I don't get why someone would be unable to ignore something they don't like. Well, then what's keeping you from "beating the game 100%, but just the game"?

As you stated yourself: the achievements you loath so much are "slapped onto the client"...they have nothing to do with the game itself.
So - just "beat the game 100%" and ignore the "slapped on" achievements.
"Problem" solved. I'm in my 50s, btw.
Though not sure, what age has to do with this.

Of course they have to do with the game. It's the game that sends the achievement to the client.
The client API the game uses to do this can very by platform (PSN, XBOX-Live, Steam, GOG, etc) but it's totally part of the game code.

Did you skip the quotes, I replied to, deliberately?

I don't think so. You said the achievements have nothing to do with the game itself. That's incorrect.

Far as i see, achievements are 'you did a thing! have a sticker', and don't affect gameplay or story...

I do suppose you could have a game where you get in-game metals and achievements, and they actually may interact with like maybe affecting negotiations in a CEO boardroom sim game or something. Or Metal Gear Solid where the Psycho character reads your memory card and starts telling you about the games you played. But outside that, no achievements don't have anything to do with the game itself.

There are stupid achievements that only track progress and clever ones that pose additional challenges.

- "Complete Chapter 1" -- duh...
- "Play 100 hours" -- why???

Quake 1 has lots of stupid achievements, but also two real challenges that I enjoyed pursuing (and finally completing).

- "Complete E1M1: The Slipgate Complex on Nightmare without firing a shot."
- "Complete E4M6: The Pain Maze on Nightmare without taking damage."

Suddenly a straightforward shooter becomes more like a puzzle or a skill test. For me, that's clearly some bonus gameplay. Oh, and I should also mention that Q1 tracks achievements internally. No need for clients, APIs, or anything.

Mhmm, if you want achievements, do something that really matters. In chess it would be like doing 10 tests or games where you get certified to have a score of 1200 or higher. Or ??? achievements that don't say what they are, and then you find the notebook proving the guy that hired you in the game is secretly plotting the destruction of a diner for financial gain and you thwarted it... and it was never a quest that was hinted at.

Achievements shouldn't be handed out like candy because 'oh you finished the tutorial! only 30% of people get this far!', nor should it be nearly impossible 'beat the final boss without armor, using your fists only, take no damage and do in under 3 minutes!!!'. Yeah...

Actually for MM2 i was just replaying, being able to do the hard level sections without the supplied workaround abilities (Quickman's laser pit fall, or Heat man's bridge jumping one) would be actual achievements to do for pure skill.

Or as the examples for challenges, taking an approach that changes the gameplay loop entirely just for shits and giggles.

Incremental games do this all the time. For example, in Cookie Clicker, there's a series of upgrades that increase cookie production based on the number of achievements you've earned, and those upgrades become quite powerful, to the point where it's usually worth waiting extra to get those upgrades before getting other upgrades whose cost is around the same order of magnitude. Other incremental games do this kind of thing as well.

I was not talking about gameplay, I was talking about weather they were coded into the game code.

But since you bring it up, achievements do affect gameplay because they often have you pursuing different goals than you otherwise would. All goals in a video game are arbitrary and it's subjective if one is really better than another.

Darkest timeline would be game streaming services actually taking off. Hope that it never happens. It would be far worse than music and video.

They can affect how you play, not it. Some people have to 100% everything, so instead of being done with a game they go back and try to do all the things they 'missed' according to the achievements list. This can greatly increase the amount of time you're on the game, depending on the complexity of the task.

Ultimately though you'll fall back to what works and your preferred play style.
Or self-destructing rental DVD's.

Again, please don't post unmarked links to video sites, particularly those that autoplay video.

It's frustrating when I see a link that looks interesting, only to hover over it and see that it actually leads to a site that's known for auto-playing video and being lacking in text content.

There are no rules to linking to Youtube videos, I really don't see what the problem is.

If you can't view links without having such viewing restrictions, I'd suggest not clicking on any.

It is still rather obnoxious to encounter such links.

Also, there's such a thing as *accidentally* clicking (or otherwise following) links.

And that's not important? The player and their experience is ultimately all that matters. Not the inanimate game.
And again. The achievements are PART OF THE GAME. They are hard coded in.

I'm not really sure what idea you are trying to get across. That you don't value them? If so, OK. Others do. That doesn't make you right and them wrong.

Crafting is in a bunch of games too and I don't value that. I completely skip it. It doesn't mean it should not be there though.