I feel like Achievements are ruining gaming for me...

First I don't have 100k points, only a modest 29,000. I never play bad games just for the points either, but still can't fight the urge that the constant reminder of getting an achievement is there. The problem is in games I enjoy I end up doing things I wouldn't normally enjoy in those games just to have it "more complete". Instead of just doing the sidequests in Mass Effect 2 I felt the need to do them, since it was like checking off some list that had to be done. I even started Dragon Age on PC, but feel like beating the game kinda loses its purpose since I don't have any way to prove I did it. I got my 360 first so when it comes down to it I always end up buying or playing a game on there because of that nagging urge for the achievements.  I started never looking at the list of achievements in a game now, they just pop up and I try to ignore them till I"m done the game. I'd say the ONLY achievements I like are for beating the game on a harder difficulty, but I much rather have an ingame reward for that action or even a gamerpic (Like mass effect 1). 

People say it makes them play a game longer or do things they normally wouldn't do, but looking back at the last few games I did most of the achievements in, 90% of the stuff "I went back and did" I would have never done because it was a freaking pain in the ass or boring, anyone else realize this?

Wondering if anyone else feels this way? It's not Sony/Valve/Microsoft's fault, but really can't shake that feeling. I kinda wish I could just delete them and set my 360 to "no achievement mode", then I wouldn't worry about it.

 90% of the stuff "I went back and did" I would have never done because it was a freaking pain in the ass or boring, anyone else realize this?

 i feel the same way sometimes i can't tell if i am playing a game for the fun of it or the feeling of unlocking an achievement. 

I don't have very much trouble ignoring achievements, only time I ever went for them was in Borderlands and that was only the achievements that required different classes to get.

I'm not saying go out and spend $1000 dollars on a new gaming PC, but that's exactly what I did to get out of that. (Though, I don't care about Steam achievements because there's no point value to them) Most PC games for some reason I'm happy to play just for the fun of the game itself. I get small doses now of the achievements I used to crave, such as StarCraft II and WoW, but I could care less now. Even when switching back to my 360 for the occasional exclusive such as Red Dead Redemption, I find myself completely blowing them off and just having fun. I think the reason for it was achievements were such an integral part of the 360 experience, so I felt like I had to get them, whereas on the PC they're few and far between. I too found myself wanting that proof of the time put into a game, but that's sort of become my Steam library and, to some extent, my lists here on Giant Bomb. I've come to like PC gaming in general a lot more than I ever did 360 gaming, so this achievement thing was essentially just a nice perk.

" @Deadmeat said:

 90% of the stuff "I went back and did" I would have never done because it was a freaking pain in the ass or boring, anyone else realize this?

Indeed. Instead of spending more time on a game because you like it, you spend more time on it just to fulfil some meaningless task that's usually stupid or unnecessary. "

I think having a reward system in game is great, but give me an in game reward not a meta abstract number that is meaningless. Like maybe if finding all the intel items in modern warefare gave you a some crazy gun to use in singleplayer for fun, or beating mass effect on insane gave me like unlimited health next play through. Or at least follow some of the God of War games, that gave you extra features and such.

I was searching for the flags in Acre in Assassins' Creed to get the achievement, it became so boring that I quit the game and started Mass effect. I'll be going back to assassins creed, but when I do I'll no longer search for the flags. I don't care about boring achievements any more, I'll try to get those that are fun to pursue, though. Gears of war 2 is a good example wrt fun achievements IMHO.
 
I also don't care about online achievements since I don't play online :P

" I'm not saying go out and spend $1000 dollars on a new gaming PC, but that's exactly what I did to get out of that. (Though, I don't care about Steam achievements because there's no point value to them) Most PC games for some reason I'm happy to play just for the fun of the game itself. I get small doses now of the achievements I used to crave, such as StarCraft II and WoW, but I could care less now. Even when switching back to my 360 for the occasional exclusive such as Red Dead Redemption, I find myself completely blowing them off and just having fun. I think the reason for it was achievements were such an integral part of the 360 experience, so I felt like I had to get them, whereas on the PC they're few and far between. I too found myself wanting that proof of the time put into a game, but that's sort of become my Steam library and, to some extent, my lists here on Giant Bomb. I've come to like PC gaming in general a lot more than I ever did 360 gaming, so this achievement thing was essentially just a nice perk. "

Thats an interesting perspective actually... I liked some of the challenges in Starcraft 2 trying to beat them and show my friends. Then I started doing stuff like beating missions in a certain time or on brutal and was having ZERO fun! I'm like "WTF are you doing!" and shut it off... playing to chase a checkbox list isn't really gaming.

I'm a completionist in games which is why I think this bugs me so much... Maybe others feel the same.

I'd like to share a little anecdote regarding achievements: 
 
I've been borrowing a few games from the local library a few months ago, and while I was getting all the games I had really wanted to play, I also picked up a few "maybe" games, thinking that if I didn't like them, they'd at least boost my score a little bit.  
 
So while I got some games I had always wanted to try, like Bayonetta and Red Dead Redemption, I also picked up Alone in the Dark. Now, I know most people didn't like this game, but few people out there said that it was misunderstood, and that it had some unique features that were worth playing the game for. So I thought 'what the hey' and took that one home with me. 
  
Now, as I was playing the first chapter, I realised that the game was not that fun, and was contemplating whether I should keep playing just for the achievements, or to put it down and take it back. Luckily I chose to stop, because at the end of the day, video games are supposed to be fun, and if they're not fun then you're doing it wrong. 
 
Edit: Hope I didn't bore you to death.

I don't care about achievements. 
 
But I'm going for the 100% achievement in SMB. it's a pain in the ass.

I used to care, but then I told myself to stop, so I stopped.  
 
I guess some people don't have that much willpower.

I get the same feeling sometimes, but the difference is that I enjoy it, as it gives me more insentive to play a game. That said, I don't play a game if I don't feel like it, like right now I've still got Fable 3 and Fallout: New Vegas to play through for points. But I don't feel like playing either of them right now, so it's not like points are forcing me to play them even if I don't want to.

isn't there the ability to turn off the Achievement pop ups? just do that and don't worry about it.
 
achievements come in a variety of styles though...tedium achivments; where you gotta do a thing a bunch of times, compulsive achievements; collect hidden items, and challenge achievements; get through a level without dying - firing a shot - running backwards - whatever...challenge achievements can be a meta game and be a lot of fun, i remember having a good time trying to get all the achievements in Geometry Wars 2. So as long as you can think of them as an addition and not an obligation ya should be fine after that...eventually you can tell what achievements maybe fun for you and what you don't want to bother with.

I try to get them (steam achievements) when I can, but if I feel it'll be too frustrating or I have to go too far out of my way, then I won't bother.

If there's one that interests me, I'll go for it. Everything else I just ignore. Its not hard.

I used to think that achievements kept me playing the game longer, but after S-ranking Uncharted 2 I can't seem to go back to it even though I want to. They're controlling me!

I've found that having something like Wii or DS, that doesn't have that kind of system, can be a nice change of pace.  I'm not trying to "DO EVERYTHING I CAN POSSIBLY DO OMG POINTZ", just enjoying the game and seeing how far I can go with it.

nope how I feel about achievements, occasionally a  surprise at getting them no strong desire to gain more.

Totally depends on the game. On one hand, I followed guides and got every flag in Assassin's Creed and every pigeon in GTA 4. Why? Because I really enjoyed those games and wanted to spend more time in them anyway. On the other hand, I played through Ninja Gaiden II once and will never touch it again. It was a good game but all those achievement points I left on the table ain't worth a brain aneurysm to pursue. I had no problem moving on from that.

i never cared about getting all the achievements in a game or anything, but i do still feel they can give small goals you might not go for otherwise that are still fun and not grindy bullshit. like the lost viking achievements in starcraft 2, i would have played it anyways, but the achievements made me play it a bit more to get a higher score and it was still fun. the other thing sc2 does right is there's so many spread across so much of the game i feel like i'd never be able to get them all anyways, so i generally don't even try.

I don't go out of my way to get an achievement, but when that icon pops up on my Xbox 360, I'm like, cool. It's like a happy accident.

i remeber when i was a kid when i played the same singleplayer games for weeks after i beat them, replaying certain parts i liked, just for fun... 
 now i have MGS4 for almost a year and i've never touched it, i just don't feel compelled to play it. 
 
I WANT THOSE DAMN TROPHIES!!!!

I liked them for being a way to kinda "keep a record of games I played" etc.

I almost thought of keeping a video game journal, I do one for my life... wouldn't be a stretch to keep track of the games I beat and some notable parts of them.

I actually feel I get more out of my games due to the achievements system.  Without it, I would just beat the game then move on, but instead I go back and do more for achievements.  I get more for my money.

when I look at my list of s-ranks or games where I have over 800 points, I realize they are some of my favorite games....weird

I agree 100% with OP. I think about achievements like sex: I want both, but neither is ever going to be fulfilling, and sometimes they make me do things that are directly contrary to my own interests. I just come to resent the urge to get achievements, but I can't stop thinking about the damn things while I play. I have a huge game collection, but whenever I play older games part of me is thinking "you aren't getting achievements for this. You could be. But you aren't" and the urge to go play some crap 360 game starts to rear its head. Thank Christ I haven't actually played any of those Burger King games yet...but its only a matter of time...
 
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WHAT?!?!

I recommend having a look at Jonathan Blows talk Video Games and the Human Condition, it doesn't directly address achievements, but game mechanics in general that serve basically no other purpose getting the player addicted and sinking time into doing boring tasks he normally wouldn't want to do.

 Achievements are fun to get sometimes. But the game matters. I was playing Dragon Age as well on PC and I did not at all feel that way, because achievements don't make a game, it just shows or reminds the amount of experience you've gone through in a game. My favorite game (aside from Dead Space) is PC's Crysis. And there's no achievements in that. It's just an awesome game. I usually never looks at trophies or achievements until after I beaten it on hard, and when I check the list, I'll say which ones I will and won't do. Some are just not worth my time. But like Akrid up there, I kind of had the same thought proccess. When I got all of the trophies in Uncharted 2 I couldn't make myself play the game anymore only because I feel like I've seen everything I can see in that game. But I also S-Ranked Dead Space, and still for both games (more so with Dead Space) I want to play them again. It's just harder to do. But I think it's the same with older games like RE4, after I get everything and explore enough, I feel like I'm done with it it may or may not go back into it for a while.

I've made efforts to keep myself from falling into an achievement addiction and so far I've been doing pretty well. If you are getting a little obsessive about them then I'd recommend turning off achievement notifications and just going cold turkey from looking up achievements and trying to go after them.

for 29,000 achievements that somebody doesn't care is pretty crazy. i only have 12,1XX achievements and i dont' care about them. i just play the game and when i'm done i'm done with the game.

Since the launch of the 360 I've been hooked.
And it's lead to me purchasing a lot of games I would never have considered before. And made me play them to completion. Many of them turn out to actually be pretty fun. 
Culdcept Saga, for example. I started playing that recently. I happen to like board games and Magic the Gathering. This game is like Monopoly and Magic. And being out of town a lot, I don't exactly have anyone to play magic and monopoly with. So I'm, happy my point whoring lead to the purchase of this game that I would have otherwise probably never so much as looked at.

I was into achievements a lot at one point but then I started becoming more a PC gamer where achievements are almost nonexistent and achievements don't matter much to me anymore. I find that I play through a game now and enjoy it for what it is and worry less about getting an achievement.

Hmm i used to have mild OCD and would have to jump through doorways before a car horn honked outside or else... well i couldn't quite justify the logic of it but there it is, i think much the same as these points in games.. When i play games now if a happen to get an achievement i will curiously hit the center button to see what's its for but beyond that i largely ignore them save for the periodic look in the xbox library to see which there are and what you need to get them. I you might try deliberately "NOT" getting certain achievements that are relatively easy to get or make it a point. The Gay tony GTA expansion pack has an achievement for shaking somebody off your boat very fast, it's very easy to get but i just didn't get it and don't plan on it though i've watched somebody get it. Like OCD i just made sure the horn would beep( i waited) before i jumped through the doorway causing me to fail the contest that irrational part of my brain assigned to me to compete in. Unless you get something that enhances gameplay, like increased bullet time there's no reason to get these things i think.

I love Achievements... but, FFS, stop putting multiplayer Achievements in single-player focused games. It's really annoying.

Really? I've found achievements make me like games more. Guess i dont have any sorta compulsion to fill in the gaps though.

" I actually feel I get more out of my games due to the achievements system.  Without it, I would just beat the game then move on, but instead I go back and do more for achievements.  I get more for my money. "