What company/platform has shown the most creativity (in your opinion)?

What do you guys think? Over the years, standards have been set, milked, and invented, and re-invented...but who do you think has shown the most unadulterated creativity of all? Anything from gameplay to presentation is taken into consideration, and although it's of course entirely subjective, I'd be interested to see your opinions.

Creativity in hardware, Nintendo.

Creativity in software, Sony, with Microsoft trying hard to make up the difference.

An italian plumber who has to save a princess by defeating a giant evil turtle and jumping on mushrooms and smaller turtles. Nintendo, duh. :P

The Dreamcast was innovative. The VMU was a great idea, and the system was quite good.

Too bad Sega had burned so many bridges with the Saturn that no developers wanted to make anything for the Dreamcast...

The Dreamcast was innovative. The VMU was a great idea, and the system was quite good.

Too bad Sega had burned so many bridges with the Saturn that no developers wanted to make anything for the Dreamcast...

SpruceCaboose

I think Nintendo have easily shown the most creativity of the three companies. Sure, Sony has LittleBigPlanet, but they only gained that by paying the developer, Media Molecule, for their work.. Nintendo however have come up with innovative hardware designs without any outsider help, like the Wiimote and Wii Fit balance board, and are also working towards more accessible games. "Casual-ising" in some people's eyes, but I think stuff like Brain Training, Wii Fit and Nintendogs is creative.

I think Nintendo have easily shown the most creativity of the three companies. Sure, Sony has LittleBigPlanet, but they only gained that by paying the developer, Media Molecule, for their work.. Nintendo however have come up with innovative hardware designs without any outsider help, like the Wiimote and Wii Fit balance board, and are also working towards more accessible games. "Casual-ising" in some people's eyes, but I think stuff like Brain Training, Wii Fit and Nintendogs is creative.

-Spock-

I went system as a whole, not just things that the Big 3 are personally responsible for. Nintendo makes innovative hardware, but Sony has always been more friendly to developers trying new things on their systems, and they actively try to get diverse software out to the masses, a la Guitar Hero, Katamari, God of War, Ratchet and Clank, Jaks, Metal Gear, etc and so on and so forth.

And it appears that Microsoft is trying to follow that lead by getting developers support to make games from all different genres, with games like Katamari and Guitar Hero making it to the 360, Mass Effect and Fable, Blue Dragon, Eternal Sonnata, and Lost Odyssey, Halo 3 and Gears of War, Viva Pinata and XBLA, and Bioshock...etc.

[QUOTE="-Spock-"]

I think Nintendo have easily shown the most creativity of the three companies. Sure, Sony has LittleBigPlanet, but they only gained that by paying the developer, Media Molecule, for their work.. Nintendo however have come up with innovative hardware designs without any outsider help, like the Wiimote and Wii Fit balance board, and are also working towards more accessible games. "Casual-ising" in some people's eyes, but I think stuff like Brain Training, Wii Fit and Nintendogs is creative.

SpruceCaboose

I went system as a whole, not just things that the Big 3 are personally responsible for. Nintendo makes innovative hardware, but Sony has always been more friendly to developers trying new things on their systems, and they actively try to get diverse software out to the masses, a la Guitar Hero, Katamari, God of War, Ratchet and Clank, Jaks, Metal Gear, etc and so on and so forth.

And it appears that Microsoft is trying to follow that lead by getting developers support to make games from all different genres, with games like Katamari and Guitar Hero making it to the 360, Mass Effect and Fable, Blue Dragon, Eternal Sonnata, and Lost Odyssey, Halo 3 and Gears of War, Viva Pinata and XBLA, and Bioshock...etc.

Attracting creative developers =/= being creative. Example: just because I buy the paintings doesn't mean I actually painted them. A lot of what Nintendo do is in-house, first-party. Understand?

[QUOTE="SpruceCaboose"][QUOTE="-Spock-"]

I think Nintendo have easily shown the most creativity of the three companies. Sure, Sony has LittleBigPlanet, but they only gained that by paying the developer, Media Molecule, for their work.. Nintendo however have come up with innovative hardware designs without any outsider help, like the Wiimote and Wii Fit balance board, and are also working towards more accessible games. "Casual-ising" in some people's eyes, but I think stuff like Brain Training, Wii Fit and Nintendogs is creative.

-Spock-

I went system as a whole, not just things that the Big 3 are personally responsible for. Nintendo makes innovative hardware, but Sony has always been more friendly to developers trying new things on their systems, and they actively try to get diverse software out to the masses, a la Guitar Hero, Katamari, God of War, Ratchet and Clank, Jaks, Metal Gear, etc and so on and so forth.

And it appears that Microsoft is trying to follow that lead by getting developers support to make games from all different genres, with games like Katamari and Guitar Hero making it to the 360, Mass Effect and Fable, Blue Dragon, Eternal Sonnata, and Lost Odyssey, Halo 3 and Gears of War, Viva Pinata and XBLA, and Bioshock...etc.

Attracting creative developers =/= being creative. Example: just because I buy the paintings doesn't mean I actually painted them. A lot of what Nintendo do is in-house, first-party. Understand?

so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever played

I say both Nintendo and Sony.

Nintendo: Well, it's pretty simple to see that with the Wii, for example. Alot of people make fun of it and dismiss it as a party game console, however, they fail to see that in going with solid gameplay rather than full super HDthey made a smash hit just look at the money they are raking in as a case in point. Also they constantly put out solid titles on all they're platforms and while some people may say that Mario, Pokemon, Metroid, etc... are repetitive and the same you can say that of many franchises however the fact that they have been around and continue to be refreshed and improved rather than just stagnate relly shows Nintendo's creativity.

Sony: The hardware is impressive and its potential is there as indictated by Sony and many other devs. However its creativity comes from their willingness to try and give new franchises and experiences a chance. An example of this is a recent interview with the PSN America Director who chooses the content for PSN America and he said that he likes to choose new and cretive games from indie studios ratherthanjust updates of old arcade games.

[QUOTE="SpruceCaboose"]

I went system as a whole, not just things that the Big 3 are personally responsible for. Nintendo makes innovative hardware, but Sony has always been more friendly to developers trying new things on their systems, and they actively try to get diverse software out to the masses, a la Guitar Hero, Katamari, God of War, Ratchet and Clank, Jaks, Metal Gear, etc and so on and so forth.

And it appears that Microsoft is trying to follow that lead by getting developers support to make games from all different genres, with games like Katamari and Guitar Hero making it to the 360, Mass Effect and Fable, Blue Dragon, Eternal Sonnata, and Lost Odyssey, Halo 3 and Gears of War, Viva Pinata and XBLA, and Bioshock...etc.

-Spock-

Attracting creative developers =/= being creative. Example: just because I buy the paintings doesn't mean I actually painted them. A lot of what Nintendo do is in-house, first-party. Understand?

I understand your point, but I have read many a developer comment about how Nintendo is too strict on what can and cannot be done on their system, and what features a game can and cannot have. They even refused to let some 3rd party developers do online play on the Wii so far this generation.

And Sony has many 1st party creativity and diverity.

so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever playedsparkypants

I own it. As a whole though, I would still say that Nintendo do much more creative first-party stuff.

[QUOTE="sparkypants"]so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever played-Spock-

I own it. As a whole though, I would still say that Nintendo do much more creative first-party stuff.

sure but as a whole Sony has more creative 3rd AND first party games :D

Nintnedo

An italian plumber who has to save a princess by defeating a giant evil turtle and jumping on mushrooms and smaller turtles. Nintendo, duh. :P

sexy_chimp

Well when you put it like that the concept just doesn't sound realistic.

[QUOTE="sparkypants"]so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever played-Spock-

I own it. As a whole though, I would still say that Nintendo do much more creative first-party stuff.

In the past, I would have agreed. However, lately, Nintendo is churning out more and more of the same. Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, Mario Soccer, etc, sequel after sequel to all the franchises, mini-game collections galore, so many different Nintendogs I cannot count them.

I would say Nintendo needs to do more to make "new" games, but this strategy of give them more of the same seems to work for them, so maybe they are on to something.

I understand your point, but I have read many a developer comment about how Nintendo is too strict on what can and cannot be done on their system, and what features a game can and cannot have. They even refused to let some3rd party developers do online play on the Wii so far this generation.

And Sony has many 1st party creativity and diverity. SpruceCaboose

Isn't that because the Wii online component is, quite frankly, a joke? Nintendo can pretend all they like, but the online matchmaking interface is dreadful and still needs a lot of work. Of course they wouldn't allow some third-party developers to have online play: it's just not ready yet. As for Sony having much first-party creativity and diversity, I agree, but as a whole I think Nintendo just does more.

Creativity in hardware, Nintendo.

Creativity in software, Sony, with Microsoft trying hard to make up the difference.

SpruceCaboose

[QUOTE="-Spock-"][QUOTE="sparkypants"]so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever playedsparkypants

I own it. As a whole though, I would still say that Nintendo do much more creative first-party stuff.

sure but as a whole Sony has more creative 3rd AND first party games :D

Of course, I can't argue that Sony have the much better third-party support... it's the reason why I bought a PS3 over the competition. Games like MGS4, White Knight Story and LittleBigPlanet are very creative. That third-party support -- as a whole, and when combined with Sony's first-party -- is undoubtedly more innovative than just Nintendo on their own. But the topic was about choosing only one first-party, so i'd still have to stick by my decision that Nintendo are the best in their league.

[QUOTE="SpruceCaboose"]

Creativity in hardware, Nintendo.

Creativity in software, Sony, with Microsoft trying hard to make up the difference.

snorlaxmaster

Sega is, for better or worse, dead in the console market. So I no longer include them in a discussion, unless its a discussion about retro gaming.

[QUOTE="SpruceCaboose"]

Creativity in hardware, Nintendo.

Creativity in software, Sony, with Microsoft trying hard to make up the difference.

snorlaxmaster

Hardware.... sure, Nintendo.

But software for Sony? Absolutely not. That should go to Microsoft for Xbox Live alone. The dashboard is a first on consoles. Media streaming, messaging, achievements, video-on-demand.... they've practically redefined what it means to be online with a console.

Nintendo obviously...

But chocolate coverd bacon doesn't necsessarily have too taste good just because its new..

[QUOTE="-Spock-"][QUOTE="sparkypants"]so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever playedSpruceCaboose

I own it. As a whole though, I would still say that Nintendo do much more creative first-party stuff.

In the past, I would have agreed. However, lately, Nintendo is churning out more and more of the same. Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, Mario Soccer, etc, sequel after sequel to all the franchises, mini-game collections galore, so many different Nintendogs I cannot count them.

I would say Nintendo needs to do more to make "new" games, but this strategy of give them more of the same seems to work for them, so maybe they are on to something.

All companies do this to keep their business alive. When you create a new IP, you have good foundations on which to stretch it out and make it an established franchise. Make no mistake, Nintendo have definitely created the new stuff like Brain Training, Wii Fit, Nintendogs, Pikmin etc. But it's only natural to make sequels and expansions so that they gain more money to make more new IPs..

Well... I suppose more creativity has gone into the PC as a whole.... lol...

But I don't really count that.. Because thats so much overkill vs the other 3 that it isn't even fun...

[QUOTE="SpruceCaboose"][QUOTE="-Spock-"][QUOTE="sparkypants"]so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever played-Spock-

I own it. As a whole though, I would still say that Nintendo do much more creative first-party stuff.

In the past, I would have agreed. However, lately, Nintendo is churning out more and more of the same. Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, Mario Soccer, etc, sequel after sequel to all the franchises, mini-game collections galore, so many different Nintendogs I cannot count them.

I would say Nintendo needs to do more to make "new" games, but this strategy of give them more of the same seems to work for them, so maybe they are on to something.

All companies do this to keep their business alive. When you create a new IP, you have good foundations on which to stretch it out and make it an established franchise. Make no mistake, Nintendo have definitely created the new stuff like Brain Training, Wii Fit, Nintendogs, Pikmin etc. But it's only natural to make sequels and expansions so that they gain more money to make more new IPs..

See, I refuse to c1assify activities like Brain Training, Wii Fit, and Nintendogs as "games". I would like them to make more IPs like Pikmin. I know that those others sell well, but I don't see them as games, and if that is the path gaming goes down, gaming will be dead to me.

[QUOTE="-Spock-"][QUOTE="SpruceCaboose"][QUOTE="-Spock-"][QUOTE="sparkypants"]so Im guessing you never played Shadow of Colossus. That WAS made by Sony and its one of the most creative games Iv ever playedSpruceCaboose

I own it. As a whole though, I would still say that Nintendo do much more creative first-party stuff.

In the past, I would have agreed. However, lately, Nintendo is churning out more and more of the same. Mario Tennis, Mario Golf, Mario Soccer, etc, sequel after sequel to all the franchises, mini-game collections galore, so many different Nintendogs I cannot count them.

I would say Nintendo needs to do more to make "new" games, but this strategy of give them more of the same seems to work for them, so maybe they are on to something.

All companies do this to keep their business alive. When you create a new IP, you have good foundations on which to stretch it out and make it an established franchise. Make no mistake, Nintendo have definitely created the new stuff like Brain Training, Wii Fit, Nintendogs, Pikmin etc. But it's only natural to make sequels and expansions so that they gain more money to make more new IPs..

See, I refuse to c1assify activities like Brain Training, Wii Fit, and Nintendogs as "games". I would like them to make more IPs like Pikmin. I know that those others sell well, but I don't see them as games, and if that is the path gaming goes down, gaming will be dead to me.

Then you'd better find a new hobby. There's no question that Nintendo is the correct answer.Paul_Phoenicks

There is no correct answer to an opinion question. And you mean to tell me that if the industry moved behind things like Brain Training and Wii Fit as the standard "game", you would still play "games"?

I play games to be taken to a different world, to be presented with problems and work out solutions inside of a fantasy world. I don't game to take care of a pet, to workout, or to study. Those are things that I do in the real world.