Gonna get flack, but Insomniac isn't one of the greater development houses

i think the games are good, but not great. i agree. Ratched was a mediocre shooter adventure game (far from a platform game) that looked great. Resistance a good run and gun shooter, but felt last gen...

Still, i hope resistance 2 will be a real step up.. and not just in textures....

yep, fully agree

[QUOTE="jg4xchamp"]Agreed

Bungie Had Myth Series and Marathon. Then The big Halo Trilogy. With Halo COmbat Evolved and Halo 2 being the king of console shooters last gen. Halo 3 is still arguably 2nd best based on popularity so far.

Valve had Half Life

Nintendo has Zelda and Mario

Rockstar has Grand Theft Auto

Konami with Metal Gear Solid

Capcom with Resident Evil

Retro Studios had Metroid Prime Trilogy

Insomniac is good, but nothing special. In fact they are quite overrated. Epic as arrogant as they are still had Gears of War and Unreal 1 and Unreal 2k4Not-A-Stalker

The difference between Insomniac and all those that you just named off is that Insomniac is just one small studio. Capcom, Konami, Rockstar and Nintendo are a big collection of different studios. It's really unfair to compare them, unless you want to get into the specific studios of those companies you named.

This is true, Nintendo is a publisher that relies on a network of developers to make its games. Although I think Insomniac is actually a pretty large developer.

but what about ratchet?

hes so cute!

Insomniac is one of greats. I don't know why everyone is slamming insomniac for producing awesome games every year? Would I like my game now or 3 years later I think I would prefer it now. I swear people seem to think the fact that they can produce great games every year is a bad thing??

Also stop comparing Insomniac to other companies like nitendo and blizzard!!! Blizzard and Nitendo are like 20 times bigger than Insomniac!!

Bungie I respect there a great gaming company but can they make quality games besides Halo with three verisons of Halo3 out there all ready??

Insomniac is one of greats. I don't know why everyone is slamming insomniac for producing awesome games every year? Would I like my game now or 3 years later I think I would prefer it now. I swear people seem to think the fact that they can produce great games every year is a bad thing??

Also stop comparing Insomniac to other companies like nitendo and blizzard!!! Blizzard and Nitendo are like 20 times bigger than Insomniac!!

Bungie I respect there a great gaming company but can they make quality games besides Halo with three verisons of Halo3 out there all ready??

williamjuly2004

Well, the way I see it is that their quality is about EPIC games pre-Gear. I mean, the Ratchet and Clank series is comparable to the Unreal series in quality, isn't it?

Epic Game's Unreal Series:

1. Unreal Tournament 2004 PC - 92.9%
2. Unreal Tournament 3 PS3 - 86.1%
3. Unreal Tournament PC - 93.6%
4. Unreal Tournament 2003 PC - 88.2%
5. Unreal Championship XB - 82.8%
6. Unreal Championship 2 - Lilandri Conflict XB - 86.5%
7. Unreal Tournament 3 PC - 83.5%

Average: 87.6571

Insomniac's Ratchet and Clank:

1. Ratchet and Clank PS2 - 89.3%
2. Ratchet and Clank Up Your Arsenal PS2 - 91.5%
3. Ratchet and Clank Going Commando PS2 - 90.6%
4. Ratchet and Clank Deadlocked PS2 - 82.5%
5. Ratchet and Clank Future Tools of Destruction PS3 - 88.497%

Average: 88.4794

And that's not counting their Spyro series:

1. Spyro the Dragon PS - 85.7%
2. Spyro: Ripto's Rage PS - 90.6%
3. Spyro: Year of the Dragon PS - 86.6%

Average: 87.63333..

And then the Resistance series to the Gears series:

1. 86.782% - Resistance: Fall of Man
2. 93.750% - Gears of War

And you got to remember, the original Resistance was a launch title. That would surely affect it's quality, as how many consoles launched with full triple A games all around, as quite often launch titles are rushed. I mean, it's painfully obvious from the way the story was told that it was launched as I'm sure even Insomniac realised that being told a story isn't that great. They've had time to make this sequel so it may in fact stand up to Gears of War 2. Then again, it might not.thrones

Knew this was gonna be taken the wrong way.

For the people saying Insomniac is one of the better developers out there, would you like to elaborate on the developers they stack up with?

Would you have traded the games Ico and SOTC for 4 more Ratchets last gen? How about Okami for 3 more Spyros?

How about GT5 for another Crash Bandicoot? Metal Gear 2 or 3 for 5 more console Castlevanias?

Most people i know would say hell no.

The games above are considered to be the gems of the ps2 library.

Insomniac games are fun stopgaps that pad out a release list.

Nice, but i could do without them, if it means i get the Ico's, and Okamis of the industry.

They're not a Valve, a Bioware, Blizzard or a Bungie.

Truth be told, i'd wager Sony would cut Insomniac lose(end dealings with them completely) if it meant they could get another team of Ueda's quality in their place.

They know their role, and play it well.

They're just not one of the greats, imo.

Knew this was gonna be taken the wrong way.

For the people saying Insomniac is one of the better developers out there, would you like to elaborate on the developers they stack up with?

Would you have traded the games Ico and SOTC for 4 more Ratchets last gen? How about Okami for 3 more Spyros?

How about GT5 for another Crash Bandicoot? Metal Gear 2 or 3 for 5 more console Castlevanias?

Most people i know would say hell no.

The games above are considered to be the gems of the ps2 library.

Insomniac games are fun stopgaps that pad out a release list.

Nice, but i could do without them, if it means i get the Ico's, and Okamis of the industry.

They're not a Valve, a Bioware, Blizzard or a Bungie.

Truth be told, i'd wager Sony would cut Insomniac lose(end dealings with them completely) if it meant they could get another team of Ueda's quality in their place.

They know their role, and play it well.

They're just not one of the greats, imo.

Seraphimon

[QUOTE="Seraphimon"]

Knew this was gonna be taken the wrong way.

For the people saying Insomniac is one of the better developers out there, would you like to elaborate on the developers they stack up with?

Would you have traded the games Ico and SOTC for 4 more Ratchets last gen? How about Okami for 3 more Spyros?

How about GT5 for another Crash Bandicoot? Metal Gear 2 or 3 for 5 more console Castlevanias?

Most people i know would say hell no.

The games above are considered to be the gems of the ps2 library.

Insomniac games are fun stopgaps that pad out a release list.

Nice, but i could do without them, if it means i get the Ico's, and Okamis of the industry.

They're not a Valve, a Bioware, Blizzard or a Bungie.

Truth be told, i'd wager Sony would cut Insomniac lose(end dealings with them completely) if it meant they could get another team of Ueda's quality in their place.

They know their role, and play it well.

They're just not one of the greats, imo.

Tiefster

I never said they weren't a good developer. Or that their games aren't good, enjoyable titles. First post acknowledged this.

What i said, is that as a developer, Insomniac makes good to great titles, but they don't make the gems of a library. That's why i equated them to a Mario baseball type of developer.

The gameplay is solid, undeniably fun, but it's not a crown on a library.

My entire point of this thread, was to call out the people who make them out to be bigger movers and shakers than they actually are in the industry, mainly because it's not fair to the games they make, and it's not fair to the developers themselves.

I don't buy Mario sluggers expecting it to replace an EA produced game as the Baseball king game.

So why should people look at Ratchet as the Mariokiller, or Resistance as the Halo/Gears killer?

Looks like you didn't catch much flak after all. :P

So it's pretty much agreed that Insomniac has been somewhat overrated these past few months?

Competent but not masterful?

So it's pretty much agreed that Insomniac has been somewhat overrated these past few months?

Competent but not masterful?

Seraphimon

While not masters, I'd say they are more than competent.

So it's pretty much agreed that Insomniac has been somewhat overrated these past few months?

Competent but not masterful?

Seraphimon

exactly

their games are forgettable and derivative. No-one will ever claim an Insomnicac game is revolutionary, groundbreaking or an all time classic

[QUOTE="Seraphimon"]

So it's pretty much agreed that Insomniac has been somewhat overrated these past few months?

Competent but not masterful?

vicmackey39

exactly

their games are forgettable and derivative. No-one will ever claim an Insomnicac game is revolutionary, groundbreaking or an all time classic

While I don't think they are ground breaking, I still remember every single one of their games. They have made some of my favorite games ever, including my favorite one.yellowandmushy

i doubt many would agree with you. I have never played a game from them that stands alongside greats like Half Life, Ico, OOT, Galaxy, Super Metroi, Planescape, Baldurs Gate 2, Metal Gear Solid etc

forgettable developer, forgettable games

[QUOTE="yellowandmushy"]While I don't think they are ground breaking, I still remember every single one of their games. They have made some of my favorite games ever, including my favorite one.vicmackey39

i doubt many would agree with you. I have never played a game from them that stands alongside greats like Half Life, Ico, OOT, Galaxy, Super Metroi, Planescape, Baldurs Gate 2, Metal Gear Solid etc

forgettable developer, forgettable games

Alot of the statements being made about Insomniac's games are all opinions here. The only one of them that are facts is that they release top-shelf/high quality titles once per year. I'll even add to that fact; Insomniac is one of the big reasons Sony and its PS3 made it out alive of its first year on the market.

Rating developers on 'who is the best' is subjective because alot of people are going to lean with the developers of some of their personal favorite games. Also, in this very thread people are screwing it up by comparing PUBLISHERS (Ubisoft, Nintendo) with DEVELOPERS (Blizzard, Insomniac). If you want to actually get an accurate measurement of who are some of the best developers out there you need to ask other video game developers. And on that level, I know for a fact most game developers would easily agree Insomniac is in at LEAST the top 5.

And even then, it is still a matter of opinion. The only thing that can be known for sure is that they are a developer who delivers on all their promises of delivering very fun games with high production values (By that I mean nearly bug-free) annually. This is something they have not compromised on in the last 7 or 8 years of history and is something that very few, if no other development studio can say they have achieved.

To Shensolidus

I never made the mistake of comparing Insomniac to Nintendo as a whole, specifically for the reason you outlined. I compared them to a studio owned by Nintendo, another studio owned by Sony, and a studio owned by Microsoft.

And i respectfully disagree about it taking another developer to be able to see the best of the group.

In a medium like games, i think it merely takes a look at the most fondly remembered games to see which developers get it. Sometimes a game like GTA is mentioned, or another time a game like Okami, or Windwaker is revered.

You ask people what it is that made these games so special, and they'll say something like a magic touch that saturates it.

Top 5? As a developing envoirment, surely.

But the games themselves is what matters at the end of the day.

What are your favorite games from last gen?

I'll list mine in no particular order.

Metroid Prime 2

Metroid Prime

Shadow of the Colossus

Killer Seven

Wind Waker

Smash Melee

F-zero GX

Radiata Stories

FF12

Ico

Twilight Princess

Viewtiful Joe

Resi Remake

Resi 4

Okami

DMC 3

MGS 3 Snake Eater

VP Silmeria

Fire Emblem POR

Paper Mario:TTYD

Top 5 developers

Team Ueda

PolyDIgital

EAD Tokyo

Clover/Platinum Games

Valve

Blizzard

Bioware

BlackIsles Studios

Square

TriAce

Enix

Intelligent Systems

Insomniac doesn't even scratch the top ten, why?

Cuz their games are good, enjoyable but not the experiences of a generation.

agreed.

wont stop me from playing R2 though XD

Insomniac releases QUALITY titles every year. They are very consistent and the final product is always a great game.EVOLV3

I agree insomiac produces a good game each year

/thread

agreed. insomniac is only famous for the ratchet and clank series-which at the very, very core is a mario ripoff(and i'm talking at the very, very core of the r&c series) and resistance, which is a halo ripoff.

Grasshopper Manufacture, Kojima Productions and Double Fine Studios have made better games, and Double Fine at this point has made only one. But I WANT BURTAL LEGEND NOW. cows, this is the truth.