It seems to me that game creativity for first person shooters have come to a screeching halt. Now as much as I would like to go through all the generic genres of gaming I will just focus on the first person shooters.
It seems as if the majority of people are not looking for innovation when it comes to this genre. What does Killzone 2, Call of Duty, Halo, etc. all have in common besides great reviewer scores? Sure I will wait... Well, the basic formula seems to be great graphics, a feeling of invincibility, and a few upgrades for replay value. Notice how I did not mention gameplay. Sure, great gameplay should be the focus of these games, and the developers should try to innovate it, but what do we get instead? We get the same gameplay spread across all these games with minor tweaks.
I mean let's just think about what you expect to come in a fps now a days. The standard seems to be a somewhat decent single player experience. The mindblowing long single player stories are long gone it seems (Here looking at you Perfect Dark). Then after you complete your short 5-8 hour campaign, if you are lucky, you get to the bulk of the game. The multiplayer.
To be considered a good game a FPS must have these in the multiplayer component: Team deathmatch, Capture the Flag(or a variation/variations of it), leveling system, and if you want to go over the top some co-op element. The beauty about this is that this is indeed a good formula and creates a rather entertaining game experience. On the flip-side this decreases the developers chance to really try something new.
It is no surprise that video games costs money...Lots of money. Thus, the amount of risk a developer can take is reduced prior to previous years in gaming. So, in a sense you must ask yourself why would someone try something different when their is already a winning formula? This means that the blame for these carbon copy of FPS are not just the blame of the developers, but also the consumers.
How do we expect to have a variety of great fps games if we are not willing to try something new with an open mind. If you buy a game and do not like it due to the fact the controls are not similar to your other favorite shooter or something else is not the same or similar can you really complain about today's lack of creativity? I think not.
This is why I encourage people to try other fps with an open mind. Games like MAG, Soccom, and other team oriented games... third person shooter games like MGO, uncharted, and other games where animations and unique style add to the experiance. Because if we continue down this road we are not going to have to many innovations in the fps genre, while others continue to make steps forward.
Think about this: Goldeneye was released in 1997 and Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 was released 12 years later and though the game has made leaps and bounds in graphics, sound, and controls, I find it funny that I can have the same amount of fun with friends in team deathmatch on both games. Now compare those minor changes to the way the action adventure, role playing, driving, and even sports genres have made since then. My point is First Person Shooters could be so much better. Now excuse me as I go play Call of Duty :) .
Log in to comment