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thornwaite

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#1 thornwaite
Member since 2012 • 25 Posts
If I could figure out who the moderators are on this particular board, I would have messaged them about this, but since I can't... I'm just going to post this here. I posted my first thread on this forum yesterday, and after the topic had already been up with no complaints for a full day, I logged in today to check for responses, only to find it was locked and deleted. I received no warnings, no messages explaining why my thread was deleted, and as far I can tell, my thread did not violate any forum rules. Can anyone give me an explanation? The thread was titled, "How do developers decide what type of games to create?" Thanks.
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thornwaite

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#2 thornwaite
Member since 2012 • 25 Posts

After reading your initial post i knew immediately we're going to get along just fine :D

I actually have the same feelings as you, & i thought all of your game concepts were great ideas. I would love to play any of those games. The only problem is gamers dont want to play them. Gamers today just want to shoot sh!t. Literally, thats all the care about.

This is the problem. Publishers see this & so give contracts to these developers with what the current gamers wants. Thats why you see Resident Evil turning into a pure action game, then a coop game, next will be multiplayer deathmatch.

Publishers give contracts to these devs that require them to make another generic action game because gamers never get tired of generic shootfests. The ideas you have would likely not be focused on action & the gamer of today will not play any game that doesnt have something around the corner to shoot at.

brucecambell
I think you hit the nail on the head. This might sound like a terrible example, but bear with me for a moment... Back on the original playstation console I used to have the very first Harry Potter game. Now movie games are terrible 9.9 out of 10 times, but this game was actually a lot of fun because it was all about exploring the different environments in the books/movies, solving interesting problems, and learning about the characters and story. When the final game in the series came out recently I was thinking about buying it for the nostalgia factor. I check out the reviews and gameplay previews, and it has turned into this mindless shooter game where you run around holding the firing button to shoot spells at people. In other words, it was complete a**. I noticed your avatar and some of your posts on your profile about Splinter Cell, and that's another game I used to love back in the day. I have contemplated trying to find a cheap gamecube just to be able to play the original games again. Picking up that game and realizing how intelligent the game was, how much strategy you had to use to get through a level... it was incredible. I mean the fact that you had an attachment for your gun that allowed you to shoot some kind of crazy camera contraption that whistled and then gassed enemies that came to investigate, just blew my mind at the time. It was infinitely better than any other shooter I had played. I didn't even know there was a new one coming out, I'll definitely have to look into it and hope it's as good as the others.

Now if the market & gamers were open to new games, ideas & gaming experiences then you would see them, but as of right now you can look at the inudustry & see exactly why it is in the state its in. Its simple. Consumers ( gamers ) drive the industry & so what ever the mindless mass of gamers want...... is what we get.

Flush your creativity down the drain because gaming is now about mindless, generic, uninspired, shooting games. It will likely never change & will likely get worse in the future.

brucecambell
I hope you're wrong about that, but I know you're right. I guess our only hope is that sooner or later some rogue game developing company will break the mold.
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#3 thornwaite
Member since 2012 • 25 Posts

Those games you listed aren't aweful. Your taste in games isn't the end all be all of gaming. There's plenty of new interesting IP's out there (The Last of US, Dishonored, RAGE, Journey, etc) so you're whining about nothing.

Yusuke420
The games I listed ARE awful. Each new Halo game is about 5% difference from the last one. They recycle the exact same character models, weapons, environments, structural elements, enemy types, vehicles, game types, and they have a mediocre plot holding it all together. And when you take into account the fact that there are probably 30 other alien shooter games for this generation of consoles, some of which are twice as interesting, there is no reason this game should be sold at all, let alone for $60. If you have purchased more than one of these games, you are a sucker. Call of Duty games are just as bad. They're over-marketed garbage that prove that you don't even need to make good products any more as long as you use advertising campaigns to brainwash people into some sick consumerist cult that compels them to purchase your new game the moment its released even though they know it's going to be bad. You can't even argue that racing games aren't repetitive unless you have severe dementia or alzheimer's. They all use the same set of 50 or 60 cars, and nearly identical cityscapes for racing in. There was a time when driving a lamborghini on a video game was a unique experience. Now every racing game is based around them. You could buy a single racing game and never have to buy another, because they will not change any time soon.
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#4 thornwaite
Member since 2012 • 25 Posts

Why would they leave genres that make them millions of dollars a year?

AvatarMan96
The games I mentioned that are not repetitive (Red Dead Redemption, etc.) were extremely popular games that would make it on any list of the best games over the last 10 years. And this is more a question of why people are continuing to buy those other awful games.
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#5 thornwaite
Member since 2012 • 25 Posts
Do they get any public input during the process? Polls? Focus groups? I ask because over the last 5 years or so, certain types of console games have become way overplayed to the point that I feel disgusted when I look at upcoming releases. For example: -Alien/futuristic shooters -Modern military -World War II -Mob/gang/crime games -Racing games with the exact same types of cars (e.g. Forza, Need for Speed, Gran Turismo, Test Drive) Why do people keep buying these games? The developers of Halo and Call of Duty games are basically criminal organizations. They just repackage the same game over and over and over, and people stupidly continue to throw down $60 for them every time. They literally recycle the same character/weapon/enemy/location models in EVERY game, just rearranging them slightly and changing the storyline to justify a new game. Out of the $60 you pay for the game, approximately $0.01 goes towards game development, because there is nothing to develop. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DEVELOPER: Hey, I've got an idea. Let's just copy and paste everything we did in our last game, but we'll spend a ton of money on advertisements with lots of explosions, loud noises, and over-the-top cinematography to convince people to buy it. EXECUTIVE: Brilliant. Let's get it done people. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Here are just a few settings/ideas I'd love to see (of course there is less than a 0% chance any of these will ever be made) in console games: -A space game that actually allows you to explore the universe (galaxies, stars, planets, black holes, nebulae, etc.), study life forms on other planets, start and grow a colony, etc. *****Not a game where you just click on a planet, go there, and shoot s**t. -Life in early civilizations (e.g. Aztecs, Mayans, Native Americans in the region of the U.S., ancient Egyptian civilizations, Australian Aborigines, African tribes, etc.) -A game about corruption in politics, where you try to climb up the political ladder to expose the truth. -Games where you experience futuristic societies like the ones described in some classic dystopia novels (1984, A Brave New World) -A game about worker revolts during the early industrial revolution when laborers tried to take on powerful meat packing/railroad/oil trusts and monopolies to get better working conditions. -American Civil War, helping slaves escape along the underground railroad. -A game where you explore the world, sailing in historically accurate ships to new lands while playing as various famed explorers throughout history. -Nature games where you explore realistic (rainforest, ocean floor, desert etc.) environments. as a scientist trying to document rare species. Just a straight up adventure game. *****Not another zoo tycoon or African wildlife photography game. -A game about paleontology, where you learn about and explore actual dig sites throughout history and the types of fossils that were discovered at each one. -A car game that focuses on classic cars, especially some of the more unique/rare old cars that have been built throughout automotive history (e.g. microcars) and the earliest cars like the Ford Model A. -Similar to my previous idea, a game about early and interesting human flight machines. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The entire purpose of a video game is to immerse you in a world you can never personally experience in real life. They're supposed to expose you to novel ideas and environments that you have never visited. So why are video game companies pumping out the same repetitive bull**** that we've all played a billion times by now? There are so many historical events and geographic regions to make video games about, so why are topics of games so limited? Why would you want to drive the same generic cars (e.g. lamborghinis) through the same generic city streets and road courses, when you could instead experience what it would be like to drive Model T's and BMW 600's and other classics people stare in awe at in museums, but will never be able to drive. Why would you want to play just another cookie-cutter game about modern/futuristic military, when you could experience the struggles of ancient civilizations? When a game like Red Dead Redemption, LA Noire, or Assassin's Creed comes out, they're instant hits because you can play them for hours and afterward feel like you've experienced something truly interesting and educational. When you play a mindless shooter like Call of Duty, you get a momentary high and afterwards you ask yourself why you just wasted hours of your life.