20 MORE Pointless Video Game Mechanics Nobody Used

8. Procedurally Generated Quests - Various Games

The idea of a game having endless content is an exciting one. Not only would it give players a reason to keep returning to their favourite games, but the limitless number of things to do would be incredible value for money. Although some live service titles like Sea Of Thieves and Dead By Daylight have managed to make this concept work with a steady stream of updates, this idea doesn’t always work as well in practice.

The most common way developers implement unlimited content is through procedurally generated quests. Designed to provide players with a constant rotation of challenges to complete, these types of quests have become a common part of modern games. They've appeared in everything from Preston Garvey constantly sending players to help settlements in Fallout 4 to the never-ending list of Bureau Alerts in Control and the bottomless list of optional contracts in Assassin’s Creed Shadows.

Though each of these quests is initially a useful way to acquire resources or earn specific rewards, it doesn’t take long for their constant presence to become distracting interruptions that never leave players alone.

Once players have obtained whatever they need, these quests are ignored throughout the rest of their playtime.