AVOID HEAVY GRIND TROPHIES

There is not much to be said for these Trophies, they are merely an artificial way to pad out the playtime of a game. Many wonderful games have poorly implemented Trophy systems with grind-centric accolades being featured prominently in them.

It is likely that developers are not certain how to implement Trophy lists that are fun and engaging to players. They are just an afterthought to the main game or merely included due to them being required by Sony and Microsoft.

This is a shame as a well-designed Trophy list can expand the value of the main game. Not by getting players to repeat/grind repetitive tasks (which is detrimental in effect) but by getting players to experience something in the game they otherwise wouldn't have. Something fun, random, rewarding or puzzling.

Grind-heavy Trophies are not only those that have an arbitrary value such as killing a high number of enemies or reaching a high level. They can also include games with unreasonable skill requirements requiring excessive grinding to master proficiently. Trophies that require beating the game on the highest difficulty or beating the game a second time on New Game+ also fall into this classification.

EXAMPLES TO AVOID

Final Fantasy XIII - Treasure Hunter

Grand Theft Auto V - Above the Law

Batman: Arkham Asylum - Freeflow Gold

Yakuza 0 - Perfectionist

Hollow Knight - Embrace the Void

Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time - OVER-Overachiever