are next-gen games missing the point?

Mai Valentine

Mai Valentine

Moderator
I bring to you this old quote from none other than stealth toilet.

Shoddy graphics, abysmal sound, cheezy story, and I want to play it more than any game I own.

I miss the addictive gameplay of the 2d era. Back then games had to be good to make it in the biz. They couldn't dazzle you with pretty visuals or popular licenses, they just needed to be fun.
Click to expand...

http://www.egameaddiction.com/forums/index.php?topic=375.0

Agree? Disagree?

Discuss. :)
 
I'm not in the best position to be talking about this, considering its 6 months or so till my 10 year gaming anniversary (I actually got in pretty earlier, considering I was either 5 or 6), but I think that games have indeed taken a different direction as Toilet said. The way I see it, games have become a more complex, immersive experience, but this comes with sacrifice because now developers can't just focus on making their games genuinely fun. That's all it used to be about: fun. Now developers are trying to do so much more, I feel they have lost the point of video games: entertainment.
 
Graphics can be immersive, to an extent, but really, the huge Blu-Ray disc space should be used on AI and size of the game.
 
fhqwhgads said:
Graphics can be immersive, to an extent, but really, the huge Blu-Ray disc space should be used on AI and size of the game.
Click to expand...
And it is. There are other immersive things in games, but immersion and making artistic masterpieces don't make games fun. Its like, some movies are great and Oscar worthy, but much of the time, I would rather watch a slapstick comedy with bad acting. Its the same thing with games. Games are becoming better and deeper, but sometimes you don't want deep. You want just want fun, even if the games aren't as good, and those games are often more enjoyable simply because their only goal is making the game fun, not a deep, artistic masterpiece.
 
Gears of War hit the nail on the head for me. There's a bunch of games coming out that look great and the gameplay from the demos proved just how fun they'll be (I.E. Bioshock, Mass Effect, Metroid Prime 3).

The games that missed are Resistance (same story as Half-life 2, but with prettier graphics and in a different time frame), and the upcoming WiiFit for the Wii.
 
I also think Gears did a good job. While it was short, I've still found it to be very enjoyable. I've gone through the campaign on Casual and Hardcore and I plan on tackling Insane next weekend. There's just something really satisfying about getting a headshot. It's slower paced than Halo and I like that. :)
 
fhqwhgads said:
WiiFit succeeds at what it's trying to do, though.
Click to expand...

But if that's Nintendo's huge marvel of a game that they say it's gonna be for this year...the one they're REALLY excited about...they've dissapointed most of it's own fan base.

Even when Reggie was asked what games are coming out for the hardcore gamers besides Metroid, Mario, and SSBB, he said...

"Well later in the year we have Metroid, Mario, and SSBB, and that's more than enough"

Nintendo used to be all about pleasing it's fans. Honestly, I liked the Wii until I found out what I had to look forward to for this next year. They're trying too hard to gain a broader fan base. Although they may gain a bigger fan base, they'll be losing the hardcore gamers.
 
Mario games are easy, though, so get that off the list. Hardcore, they're more reling on third parties at this point for that. They've got their three out, they'll sell. Hardcore or no, the Wii sells, so they'll keep making family ones for some more time.
 
I meant more along the lines of games that are already out. For some of the games you are talking about, we won't know if those games hit the mark or not until we play them.

But if we're going to make predictions, I think Super Mario Galaxies will hit that spot. Next-gen presentation with fun gameplay.
 
Mai Valentine said:
I also think Gears did a good job. While it was short, I've still found it to be very enjoyable. I've gone through the campaign on Casual and Hardcore and I plan on tackling Insane next weekend. There's just something really satisfying about getting a headshot. It's slower paced than Halo and I like that. :)
Click to expand...

Yeah, it makes it more realistic....the game being slower I mean. Not humans against aliens. :lol

@fhq, yeah, they'll keep making family games. I'm just older and more into the in-depth games. Then again, nobody can satisfy everyone. In that regard, I can't really hate the 360, PS3, or Wii for what they're trying to do.
 
echochrome looks kickass, regardless of age, though. I think Nintendo needs more ageless games like that, rather than Mario Party 8000, or whichever they're on now.
 
Yeah, Echochrome is gonna be a really fun "pick up and play" game. It'll definitely be something to keep me busy if I ever get bored. There's just so much you can do with it.
 
fhqwhgads said:
echochrome looks kickass, regardless of age, though. I think Nintendo needs more ageless games like that, rather than Mario Party 8000, or whichever they're on now.
Click to expand...

Nintendo has ageless games. In fact I would say that most of their games are ageless in the sense that anyone can play them.

It's just that most people don't. For whatever reason, they just dismiss most games. Wind Waker, Wii Sports, Wii Fit, etc. God forbid someone should see them playing a "kiddy" game.

Well I'd like to think that most people would actually enjoy some of this stuff if they gave it a chance.

As the saying goes, you can't win if you don't play.
 
I like its concept of 'If I can't see it, it's not real' thing that it's got going on. Plus, it looks like it hit the balance of challenging, but not frustrating.

EDIT: Mai, I'm thinking more 'challenging and fun to play at any age', Nintendo's got half of that down.
 
Yeah, frustrating games are, well...frustrating. Echochrome looks like it'll keep me guessing, instead of getting angry and trying each and every way possible.

@Mai, yeah Nintendo has ageless games, but the hardcore gamer fell in love with the N64 cause of its games that were amazing to play and weren't too easy. The Cube didn't put enough effort out, and the Wii hopefully won't follow suit.
 
The Cube was too far in the kiddy direction, from the lunchbox style, to the horrible/horribly easy games.
 
Yeah. I just think it's more fun if you let yourself enjoy more games.

To make a bad analogy, if all you eat is apples, and you see an orange, most people are going to ignore the orange because it's not an apple. But oranges are just as good as apples; they are just different. And if you don't try it, you won't know whether you like it or not.

As far as hardcore gamers vs. casual gamers, are you really hardcore if you don't try something? I'd like to think that hardcore gamers are the ones that give all games a chance before deciding they don't like them. To continue the analogy, I think someone who tries an orange even if they aren't used to it is more hardcore, because they are willing to try new things.
 
So oranges are...casual? I see what you're getting at, but it's the hardocres that want their gore/shooters/sandbox/big explosions/seizure lights/good graphics, all that. Many gamers have yet to realize the lack of needing graphics.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top