that opposition to shot aiming was simply coming from the position of being unable, or alternatively unwilling, to “get good” at those mechanics. We’re now seeing similar backlash to criticism of the alley-oop and dunk meters in NBA 2K22.

Beluba Shot Aiming Twitter Poll

The backlash often invokes a non-political form of the “silent majority” argument. With the aforementioned polls, it was suggested that despite the number of people that voted in them, they didn’t accurately represent a cross-section of the community, and thus the alleged majority opinion. While those polls can obviously only reflect the opinions of those that were willing and able to participate in them, it’s still a tangible result that reflects what was apparently a common stance. Granted, there can be issues with a “majority rules” approach, but that doesn’t mean the game should cater to what is seemingly a vocal minority, either. If it’s not broadly appealing, that’s a problem.

To draw a comparison to real basketball for a moment, many fans would like to see flopping penalised and ultimately discouraged. Flopping has been a problem in the NBA for years now, and objections to the practice have nothing to do with other players having an inability to flop. It’s a preference to not see the sport sullied by such cheap and laughably soft tactics. So it goes on the virtual hardwood, too. Just because you can utilise a tactic or mechanic effectively, it doesn’t mean that it should be quite as effective as it is, or that it isn’t a problem. It’s a shame if a concept is a hit with you, but if it’s a miss with a majority of the userbase, there’s cause to re-evaluate the idea.

Simply put, it’s inaccurate to say that those who objected to shot aiming in NBA 2K21, or the dunk and alley-oop meter in NBA 2K22, are unskilled or unwilling to master new mechanics. Once again, even if you do master those mechanics, it’s still possible to see the drawbacks and note undesirable results. When players can easily score over 200 points in five minute quarters in an online game, there might be issues with balance and exploitability. When dunk and alley-oop timing can’t be disabled for single player gameplay, it’s holding offline gamers to a competitive standard rather than facilitating fun and accessibility. It only encourages the “get good” rhetoric.

Adam Morrison Shooting in NBA Live 07

What makes that rhetoric especially ludicrous is that it assumes basketball games are incapable of introducing mechanics that don’t pan out. Only the myopia of elitism and personal preference would lead us to believe that mastering such mechanics makes them good. Take multiple shoot buttons in NBA Live, for example. It was possible to master those mechanics, but it doesn’t mean the approach was superior to other ideas for deeper shooting controls. Freestyle Superstars had merit, was a stepping stone towards greater player differentiation, and could be used effectively. It still had its problems though, namely overpowering moves, and limitations in its overall scope.

If we go beyond the virtual hardwood, I can name examples from a couple of my other favourite games. I’m nostalgic for Bart vs. The Space Mutants on NES, but its mechanics and overall design are objectively flawed to say the least. The first person shooter mechanics in Fallout 3 are clunky compared to other titles (and they didn’t get much better in New Vegas), and the fact that I greatly enjoy those games despite those issues doesn’t negate the criticism. The combat mechanics in the Grand Theft Auto III era were not the best the GTA series has boasted, and I can admit that even though I’m not too bothered by them. I can enjoy those games, but the criticism still stands.

Consider the exploits that have drawn criticism from online gamers: zigzag cheese, the Curry slide, running threes, canned dunked-on animations, and so on. It’s not that these techniques are impossible to learn and master. It’s that they’re overpowering and cheap, often rewarding inexperience or lack of skill and strategy by providing easily exploitable tactics; the opposite of a skill gap! It’s not that people complaining about cheap tactics and OP moves can’t utilise or benefit from them. Gamers who value balance and strategy over exploitable techniques recognise the drawbacks, and don’t like the experience that they lead to. It’s not “hating”, or an inability to pull them off.

Alley-Oop Passing Timing Tips in NBA 2K22 Next Gen

Recognising issues with mechanics requires us to consider the needs and preferences of other gamers, and put ourselves in their shoes. The myopia of mastering mechanics can make this difficult. In online gameplay, dunk and alley-oop meters can arguably separate the most skilled players from the pack. Unfortunately, input lag and online stability add an artificial challenge, and poor server performance places some at an unfair disadvantage. As noted above, it also imposes itself on offline gamers. Even if you disagree with criticism of those mechanics, what does it matter if someone else wants to disable them offline? It doesn’t affect anyone else, and should be possible.

I get being disappointed about the prospect of a mechanic you like being taken out of a game. I really do; it’s happened with features that I like, and it always sucks. I do understand advocating passionately in the face of overwhelming opposition to an idea. However, it’s pure myopia to believe that mastering controversial mechanics proves that they’re a worthy concept, and that any criticism and objection is coming from a place of being unskilled or lazy. Again, when we enjoy something, we naturally see it as good, and are often myopically affronted by criticism. This leads us to declare that all critics are “hating”, “whining”, or “just don’t get it”. It’s a myopic assertion.

That’s the problem with the “get good” approach. I mentioned Returnal, the roguelike that drew criticism in May for a lack of a save feature. The complaints were not about save scumming or making the game any easier, but being able to take breaks without putting the console into rest mode; a solution foiled by auto-updates. Predictably, the “get good” crowd missed the point of the criticism, deriding the complaints as coming from a place of wanting an easier game. Advocates of shot aiming or dunk and alley-oop meters have likewise disregarded the concerns of their fellow basketball gamers, and it does feel elitist. On the plus side, at least they’re not gatekeeping camera angles.

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