mtalsi: MMO grind does not add value to PC gaming. If only mundane tasks where the BG era!
dtgreene: Actually, this sort of thing is appropriate if the game is meant to focus on that. In particular, that's the main reason I occasionally like to replay Dragon Warrior 1 on the NES (not the remake, as that drastically increased XP and GP rewards).
It's only when content is gated behind such "grind" that it becomes a problem.
Keep in mind that games like Cookie Clicker (in which the whole point of the game is to increase a number to the point where you get less familiar number names like "octilion" (= 10^27)) exist and can be quite fun.
foxworks: A lot of good points raised. As an adventure gamer I've found the "needless" back and fourth or backtracking to locations to get this item for that object. Just having played Monkey Island 2 SE, it was a grindfest having to travel the three islands to get items you needed to complete quests. The devs even commented it was their design to increase the game's length. I didn't mind it so much back in '91 but today, it was overkill.
dtgreene: Would you rather have a game that would not let you backtrack at all, causing you to be permanently stuck if you miss that item? (Some games actually did this.)
Incidentally, this sort of mandatory backtracking can make speedrun routing more interesting, as your goal is then to find a route through the game that minimizes the amount of backtracking required.
Oh yes, I've played a bit of those get-stuck-you-better-have-saved-earlier games. If I had to pick between the two, sure, I'd take backtracking. Though, I'm pretty sure speed running would be challenging since you're required to backtrack and things can't get picked up unless a speech dialogue tree is available so doing things "out of order" is near impossible. Feels like a lazy way to lengthen a game.
