Anthony enjoys deep diving into strategies and explaining them to people whilst they blankly stare back, and is also a big fan of cosplay and creating assets for Cons and events in his spare time.
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Although some older titles toyed with the idea, most would agree that Achievements became popular during the Xbox 360 era. If you want to feel like a relic of the past, that was back in 2005! Since then, Achievements have become a mainstay in gaming, with several companies adding their own spin to the famous formula.
Achievements have seen a lot of growth over the years, with the rarest reserved for the most hardcore and dedicated players around. If that sounds like you, it’s only natural that you want to show them off!
In this article, I’m going to suggest some fun, creative and the best ways to flaunt your gaming achievements. Naturally, some of these will be more appealing depending on what end result you’re after, but there’s something for everyone here. If you’ve earned some incredibly rare Achievements, let me explain how to show off with the best of them!
Bottom Line Up Front
Nowadays, it’s easier than ever to record or screenshot your finest gaming Achievements and share them with the world. Social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter make connecting to like-minded people easier than it’s ever been. With the tiniest bit of effort, you can transform your hard-earned achievements into something everyone can enjoy. If you’re serious about Achievement hunting, you’re in good company, and there are plenty of websites dedicated to earning the rarest Achievements out there, even if it takes a community push to do so.
What Is a Gaming Achievement?
Because the word ‘Achievement’ is ambiguous, I want to ensure we’re on the same page. For the purpose of this article, an Achievement is an award that is recorded outside of the game itself. On Xbox platforms, these are called Achievements and are tied to your Gamer Score.
Playstation users have access to Trophies. These function similarly to Xbox Achievements and are ranked based on their rarity; Bronze, Silver and Gold. You can earn a coveted Platinum Trophy for most games, but this is only given once you’ve got every other Trophy in your possession.
PC gamers are spoiled for choice. First, Steam has a robust Achievements system, with the most significant difference being that they aren’t tied to an overall account score. In a very roundabout way, Steam Achievements can affect your ‘Steam Level’, but they aren’t directly linked.
The Epic Games Store also has its own Achievement system, functioning like a hybrid mix of all the above. This may be a hot take, but in my opinion, the Epic store has the best Achievement system out of all of them. The big downside is that Epic Achievements are new, so you’ll start from scratch.
Unfortunately, no Achievement system exists for Nintendo consoles, but don’t worry! If you know what the Achievements are on other platforms, you can have a crack at them all the same!
Let The Flaunting Commence!
There are countless ways to share and show off your finest gaming Achievements both online and off. What’s best depends entirely on what end result you’re after. Do you want to gain a following? Do you enjoy sharing strategies with other Achievement hunters? Is this a bit of fun or something you want to take seriously?
With questions like this in mind, these suggestions are in no particular order and range from simple things you may already do to tasks that will take a little thought and planning.
Cosmetics and Titles
Plenty of modern games have fully embraced cosmetic rewards, with many being tied to Achievements. If you ask me, sometimes the best way to show off is without saying a word and to let your outfit (or title) do the talking.
Naturally, you can’t do this for every game, but in the ones you can, you can boast to your heart’s content without doing anything! For example, to an outsider, my ship on Sea of Thieves looks like a boat with an odd-shaped sail. If you’re a pirate yourself, though, you know that these sails mean that I’m a Pirate Legend, and I’ve spent so many hours on the seas that I can afford the most expensive sails in the game.
Don’t get me wrong, sometimes cosmetics draw the wrong kind of attention, and you may get the odd insult slung your way, but hey, it’s a small price to pay to flex your gaming muscle.
Regardless of what you think of the platform, Twitter is a superb place to show off your Achievements and do so with like-minded people. The biggest issue is that you’ll need to find those people first.
Fortunately, it’s easy! Simply typing in #achievementhunter, for example, yields thousands of results, and you’ll find loads of people invested in Achievement and Trophy hunting.
If you’re like me and are a little wary about social media, you should be fine as long as you remember why you’re there and only interact with stuff you’re interested in. Who knows, you might make a few friends/rivals there too!
Twitter’s short-form content is great, but it does have limitations. If you’ve got a story that goes along with those hard-earned Achievements, then Reddit is the far superior platform.
Reddit has no limit on post length (technically, it’s 40,000 characters, but that’s A LOT), and you can post pictures too. It’s much easier to find people interested in Achievements here, as anyone in an Achievement-based subreddit will already be invested in the subject.
This would be my platform of choice for talking about Gaming Achievements. The lack of a post limit means you can explain or spin a story without worrying that your words will be twisted. You can have great conversations with other Achievement enthusiasts and share your most remarkable gaming feats.
Achievements aren’t strictly limited to these subreddits, but some of the most active that you can browse right now are:
If those don’t tickle your fancy, many games have a dedicated subreddit full of fans that love to read stories which could be worth a look.
If you’re not into video editing or storytelling and prefer your Achievements do all the heavy lifting, then Instagram could be perfect for you.
Instagram is a picture board and a great place to flaunt your Achievements without saying a word.
You won’t be alone either, as plenty of accounts are already dedicated to doing just that. The best thing is that compared to many other platforms, Instagram requires minimal effort on your part. Upload your pictures, engage with other posters, and you’re good to go.
Just ensure you’re uploading screenshots, not blurry photos of your screen because you WILL get blasted for that.
Instagram offers a handy picture editor and even the functionality to upload short videos. Instagram videos get a decent amount of attention with the right hashtags, but If you’re drawn to video creation more specifically, then you may find Tiktok or YouTube more appealing.
YouTube Shorts/Tiktok
We live in an age where snappy content that’s easy to digest is king. We’re all guilty of it; why would I watch a 10min video when this 45second one gets me what I want that much faster?
Unless you’re making full-blown guides, this format lends itself nicely to flaunting Achievements. If you can find a way to say everything you want in a tidy package, you can see rapid growth and quickly make a name for yourself. As these platforms offer similar things, you could use both and see what works!
With short videos, you need to make an impact fast; it will take some trial and error to find your own style. Out of every suggestion in this article, this will take the most work, as editing a fun video is tough!
PlayTracker
If you’re looking for somewhere that combines all of your gaming Achievements into one neat package, PlayTracker is a dream come true.
Honestly, I could write an entire article about all the incredible things this website does. The part you’re probably interested in the most is its unique ability to bring your Achievements from multiple platforms together under a single umbrella.
These Achievements are displayed in a wonderfully slick layout (pictured above) and serve as a portfolio of every gaming feat you’ve accomplished over the years. If that wasn’t enough, the more games you conquer, the more customization options you get for your profile.
Although not strictly related to Achievements, my favourite thing about PlayTracker is it collects data from many online titles like Overwatch and Guildwars 2. Data from these games are seamlessly displayed alongside your Trophies and Achievements. If you’re looking to archive your progress, this website is among the best places to do it.
If you’re interested, you can view a sample profile here.
AStats
If you’re serious about your gaming Achievements on Steam specifically, you’ll find a lot to love on AStats.
AStats compiles all of your Steam Achievements into its own proprietary scoring system, which you can use casually, or to compete with other users. I only frequent the website on occasion, but one thing I see mentioned time and again is how dedicated the moderators are. Sadly, in any competitive environment, there will be cheaters, but the moderators for AStats go out of their way to quash this when they can.
On top of that, there’s an active forum where you can share strategies. There are many impressive community-made guides for those exceptionally tough Achievements too. For as hardcore as AStats looks, there’s a beautiful community ‘feel‘ to the site. Everyone is on the same page, and the competition is serious but friendly.
Completionist.me
If you like to hop between games as much as I do, you know how many unearned Achievements you leave in your wake!
If you use Steam, Completionist.me offers a concise way to track these forgotten Achievements whilst letting you compete with others for the highest scores.
When games get updated on Steam, Achievements can become bugged or simply unattainable. As Completionist pulls data directly from the Steam API, it’s better at tracking your Steam Achievements than Steam is!
My favourite feature of this website is its Retro section. I LOVE Retro games, and Completionist has a space where they’ve added Achievements to games that never had them before. Whether you enjoy competition or want an archive for your gaming feats, this is a fantastic site to do both.
MetaGamerScore
This website may have a more old-school / legacy layout, but if you’re obsessed with gaming Achievements, it’s hard not to appreciate what’s on offer here.
MetaGamerScore aims to combine as many Achievement platforms as possible. You’ll find everything from Playstation Trophies to Final Fantasy XIV Achievements, all under the same score system. You can even add data from Chess.com!
There are features for competition either as a solo player or as part of a crew. There’s even a section to help you find Achievements you can complete with your friends as a team. Whether you want to flaunt your solo skills or your group’s proficiency at Achievement hunting, you’ll be in good company here.
Exophase
I’ve covered several websites that attempt to bring your cross-platform Achievements under one roof.
Exophase is another fantastic website that does this. Like Completionist.me, it offers Retro Achievements on top of an impressive multi-platform selection. All the networking options, including leaderboards are here, but where Exophase really stands out is with its Gamercard creator.
This remarkable tool condenses your best gaming Achievements into a smart card that you can use anywhere you like! You can choose from several styles and even opt to have the card animated to make it more eye-catching.
This is perfect if you’re not interested in competition or networking and just want to show off!
Game-Specific Achievement Sites
If you’re not a console gamer and don’t use Steam much, don’t fret! Many popular games have their own independent Achievement websites. Most of these are community-driven and offer many fantastic features you can find on the websites I’ve already covered.
You’ll be able to flaunt your best Achievements on these platforms and offer a helping hand to those trying to keep up. Many of these websites are built to accompany MMOs and offer an encyclopedia’s worth of knowledge at your fingertips.
I play Final Fantasy XIV, and Lalachievements.com (pictured above) is a perfect example of this type of website done right. Here, you can boast about your Achievements on the leaderboards and learn how to earn the ones you still need.
Discord
Discord servers are great because they are usually the best place to have discussions in a closely-knit community. The huge downside is there isn’t exactly an index of Discord servers you can browse. You either know them and have access, or you don’t.
Still, if you frequent any of the platforms above, you may be invited to the odd Discord server. These are great places full of people that share a common interest. Moderation is also stricter than generic social media platforms (usually), which can be a positive.
TrueTrophies
If you have a Playstation account and want to throw your hat in the ring with the most competitive players, this site is for you.
TrueTrophies uses a bespoke scoring system to give every Trophy you’ve ever earned a value. The more Trophies you get, the higher up the Leaderboards you’ll go.
There’s a busy forum you can use to chat with other competitive Trophy hunters and share strategies. Alternatively, you can show off your rarest Trophies to people that will truly appreciate their value.
Some older games have Trophies that are almost impossible to get nowadays, thanks to dwindling player numbers. Users on TrueTrophies are so dedicated they’ll even arrange sessions where groups will log on and help each other obtain these rare Trophies. It’s incredibly wholesome, and by the end of the session, you’ll have Achievements really worth boasting about!
TrueAchievements/TrueSteamAchievements
Sporting an almost identical layout to TrueTrophies, these websites function much the same and are popular hubs for platform-specific Achievement hunting.
I’ve not used these websites much myself, but they function much the same as TrueTrophies. The sites offer brutally competitive leaderboards and thriving forums where users can discuss how to complete the toughest Achievements. If you play most of your games on Xbox or Steam, either of these websites are worth a look.
Steam Hunters
Steam Hunters may seem a little daunting at first glance, as this website crams a lot of information into every page. On top of that, It can access data from Completionist.me, AStats and Exophase. Basically, there’s a lot that goes on here!
For PC users, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a more comprehensive website for Achievements, and naturally, there are competitive leaderboards. I prefer some of the other sites I’ve already covered for flaunting Achievements, as leaderboards on this site are relegated to a sub-menu.
Still, SteamHunters offers a ton of helpful information, like average completion times and how many Achievements are on offer for each game. You can also access the SteamHunter Discord from the website.
Etsy
To close this list off, let’s end with a fun one! If you or anyone you know are Achievement fanatics, why not bring something into the real world to show off?
Got a friend that won’t stop bragging that they got the Platinum Trophy for Streets of Rage 4? Why not get them something custom-made, so they know you’ve not forgotten since they last told you?
As competitive as I am when it comes to video games, I would draw the line at a physical trophy, but there are some fantastic gifts you can buy off Etsy. Nothing beats a personal touch, and you’ll be supporting a small business whilst you’re doing it.
Useful Resources
Aside from Discord, which relies on invite-only servers, you can find a link to several websites mentioned above in this section.
Frequently Asked Questions
Question: Why do you think Reddit is the best place to flaunt your Achievements?
Answer: When I read about Achievements, I’m more interested in how they were earned over just knowing that you have them.
The most brutal Achievements will always have a fantastic story to go with them, and that’s what I enjoy the most. Reddit offers the best platform for content like this, and subreddits tend to keep to their chosen topics far better than other social media platforms.
Question: When I search for gaming achievements, I find many negative articles about them. Why is that?
Answer: Some players feel that hunting for achievements ‘kills’ the game or forces them to play in a way they don’t like. In my opinion, the most important thing about gaming is that you’re enjoying yourself.
Achievements offer a fun way to track your progress and introduce you to challenges you’d never consider otherwise (like dragging a garden gnome all the way through Half Life 2!). Play to enjoy the game first and foremost, but if you’re hungry for more, Achievements are the perfect way to get it!
Question: I really don’t want to use Twitter, but I like the idea of sharing my achievements in a micro-blogging format. Is there an alternative?
Answer: Mastodon.social may be worth looking into if you like the micro-blogging style. It’s a comparatively small platform, but that’s okay, and there are always advantages to getting your foot in the door early!
Question: Is PlayTracker safe?
Answer: Nothing is 100% safe online, but PlayTracker only uses publicly available data that anyone can pull up already. Achievements and Trophies tied to your Xbox and Playstation accounts are visible online with a quick search. As you’re not supplying any additional information, the website is safe.