Has the medium reached a creative plateau?

Discussion in 'Video and Computer Games' started by Belgian guy, Aug 22, 2012.

  1. Belgian guy

    Belgian guy Member+

    Club Brugge
    Belgium
    Aug 19, 2002
    Belgium
    Club:
    Club Brugge KV
    Modern gaming is relatively young, around two decades old.
    In that time, a series of genres and subgenres have been defined, all with their own conventions.
    With the big studios swallowing the smaller ones whole, I feel like much of the risk taking has disappeared from the industry. Like big movie studios, they now invest their money in sure things (shooters) or those genres they know there is a market for.

    In short, I feel like it has been a long time since a game really blew me away, both in terms of concept and execution. The last time was probably Knights of the Old Republic. Is the industry increasingly suffering from creative anemia?
     
  2. Dante

    Dante Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 19, 1998
    Upstate NY
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    I don't think so, there's a lot of indie games that I found to be infinitely better than a lot of the same old crap studios like Activision are putting out.

    Not to mention all the mobile games that have come out, there's still a lot that's out there that can be considered new and groundbreaking.

    Maybe you're just looking at the wrong games?
     
  3. Belgian guy

    Belgian guy Member+

    Club Brugge
    Belgium
    Aug 19, 2002
    Belgium
    Club:
    Club Brugge KV
    Perhaps.

    Can you give me some examples of stuff you consider really innovative that has been released in the last couple of years?
     
  4. NORML

    NORML Member+

    Aug 9, 2002
    Lake Wobegon, MN
    Club:
    NSC Minnesota Stars
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Has the medium hit a plateau? Yes. Has it peaked? No. I really believe this generation of gaming saw all major studios have to focus on connectivity and how people experiencing a story/game together works. And I would blame that transition on why there was no KoToR for you this generation, Belgian Guy. I bet if Bioware wasn’t bought up by EA and told to spend all this time and money on competing with World of Warcraft the Mass Effect series could have surpassed KoToR. My hope is that with the coming of the next generation the major studios have started to find that balance of innovation with connectivity and that (optimistic) hope is based on the trailer for Watch Dogs.

    I also agree with Dante that there is still innovation out there but it’s at a smaller scale. I still think Limbo/Baird were great takes on the platforming genre that had the player think, wonder and feel the game more than other platformers had in the past. I can safely say Journey was first game that made me (in the context of the game) care and miss the strangers I was playing with. And I think Portal was an extremely innovative take on the FPS genre.

    My hope is as game consoles begin to meld more and more with PC’s; and eventually with stronger tablets, the increase of cheaper more direct distribution, the growth of the indie development scene will force the major studios hand in taking more risks in trying to venture into getting gamers to experience other emotions beyond that of a pure rush of adrenaline.

    This may be a hodge podge of mess but whatev’s I gotta work and wanted to get out an early idea/take on the questions. When I have time I hope to come back and blather some more. J
     
  5. Dante

    Dante Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 19, 1998
    Upstate NY
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    Like NORML already mentioned, games like Limbo and Braid really made an impact. Also, Machinarium is a great little game. Games like The Last Guy and Flower on the PS3 also offer innovation and something artsy (in the case of Flower). Even Little Big Planet was innovative.

    The games are there, but there's a gluttony of FPS and sports games that dominate the market these days and get all the attention.
     

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