Old gamers often misunderstand the quality of mobile games.
I realized this a couple of weeks ago when I asked my 12-year-old daughter whether she wanted to bring her Nintendo Switch or her Android tablet on our two-week vacation. She chose the tablet.
Why? Because her Android has Genshin Impact, Fortnite, Roblox, Candy Crush, Wuthering Waves, and Sky: Children of Light. She simply prefers those over her Switch library — which is decent but doesn’t compare to what she’s got on the tablet.
Adults tend to dismiss mobile gaming by saying things like, “There’s no 1:1 equivalent to Super Mario Odyssey, Tears of the Kingdom, or Cyberpunk 2077 on mobile.”
Fine. My daughter has access to all those games. Our family owns over 8,000 games across PC and consoles. She can play Super Mario Odyssey any time she wants, but she doesn’t. She’d rather play Genshin Impact.
And she’s not alone. Most of her friends are on their tablets or phones. It makes sense — gaming is as much about socializing as playing, and iOS and Android dominate for a reason.
Sure, we can scoff and say, “Kids these days don’t recognize a good game when it hits them in the face.”
But I remember feeling that way about Pokémon and Yu-Gi-Oh. They’re still thriving today, with now-grown adults still playing.
I also think back to my own childhood. My mom hated Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Yet, I snuck a TMNT Game Boy game into the house and played it behind her back. TMNT never disappeared — it’s still around.
With the original Switch’s price rising (at least here in Canada), it just makes sense to consider Android tablets — especially for kids. Sure, you can’t play Black Myth: Wukong on Android, but that’s why I have PCs ready for that. Kids? They just want to have fun and connect with friends.
I’m not looking down on anyone, but dont pretend that’s high quality stuff over there. Just like with the games, I said earlier theyre having fun and thats great, but its still low quality games. I can continue the comparison - beer. The most popular ones are complete swill (bud miller coors). Books - James Patterson and Danielle Steel will keep pumping shlock out until they die, and I bet that shit will still sell like hotcakes for years after. Its not like I’m going around knocking burgers and beers out of hands going “hey loser get some taste!” I just choose a higher quality item for myself. Dont be too much of a victim here, you’re allowed to enjoy those things too, by all means. Just dont fool yourself into thinking it’s high tier premium grade caviar.
@Screen_Shatter@atomicpoet Imho everyone who talks about quality in games should define how they define quality ;) I for example value story and game mechanics over graphics and usability perfection. So Balatro / Knights of the Pen and Paper or alot of the Square Enix Classic Releases on Android still are high quality games for me. My advice would be before you argue you start to define what quality means. After this you can much better measure and argue.
You seem to think your taste is more exceptional than people you deem as basic.
But how exactly did you arrive at your taste? Hype? Influencers? Marketing?
You compare games to beer and say Bud is “complete swill”. Fair enough. But almost everyone drinking IPA is doing so because some hipster said this is real beer – and everyone else just went along with it.
Personally, I’ve never read a James Patterson or Danielle Steel book in my life. But I’ve met plenty of people who claim up and down that Jack Kerouac and David Foster Wallace is top tier literature. How have so many people – who oddly seem to dress the same, have the same manners, operate with similar world views – seem to all be convinced those two authors are peak?
My personal standpoint is that nobody has taste unless they do the discovering themselves. That means no relying on marketers, gatekeepers, tastemakers, or algorithms. Go and dig for themselves.
If you’re willing to do that, form an opinion all on your own, kudos. But most people – even people who swear up and down that they have taste – won’t.
I try them out. Been gaming since I could hold a controller. Been reading for the same. Been drinking since well before it was legal, I know what its like to drink a warm 40 cause you had to hide it, no fridge. I avoid ads like the plague and I’m old enough that listening to youtuber shills is like ear sandpaper, the only thing they influence me to do is turn them off.
I am constantly seeking new experiences, that is the fun in life. With games my tastes have changed because of it. I barely play shooters anymore when it used to be a core genre because really it just feels lile same old with a new coat of paint. I go to beer and food festivals and try whatever looks good… Basically everything. And my book list is much like my gaming back log - I need more time, theres just too much. This is where reviews and recommends help - how do I prioritize my list otherwise? If I just select at random I will waste my time and money on things I dont enjoy. But taking a recommendation doesn’t mean I must like the thing, I can still experience it and form my own opinions, as everyone else does. Hell, its good when I agree with a reviewer - if they have similar tastes as me it becomes an opinion wprth listening to.
You seem super jaded about liking something that this community mostly hates. Whats the point though, why not just go enjoy what you like? You’re obviously not persauding anyone here, but I bet you can find communities for those types of games - I know for a fact clash of clans, fire emblem, genshin, all have them.
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So wait a minute. You cannot enjoy a simple cheeseburger with fries because McDonalds is beneath you?
I love a good burger and fries, but mcdonalds is fuckin awful
Whatever floats your boat, but it’s a waste of time looking down on people enjoying the occasional McDonalds cheeseburger and fries.
I’m not looking down on anyone, but dont pretend that’s high quality stuff over there. Just like with the games, I said earlier theyre having fun and thats great, but its still low quality games. I can continue the comparison - beer. The most popular ones are complete swill (bud miller coors). Books - James Patterson and Danielle Steel will keep pumping shlock out until they die, and I bet that shit will still sell like hotcakes for years after. Its not like I’m going around knocking burgers and beers out of hands going “hey loser get some taste!” I just choose a higher quality item for myself. Dont be too much of a victim here, you’re allowed to enjoy those things too, by all means. Just dont fool yourself into thinking it’s high tier premium grade caviar.
@Screen_Shatter @atomicpoet Imho everyone who talks about quality in games should define how they define quality ;) I for example value story and game mechanics over graphics and usability perfection. So Balatro / Knights of the Pen and Paper or alot of the Square Enix Classic Releases on Android still are high quality games for me. My advice would be before you argue you start to define what quality means. After this you can much better measure and argue.
You seem to think your taste is more exceptional than people you deem as basic.
But how exactly did you arrive at your taste? Hype? Influencers? Marketing?
You compare games to beer and say Bud is “complete swill”. Fair enough. But almost everyone drinking IPA is doing so because some hipster said this is real beer – and everyone else just went along with it.
Personally, I’ve never read a James Patterson or Danielle Steel book in my life. But I’ve met plenty of people who claim up and down that Jack Kerouac and David Foster Wallace is top tier literature. How have so many people – who oddly seem to dress the same, have the same manners, operate with similar world views – seem to all be convinced those two authors are peak?
My personal standpoint is that nobody has taste unless they do the discovering themselves. That means no relying on marketers, gatekeepers, tastemakers, or algorithms. Go and dig for themselves.
If you’re willing to do that, form an opinion all on your own, kudos. But most people – even people who swear up and down that they have taste – won’t.
I try them out. Been gaming since I could hold a controller. Been reading for the same. Been drinking since well before it was legal, I know what its like to drink a warm 40 cause you had to hide it, no fridge. I avoid ads like the plague and I’m old enough that listening to youtuber shills is like ear sandpaper, the only thing they influence me to do is turn them off.
I am constantly seeking new experiences, that is the fun in life. With games my tastes have changed because of it. I barely play shooters anymore when it used to be a core genre because really it just feels lile same old with a new coat of paint. I go to beer and food festivals and try whatever looks good… Basically everything. And my book list is much like my gaming back log - I need more time, theres just too much. This is where reviews and recommends help - how do I prioritize my list otherwise? If I just select at random I will waste my time and money on things I dont enjoy. But taking a recommendation doesn’t mean I must like the thing, I can still experience it and form my own opinions, as everyone else does. Hell, its good when I agree with a reviewer - if they have similar tastes as me it becomes an opinion wprth listening to.
You seem super jaded about liking something that this community mostly hates. Whats the point though, why not just go enjoy what you like? You’re obviously not persauding anyone here, but I bet you can find communities for those types of games - I know for a fact clash of clans, fire emblem, genshin, all have them.