Aging Gamers change Video Game Industry by Succatash

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Aging Gamers change Video Game Industry

POSTED BY: SUCCATASH
UPDATED: Friday, April 2, 2004 16:13
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Sunday, March 28, 2004 7:27 PM

Video Game Industry Faces 'Crisis of Creativity'
Sun Mar 28, 8:50 AM ET
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=581&ncid=581&e=1&u=/nm
/20040328/tc_nm/biztech_games_dc_1

The video game industry is facing a hardening of the creative arteries as aging gamers' tastes increasingly shift toward sequels and games based on movies... "The gaming industry will shrink unless we start to see new games," said Toru Iwatani, who created Pac-Man....

I say Firefly/Serenity is the perfect place to start. What better audience than us aged gamers?

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Monday, March 29, 2004 3:29 AM

BROWNCOAT1

May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one.

I agree Tash.

Make a game about Firefly. It is new, it would be ready for the streets by the time the movie comes out, and it would bring some video gamers into the theatre to check out the movie as well.

I know this "aging gamer" would buy and play the game.

"May have been the losing side. Still not convinced it was the wrong one."

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Monday, March 29, 2004 3:40 AM

ATHERTONWING

well i'm no aging gamer....i dont remember that game with the ping pong thing....i'm one of the playstation generation. But i agree a Firefly game would be amazing.The one thing that pissed me off so much about the show going was the fact that no other show has made me want to explore the worlds in it so much, i long to see the back streets of Ariel or go exploring on white fall we need a firefly game!

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Monday, March 29, 2004 4:03 AM

JEBBYPAL

If done well, a firefly game would rock. Unfortunately, have yet to see a game based on a movie worth playing (my own opinion). Star Wars KOTOR is about the only exception.

If the game got bad reviews and was linked with the movie, it might turn off gamers who weren't familiar with the show. might be better to wait for a post-movie release as a promo for series return (or movie sequel if we fail to get a weekly dose due to contracts etc).

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Monday, March 29, 2004 6:42 AM

HKCAVALIER

Absolutely a Firefly game would be great, but getting back to that article, I think it's a little confused. Seems to me like they're taking a film industry problem and grafting it onto the video game industry. Sounds like aging game developers getting nostalgic for "the good old days."

We could all prolly count the number of good movie sequals on one hand. And the number of good video games based on a movie on one finger. But video game sequals are consistently better than the original. This has partly to do with advances in technology. A movie sequal is usually a simple rehash of the original movie. But if you look at "Doom III" just as an example, it bares only a slight resemblance to the original "Doom." The "Final Fantasy" series is a series of very different games in terms of story and even genre but the gameplay is a continuing evolution.

So I think this notion that the creativity in the industry is somehow drying up is merely a smokescreen for the fact that various developement teams are getting a name for themselves based upon the good products they have put out in the past. The industry itself is maturing, and I think that's a good thing. And with video game sales outdoing box office receipts for several years in a row now, I think it's pretty bogus to say that the industry is in some actual crisis.

HKCavalier

Hey, hey, hey, don't be mean. We don't have to be mean, because, remember, no matter where you go, there you are.

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Monday, March 29, 2004 7:32 AM

KALIMEERI

I would not say there is a crisis in creativity, only what the video game publishers wish to promote. (There's a parallel with F*X TV here somewhere). Small video game companies have been forced out of the market or gobbled up, so there are less places for creative individuals to work. Not to mention that "what sold last year" or "me too" are the standards by which games are often chosen for marketing. (Survival shows? Ugh.)

It's tough to sell something really different, and pretty impossible if you are talented but 'little' and broke. Hence some of those extremely well-done expansion packs, the evidence that somewhere "out there" intelligent life exists. (Take a look at the Scratchware Manifesto-- www.the-underdogs.org sometime, if you're interested).

I love games. There was a time when I'd order two or three titles from Sierra just from the description in their catalog. Yep, full price. But I no longer buy ANY game until I've read the reviews. Why? Because they're rushing some of these well-hyped things out the door before they even can limp along without crashing, and because sometimes the hype is the best part.

I do miss the 'good old days', I guess. But I'd rather see them do nothing in regards to Firefly, than something awful.

My hat's off to KOTOR. It's a gem. And I hope Bioware/Lucas can do it again in KOTOR 2.

Jen dao mei.

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Monday, March 29, 2004 7:57 AM

JARED

you trust reviews? i prefer demos (with again kotor being a rare exception). unfortunately more and more demos pull that annoying "only x% finished, doesnt represent quality for finished product" nonsense. then what the heck are they publishing the demo anyway? wait til it DOES represent the finished product, because thats the one reason i bother to download a demo.

that said its funny this thread is coming up right now. a few days ago i was wondering what kind of game would work for firefly. obviously elite/privateer cover the "job" part quite well (smuggling, plundering, transporting passengers, doing special jobs, etc.). but it would lack an important part. walking around serenity, interacting with the crew. adding another genre like 3rd person action adventure or maybe even 1st person rpg (wouldnt you enjoy being the 10th crew member?).

unfortunately combining two genres rarely appeals to the fans of both but repels them, as half the game would be something they dont like or care about. a simple solution would be to let the player decide where his focus is.

one way or another, i would hope for it to be an unrestricted game with lots of options for exploration (compared to games that spoon feed you the story and drag you along a linear path).

and no, im not offering to work on one. all my projects tend to end somewhere in the middle, not to mention a single person could never create what i have in mind ,-)

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Monday, March 29, 2004 7:58 AM

LORDJ

I think the technology is driving this more than fan tastes. As the capabilities of consoles/PCs increase the amount of resources needed to produce a game have changed the financial calculations in the industry to the point that innovative titles represent a much bigger risk.

The Shenmue series is a good example; Sega spent millions on the game, it took several years to develop (and in the process switched systems); and barely made a dent in terms of sales, and then only in the US. How many times are investors (i.e. publishers) going to line up to give the kinds of resources you need to develop that game?

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Monday, March 29, 2004 8:05 AM

ARDEN

I was actually just thinking the other day that it might be fun to play some kind of Firefly video game, but in reality I unfortunately feel that if they made one it would probably be sub-par at best. I'll reiterate the fact that, with KOTOR and Goldeneye N64 as notable exceptions, I can't think of a truly great game based on a movie. (I can think of a long laundry list of terrible games based on films, however, but I'll leave that be so as not to clutter the thread)

The real development dangers in a Firefly game for me would seem to be that 1- The show encompasses several different kinds of "action," e.g. gunfights, flying Serenity, chases, sneaking about, etc. Games that try to do lots of different things usually do none of them well. 2- Story-wise, the show revolves around 9 characters, and giving all of them adequate time to develop could prove futile. Of course, they may choose to drop story development and simply create a game similar to Buffy on X-Box ("go do this Buffy! Good job! Now go do this!"), a passable if not great game.

The only sure-fire escape is to give the game to some genius developer who will find a way to make it outstanding. And it's already been said that there are too few of them out there right now. (wow, another long post... yikes)

You got a wife? All I got is that dumbass stick sounds like it's raining.

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Monday, March 29, 2004 8:32 AM

KALIMEERI

Quote:
Originally posted by Jared:
you trust reviews? i prefer demos (with again kotor being a rare exception).

unfortunately combining two genres rarely appeals to the fans of both but repels them, as half the game would be something they dont like or care about.

IMO, reviews are better than plunking down $50 on a coaster. Obviously, some reviewers have more credibility than others; i.e., they refuse to be bought or misquoted. I don't like demos, as a general rule.

You're right about the game type. A strict interpretation of any of the genres would be a loser.

Jen dao mei.

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Monday, March 29, 2004 8:46 AM

JARED

Quote:
Originally posted by kalimeeri:
IMO, reviews are better than plunking down $50 on a coaster. Obviously, some reviewers have more credibility than others; i.e., they refuse to be bought or misquoted. I don't like demos, as a general rule.

well, i guess reviews work if you know the reviewer has a similiar taste, but i just prefer playing it myself before paying money. usually that means: take the demo and subtract a few percent (as they will probably decide to give you the good stuff and not the average).

Quote:

You're right about the game type. A strict interpretation of any of the genres would be a loser.

radical theory: every movie or show that makes a great template for a video game just cant be that great ,-)

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Monday, March 29, 2004 9:13 AM

KASUO

I started with Atari 2600 and eventually migrated to NES and its subsequent systems, so I may be called an "aging gamer" by some. I think a good deal of games today lack substance. I would put in a good $45 if the game was good despite having not-top-of-the-line graphics. Heck, even Cantr II pulled me in and I've never really been into text-based games before. I'd pick the classic side scroller against most FPS any day if it was good enough. A great example of a side scroller is Castlevania: Symphony of the Night that was released on PSX nearly 5 years ago. While 3D and FPS games were on the rise, SOTN definitely helds its own. Make more games like that and the "aging gamer" crowd may stick with your product.

Enough of the hijack.. anyway, for a Firefly game to work, I agree that a Privateer-type game would be a good way to go about it. FPS or another action-orientated type game might be okay to handle that aspect of the FF universe but I don't see Firefly working as a strictly or mostly action-type game. In my general feeling nostalgia, I think a game like Shadowrun might work as a template for a Firefly game.

________
"Let's moon 'em!"

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Monday, March 29, 2004 9:28 AM

JARED

Quote:
Originally posted by kasuo:
In my general feeling nostalgia, I think a game like Shadowrun might work as a template for a Firefly game.

hm, p&p, snes or -what was it- sega?

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Tuesday, March 30, 2004 7:32 PM

KASUO

Quote:
Originally posted by Jared:
hm, p&p, snes or -what was it- sega?

Oh right, forgot about the pen and paper incarnation of the game. I'm familiar with the SNES version of it.

________
"Let's moon 'em!"

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Tuesday, March 30, 2004 11:25 PM

JARED

Quote:
Originally posted by kasuo:
Oh right, forgot about the pen and paper incarnation of the game. I'm familiar with the SNES version of it.

the one that i bothered to finish (unlike the other version). though its still far from the p&p version and even the world in the game wasnt exactly what we always had in mind when playing sr (p&p).

so basically that would be more or less your typical nippon rpg. something i can agree on as one aspect of the game. role playing (or at least focus on characters) should be part of it.

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Wednesday, March 31, 2004 1:15 AM

SNEAKER98

No, I don't think there is a lack of creativity. I think there's a lack of support for the creativity. Movies and remakes will "supposedly" sell better because they already have a name to them. For instance, the Matrix Online game coming out. If you saw the name "Matrix" on the shelves (a la Enter the Matrix) you'd go "OOoo!" if you were a fan of that series (and the matrix has a huge fanbase). But another game.. ie: "Pirates of the Burning Seas" (huge fan of this up and coming MMORPG) might recieve less attention because it's something that consumers cant put a meaning on. It hasn't been done, and therefore is a "wildcard".

Making a firefly game would be guilty of the same thing. It's creating a game based upon a show and an upcoming movie.

BUT I would love to see one. Heck, it's why I'm making a mod based on Firefly. But it would NEED to be done right. Personally, i think a massivly online firefly game would be the best way to go. We could all interact like we do on these boards and be able to live like Mal, or be in control as an Alliance Commander.. or even have our own crime syndicate like Badger. The list just keeps going on and on!

If it makes anyone feel better, for my firefly mod there will be an online part to it.. nothing big, just a "Quick Battle". But hey, it's a start.

"I do the job... and then I get paid. Go run your little world."
-Malcolm Reynolds

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Friday, April 2, 2004 3:13 PM

THATWEIRDGIRL

Quote:
Originally posted by athertonwing:
well i'm no aging gamer....i dont remember that game with the ping pong thing....i'm one of the playstation generation. But i agree a Firefly game would be amazing.The one thing that pissed me off so much about the show going was the fact that no other show has made me want to explore the worlds in it so much, i long to see the back streets of Ariel or go exploring on white fall we need a firefly game!

I usually feel pretty young, then something like this shows up on the boards. I remember pong.

While I would like to see a Firefly game, I worry about the quality of the game. The Matrix game was not good. Most movie titles have not transfered well to the consoles. Heck, most console games haven't worked on the consoles. The majority of the games out there are poorly done. Bad writing, bad story, bad graphics, bad bugs, etc...they are just bad.

What kind of game would the Firefly game be? Platformer? Mission based? Online community? Maybe a KOTOR type thing? I don't know. I think I would be happier knowing the series was left with good memories, not a bad game.

www.thatweirdgirl.com

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Friday, April 2, 2004 4:13 PM

GUNRUNNER

Well if there is to be a Firefly game their would need to be a developer willing to listen to what the community desires. Sonalysts's handling of the upcoming SCS-Dangerous Waters is a prime example. They involved the community from the get go, and will release a game that will surely revolutionize the naval sim industry.

We need to find our Sonalysts.

The Firefly CCG Web Site:
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/Bllm119/firefly_ccg_web_site.htm
>Help out today!

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