What I want to see at GDC
It's an exciting week for the video game industry. Developers will descend on the Game Developers Conference to discuss product work and their ideas for the future of gaming.
GDC is much different from that other big game conference, E3. Instead of showing off the latest and greatest in hardware and software like they do at E3, developers at GDC are there to discuss the creation of games. Instead of flashy shows like you find at E3, GDC focuses on what really matters: the future of game development.
I thought I'd share my games wish list for developers as they prepare to discuss the future. I love gaming and look forward to immersing myself in yet another world that's nothing like the drab, dangerous, tedious real world we live in. But there are some glaring issues I see with gaming that developers can address immediately.
1. Enough with the first-person shooters. I hate to sound "old school," but I'm done with first-person shooters. They're everywhere. And the worst part is, many are built off the Unreal Engine, so the differences in game play aren't nearly as great as they could be. I realize that first-person shooters are typically cash cows for developers and they're relatively easy to develop once the first version is complete, but they're the most obvious example of derivative game play we have today. The first-person shooter was great when Goldeneye was released, but now it's becoming an annoyance.
2. We need more Wii support. As much as Microsoft and Sony don't like to hear it, Nintendo is the leader in the video game space. But the strange thing is, some third-party developers are ignoring it. That's something that I don't quite understand and hope will be addressed soon. More people own a Wii than any other console in today's market. It's a great place for developers to turn a quick profit, especially since development for the Wii console is much less expensive than development on the PS3 or Xbox 360. But more than anything else, additional Wii development could spur a shift in developer focus. Which brings me to my next point...
3. Give us more innovation. I'm tired of first-person shooters, sports games, derivative adventure titles, and MMORPGs. I need innovation from developers. And that's where the Wii can come in. The Wii encourages developers to experiment with new forms in games. Bring us more titles like Wii Fit, Wii Sports, or even Spore. Those are the experiments that captivate us.
4. Bring back old favorites. As I sit here, considering all the different things I'd like to see from developers, one keeps popping back into my mind: bring back some of my old favorites, like Shenmue, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, and others. No, it's not good enough to have them available on my Wii for download. I want updated versions of the classics, or new entries into stories that have yet to be finished. It makes sense on many levels: the excitement surrounding Punch Out is palpable and a variety of other past favorites that have been remade or found their way back to gaming have been celebrated by millions. We love the classics and would like to see them updated on our new consoles.
5. Please remember: design doesn't matter if the game play is awful. One of my biggest complaints about games today is that there's too much emphasis placed on the design and not enough on the way the game plays out or on its story. What good is a beautiful video game if it's unbearable to play? In some cases (I'm looking at you, Madden), the titles are overabundant in their beauty, but severely lacking in playability. If the Wii or countless titles from years past on consoles that are long gone have taught us anything, it's that game play trumps beauty every time.
That's my wish list. Tell us about yours in the comments below.
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Don Reisinger is a technology columnist who has written about everything from HDTVs to computers to Flowbee Haircut Systems. Don is a member of the CNET Blog Network, and posts at The Digital Home. He is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure.
#1 Publishers will stop making shooters when you stop buying them.
#2 You want more Wii support, start buying more 3rd party Wii titles. Buying the latest Nintendo title isn't an incentive to 3rd party publishers to support Wii. The Wii tie ratio is poor.
#3 If you want innovation what are you asking "to bring back old favorites"? Either you want new and fresh or old. Either way, it seems like you want more Mario and Zelda, which are first party titles, and now we are back to #2.
#4 See above.
#5 Point taken.
Keep in mind, that this is a business. Publishers react to trends, try to meet expectations, and try to maximize each investment dollar. With royalties, cost of goods, and 1st party protectionism to contend with, it's not an easy business.
For point 2 however, I strongly disagree. The arguments you state in favor of the Wii (cheap and easy development, nearly everybody having one) are the cause of the ****loads of crapware that this otherwise good system is flooded with. The way I see it, the general quality of games is going down, and I blame it partially on those third-party developers that make quick bad games for the Wii that non-gamers rush to (and end up either not playing or disappointed). Don't get me wrong, I have a Wii and love it, but guess what ? Only for those Nintendo branded games which are undeniably good (let me check... yes, all of them). Aside for those (Zelda, Mario, Super Smash, Metroid...) and a handful of third-party games on there (No More Heroes and the like), Wii games suck for the huge majority of them.
Therefore, I strongly believe it wouldn't hurt to have LESS Wii support. Gaming for casual gamers ? Yes, but that doesn't mean the games have to be bad. And there ARE good ones (rabid rabbits, at least the first ones...) And guess what ? That's where we are today, a large majority of casual games are just plain bad. Some people buy them either for a name (a TV show, a celebrity...) or because they don't know/care what they're getting their hands on, and end up disappointed (or not caring much because they don't play mich anyway).
Nintendo, instead of caring only about your profits (granted, that's pretty legit...), please have a little more control over what games are running on your console, I'd much rather have less than 20 new crap games a month with 1 good game every 6 months than 5 new games a month with 1 good game every 2 or 3 months.
I'd much rather have less than 20 new crap games a month with 1 good game every 6 months. Instead, something like 5 new games a month with 1 good game every 2 or 3 months, that's better IMO.
Sorry about that.
#2 Wii support.. agreed. I believe we will see more Wii support as 3rd party developers see that over 50% of the console market is the Wii. They have ignored it (or produced shovelware) and their bottom line is hurting because of it.
#3 see #1...
#4 Wii does the 'classics' better than most other platforms... They are constantly adding new titles.
#5 I would go even further. Fancy graphics != fun gameplay. This is the major problem with most games designed today. I believe it was Peter Molyneux or perhaps it was Sid Meier that said he designed his games using simple block graphics... If the concept wasn't fun at this level, no amount of fancy graphics would make it fun and he scrapped the idea. Today developers make the fancy bleeding edge graphics engine first and then 'adapt' a game to it...
the good ones are hard to sort out from the bad though
I want hl3! I'm tired of hl2 sequels
1. Problem is too many people just buy up every new shooter that comes out or ever CoD release and Tom Clancy game, until people stop buying them they won't stop making them.
2. Sorry, there may be more Wii's out there than anything else but gamers aren't scooping up Wii titles for a pretty big reason; the motion controls are terrible for any game not made by Nintendo. Even those I tend to give up and pull out my Wavebird and go back to what I know best, old school gamers that I know just aren't into the motion controls. They are the ones who buy and spend the most money, too many Wii games are just rehashes and the motion controls don't allow for the tight and precise game play we have come to expect over the years. I am nearly done with my Wii, it just isn't very fun anymore unless I have a party of people over to play Smash Bros or Mario Kart. Top it off with every night I have many friend's on Xbox LIVE wanting to play something online, and the Wii is a joke for online play.
3. Couldn't agree more, Bioshock was the first game in a long time that I thought showed some real innovation and I was totally hooked the entire way through. I'm tired of the same old same old.
4. Meh, they charge to much for these. Playing Doom on my Xbox is fun the first time, then you realize you could be playing better games.
5. Another point totally agree with, can't tell you how many games I try out only to find the game play or controls are horrid and I am done in 10 minutes. It seriously kills me every time I get a game and there are no legacy controls for the dual analog sticks and there are only one or 2 control scemes.
The whole FPS thing is definately getting old, very old these days. Its all one see's when walking into their favorite game store. I love games that play well just like anybody but lets not forget graphics are important too. Playing a game that is as life like as possible and looks real is much better than the cartoon looking stuff in my opinion.
Lastly whatever happened to air combat games? All the war games are ground based for the most part and that is getting old as well. Warhawk on the PS3 at least provides ground and air combat and I am very exited to play Tom Clancys HAWKS. What I really miss are good, factual WWII or even WWI dogfight games that re-create real battles that took place in the skies. Anyone ever play Janes WWII fighters, a PC game from 1998? Still the best campaign dogfighting game every made.....its so time for an update with cutting edge graphics and all the bells and whistles.
Cmon who doesnt like shooting down airplanes, its a lot more manly and takes a lot more skill than blowing someones head off with a shotgun.
- by brokensummer March 26, 2009 4:12 PM PDT
- I really like to see my real-life "fantasies" played out in games, like cooking, word play, shooting down enemy pilots from my howitzer, filling an alien/mutant/zombie/buddy with lead and waiting for the next spawn, taking a sign post and shoving it in my neighbor's head, trying to save the princess all the while getting lesions on my hands, etc...
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(14 Comments)Personally, I think the new ideas people are seeking after will primarily happen if we have teens and adolescents pitching ideas.