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[Men_in_Boxes]

Some random blobs as data points...

1. 2016: Overwatch reigns. 2017: PUBG and Fortnite eat its lunch.

2. In 2017, Lawbreaker flops. Slower games Valorant & CSGO thrive.

3. In 2017, Zelda Breath of the Wild launches and focuses on open, players go their own pace, exploration based gameplay to huge success.

4. In 2021, Returnal underperforms.

5. The Suicide Squad and Helldivers 2 go head to head. RD1 KO.

6. Doom The Dark Ages is revealed showing a noticeable downshift in player speed from Doom Eternal.

7. 8/10 games in Steams top 10 charts can be classified as slower paced. (Exceptions: Apex Legends, TF2)

8. Action movie arena shooter The Finals teeters close to the line.

9. PlayStation readies the release of Concord, many calling it a slow shooter.

Question: Are we starting to see a trend that shows players prefer a relatively slow run speed in their games? If not run speed, but a limit to APM (actions per minute) in their games?

The music industry learned that pop songs have to fall between 100 and 140 beats per minute to go big. Is the gaming industry figuring out it's APM pace, or is this just crazy cherry picking?

 

[RagnarokIV]

Activate AI mode...


In the ever-evolving landscape of gaming, one factor has quietly emerged as a game-changer: pace of play. While some may dismiss it as mere minutiae, astute observers recognize its profound impact on a game’s success. Buckle up as we delve into this enigmatic phenomenon, revealing secrets that will leave you questioning reality itself.

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The Quantum Mechanics of Tempo
Picture this: a pixelated hero hurtling through a labyrinthine world. Each jump, each dash—meticulously calibrated. But what if I told you that behind those 8-bit animations lies a cosmic dance? Yes, my friends, pace is the subatomic glue binding gameplay together. It’s the Heisenberg uncertainty principle applied to button mashing. The faster the pace, the more uncertain the outcome. Quantum gaming, anyone?


The Art of Subliminal Messaging
Developers have mastered the art of subliminal messaging. Consider loading screens—the digital equivalent of waiting for the kettle to boil. But what if these moments held deeper meaning? Perhaps they’re coded messages from ancient civilizations, urging us to “git gud” or “press X to ascend.” The pace of loading screens—cryptic hieroglyphs, if you will—shapes our destiny.

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The Butterfly Effect: Inventory Management
Ah, inventories—the Bermuda Triangle of gaming. Ever notice how your backpack fills up faster than a Black Friday sale? Here’s the twist: inventory management is a microcosm of life itself. The agonizing decision between discarding the rusty sword or the moldy cheese wheel mirrors existential dilemmas. Pace dictates whether you hoard or Marie Kondo your way to enlightenment.

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NPCs: The Unsung Heroes of Time Travel
Non-playable characters (NPCs) are the unsung heroes of time travel. Their monologues—lengthy, meandering—distort the fabric of reality. As they drone on about lost kittens and their grandma’s cookie recipe, we slip into alternate dimensions. Pace, my friends, is the TARDIS key. NPCs are our guides, whispering, “Wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey.”


The Soundtrack: A Metronome for Destiny
Close your eyes. Listen. The game’s soundtrack—the metronome of destiny. Each note, each crescendo—encoded messages from the cosmos. Fast-paced tunes propel us toward victory, while melancholic melodies hint at hidden achievements. The tempo whispers, “Collect all 100 golden bananas” or “Find the elusive unicorn mount.” Pace, my friends, orchestrates our fate.

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Conclusion: Beyond the Loading Screen
As we wrap up this odyssey, remember: pace of play isn’t just about pixels and polygons. It’s the heartbeat of existence, the warp drive of virtual realms. So next time you sprint through a dungeon or pause to admire a sunset, know that you’re surfing the cosmic waves of pace. And as the loading screen fades, ask yourself: “Am I ready for the next level?”

 

[Thick Thighs Save Lives]

Hmm... let me think for a bit.

 

[Crayon]

Whatever the answer, I think you are onto something interesting. Game speed has always been important and sometimes contentious, but what if there are trends now thanks to all the player data?

 

[Guilty_AI]

Considering you put CSGO as slow, i can tell you schizophrenic pace wouldn't be very popular.

 

[Dacvak]

I can only speak personally, but I’m having a much harder time playing slowly paced games these days. I want short, fast, concentrated games.

 

[Damigos]

i love slower games as it makes pressing a button actually matter.
Very fast games can usually be won just by mashing everything

 

[Portugeezer]

As a controller enjoyer, I also prefer slower games for anything involving aiming.

 

[Bernardougf]

Can only speak for myself.. after 30+ years gaming I just cant stand walking and talking sections anymore .. specially with the shit tier modern storytelling... right now I am all about game play and no bullshit.

 

[intbal]

OP, cross-reference your data points with HUD complexity.
Maybe there's some additional correlation.

 

[Bring Back Scalebound]

Question: Are we starting to see a trend that shows players prefer a relatively slow run speed in their games? If not run speed, but a limit to APM (actions per minute) in their games?

I think is more related to the fact that most people who game, are casual gamers, and is not exactly about speed or APM. They might not be attracted to games that ask more out of them then they want or can handle (Which is valid), and that can go beyond speed and APM.

Some of the games you mentioned, speed is arguably not the main factor that affected their popularity or lack there of.

I think that would be more applicable to fighting games, where reaction time, and fast decision making (Not to mention fundamentals like spacing and all that), is very much essential to being decent enough to play them. Specially online.
With a few exceptions, of course.

Doom Eternal is indeed a fast game, specially compared to 2016.
But is also a game that REQUIRES multi-tasking from you. You won't be able to go that far into the game, without using 90% of the tools the game offers. It's quite overwhelming for the regular player, and not exactly because of APM or speed.

A game like Returnal, could also be considered fast, but it's also very overwhelming with what it throws at you, and it's quite unwelcoming in every way possible beyond just speed.
Not to mention how it handled saving, that as soon as it was made public, affected the popularity of the game.

If you look at the Devil May Cry series, despite it being very popular on the internet, not that many people ACTUALLY play it.

And DMC is not a series of games that I would call very fast. They aren't slow either, obviously.
But what makes them not that attractive to a more casual audience, is the fact that they don't have that much to offer beyond pure gameplay, mechanics, and focus on its own fundamentals. That changed with DMC 5, where there was a bigger focus on story, but it still kept its fundamentals, and demanding nature.

You can't take damage, there no healing items that you can buy (Different from past games). You have to constantly improve. You have to be stylish, and change up your combos, so you can get higher rankings, because fighting while the music is low volume and boring, is not that exciting is it? So try to get better, to feel the music.

Speed is a part of it, but only a PART of it.

None of what I just said applies to the God of War series, for example. They aren't as demanding. And GOW is VERY popular with casual players. Because it offers a lot of other things beyond gameplay, and the gameplay that it offers, while it is quite good and even great, is very safe.

Anyway.
Casual players tend to want the familiar and the comfortable. And a lot of those games that offer that, happen to be slower paced.

So I do think it is a factor. I just don't think it's the main one.

The music industry learned that pop songs have to fall between 100 and 140 beats per minute to go big. Is the gaming industry figuring out it's APM pace, or is this just crazy cherry picking?

No no, it makes total sense.

 

[Fart Knight]

 

[cormack12]

 

[Crayon]

High game speed is sometimes related to combating audiences' legacy skill, too.

 

[Diddy X]

Too much stimulus too fast can be stressing depending on the player's age, when younger I could play faster games no problem, now I prefer slower paced experiences.

 

[Generic]

You can't take damage, there no healing items that you can buy (Different from past games). You have to constantly improve. You have to be stylish, and change up your combos, so you can get higher rankings, because fighting while the music is low volume and boring, is not that exciting is it? So try to get better, to feel the music.

Honestly you just need to spam the same 2-3 area-of-effect attacks over and over again.

 

[elmos-acc]

The learning curve is higher when the speed is also a factor, which is why slower pace is more accessible. I also don't think anyone wants to be constantly in a hurry, I want to have the time to think.