Meta is just the way the world is. There is usually a set way of doing things that is agreed upon as the best, and until someone proves otherwise - or the variables change (updates) - that is just the way it is.
I've actually always enjoyed playing "just" outside the meta, with viable strategies and characters that are not necessarily "the best".
Realistically the meta doesn't actually affect most of the people that complain about it all that much - it usually only applies at higher levels of play.
I'm more bothered by the absolutely incorrect use of the word "meta"I was considering making the "meta refers to the game outside the game" -rant, but I think everyone understands what is meant in the OP and why it's used.
I meant this topic more like "does caring about the meta diminish your ability to actually enjoy the game".Answer's more or less still the same. For the most part I'll usually enjoy a game the more in-depth I get into it. Can't think of a time where that wasn't true. I won't get far into something and suddenly dislike how people are playing it. That should be evident as soon as I start getting into it.
I.e. does putting your time into the meta cause you to no longer see the forest through the trees when it comes to seeing the game as a complete package and embracing it as a total experience?
I was considering making the "meta refers to the game outside the game" -rant, but I think everyone understands what is meant in the OP and why it's used.
That said, if the actual meta is boring in a card game, autobattler, deck builder, or Pokemon - it's going to impact your enjoyment whether you care about it or not. OTOH, certain dominant strategies, like camping with a sniper in a FPS, can be rough, too. In fighting games, I generally just play whatever I like and hope the game itself is fun.
I wouldnt say ruin, but it definitely makes PvP repetitive.This is basically how I fell out of fighting games. People who challenged me simply wouldn't pick anyone other than guys like Ryu/Ken/Akuma or Kyo/Iori or whatever regardless of which character I was using. Like I would feel better about losing to someone showboating using Orochi Yashiro than the above (and the guy was truly showboating) than some guy playing Iori that starts every offensive with a Jump Strong Kick regardless of how many times I countered it.
I think it's more annoying when people get mad at you for not following secret rules and complain about "meta".
Only when the meta is so effective that you almost have to use it to be competitive.
I'm of the belief that unless you're playing at the absolute top skill level, you shouldn't even be concerned about what is or isn't meta.Oh boy do I love that in fighters, as someone who usually ends up loving the low tier gimmick characters in them. Nobody from low to the beginning of high ranks ever knows how to deal with them because they're "bad," then you get hatemail for your "busted ass OP character."
It's always funny when someone in, say, a fighting game is in the mid-ranks and they're concerned about character tier lists. Buddy, at your skill rank, the tier list really doesn't matter.
Ehhh, case by case. In some games it's irrelevant, in other games it's fun, in other games it ruins the experience. No real generalised answer