Mini-games are the essential parts of gameplay. This kind of entertainment is an additional piece of fun, but some titles build around these mechanics. The golden age of mini-games was about ten years ago, then their number significantly decreased. Modern hits are made quickly. The quality of additional content decreased too fast. Why did the non-main activities fade with time?
Let’s start with the very types of mini-games. Usually, we have standard patterns:
- a puzzle game;
- various cards;
- prize automatons;
- physical riddles.
The main problem is the addiction and amusement of these games. If you are playing chess in Watch Dogs or fanorona in Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, it gives you a specific mood. But hacking of vending machines in Bioshock is mandatory. And it is incredibly tedious till the end of the journey. Though, the player can buy the master keys. And then you need to farm the spare parts for these keys. See the problem of gameplay? Yes, this is a false spiral of disenchantment.
The best recurring activities in the gambling world are reel machines. For example, the 5 Dazzling Hot slot can attract you for several exciting evenings. The mini-games can be just for the mood of the setting. And, at the same time, it can be complicated. The most notorious case is “The Caravan” from Fallout: New Vegas. It is not tough. However, the unusual rules and collector’s hunting for various decks make The Caravan the less popular card mini-game in the Fabulous Vegas franchise.
The fall of mini-games has not come yet. Still, we can see the significant decline of this part of gameplay. The main reason was the collapsing popularity of collectible card games. The CCGs are not the same, but they share the pacing and skills with lesser activities. The Artifact was a failure from the initial launch Heroes of the Storm are in stagnation. Gamers are just tired of this kind of time spent right at that moment. Before the renaissance of mini-games, let us remember the best and the worst ones.
The Best Big Franchises for Mini-Games
Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag
Every game of the lead Ubisoft franchise has a lot of supplementary crafts. The pirate taverns are top-notch: rum, the authentic shanties, real tabletop games of the 18th century. Take your dice and listen to “Blow The Candles Out” thrice per hour.
The Witcher
Geralt of Rivia wields two swords and masters two mini-games. The simplified dice poker was amusing. The Witcher 2 represented the awful dice design, but the grand finale gives us a gorgeous Gwent. The phenomenon of the card mini-game is the different rules. The Wild Hunt’s version of the Gwent is heavier, while the standalone game is for casuals. People love both of them.
The Legend of Zelda
Fishing today is one of the most popular small leisure activities. You can be a fisher in a lot of titles, from Stardew Valley to NieR: Automata. The live and original fishing is represented in Ocarina of Time. There were these sports even before, but Zelda’s version is the most polished one.
Fallout 4
While New Vegas gives the player The Caravan and classic casino games, the fourth part has a glorious Terminal Hacking Pip-Boy App. It is an homage to Galaga, Space Invaders, Donkey Kong, and other hits right from the eighties. Just find the proper cartridge in the post-nuclear world of the Commonwealth!
The Worst Franchises for Mini-Games
The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion
Every game is good and one of the biggest hits of 2006. The significant improvement since Morrowind was gorgeous. The most infamous part of the game was social skills. Imagine: you are a random citizen from Cyrodil. A perfect stranger approaches and starts to flirt, admire, threaten, and bargain with you simultaneously. It is the local “wheel of social skills, folks.” It’s elementary but so unnatural.
Mass Effect 2
Okay, the scanning of random planets is tedious. At least, we could read some local lore. The terminal hacks here, though, are live abominations. Commander Shepard has to learn additional skills or even buy instruments for skipping the annoying procedure.
Batman: Arkham Knight
The Riddler has gone postal. Well, he was not very sane from the beginning. And the racing tracks for the Batmobile are challenging. But in the original two parts and the prequels, the player can make a choice. The green question signs were essential for one thing: does the Dark Knight want to lock Nigma in jail? The last game goes nuts with the eccentric inventor. Wanna have a real ending? You have to complete all the activities. Two thousand fifty challenges, good sirs. The entertainment is like “try to aim your Batarang standing back to the mirror, from one room through a second one, and the switch is in the third apartment.” Seriously, you can watch the grand finale on Youtube.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
There are no good games about the Star Wars’ speeders. There were no reasons to make this mini-game into one of the most massive action RPGs of all time. Happily, you can skip this mission and abandon it forever.
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