An ex-Gears of War producer has openly discussed how achievements could have a detrimental impact on multiplayer dynamics. Gears of War is renowned for its challenging and time-consuming achievements that sometimes influence how players engage with the game.

Each Gears of War installment features a notoriously difficult 'Seriously' achievement, known for being one of the toughest to unlock in the gaming world. These achievements range from eliminating 100,000 enemies to achieving level 100, obtaining every Onyx medal, and completing the campaign on Insane difficulty alongside other tough objectives. However, the specific achievements that the former Gears of War developer highlighted were not these infamous ones.

During an interview on the My Perfect Console podcast, Rod Fergusson, responsible for achievements in various Gears games, admitted that weapon-based achievements like the original game's 'It's a Massacre' partly spoiled the multiplayer experience. 'It's a Massacre' required players to chainsaw 100 enemies in ranked multiplayer, pushing those aiming to swiftly boost their gamerscore to focus on this combat style instead of playing the game as intended. Fergusson emphasized that such achievements often led to frustration among teammates.

Gears of War's Shift Away from Weapon-Based Multiplayer Achievements

The initial entry in the franchise included numerous achievements similar to 'It's a Massacre,' such as killing 100 enemies in ranked matches using Gears of War's Hammer of Dawn, curb stomp, Longshot, Torque Bow, and more. While these achievements could be naturally completed by regular players over a few months of multiplayer gameplay, there were also many gamers opting to expedite achievement progress, causing evident issues during matches.

Nevertheless, Fergusson expressed hope that fans observed a growing 'maturity' in Gears' achievements as the series advanced. Subsequent games like Gears of War 2 retained similar achievements but with significantly reduced kill requirements. Fergusson highlighted that such achievements could serve as excellent tools to introduce fans to new mechanics or weapons, but there exists a fine line between this and altering the multiplayer experience significantly. This situation may resonate with fans familiar with Call of Duty's mastery camos, which encountered a similar dilemma.

In each Call of Duty title, a final mastery camo necessitates completing a set of challenges with every weapon in the game. Previous iterations demanded players to fulfill gameplay-altering challenges like achieving specific kills while prone or mounted. However, it appears that Call of Duty has learned a lesson akin to Fergusson's, as Modern Warfare 3's camo objectives revolve around challenges that do not drastically change the average player's style of play.