10 Modern Video Game Tropes Everyone Is Rejecting

Variety in level design is a straightforward way to stop gameplay from becoming tedious. Nobody likes doing the same kind of objective repetitively for several hours at a time. It keeps the action fresh and exciting while offering the potential for imaginative and interesting challenges. Look no further than Psychonauts 2 or Neir: Automata’s constantly shifting gameplay to see how invigorating it can be.

But for some developers, gameplay variety is as unimaginative as adding in some stealth sections to stretch out a game.

Games with a specific focus on stealth can give rise to some rewarding challenges where skill, patience, and creativity payoff in satisfying ways. Even better is when detection isn’t an automatic game over, with the likes of Deathloop, Hitman, and A Plague Tale: Requiem showing how it’s done. But to some developers, stealth is little more than adding a crouch button, some cover, and an instant failure when spotted.

There’s nothing fun about forcing players into unneeded sneak sessions, especially if they’re entirely unnecessary. Titles like Observer, Call Of Cthulhu, and even 2018’s Spider-Man fell prey to this trope which was consequently met by unanimous groans.

Please, developers. No more unneeded stealth sections.