Achievements have done a lot of good for video games in the last few years. I know some people would disagree with that, but I guess I'll argue both ways real fast. 
 
For achievements, I like having them on my games as it gives me something to shoot for. I have squeezed more life out of games than I probably would otherwise because of achievements. I love giantbomb.com's averaging system so that I can easily go into my list and say "Wow, I barely played UFC Undisputed 2009" but then realize that I got that at a garage sale, so I don't care too much. It helps me find what I maybe should try a bit more.  
 
Farther in the opposite direction though, achievements are tools for me to identify games that I just plain don't like. Dark Sector has something like 250GS just sitting there waiting for me to finish the game, but nope. I'm not doing it. Farcry 2 is another in that league. I have found that those games are not for me. 
 
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With my disappointment at the lack of GB trophy support, and my enjoyment of achievements in 360, Steam, and blizzard games, it becomes completely surprising when a game gets my undivided attention without achievements in it for me. 
 
Recent games that have done this for me are Professor Layton and the Curious Village, Picross 3D, Mario and Luigi: Bowser's inside story, and a whole mess of Telltale games on Steam. 
 
I find it particularly odd that some of those games still have me going for 100% completion even when I really don't have anything to show for it. Sure I have very little to show in any of my gaming achievements (save maybe someone noticing a particularly rare one or something), but with Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People Ep. 1, no one will ever know that I have all that stuff done. 
  
I really respect any game that can get my attention like that. I'll put up reviews of some of those eventually. The DS is the most obvious leader in my category here. For some reason I've been playing that a lot. 
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Next: My building a computer adventure! (I hope I can do that one soon.)

Gaming without achievements was extremely hard for me about 2 years after I bought my Xbox. I had recently bought a PS3 and I ahd almost no motivation to play through my games. It is weird feeling, almost like games have no purpose without achievements, but play enough 360 and eventually youj ust get bored of achievemnts, they lose their appeal. Once the little popup and the quirky sound gave me a feeling of euphoria now it means almost nothing.

i never cared about having a BIG SCORE or HIGH POST COUNT or KICKASS STATS for OTHER PEOPLE TO SEE AND RESPECT ME 
 competition sucks ass 
 
I play to enjoy what video games offer me, not to set a score. fuck scores.

" i never cared about having a BIG SCORE or HIGH POST COUNT or KICKASS STATS for OTHER PEOPLE TO SEE AND RESPECT ME  competition sucks ass  I play to enjoy what video games offer me, not to set a score. fuck scores. "

" i never cared about having a BIG SCORE or HIGH POST COUNT or KICKASS STATS for OTHER PEOPLE TO SEE AND RESPECT ME  competition sucks ass  I play to enjoy what video games offer me, not to set a score. fuck scores. "

Not gonna lie, games without achievements/trophies feel like they're missing a feature or something to me.

Achievements is one of the greatest new innovations to come from this generation of consoles since online play. 

Achievements are almost always completely stupid, but they're usually benign as well so it's not really a problem.

" maybe next generation there won't be trophies or achievements. in the future the scores might not even matter. "

" Achievements is one of the greatest new innovations to come from this generation of consoles since online play.  "

" @iam3green said:

" maybe next generation there won't be trophies or achievements. in the future the scores might not even matter. "

HA ! thanks for the laugh, friend :P  considering the way 'social gaming' is going, i can only see more and more competition in the future, and endless achievement-like bullshit INTEGRATED in each and every game there is..  uhhh *shakes it off* "

One of the best gaming podcasts not on Giant Bomb, the Idle Thumbs podcast, talked about this in their show this week. There are studies that have shown that people who start to associate doing a task with a reward (games = achievement points) tend to not be interested in/want to do the action when there isn't a reward being offered. But people who don't have the reward (people who play games without achievements, or don't see them as desirable) will continue doing the task longer. The catch is, this behavior is true EVEN IF THE PERSON LIKES THE TASK THEY DO.
 
Achievements are great in that they can encourage interesting explorations of game types you weren't normally going to find/check out. But the rise of people who won't play games without achievements, or who buy bad games because they have easy achievements, is probably more of a blow to games than it is a good thing.

" @Dylabaloo said:

" Achievements is one of the greatest new innovations to come from this generation of consoles since online play.  "

They were there before this generation of consoles too, though.  "

What about the fact that achievement data helps developers know what people are doing in their games?  And now games are being developed with achievements in mind?  I love the idea of gaming without achievements (even though completionism can still set in, as you've all discussed), but it seems too useful to the people making games to ever go away.

" @ZeForgotten said:

" @Dylabaloo said:

" Achievements is one of the greatest new innovations to come from this generation of consoles since online play.  "

They were there before this generation of consoles too, though.  "

Really which console? "

" @Dylabaloo said:

" @ZeForgotten said:

" @Dylabaloo said:

" Achievements is one of the greatest new innovations to come from this generation of consoles since online play.  "

They were there before this generation of consoles too, though.  "

Really which console? "

Different ones. I remember playing games on the PS2 and Gamecube where you achived a certain amount of kills in specific levels and you unlocked an upgrade, or images or something and on your profile you would have a little Start next to thing thing you've done and stuff like that. It wasn't anything as "flashy" and show-off like it is today, but the feature was still there.   also pac-man! Your name on the top of the highscore list for 6 weeks, it's an achivement!  Untill someone pulls the plug on the machine.    "

" @ZeForgotten said:

" @Dylabaloo said:

" @ZeForgotten said:

" @Dylabaloo said:

" Achievements is one of the greatest new innovations to come from this generation of consoles since online play.  "

They were there before this generation of consoles too, though.  "

Really which console? "

Different ones. I remember playing games on the PS2 and Gamecube where you achived a certain amount of kills in specific levels and you unlocked an upgrade, or images or something and on your profile you would have a little Start next to thing thing you've done and stuff like that. It wasn't anything as "flashy" and show-off like it is today, but the feature was still there.   also pac-man! Your name on the top of the highscore list for 6 weeks, it's an achivement!  Untill someone pulls the plug on the machine.    "

I guess Highscores could be seen as the origins achievements, adding immense replay value like the achievements of today. I'll agree that the idea of achievements (Goals you must complete to get something in this case) is not a new idea made by Microsoft but as with everything in about every industry it doesn't matter who innovates but rather the one who perfects and I think Microsoft have hit the nail on the head with their system that will be continued to be used and changed in future generations to come. "