Category: Editorials

May 17, 2015

Game Publishers Need To Start Investing In The Long Tail

Times are Changing...

In 2014, the ten top best selling Video Games generated about $1.7 Billion in revenue across all platforms. Sounds like an awful amount of money, right? Well, what if I told you that the nearly two billion dollars described was only 1/50th of the estimated total sales for the entire games industry?

$100 Billion dollars, that is the number that Video Games sales as a whole are expected to have reached last year. Meaning over $90 billion was earned by games that most people have never heard of, let alone played. I'm not only here to talk about how this is possible, but also how publishers could use it to their advantage.

"Hit" Culture is Dying, and That's okay.

It all comes down to something called “The Long Tail”. This is when the total sum of less popular products match or outsell the more commonly praised products in their respected industry. Let’s look at an example of exactly what I mean.

This example is for the music industry, but the basic idea applies to any industry. The further to the right of these Long Tail graphs, the less popular a product is and therefore the less sales it receives. Although there are many unpopular songs, the total sales (represented by the red and yellow areas under the graph) are equal. Many of you most likely believe that by “Long Tail” I speak about the idea that the sales for a game start high but quickly shrink. And while that one aspect of the Long Tail Theory is covered beautifully in this article, it is not what I, nor many readers focused on while reading Chris Anderson’s original book on the subject. What Doucet’s article explains is how sales for one product start high, but create a Long Tail as time goes on. Anderson however, describes the Long Tail as showing how products that have a lower demand are actually more valuable to the distributor as long as they are made accessible to the consumer.

Yeah that’s quite a mouthful, and we’ll take a look at exactly what each part of Anderson's definition means later.

So to keep us all on the same page, keep the idea in mind that products with high demand can and sell just as much as all the products with low demand, as shown in the second graph below.

There is a reason this Long Tail area will continue to grow, and possibly overcome the short head, and we'll explore that later. It's not only possible that the Long Tail could take over this graph over time, but consumers have actually already started to make it happen. But before we can start to decide how publishers can begin to make this transition along with it's consumers, we need to understand why this is happening.

Long Tails Are Becoming the Greater Area.

Let’s take a look at one more industry really quick. (I will get to the games, I promise!) The Television industry has a bit more history than video games, so the examples are more dramatic. In 1954, about 74% of TV viewing homes tuned in to watch the Hit show of the time “I love Lucy”. In 2014 the Most watched TV series, “the Big Bang Theory”, only drew in 13% of TV viewing households. But, thanks to the Long Tail, this industry isn’t failing, and the most popular show capturing less of the total viewers is a really good thing! It means consumers have a lot of choices when it comes to watching TV.

So how does this apply to our Industry? Lets take another look at the "top 10 sellers of 2014" example from earlier. With The Video Game industry being as young as it is, our Long Tail Graphs have started to grow one sided much faster. In addition, last year (2014) we had a laundry list of "Hit" games that disappointed the general public, making even more room for the Long Tail to grow.

For this Graph I’ve declared the short head short as the top ten best selling games of 2014. When you see how much more our hypothetical long tail here outweighs these “hit” games, it’s hard to see why publishers would even want to try and invest in a game that cracks the top ten. But why is this the case now? Surely there must be a reason we have decided to consume more games that don’t target a broader audience. Well there is.

An Easier Way to Purchase Product

Digital Distribution has changed the way we consume all of our media. With it, publishers and retailers can offer more choice to consumers. The method of easily obtaining our entertainment is what finishes the formula Anderson set forth in his book, “Make the product easy to find and easy to buy.”
So why does digital media give the consumer so much more choice than traditional retailers?

Well a local GameStop only has so much shelf space 276570601

and they need to reserve it for games that they know will sell, games in the top 10 or top twenty on the graph. Anything less popular and more niche runs a much higher risk of never being purchased, which is bad for business. Why risk wasting such valuable shelf space on something no one in the local area might enjoy?

With a distribution system like Steam, your shelf space is infinite and the more niche products you can offer to your customers, the more games you can sell from the long tail, increasing its impact even more. Suddenly you're not only liberated from your shelf space limitation, but also your local neighborhood limitation, where the number of niche tastes is significantly less than the number of niche tastes around the world.

The main issue with something like this, as we've all seen with Steam lately, is that if left unchecked, your store and market will become flooded with products that brings down the prestige of your service. When you see the latest hot title next to baby's first video game, it defaces it's value in a sense.

So what effect is this going to have on our beloved games industry? Well unless you’ve lived under a rock, you’ve probably already noticed the Long Tail’s changes upon our industry. And even if you don’t quite see that yet, surely you’ve noticed the impact digital distribution has had on the Games Industry. I mentioned Steam earlier, and that’s because they understand how offering more is letting them exploit the long tail for success, but how can more big publishers and retailers start to capitalize on this?

A Change In Product Location, And Now A Change in Products

Game sizes need to shrink, as well as budgets. Not every game needs to be GTA V. And trying to make the top selling game year after year has shown time and time again that it’s not quite what consumers want. But the big games that are focused on for 5+ years tend to be. They've had more love, care and time poured into them than the yearly Call of Duty game. It would be silly to try and ask publishers not to attempt to make a game that is huge, sells, millions, and brings in millions more. Instead of forcing the entire team to do so every single year, I have a different idea.

Plan and make one large game with a 5+ year development cycle, and while a good chunk of your team works on that, have your other teams in other cities, countries, all focus on making smaller games than appeal to a niche audience. Games like Gat Outa Hell, Blood Dragon, Child of Light, Grow Home, Infamous: First Light are all great steps in the right direction and have shown that the long tail can reach out to niche audiences and land a hit! Blood Dragon in particular is a game we would have never seen without the long tail, and it certainly wouldn't have seen the success it did without it either.

Now we all know big publishers don't want to risk money on these niche products, it's because they don't know if a market exists for it, and that's also okay. Not everyone is going to want these games, but they are much cheaper to make because of the smaller scope and ability to re-use some assets from pre-existing games. There’s a lot of merit to be had from the old saying, no risk no reward. And while risking developing and marketing for the Long-Tail could result in said game never finding an audience, when the risk pays off it’s healthy for business and for the industry as a whole. Hell, a small game might find such a strong audience that it demands larger future sequels, and could spawn it’s own franchise, or even genres.

Invisible Inc. (shown above) is a strange blend of Stealth and Turn Based Strategy. This is another example of game that would most likely have not seen the light of day if the developers (Klei) avoided making niche products. Klei also found success in their previous Long Tail orientated titles, Mark of the Ninja and Don't Starve.

Moving Forward: Embrace the Changes Coming

I'd be willing to bet a lot that I'm not alone in the recent frustrations with many of the methods publishers have been attempting to avoid change and draw out big hits as long as possible. From season passes, on disc DLC, in game micro-transactions, collectors editions, definitive editions, pre-order bonuses, and other negative buzz words.
All this stuff does, is attempt to patch up a giant sinking ship, when instead you should be getting on the smaller and safer life raft.

Instead of focusing developers on small monetary practices to incorporate into their games, which I doubt they are passionate about in the first place, let developers explore some of the weird ideas for games that they have. Throw a programmer or two with a team of artists and make a wacky game prototype and see if the rest of the team has fun with it. It's in this way publishers can utilize the thousands of talented people at their finger tips, while coming up with small ideas for small products, with small costs, for a small audience. And like the graphs themselves, the money won't be huge for each game, but make enough of them for more niche markets, and I think we can see a new era in gaming.

With the norm being a variety of small games made quickly, and being able to look forward to a big I.P. sequel every four or five years, gaming will be able to grow healthily again. Where consumers, developers, and even publishers alike can get together doing what we all love to do, which is to play and make video games. Not exploit or pad them out, but look forward and embrace the change that's coming. As a wiser individual than me once said, "Great Art is not changed by its Industry, Great Art changes its Industry."

Sources:
Chris Anderson - The Long Tail: Why The Future of Business is Selling Less of More
Gartner on Worldwide Video Game Market
The Fiscal Times, 10 Best Selling Games in 2014
Lars Doucet - The Stegosaurus Tail: when "The Long Tail" grows spikes.

May 15, 2015

Games and Meditation: Enhance Your Calm, Spartan 117

At the end of a long day, I often like playing Tetris just to clear my head of thoughts. When it's hard for me to sleep, I picture doing a run of familiar game levels, such as World 1-1 of Super Mario Bros, or the Green Hill Zone in Sonic the Hedgehog, and it doesn't take long to calm down and drift off.

As it turns out, games and meditation have a deep link. Ogyen Trinley Dorje, a high ranking Buddhist leader recognized by China, Tibet, and India, and head of the Karma Kagyu school, believes that video games are better than meditation for taking out aggression. There are further reaching benefits of video games for the mind and body, and we'll explore some of these after the break.

Kick Some Ass

Expressing aggression in a video game can often be beneficial. Opposing the views often conveyed in mass media, video games do not nurture violent thoughts, but can be used to release it in a more passive way. Dorje elaborates in an interview with TechDirt, "So, for me sometimes it can be a relief, a kind of decompression to just play some video games. If I’m having some negative thoughts or feelings, video games are one way in which I can release that energy in the context of the illusion of the game. I feel better afterwards. The aggression that comes out in the video game satiates whatever desire I might have to express that feeling. For me, that’s very skillful because when I do that I don’t have to go and hit anyone over the head."

Rampaging in Grand Theft Auto V, mowing down a field of soldiers in Dynasty Warriors, or bashing baddies with multi hit combos in Bayonetta can be extremely satisfying in this regard. Fighting games can be cathartic as well, as long as you're on a winning streak!

Just Chill Out

Not all meditative experiences are about dealing with an overpowering emotion. Meditation can be about focusing on one thing while letting go of any distractions that may enter your thoughts. It is possible to induce such relaxation through repetitive tasks which can quiet the mind. Daily chores in Animal Crossing or Harvest moon, a casual dive in Endless Ocean, and whisking across a field in Flower can be quite calming. Grinding for levels or replaying a favorite you've memorized while listening to a podcast can be a good way to unwind.

We can also engage in a complex thought process to distract us from negative thoughts, breaking free from a circular pattern that could otherwise become a crippling obsession. Solving a puzzle in the appropriately named Zen Bound, contemplating an advanced Picross board, or a more active challenge such as Tetris and even a racing game can allow us to engage in an elaborate mental exercise. Keeping your brain busy with something constructive can help conquer a ceaseless and futile cognitive discourse.

Escape Reality Temporarily

Losing ourselves completely in a story can be an escape that allows us to clear our heads and later return to our daily problems with a fresh perspective. Just like a challenging boss can be overcome on the first try after taking a break, so can a real life roadblock after we come back with a renewed calm. Chrono Trigger is a perennial favorite, wandering the vast world in Skyrim feels freeing, and it's hard to remain stressed while playing the beautiful and whimsical Ni no Kuni. All of these games have incredible soundtracks, some of which can soothe your thoughts, and others that will hook you with their catchy melodies.

A Healthy Dose of Games

While combating negativity improves our mind, games can also aid our bodies. Dulling physical pain, a good play session can allow patients to recover more easily, and help those who suffer from a condition experience some form of relief. This idea is central to the focus of the Penny Arcade Child's Play charity, which has raised over $33 million dollars through contributions since its inauguration in 2003.

Free Dive by BreakAway Games creates a virtual world in which patients hunt for treasures in the tropics, swimming with dolphins and schools of fish along the way. It was designed to distract children from chronic pain, immersing them in an environment that promotes calmness.

Dr. Hunter Hoffman allows burn victims to explore a computer construct called SnowWorld, a frozen surreal adventure filled with challenges. Using VR headsets, patients are alleviated from constant agony. "Pain requires conscious attention. Humans have a limited amount of this and it's hard to do two things at once," Hoffman states. SpiderWorld is designed to help those suffering from arachnophobia, allowing them to adapt within a safe environment.

He is also attempting to help those with post traumatic stress disorder, such as survivors of the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks. "Virtual 'exposure' therapy allows access to the event a step at a time, starting with getting up on the morning of September 11th and gradually working up to the most disturbing events of the memory. It is a controlled way of eliciting and processing the memories."

Do you find yourself using games to relieve stress and tension? What games do you use, and for what situations? Are there any games you avoid for these purposes? Let us know your thoughts!

May 14, 2015

Uncharted 4 Has Surprisingly Detailed Face Animations

Uncharted 4's developers are raising the bar for facial animation. With twice the granularity in motion capture detail, more complex models, and finer skeletal control, expressions come across very convincingly.

In an interview with GamesTM, Naughty Dog describes their achievement by comparing it to their well regarded hit, The Last of Us. "Think about that, how detailed Joel and Elli's pained facial expressions were, how well the game captured the respective actors ... Now, the faces have anywhere between 300 and 500 bones," says Josh Scherr, writer on Uncharted 4. That's almost five times the complexity.

Uncharted 4 is targeting 60 frames per second, and although animation is recorded from actors at 30 frames per second, interpolation will be used to smooth it out during gameplay and cutscenes, a technique that was also used in previous games.

"If you look at the first Uncharted and how that looked versus how The Last of Us looked versus how The Last Of Us looked... I have difficulty fathoming that we'll have that kind of graphical leap in the next several years. The reality is, we probably will as we learn the systems better, so it's all up from here, and that's exciting."

Source: GamesTM

May 11, 2015

Diversity Is Good For Us

Words by Greywolfe

One of my biggest pet peeves in World of Warcraft – while I was playing it – was that there was no body slider for your character. This basically meant that I was stuck with a generically sized human [for the couple of minutes I played that human] where he should have been the portly, friendly, old wizard.

It’s frustrated me for a long time that in most games with a character generator of some persuasion, the default for avatars is generally “muscle-bound Adonis.”

But this is just one part of a bigger problem. If we are to accept diversity in this realm, there’s lots of other realms we need to accept diversity on as well. It’s not enough to just say “let there be more types of player avatar.” No. We have to accept that diversity comes to us in many ways – in the games we play as much as the people who are part of the gaming industry.

I am willing to bet money most of us don't look like this.

Are You An Adonis?

There’s a stereotype for gamers that has held for the last near-forty-years. Most of us fall into two general categories. Either we’re “that bearded fat guy who spends their time playing video games” or we’re the “thin pasty kid who doesn’t go near the light because they’re playing video games.” In both cases, of course, we’re recluses and we don’t want to deal with the outside world, preferring “mom’s basement” to sunshine and baseball.

The thing is, we’re not like that. Not at all. There’s many of us and we all run the gamut of what a human being can look like. Sure. Some of us are the fat, bearded guy. And absolutely, some of us are the thin, pasty kid who doesn’t want to go into the light. But we’re more diverse than that. And so, of course, developers really ought to be catering to that disparity in looks. Not everyone wants to be the eighteen year old, blond, muscled man who can shoot twin pistols with the accuracy of an assassin.

Cellular Telephones are basically synonymous with casual gaming.

Casual Gaming: The Great Sin

Since gamers come in all shapes and sizes, it stands to reason, then, that we are also interested in many different types of games. Naturally, most of us here will lean toward more “core” experiences [whatever that word actually means] such as the next Forza outing, or the next hard-as-nails From Software game, or we might be looking forward to the new Tomb Raider [though that exclusivity for the next game? Get that out of here, Microsoft.]

But if there’s one thing I’ve learned across forty-odd years of playing video games, it’s that they too come in all shapes and sizes. While it’s true – for example – that Another World was super hard [it really was occasionally quite ridiculous] it was also very short. In fact, Another World is arguably shorter than a game that got a whole lot of flak for just being short. [I’m referring, of course, to The Order: 1866 a game which dripped style over substance.]
While it wasn’t a critical success, games like The Order: 1866 are somewhat beneficial to the gaming community at large, because that particular game showed that there is a desire for games that aren’t set in a prototypical fantasy world. Or a high tech world with guns in it.

And it’s a pretty short step from “a short game” to casual games. Most of us frown on the fact that casual experiences even exist, and yet, we fail to look around us. In the book market, there are many, many instances of “casual” books – bodice rippers that no one takes particularly seriously – and yet, they sell. Horror novels that are basically just an author spouting blood and gore across two hundred pages. Again, there’s nothing particularly “serious” or “deep” about these books. Yet, they sell and book readers have adapted to the fact that there are all stripes of reader in their circles.

The same is arguably true of movies. No one’s ever really going to take the horror-comedy fusion of “Scary Movie” very seriously. It’s a casual movie experience. You turn it on, you put your brain in neutral and you have a good time.

So, the hue and cry over casual gaming confuses me. Sure, there are bad casual games – not all of them can be “Plants Vs Zombies” good, but that’s – again – true of even “core experiences” like Call Of Duty. I get some of it, though. The process of taking Might and Magic and reducing it to Braveland Wizard might seem “bad” to some, but I view it as a small step. In other words, it’s a great way to get my non-games-playing-friends interested in that sort of experience.

We are all human. And we all have different interests.

We're Everyday People

The other thing that kind of confuses me is the vitriol we heap upon people who criticize gaming. Gaming has faults [every industry has faults] and it’s great that these people exist. I’ll even go one step further. It’s humbling that these people even care given the assaults they have to endure.

Critics exist in every art-based medium. People have passed commentary on paintings for as long as painting has been around. The same is true of movies and books. If we can’t accept that there are people pointing out that there are issues in our industry then, quite frankly, we don’t deserve to be treated as “adults” – which we’re frustrated about already.

Looking at gaming through different lenses is important. It’s the only way we can grow. We cannot keep churning out Call of Duty and Madden games forever, that’s a giant gaming cul-de-sac. In this way, it is vital that we have criticism of our medium. Criticism means deeper stories. It means more varied protagonists. It means more interesting mechanics. In short, it can only be good for the industry.

As I've said at the beginning of this piece, gamers come in all shapes and sizes – and we often criticise games ourselves. We don’t like mechanic x or the world that these developers built just wasn’t fleshed out enough. So we’re guilty of “taking apart” our own games. The fact that there are people who are interested in the form that don’t necessarily “play games” the way we do can do us all a favour by pointing out things we’ve never even thought of.

Conclusion

I hope our future games are more diverse. I hope that we all come to recognize that, regardless of what someone looks like, or what they believe, we are all – as I said in my Platform Wars article – gamers here.

Images Courtesy of Pixabay:
Pixabay

May 7, 2015

Jye’s Opinion: Platform Wars Might Be Beneficial

I prefer dedicated game consoles. I've owned a PC, and even enjoyed the experience of tweaking the latest hardware to squeeze out every drop of performance, but I've decided a while ago it's just not for me. There are many non-technical reasons for this, specifically that I don't want to do a whole lot with my gaming system. I just want it to work. I can still play games as far back as 1978, and all I have to do is hook the system up to my TV and pop in the game. I can even buy cheap collections with dozens of older games for a modern console, and play that way. Maybe I can't do it all on my current system, but I've just never gotten rid of my older systems and their software because of that.

If you're annoyed by exclusives, you're probably not the only one, but sometimes that's the nature of the game. You've got the Kinect on the Xbox and Xbox One, the Wii has a unique controller, and the Wii U as well. The PSOne introduced a unique layout with dual analog sticks and dual shoulder buttons on each side that proved useful enough to make the basic setup of most gamepads today. The PlayStation 3 had motion sensing used in a few distinct ways in games like Flower and Heavy Rain, and the PlayStation 4 has a touchpad that simplifies certain actions such as scrolling or touch gestures. All of these can be used to deliver an experience only optimal on a particular platform.

The Theory

Yes, the hardware inside today's consoles is largely similar, and the game library could very well be unified with not much reason to keep them tied to one particular manufacturer's console. The idea of competing platforms without much difference from each other, barring exclusive games, may seem asinine on the surface but in reality, certain games may never have been made were it not for these deals.

Games that are subsidized by the console's manufacturer have the opportunity to bring something unique to the table with a high profile. Games like flOw, Flower, Journey, and The Unfinished Swan represent some indie games that would not have been possible without cooperation from a platform partner, and this would have required an exclusivity deal. Street Fighter V was not a focus for Capcom, and may not have been possible in its current form were it not for a partnership. A lot of marketing, development resources, and funding is provided, therefore risk is absorbed. Likewise, Mass Effect was heavily supported and promoted by Microsoft, and was a gamble considering the presumption from the outset that the story arc would span three games.

Bloodborne received a huge boost of support and cooperation from Sony, resulting in a faster turnaround time (developed in about two years), and fantastic presentation due to optimization for the platform. Regardless of the similarities between the Xbox One and PS4, they share a different underlying API structure, and porting a game written on one target platform is not as simple as copying over the code and clicking "Compile" on another development kit. Even the differences in hardware still have to be accounted for. Getting a game to perform well and look good is not a matter of fiddling with sliders until it runs at a reliable frame rate.

The Hardware

This is why within the PC itself, it's difficult to get a consistent experience across all operating systems and game engines. There are multiple tools available to developers, choosing which graphics API to use, particle and physics engine, or even what complete game framework to invest in. Whether you have an in-house or pre-packaged solution, you have to take into account the varied specifications the end user will have, meaning you need to do a lot of work to make your assets look good on very basic hardware all the way up to advanced. Everyone wants to feel like they are getting the most out of their hardware, from the power user to the person who can't afford the latest but still considers the PC to be their main gaming machine. With all of these variables, a lot of the time, games end up broken on day one on certain configurations and a smooth experience is not always in the cards.

Sure, 60fps and full native resolution with the highest visual fidelity is not a necessity for fun, but personally I want to at least have a guaranteed baseline on any game. A console will at least render every game playable and enjoyable for about five years, with a fraction of the worries or hassles. It may not look as incredible if you had a chance to update your hardware every year, but again it must be stressed that the highest visual fidelity is not a necessity. With that said, considering that you do have to stick with the same hardware for five years, trying to determine a performance leader is still somewhat of an issue.

The Software

Because of software exclusivity, hardware is not the ultimate determining factor when you make the choice of what system to purchase. It's in the parent company's interest to make their system as attractive as possible, and that means a unique library at some level. In today's risk averse market, making a new IP with a unique premise that may or may not take hold, could result in the loss of millions of dollars. Through cooperation by an experienced developer and platform holder, both of these issues can be resolved, resulting in a quality production for one specific system. These games now have a chance to exist, and some extra freedom and resources are given to the project, along with consumer visibility.

Due to the desire to have a constant stream of AAA hits, such people might be missing out on some gems by turning up their nose. Because not everyone is a core gamer, many will expect high quality and production values, and without these, a game may not catch the attention of enough people to thrive. A lot of people are simply turned off by the idea of another retro themed game, maybe something that looks like it was made in flash, or a minimalist abastract presentation. It's a shame, but this results in many great titles being overlooked until they have a huge budget behind them. The biggest example that comes to mind, is the huge hit Portal, whose predecessor was Narbacular Drop, which was considered a curiosity by those who knew it even existed.

There are some counter examples of high profile indie games on a smaller budget, such as Braid which was self funded by its creator, and Fez, a five year long work of love done in spare time and a government loan. Even then, it eventually had to rely on a funding partnership that involved a cut of the profits. More recently, projects have sought funding through Kickstarter. After being burned so often by ventures that went nowhere, solicited donations are not as easy to come by. Because of this, a large up front investment in something more than a few mock-up screenshots has to be presented by the developer.

The Fun

The platform wars aren't all bad. Because of them, there is more incentive to develop high quality experiences, building a library that is worthy of the cost of entry.

The truth is, today, no matter which platform you choose, you're going to have a good time. Maybe you'll even get in on all of them so you don't miss a thing, whether you spend a lot of money to do that initially or pick up the system and games at the tail end of a cycle for cheap. Fun games are always fun.

Don't worry too much about what platform you choose, or how many of them, just have a good time!

May 5, 2015

Opinion: Platform Wars Help No One

Words By Greywolfe

I am part of what is known as the “PC Master Race.” That is, I don’t like or want a console. There are many technical reasons for this: I can do a whole lot more with my PC. I can update my PC to have better specifications over the years. I can play a whole host of games from as far back as 1978. So the list of reasons I remain part of the “PC Master Race” is pretty long, but I remember the arguments from way back – back when there were a number of computer alternatives: the ZX Spectrum, the Amiga, the Commodore 64. I remember the heated debates around which were better and I always remember thinking they were pretty silly arguments.

Sure, each one had different specifications under the hood: they all boasted different colour palettes and different sound chips and different access methods, [some used tape while others used disks] but in the end, these distinctions didn’t really matter to me. What mattered was playing games.

Fast forward forty years: we’re still having the same arguments, and they’re still silly.

Pick left for Xbox One exclusives! Pick right for Playstation Exclusives!

Exclusivity Sucks

About the only reason to care about which platform you’re investing in anymore are the exclusives. And boy, let me tell you, exclusivity is a silly practise. Especially in the modern era. Why? Because three [!] of the four “current generation” of platforms are all PC’s on the inside. (PS, Xbox and of course the PC itself)

But even way back when, exclusivity was still a problem. Though, because of the wildly different technical aspects of creating games back then – the ZX Spectrum version could never look as good as the Amiga version – this was somewhat forgivable, but just right now? All exclusivity is doing is making some publisher happy.

Well, and the console makers. They’re most certainly happy for you to pick sides, because we’re a consumerist culture and brands [alongside money] matter the most.

60 fps! 120 hours of gameplay! 50 million spells!

Specifications Are Largely Irrelevant

One of the more problematic eras of modern gaming is that they’re trying to sell incredibly silly bullet points as a reason to buy a game. “Our game runs at 60fps!” You know what? I don’t care. As long as your game is a good game, I will pick it up. Please sell me on the gameplay, instead.

What I am getting at is that the chips and electronics inside a console and/or PC are largely irrelevant. In the end, they all allow you to play games, so fighting about which is “better” becomes an inconsequential war of “he said, she said.”

As I said in the introduction: we had these arguments way back when computing was reasonably young, and while I don’t want to say that it was entirely justified, you could have made a technical case for one being “better” than another, based on specifications alone, but what mattered most to any given gamer was the library of games on a given system.

I would argue, in fact, that this should be your primary reason for deciding to buy a console or PC. Look at the library, think about what you’re likely to play, remember that we’re all gamers and go forth to buy your platform of choice.

Joystick? Mouse? Trackpad? It doesn't matter. It matters that you're playing games.

Everyone Is A Gamer

What should matter more to everyone concerned is that we’re all gamers, here. We all share the same hobby and we should be united in that. Does your buddy “just prefer” the Xbox One? That’s fine. As long as he’s happy and you can hang out together and play games together, that should be all that you care about.

Let me let you in on a little secret. I have an intense dislike for Steam. I dislike that Valve has managed to capture the hearts and minds of the PC faithful and that those folks have invested so much money into their Steam library.

This is a topic for another day, but the reason I dislike Steam has a lot to do with the fact that Steam is basically a Digital Rights Management tool. Sure, Steam does a lot of things right – making it easier to connect to your friends, making it simpler to stream gaming footage to interested parties [so long as they have a Steam account, of course ;)] and it has helped pull some games into the limelight that wouldn’t necessarily have come to our attention, [Garry’s mod springs immediately to mind.] but it’s still DRM.

If it weren’t for that, I would certainly enjoy the fruits of the Valve tree, but even here, Valve is missing a huge, huge boat. I vastly prefer GOG. GOG used to be predominantly a service catering to people who wanted to buy older games, but have subsequently gotten more and more modern titles – as such, they’ve rebranded and are now focussed on more timely releases.

Valve – and all the other walled garden systems: Origin, UPlay, Xbox Live, the Playstation Network – all of these are disconnected from each other, missing a vital point: gamers want to hang out with each other and play games with one another.

Forgetting for a moment that there’s a vast divide between controller based gaming and keyboard based gaming, wouldn’t it be great if we could just all share the same amorphous space known as gaming?

Clearly, the walled garden systems [something we were very wary of on the internet in the 80’s and 90’s] are there to protect the publisher behind the walled garden, but it would be great if I could just use one username and password and see all my Xbox friends alongside my Playstation friends.

Conclusion

Hurling invective at one another for buying a particular console or computer isn’t going to move us forward as a collective. Instead, I think we should celebrate when someone buys their console of choice, knowing that they’re going to get many hours of entertainment out of that purchase.

After all, we’re all gamers here.

Pictures courtesy of Pixabay
Pixabay

May 1, 2015

How Bloodborne Became the First Souls Game to Get Me Hooked

If you've played Hidetaka Miyazaki's latest game, it won't be too surprising that so many people keep talking about it. If you haven't, maybe it's worth a closer look. I was hesitant to pick up Bloodborne because of everything I heard, and learned first hand, about Demon's Souls and Dark Souls. They're difficult, demand a huge effort up front from the player due to the unique nature of its gameplay and complete lack of hand holding in any way. The hype surrounding the game and desire to see the latest in graphics on my new console were too much to resist. Besides, Metacritic average and critic scores seemed ridiculously high, either everyone reviewing it was a fan of Souls, which is highly unlikely due to the niche appeal, or the game truly broke new ground and was able to please a wide audience.

If you haven't played it, what might help to explain Bloodborne's new found success would be comparing it to my experience with Capcom's Resident Evil 4. When I first popped the disc in my GameCube, it was to watch someone else play through. I knew I wasn't good at these games, but I still wanted to enjoy the experience so I just intended on watching my friend go through it. It's the same reason a lot of people will just YouTube a game nowadays. To my surprise, he was dying over and over in the first area for an hour straight. He was ready to give up, but I wanted to take a stab at it. Even though he finished the previous four games, and I was all thumbs when it came to RE, there was something here that made me think I could do better.

"Why are you going so slow and methodically? These guys are just mobbing you!" I just rushed straight into the thick of trouble and started capping zombies left and right, drawing them out towards me and picking them off. My friend sat there bewildered as I was easily making progress using a method that contradicted his entire approach. Despite his assurances it would result in virtual suicide, I had found a successful strategy. Past games had enforced certain concepts so rigorously that it didn't even occur to him to play a different way. Once he got over these preconceptions, he was easily able to fall into the game's fantastic new groove, and as for me, I was hooked on a Resident Evil game for the first time.

Bloodborne is similarly a game changer for the Souls series. It doesn't make the game more accessible in a broad sense, but it does open it up to a different audience via the presentation. Firstly, the Victorian setting and heavy influence drawn from the works of H. P. Lovecraft brings an aesthetic not too often used in recent games, attracting those who may snub a medieval fantasy setting typical of most RPGs. More importantly however, is the focus shift towards speed that encourages taking the initiative and lunging at an opening, instead of fending off advances and slowly waiting for the right moment to strike as in past Souls games. This truly makes it feel like a different game.

This change of pace spins on its head the formula most players used to claim victory in previous Souls entries. No wonder "Souls" is nowhere to be found in the title. It may share a lot of similarities, but here Miyazaki has completely disrupted expectations. There are certain newcomers who will snap in easily in a way that they just couldn't with previous entries, and while veterans can certainly adjust, they may have to shift strategies and learn some new tricks. Bloodborne has something special to offer to old and newcomers alike.

As you learn how to deal with situations that get iteratively more complex, you get procedurally more proficient with your move set and weapon so by the end of the game you feel like you've really mastered something. The key is in how the game design facilitates the development of your skills, introducing new concepts gradually and then pulling the rug out from under you so you have to use the same moves in a different way. This is somewhat similar to the formula used by Shigeru Miyamoto in Super Mario Bros' level design philosophy.

Bloodborne keeps you on edge in a way that other games don't, you'll find yourself worrying about what's around the next corner and advancing cautiously. Jump scares and dark brooding areas actually work here because you already feel afraid. This engagement with your character and the surroundings is certainly a result of fearing consequences for sloppy play. It's amazing how much more immersed you get when your next milestone is practically in the palm of your hand, but at the same time you dread any surprise that may snatch away victory. I've escaped ceilings that caved in on me, flaming boulders that came tumbling down a circular staircase, and dodged giant guillotines after accidentally setting off a trap. Paying attention and reacting swiftly are greatly rewarded, and there's nothing like the sensation of success and even pride from overcoming.

I normally play games on easy, hate frustration, and don't want to hit any unbalanced difficulty spikes down the road. With Bloodborne, you're stuck with the game's only difficulty level. This may seem like a setback to some, but really it's allowed the developers to hone the experience, making sure the entire thing is fair and balanced. Let's also get this out of the way, Bloodborne is not punishingly difficult. True, if you're just going to give up after trying the same exact thing five times in a row, you probably won't have a good time. If you're willing to focus completely, observe closely, and experiment if you meet with failure, then you'll easily meet success.

The experience is completely rewarding, and it's refreshing to expect that the player approach things thoughtfully. All of the tutorials, repetition of blatant cues, overt telegraphing, hand holding and exposition that allow even the most detached gamer to succeed are not going to be found here. If you missed something, well too bad for you. Things might be a lot more difficult than necessary.

After 70 hours of game time, I've only had about two frustrating moments*, which involved optional bosses. I felt the resolve to continue, because I was having so much fun otherwise that it wasn't worth it to let these moments stall me out. I've now gotten the platinum trophy, my third ever. Typically, achievements and trophies are usually the furthest thing from my mind while playing a game, but Bloodborne becomes an obsession. Having it out of my system is bittersweet, I can freely move on to other things, but on the other hand I completely savored the moments I was able to dedicate to the game, becoming completely intoxicated by the experience.

Being so hooked, after completing Bloodborne I found new reason to go back to Demon's Souls and Dark Souls. I gave these games a few good hours each. Due to all of my training, I was able to open up shortcuts. I could take on enemies easily, dodging at the right time, and striking when I saw a weakness. Using the shield as I had my gun in Bloodborne, I was able to defend myself properly. Everything seemed to come naturally, instead of feeling like I hit a brick wall when I originally tried my hand at the Souls series. I still don't think I'll continue with these games, the graphics have aged poorly, and the generic fantasy styling isn't engaging me the same way the horror themes did. Still, I'm confident I could do well should I continue.

I'm completely excited for what's next in the series, and hope that Bloodborne gets its own sequel, or that there's a new Souls spinoff with a different setting. I hope that as many people as possible are exposed, because there is something truly unique and special here that is now more accessible than ever. Are you interested at all in Bloodborne? Were you hesitant for the same reasons? What type of setting would you like to see in a Souls game? I'd like to hear your thoughts, please let us know in the comments!

* (Minor Spoilers) I've since learned that I would have had a much easier time if I would have finished the game and started again under New Game+, retaining my progress in the chalice dungeons, and gaining many more Blood Echoes from enemies the second time through. This would have allowed me to level up faster and overcome some of the challenges in a brute force way. Still, I was able to take these tougher enemies on at a lower level and succeed without too much trouble once I found the proper approach.

April 30, 2015

Game Changers: The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion

The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (Xbox 360) (Bethesda Game Studios, 2006)

Game Changers is a semi-regular column featuring games which have had a significant impact on me over the years. Games that were so incredibly stunning and awe-inspiring, they changed my conception of what a game could be at the time. For the first Game Changers article, I wrote about the '80s arcade classic Out Run. It was one of the earliest games to have such a significant impact on me. This time I decided to write about something a little more recent.

Oblivion was not my first experience with the Elder Scrolls series. After hearing nothing but good things about The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, I went out and picked up the Game of the Year Edition for the original Xbox. I made several attempts at getting into the game, but I ultimately ended up not spending more than a few hours with it.

I enjoyed the music and lore, and a few of the design aspects, but I found the overall experience to be a bit off-putting. The graphics weren't quite as good as I was expecting for a PC port, the mechanics left something to be desired, and I found the menus and quest system to be pretty confusing. It didn't take long for frustration to set in and after that, I felt very little motivation to play it. In short, I was pretty disappointed with my purchase.

I was almost ready to write the whole series off when I started hearing information about the next game that was to come out soon on the Xbox 360. I happened to watch some development videos for Oblivion on an Official Xbox Magazine demo disc. The improvements they had made since Morrowind, as well as some of the new features they were attempting to add to the game, looked pretty incredible.

Then the game released and I saw all the high review scores it was receiving. I was almost ready to take the plunge, but I couldn't forget how burned I had felt by Morrowind. I wasn't keen on the thought of throwing away more money so I decided to give it a rental first, just to be sure.

So epic!

It Begins

From pretty much the moment I popped the game disc into the tray, I was hooked. The graphics, the grand orchestral score, the intro narrative by Patrick Stewart, all of it was simply amazing. I even thought the title looked cool. The way the roman numeral IV is perfectly contained within the word "OBLIVION". I immediately thought that I was probably in for something special. I had no idea how right I was.

As in other Elder Scrolls games, you start off as a nameless prisoner. During the introductory section of the game, you are prompted to select your character's race, sex, features, skills, and attributes. Then you are on your way. The game opens in the dungeons of the capital city of Cyrodiil. The emperor, voiced by Stewart, is attempting to flee from assassins. As fate would have it, his secret escape route into the catacombs goes right through your prison cell. He stops to comment on your fateful role in the unfolding events and grants you a pardon before heading on his way.

After completing a brief tutorial section, you happen upon him again in the catacombs. The assassins make several repeated attempts on his life, but are repelled by his guards. Knowing that his luck will likely soon run out, he entrusts you with the Amulet of Kings, a powerful artifact that could decide the fate of the land. He asks you to get it into the hands of his sole remaining heir, whose existence and location are a closely guarded secret. Shortly thereafter, one of the assassins finally succeeds in killing him. You dispatch his murderer, head through the sewers, and then finally make your way out into the world. And so your journey begins.

"I can see for miles and miles and miles..."

Looking Good

Playing through the first bit of the game and then finally stepping out into the world, I was struck by just how different this game is from Morrowind. There were so many improvements implemented from that game to Oblivion that you would barely recognize them as belonging to the same series. Plot, graphics, sound, mechanics, menus, the list goes on.

Many of those improvements can be attributed to the much better hardware that Oblivion runs on, though not all. For instance, the opening of Oblivion is much more exciting and dramatic. In Morrowind, you step off of a ship and into a building, where you are asked to fill out paperwork. Yes, you get to play as a fantasy character who has to fill out paperwork. So much fun, right? In Oblivion, immediately out of the gate, you are thrust into the middle of an imperial assassination plot and entrusted with the security of the entire realm.

The graphics in Oblivion are probably the single biggest advancement since Morrowind. The level of detail, the scenery, the draw distance, the color palette, everything looks amazing. The graphics in Morrowind were okay for the time. I would describe them as occasionally nice but for the most part merely serviceable (on Xbox, anyway). The scenery was actually somewhat bland and featureless. Most of the time everything looked flat, sparse, muddy and foggy. Also, the draw distance left something to be desired.

When I exited the sewers and entered the world of Oblivion for the first time, I was blown away by what I saw. The colors, the detail, the realism of it all, it was staggering. I happened to look upward and saw the most beautiful dusk sky I had ever seen in a video game. There were oranges and blues, clouds, and tiny little stars popping out one by one. I turned all the way around and saw miles of lush tree covered hills, water, individual blades of grass, some stone structures, all surrounding me in absolutely incredible detail.

The draw distance in Oblivion was pure insanity! Up to that point, I was used to not being able to see the equivalent of about 75 - 100 yards in most games. Morrowind was no exception. Shortly after leaving the sewers and entering the world of Oblivion, I started to make my way up a nearby mountain. After dispatching a few wolves and bandits, and meeting a traveler or two, I came upon an overlook.

I strolled over to take a look down at the valley below and was awe-struck by what I saw. The view seemed to go on forever. I could see for miles, almost clear across the whole kingdom. It was just like real life! For a split second, I think I even forgot I was playing a game. It felt like I was really standing there on that mountain, looking down at the world spread out before me.

I don't even think I can see to the top of this hill. (Morrowind comparison image.)

No Comparison

The menus and quest journal are way better in Oblivion. In Morrowind, I found everything to be either too overcomplicated or somewhat lacking in sufficient information. One of my only experiences with the quest system in that game was also a bit confounding. After my "playtime" filling out the requisite paperwork, I ventured outside and on down the road, hoping for some slightly more exciting gameplay. All I found instead was frustration.

After a short walk, I came across a man who appeared to be down on his luck. I stopped to talk to him and he told me about a nearby witch who had stolen all of his possessions. He asked me to eliminate her and help him get his stuff back. "Sweet!", I thought. "I'll get to take down a witch and complete my first quest!"

I must have accidentally skipped the part when he told me where to find her because I couldn't for the life of me figure it out. I tried speaking with him again and he wouldn't give me any more information. I checked all the menus and the quest journal for any kind of clue but there was nothing to be found. I then proceeded to spend the next 40 minutes scouring the surrounding area trying to find this supposed nearby witch but I ultimately couldn't find any trace of her. To make matters worse, the guy kept dying every time a stupid animal or monster attacked us.

I really wanted to see the quest through but I started to get pretty fed up with the situation. It wasn't much fun constantly having to reload my saves to keep the guy alive and searching all over that god-forsaken ugly landscape without any luck finding what I was looking for. Finally I had had enough and I just let him die. I tried to move on with the game but after the extremely boring introduction and my horrible first quest experience I quickly lost interest and stopped playing altogether.

In Oblivion, every quest has a page explicitly detailing what needs to be done in order to complete it. Furthermore, there is a very handy marker that appears on the map showing you exactly where to go. Any time I got even remotely lost or confused I just pulled up the quest journal, reread the entry for that particular task, and checked the corresponding map marker to see where I needed to go next. Whereas in Morrowind I was just totally lost and confused, in Oblivion I was an unstoppable quest completing machine. No frustrations what-so-ever.

As incredible as the art is in this game, the music is even better.

Sunrise of Flutes

The sound design in Oblivion was absolutely brilliant. I don't have any real complaints about the sound in Morrowind but, as with the graphics, Oblivion just took it to another level entirely. Every character is voiced in the game. Every. Single. Character. That totally blew me away. It may not seem like such a big deal several years later but at the time, that was virtually unheard of for a game this size. The majority of dialogue in Morrowind was just text.

The decision to have every character speak in Oblivion really went a long way with regard to realism and immersion. The only real drawback is that Bethesda didn't hire enough voice actors to give sufficient variety to an entire world of characters. Not that they needed to bring in an army of people, but thousands of characters can't be realistically portrayed by just six or seven voice actors (unless it's The Simpsons). After playing for just a few hours, you start to realize that every new character you meet sounds exactly like dozens of others you've already come across. Despite that slight limitation, having all those voices in the game is still much better than not having them.

The music was hands down the best part of both Morrowind and Oblivion. I think it is fair to say that Jeremy Soule is one of the most talented video game composers of our time. His work on Morrowind was exceptional. And with Oblivion, he was at the very top of his game (pardon the pun). The score is variously beautiful, haunting, and foreboding. It is a joy to listen to and it fits the gameplay perfectly. I enjoyed it so much that I eventually purchased the official soundtrack off of his record website, DirectSong. That was about three or four years ago now but I still like to play it every few months or so. The opening track, Reign of the Septims can be listened to at the official Elder Scrolls website (here).

The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim took everything that was awesome about Oblivion and kicked it up a couple notches.

Dragonborn

After popping it in for the first time and playing through the opening, it didn't take long to realize what a brilliant game Oblivion was. I couldn't believe how significantly better it was than Morrowind. I was so excited about playing it, I went out and bought my own copy before the rental was even due back. Since that time, I've spent hundreds of hours adventuring all over (and under) Cyrodiil.

I still can't fully wrap my head around the incredible wealth of content Oblivion provides. Even the base game was huge, but then they decided to go and add some pretty substantial downloadable content on top of that. There are those who may remember the Horse Armor fiasco and still get a sour taste in their mouths. Personally, I just think about Knights of the Nine, the Shivering Isles, Thieves Den (and others) and smile. Despite the one piece of content they got wrong, they had a lot of others that they sure got right. Oblivion never got old for me as a result. I still play it today from time to time. The only one reason I no longer enjoy it as often as I used to is because it has since been (mostly) replaced by its even more improved sequel, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.

Skyrim has its own advantages over Oblivion and is a better all-around game as a result (though I still prefer Oblivion's soundtrack). Despite being clearly superior, none of the improvements made from Oblivion to Skyrim were even remotely as substantial or numerous as those made from Morrowind to Oblivion. That is why no other game in the Elder Scrolls series, or the adventure/RPG genre in general, had as big an impact on me as The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. In so many ways, it truly was a game changer.

[Images: Bethesda Softworks]

Andrew J Amideo

April 28, 2015

Post-Mortem: Steam Paid Mods, The Interview

4 days ago: “Paid mods on Steam are such a great topic to talk about, let’s do some interviews with the modders who made the first batch.”
2 days ago: “Ok, let’s write a short introduction to the interview” (7 hours pass) “Shit, this is already too long for most people. Guess I make the interview a separate thing once I’ve gotten some sleep”
1 day ago: “Ok, let’s do the podcast.” (3 hours later) “Time for a break. GTA with Trisha sounds good.” (couple more hours later) “oh, right…made a promise to someone. I’ll do it once I’m back.”
Today: Puh, finally home. Let’s see what happened in the world of gam…..fuck”

But I won’t keep them from you, so here they are.
The first one is with Corvalho, who worked on the Gifts of Akatosh mod. Interview numero dos: Sebastian, who was part of the team that was working on “Shadow Scale set”

Dr. Strangethumb: What was the feedback you got from the modding community so far? We know that there are some very vocal people who aren't happy, but any positives? And what do your fellow modders think about this step?

Corvalho: There were very few people who understand the side of the modders, such as the amount of effort and time we put into every piece. By what I could talk with other modders, they're mostly undecided whether it's worth to go through this kind of hate. I wonder if the community will ever get used to this kind of practice and support modders in this sense.

Dr. S: It is a big change and things are still very uncertain. I think that many people fear that mods will now become the next evolution of the "horse armor". Do you personally have any concerns about this step from Valve?

Corvalho: Not really concerns, but there's something I consider kind of a "low blow" form Valve: taking 75% of the revenue of the submitted mods, leaving 25% to be split amongst the contributors, which usually are more than one person. The price is likely lower than average DLC's on steam, 3-5 bucks depending on the mod, so this whole system seems to benefit Valve way more than any other part involved. To the point it's unfair to the modders themselves.

Dr. S: Yeah, I was wondering about that. From what I understand, Valve invited some people to produce the first batch of „premium mods“. You were even able to use some of their IPs.
Is there any other support you get from Valve and/or Bethesda? Will modders who now intend on making premium mods get the same love?
Also, do you know how much Bethesda is getting out of those 75% Valve keeps?

Corvalho: No, not really support. There were discussions during the dev process on what features should be implemented in the workshop in order to make the experience of selling mods easier. By what I understand, this first batch was rather an experiment (for both Valve and modders imo), but they do intend to keep approving mods to be sold. As for how they split the income, no I don't have a clue. What I do know is that there's also a split that goes to service providers such as modding communities and framework creators.

Dr. S: Was there any resistance voiced against the 75% cut? If so, how did Valve respond?

Corvalho: None that I have seen (although I got to admit I was not the most participative member in the group of discussion), tbh I was unaware of their cut until I finished my mod and proceeded to re-read the agreement.

Dr. S: ouch, that must have sucked. Did they hide it, or were you just not that concerned about it?

Corvalho: No the agreement is available to be read. It seems to be the way they split their income by default in the workshop. I worked with the TF2 workshop for a while and that's the same cut they take.

Dr. S: Mods sometimes break, be it an incompatibility with another mod, or an official patch. Valve only guarantees a 24h refund. I’m expecting quite a few angry customers in the future. You only get ¼ of the income, yet you have to do all the work AND support it for the months/years to come. Does this put you under a lot of pressure?

Corvalho: As Skyrim hasn't been patched in years now, that's not really something I worry about, but in the case of other games, yeah that's something to be considered.

Dr. S: Back to the downsides for the consumer. Do you fear the possibility that some companies now start relying more on the work of modders, releasing games that are unfinished/missing features? Modders would now get an extra incentive to work on them and the publishers would still make a profit from it.

Corvalho: Hm. I don't think any decent studio would ever consider relying on modders for that.

Although having a game to be mod friendly is already a feature most games lack, so perhaps it could be the other way around.

Dr. S: Good point. Maybe we see a mod renaissance in AAA game. Anything else you would like to share on this topic?

Corvalho: Hmm... Not really. There's not much more I could say other than that I would like to see the community working along with Valve to make this whole new feature better for all.

Dr. S: Fair enough. I personally hope that this will lead to some great mods and if the first batch is any indication, it's looking good. So tell us a bit about your contribution to it, Gifts of Akatosh.

Corvalho: It's basically a full set of one handed weapons, a shield and an armor, including also custom crafting materials for all of the pieces.

Dr. S: you need to work on your salesmanship :D

Corvalho: heh, yeah I'm not good at it

Dr. S: Ok. A big thank you from me! Enjoy your day ;)

Corvalho: Take care mate

Dr. Strangethumb@Twinstiq.com: Gabe told on Reddit that the mods made $10.000 so far. Are you happy with the money yours made until now? And if you can and want to share it: How many copies did you sell until now?

Sebastian: The number of sales - the number of subscribers to the mod is 1749

Sebastian: My mod is worth $1.49 I do not think it has a lot to offer. I was invited to create a pay-mod because of my work on the Dota 2 workshop

Sebastian: And Dota 2 items bring a lot more.

Dr. S: Ok, so that’s somewhere around 600€. Happy with that number? Sounds pretty good already, but I don't know how much work went into it

Sebastian: I'm not the only one doing this mod, and we share their 25% for three.

Sebastian: About 25 days

Sebastian: And we are still finalizing it. There will soon be a major update that fixes a lot of bugs.

Dr. S: Thanks for the info! Anything special you would like to share with our readers on the topic of paid mods?

Sebastian: Yes, I think paid mods - is a severe but logical step of game development.

Sebastian: I know that many modders have long been waiting for this, it will attract a lot of professionals in this work

Sebastian: That will improve the quality of mods in general, and possibly have a major impact on the process of game development in general. Look at UE4 for example.

Sebastian: All these movements in one direction

Dr. S: There are many positives this could bring to everyone in the chain (Developers, Modders, Gamers), but is there anything you fear? Any negative developments this could provoke? (Besides the outrage)

Sebastian: I think the worst thing would be attempts to steal someone else's content. And it’s a bad idea to do a paid mod that used to be free before. I think such a situation will occur.

Sebastian: But free mods for fun still remain

Dr. S: I know that the owner of Nexus Mods voiced some concern about the possibility that publishers could prevent free mods. Do you think publishers would actually do that?

Sebastian: Mods maintain playability of a game, paid or free. I do not see any reason to prevent their appearance. It would be stupid of publisher to do this.

Sebastian: But publishers destroy entire games and franchises for the money all the time.

Dr. S: Thanks for the answers! Should i ever get back into skyrim, i will surely look at your mod! Want to advertise it to our readers?

Sebastian: Thank you for your support :) I advise readers to look at the store page in a few days when we added all that is planned.

Interested in my opinion? I've actually written it down already.

April 28, 2015

Opinion: Where Did All The Social Gaming Go?

Words By Greywolfe

When I was a far younger wolfe, gaming was quite different. You could buy magazines where you’d have to type in the code for one of the games offered in the magazine by hand [and no, we aren't talking about a 10 character download code, so God help you if your significant other accidentally tripped over the computer power cable], games boasted sales of “50,000 units!” like those were big numbers and everything was in monochrome.

One of the side effects of the gaming industry being so small was that people who were gamers clung to each other. They really didn’t have anyone else. If you started up a game and your friends happened to have it, too, then that would fuel endless hours of debate about the best party, or things you’d seen in the game, or heck – even just debating what game to buy next, because you couldn’t always trust magazines to be honest.

But that, alas, is all gone now.

Remember the console/computer wars? Alas. We still have those ;)

The Internet Stole My Playground

One part of the problem – with regards to gamers being social – is that the internet stepped in. Naturally, the internet has lots of venues for people to talk about various topics, and so, of course, most of those conversations started to migrate online. But the bigger problem here is that some of those conversations didn’t exactly migrate.

One thing that I used to enjoy doing was poring through magazines, looking at screenshots of upcoming releases. It was especially awesome to do this with a friend and then to imagine, perhaps, what might happen in that game. Or to imagine what mechanics we might experience. Naturally, some things in all the screenshots stayed mostly the same. You could almost always point out if something was a life bar. But what was this funny face symbol? Was that how melodramatic you were?

The other problem with the internet is that sheer immediacy. If you’re sitting with a friend and you’re both playing a co-op game and you happen to accidentally fall into a pit while she makes it all the way to the end of the level, well...she can taunt you about it right there. Certainly, things like internet telephony and the like have made this a little more tangible, but it’s not exactly the same as having that friend in the same room at the same time.

Finally, the internet has always had the problem of inflection. If I’m sitting with my friend right now and I say something as a joke, she can hear it in my voice and tone and she can laugh along with me, whereas, the joke might fall completely flat on the internet because there is no [or very little] clue as to my tone, as I’m typing the words.

Sometimes, it feels like I'm gaming on a desert island. I know my friends are out there, but...we pass like ships in the night.

Gaming Has Become A Very Solitary Hobby

At face value, that heading sounds a little strange. How is gaming solitary when I have all my friends on Steam?

Some of my very fondest gaming memories involve me, some friends, a bunch of notepads and a game. We would sit in a group and try to piece together things that we needed to do to win. Oh, there’s an amulet we need to re-assemble? Someone will sit with the map and try to figure out where the two pieces are.

Our other favourite past-time was to create self-imposed challenges. Many a long night was had, huddled around the character creation screen for Master of Magic, with someone laying out how many white picks we were allowed or whether we should all play diplomacy.

But that style of interaction has vanished as well. Very often, people get gaming challenges from places like Gamefaqs – or see things online that they’d like to try – [like Final Fantasy V’s Four Job Fiesta or the Nuzlocke Pokémon challenge.]
Right now, if you want to play something, you sit alone at your computer, start the game up and away you go. There’s very little sharing going on – even if you happen to be on Steam and your friend sees you playing, nine times out of ten, they’re not going to bother you and ask you what you’re actually doing – gaming doesn’t work that way anymore.

Modern gaming feels like a "maze." It looks like there are many paths, but there's really only one "true path."

Linearity Ate My Conversations

Another big part of the problem – and I’ve lamented about this before – is that games don’t often create true worlds, or thought provoking situations. They create linear, corridor-like experiences that take the player from Point A to Point B with very little world building happening in-between. Think about the last time you got sucked into a game for its universe. Now, think about all the games you’ve played subsequent to that. Chances are, you can only think of a few recent games that built a fully functioning world for you to explore.

Naturally, this leaves people very little to talk about. If everyone’s departing from Point A to get to Point B and they’re all going to see the same stuff in-between, then the only thing that [vaguely] matters that can come up in conversation is the different skill-sets you and your friend might use.

Linearity can be a wonderful thing, and sometimes, games like To The Moon make us consider the deep, meaningful ramifications of the story being told, but for all its amazing penmanship, everyone is always going to play exactly the same game with exactly the same outcome.

That leaves very little room for conversation. Part of what makes a Skyrim so great is the stories you stumble upon – those moments you share with your friends where they haven’t even found that secret area yet, or where they may have done the quest in a completely different way to the way you did it.

Conclusion

All of this – this lack of conversation – is a little sad. That is, in some part, why I like the idea of the Twinstiq Game Club – it allows all of us to share an experience, together. Bringing us together as a community to discuss the game – to share little stories about how we might have approached things differently. To that end, I certainly suggest you take part in the Game Club, Who knows? You might find some interesting topics to talk about.

Images Courtesy of Pixabay
Pixabay