Once upon a time, I was the kind of guy who would reach the end of a game and then drop it. However, over time, I’ve been slowly building respect for the idea of achievement-hunting, and now I can’t help but eye up how easy it would be to get every achievement in every game I play. Here’s why…
1 Getting Every Achievement Gives the Indisputable Feeling of “Beating” a Game
When I complete a game and drop it right afterward, I feel that I haven’t quite “beaten” the game. There was always content I hadn’t explored, or a challenge I gave up on, but I just shrugged and moved on to the next game. I never really felt I had mastered a game inside and out.
Going the extra mile to get every achievement changes that. Once you’ve scoured the game and squeezed out every drop of content you can, it does leave a far stronger feeling of having mastered the game. This goes double if some of the achievements involve playing on a harder difficulty, which demands you get better at the game if you want to get that elusive “perfect game” status.
However, be realistic about your skill level when setting out to 100% a game. Escape the Backrooms will forever sit in my Steam library with one locked achievement because it demands that you play the entire game in Nightmare mode with three other friends. If anyone dies in Nightmare mode, everyone is sent back to the start, and completing the game takes a good 2 to 3 hours even if you know what you’re doing. My friends and I all collectively agreed that we’d never go for it for the sake of our sanity.
Also, if you’re feeling stuck on how to get an achievement, there are plenty of achievement hunter communities that can help you. I do recommend using them to make the journey a lot less stressful.
2 Achievement Hunting Helps You Explore Every Nook and Cranny of the Game
At first, being told to find every hidden doodad scattered around the world for an achievement sounds like a chore. But honestly, it’s kind of fun if you treat it like one giant Easter egg hunt.
I found it a lot of fun to go through the game for the sake of the story, and then loop back around to get every collectible. It felt like a victory tour, squeezing out every little drop from each level before moving on to the next one. Doing so lets you find every secret section, hidden chest, and sneaky trick the developers used to hide those precious valuables from you.
3 Getting Achievements Makes for a Good Post-Game Project
When Kingdom Hearts made its debut on Steam, I played through each game without achievement hunting so I could experience the story. Once they were all done, I went back through the catalog to get every achievement in each game.
I noticed that this achievement-hunting actually made for a really fun post-game project. When I sat down to play some games, I’d break down everything I had to do and figure out which one I wanted to tackle on that given day. Did I want to work on collecting every Dream Eater in Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance, or go hunting for lucky emblems in Kingdom Hearts 3? These little projects always ensured I had something to play when I wanted to unwind.
4 Some Achievements Add Replay Value to Completed Games
Speaking of Kingdom Hearts 3, there’s an achievement for beating the game’s bosses using “Pro Codes”. These are debuffs that you can activate such as putting your defense to level one or removing your ability to heal. The more you activate, the more Pro Code points you score when you beat a boss under tougher conditions. Score enough points for an A rank and you get a shiny achievement.
Achievements based around beating the game on a harder difficulty or under certain conditions can help add a ton of replay value to a game. When done well, they can help you ‘re-discover’ bosses as you try to beat them under restriction.
5 The Satisfaction of Getting a Rare Achievement Feels Great
What’s better than getting an achievement? Getting a rare one. Seeing that you went where very little of the player base explored and achieved something that most gave up on is extremely liberating.
Granted, the reason why the achievement is rare is because few people are crazy enough to find every single treasure chest hidden throughout the entire game, but it still feels good to get them.
6 Some Platforms Let You Show Off Your Rare Achievements and “Perfect” Games
Finally, there’s the bragging rights. PlayStation achievements have the Platinum trophy, and Steam has a section titled “Perfect Games” where you can display all the games you scored every achievement in on your profile. What better way to show off that you thoroughly mastered a game than having that digital acclaim you can laud over people? Sure, Steam achievements don’t really mean anything, but scoring every single one and showing it off on your profile is a joy in itself.
If you shun achievements as just another flashy gimmick, try getting every achievement in a game you love. When I did it, it made me realize just how fun achievement hunting is, even if they’re just little inconsequential bonuses to add to your profile. Regardless of whether you do it for the fun of the game or to laud it over your friends, getting every achievement can be very satisfying.
