Sandbox or Campaign, depending on your age?

[Torg]

Leading games researchers Quantic Foundry found from analyzing (http://quanticfoundry.com/2016/02/17/open-world/) 1000 player profiles that in open world games - like Neocron - younger players prefer playing through the campaign (which is broken into mission strings in NC) while older ones rather go for the sandbox experience. The watershed is said to be at 26 years of age, while there seems to be no difference between sexes.

Does this meet your own experience, in NC and comparable games?

[Drake6k]

I've never cared much for campaigns. I started playing Neocron when I was 15 (I'm 29 now!) and I've always preferred sandbox types; I think the main reason I them is I like to plan. There is so much potential for conquest and empire building in sandbox games, and that is what always motivated me to keep playing.

I don't know why age would have anything to do with it. I have a bunch of adult friends who can only play linear games with obvious progression. What about Minecraft? Kids love Minecraft and it's a complete sandbox; I know adults who won't even play it because they "don't know what to do."

I believe that article was looking at single player games. Maybe people young and old treat MMOs and multiplayer games differently than they do single player ones. I do the campaigns in the Elder Scrolls games, but if it was a sandbox MMO (ESO isn't), I'd be trying to amass a community of barbarians to take over the land.

[yavimaya]

am currently 34, i prefer sandbox with almost 0 missions.

i learned of and played neocron when i was roughly 20, i preferred sandbox with almost 0 missions then too.


kids these days have spent too much time playing games like neverwinter nights and WOW and not enough time playing games like super mario and zelda.

[Arcaine]

I started with Sandbox-Games in my early Years (something around 6 ? ....Boulder Dash on C64 *g* ...the real Sandbox ..lol)
I've always loved the freedom to handle my own Story.....no stupid quests that drove me through every sector i never wanted to visit....
in case....I've played a lot of Games....and broke up with the most after a short period of time....especially, while leveling another char...and doin aaaalll the same shit again and again, beacause the game says i have to ...

I'll always prefer Sandbox without any required stats,ways, quests, equips, etc pp and I'm at the age of 31 now.

[Dribble Joy]

I'm the sort that does the campaign in sections, with side elements in between.

I'll generally do the main storyline in a game like Fallout, Skyrim, Borderlands, etc. one chapter at a time and do unrelated quests/exploring in the meanwhile.

I suppose it's a lot down to how you like your stories.

[Apocalypsox]

Sandbox all the way. Have always preferred it that way. Don't like being forced to do any specific string of quests. You do them once and every time after that they are the same shit.

Had that opinion since I started Neocron, and I was like 13 years old.