Discussion Forums > Gaming
Do They Really Not Make Them Like They Used To?
Ashall:
Hmm it seems like we all want them to reinvent the wheel or completely regurgitate the classics. It's the same for books and movies now as well. (I don't know about television since I don't watch it). It's hard to make something new. And even harder to get people to like what is new. An example would be Okami, if any of you played it, you also probably know it was a commercial disaster when it was first released despite being an amazing game.
Nikkoru:
--- Quote from: AceHigh on June 12, 2012, 06:36:45 PM ---Nikkoru, did you just happen to see this video (fast forward to 1:40 and start watching from there) before making that comment? Because it reinforces your point.
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I've heard the same criticisms elsewhere about E3 - particularly about the gore fixation. Mostly I keep seeing hyperbolic squeeing for sequels of all sorts, the same ones which riddle the shelf of my local EB games. I want to see more titles which can not be clearly defined in any genera, like Metroid or Zelda.
--- Quote from: nstgc on June 12, 2012, 06:45:39 PM ---I don't really care about shooters too much, but the change I'm seeing in the RPG market is not to my liking. I want my old RPGs back.
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This in particular is where the dumbing down the game market is evident. I'm sick of having my hand held and getting my game split into a thousand bite sized portions -- if Dragon's Age II, Kingdoms of Amalur and Final Fantasy XIII is any indication of what's coming, then it's terribly depressing. This is symptomatic of all games, a certain amount of ADHD is assumed, where everything is brief and simple.
You can play most modern RPGs while being functionally illiterate, incapable of non-linear problem solving, and with no math skills... but lots of button clicking.
AceHigh:
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Saras:
--- Quote from: vicious796 on June 12, 2012, 05:12:01 PM ---I like how the subject of how big studios have become and the size of budgets has been brought up. It's all part of the "normal" business cycle - a company starts small, gets big, and dies. Why? It lost touch with its initial focus (quality products, for example) and started looking at the bottom line.
I also like the recognition of companies considering - most of off - "what if it doesn't sell?" I don't feel as though that was the big concern in the 90s and, truth be told, the budgets could be a reason for that. In 1993, Doom cost some $200k to produce and was among the most expensive games of all time back then. SW:ToR is the most expensive game of all time and it was some $130m.
But that's part of my point on why I feel the way I feel. Square-Enix has a massive budget with departments of talented individuals working on segments of games. You know what? VI kicked 13s ass. With all that money and all that talent, you mean to tell me you can't make a better game? You have professional voice actors giving your characters actual emotion - why is your script so much worse?
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Necessity is the mother of innovation. If you need x and you don't have shit, you'll have to figure out a few things.
The more of a budget you have, generally the less focused it is. You get people wanting to add that, and that, and that, why shouldn't you? You've got the cash for it. But because of that, they end up being loosely tied together with no real purpose behind it. The areas become a drag because some artist felt like Michelangelo and wanted to make his own Sixteenth chapel. The narrative becomes convoluted because the writer wanted to do War and Piece, not a direct story of "Get sword" > "Kill that" > "Princess - saved". CG scenes become numerous, long and pointless, because the director felt like making a movie... et cetera.
A good positive example here is portal. Portal started out as a side project by a fairly small team. They didn't have the manpower or the capability to add too many bells and whistles. To finish the game, they had to focus their abilities to create one complete experience, they had to figure out how to do x and just x, because they couldn't have afforded anything else. This leads to a very focused, refined experience and narrative, because they simply couldn't have afforded to do anything else.
nstgc:
--- Quote from: Ashall on June 12, 2012, 07:26:46 PM ---Hmm it seems like we all want them to reinvent the wheel or completely regurgitate the classics. It's the same for books and movies now as well. (I don't know about television since I don't watch it). It's hard to make something new. And even harder to get people to like what is new. An example would be Okami, if any of you played it, you also probably know it was a commercial disaster when it was first released despite being an amazing game.
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Its not that I want them to simply throw out the same games that they were "back-in-the-day", its just that that is the only way I can foresee any decent RPGs being made. Solving the key problems would be enough (games lack spirit, insult my intelligence, and and aren't as rewarding), but even then, I'm not a fan of these new breeds of action RPGs. The hack and slash seen in NWN is fine, so long as the battle remains tactics oriented, as opposed to beating shit up. I want new games, but I also realize that with this new generation of gamers, that won't happen in the RPG market. That's why I just want them to remake old games.
[edit] I just glanced through Steam and it doesn't look like any major companies have actually even made a real RPG in at least 2 years.
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