Indie game dev, Videogame writer, Game enthusiast, Guitarist,

zerocrossing

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The cost of AAA game production is putting a chokehold on creativity in the mainstream

The needless expense of AAA video game production is killing creativity and originality in mainstream console gaming

It has been said by countless game reviewers and bloggers before me, but I feel I must say it yet again. The practice of throwing insane amounts of cash at AAA projects causes a need to adhere to generic tried and true formulas, as well as attempting to appeal to as wide an audience as possible in order to cover the cost of production and marketing, inevitably leading to more and more generic gaming experiences.

We know this to be true for the most part, heck we've seen it happen all too often after all, yet it's still being allowed to continue. You needn't look much further than popular franchises such as Dead Space, Resident Evil, Gears of War and Assassins Creed, to see what I'm talking about. Many franchises that were once at the peak of their respective genre yet due to the expense of AAA production have become either monotonous, predictable, un-characteristically action oriented or have simply lost their identity all together. So who's to blame here? Well we are, that's if you were to believe certain publishers that are pushing for such games.

In truth the culprit, or rather culprits are the publishers, the publishers I'm referring to are any who choose to green light development for generic, un-inspired games that do enough to tick all boxes needed to appeal to a wider audience while avoiding challenging and/or upsetting any potential consumers by being too slow, scary, hard, different or whatever else that mite put off a consumer from purchasing a game that when it was still pure in the head of the original creator was most likely not intended to be targeted towards them in the 1st place. This is not how games should be created, Dead Space 3 while still being a decent enough game, suffered due to this kind of approach to game development, the same goes for many other AAA games such as Resident Evil post RE 4, Gears of War Judgement and even Assassins Creed.

Now please do try to not misunderstand me, I'm not saying that any of those games I just mentioned above are bad games or offer no enjoyment at all, after all people find enjoyment in all sorts of games so who am I to judge? And to be completely honest even I found some enjoyment to be had in them. I guess what I am trying to say here is that a game should be created for a fixed audience, if you're going to make a survival horror game we expect it to be scary, remember your core audience is probably used to scares so holding back so you don't scare off casuals just won't do, also don't undermine the tense atmosphere needed to pull off a survival horror game by throwing in a bunch of out of place explosions and action oriented cutscenes, you can still have the odd one here and there, but even in action games they loose much of their impact if they happen around every bleeding corner.

Let's try looking at the state of AAA gaming as if it was fine dining, or better yet appreciating your favourite type of wine, now fine wine is always going to be better appreciated by those who have a taste for that particular brew, more so than it would be if it was watered down to the point that the wine becomes palatable to everyone, much like this certain gamers are just not going to appreciate certain game genres unless that game is heavily altered to the point where it may be more accessible but now lacks the same appeal it once had toward it's core demographic.

Publishers have a way around this issue and that is "graphics" who was it that said originality and depth should be sacrificed for prettier graphics and expensive special effects? I can't think of anyone so it seems quite odd that publishers are so eager to do just that. Many games have gotten a free pass in the past because they had exceptional graphics even though the gameplay was more than lacking to say the least, but with AAA games looking great being the norm these days more and more of us are becoming less likely to give a game a free pass based on their pretty looks alone, unfortunately it seems the majority of gamers still place graphics above gameplay and I thing this is a mistake, great graphics are after all one of the easiest things to pull off these days, pair them up with some Michael Bay esque action scenes and tons of explosions and you have yourself what some mite call the "spectacle" the eye catching stuff that most competent developers would use sparingly if and when the story called for it, but too often the spectacle becomes the game itself and slowly but surely the spectacle begins to wear off and then we realise that there's really not much else going on.

That's where the plot comes in, publishers have a long list of tried and true generic plots they could butcher and force into their current game and/or game franchise for our assumed amusement, but more often than not the plot is there to thinly connect one set piece to the other until the credits roll, and let us try out a few toys along the way. Now that works great sometimes but the problem is the plot has to suffer the same ill fate as the gameplay often does, and that is being forced, predictable and un-original, maybe it's because I'm in my mid 20's now and would just like to see a video game villain I could actually feel sympathetic towards, a main character that breaks the mould a little by not being a walking tank, and a game where a girl wearing a wet suit isn't somehow required by law to have the front of it zipped half way down to show off her cleavage... (I mean come on it's like in every game! I honestly have nothing against cleavage but Resident Evils Jill Valentine is not in the line of work where she would want any extra flesh on show!) Anyway, yeah AAA video game story's could do with a little more variety and originality too I think.

I don't want this blog to be me just constantly bashing publishers, but seeing as they are the ones responsible for the AAA games being released on console it's hard to point my finger elsewhere, they aren't all bad obviously but if any of them chooses to green light development for projects that are doomed from the start to meet their ludicrously high expectations for profit, then they really should not be in the business of creating entertainment in the 1st place, to force their developers down this foolish path that has already claimed many development studios is irresponsible and apprehensible, I feel as though enough damage has been dealt already and as consumers we must demand that high development cost of AAA games be scaled back to allow for new ideas and possibly the return of past franchises that are currently being shelved due to publishers not being prepared to take risks anymore.

With all that being said, it's not like we as consumers aren't worthy of some of the blame. We do in the end choose which games we want to purchase and given the sheer amount of video game reviews one can find after a short time searching the Internets, we are usually aware of what we are getting so pleading ignorance and blaming publishers and developers when having made a poor purchase is a little uncalled for. Having said that though, publishers and developers have a duty to ensure their products are up to scratch, that means being as bug free as reasonably possible and looking how they were when advertised or better.

So to summarise. Firstly, I feel the cost of production for AAA games must be scaled back, as it stands now it is far too expensive to be considered a practical business model and the expense is only being passed onto the consumers. Secondly, when developing AAA games Publishers should make sure to cater them toward the audience that would find most enjoyment in playing them instead of watering the experience down in order to appeal to everyone. Finally, games are more than just pretty graphics and spectacle and we know that they can convey so much more, because of this AAA games should be doing more to really push gaming forward instead of relying on photo realistic graphics and explosions, many indie games look pretty awful in comparison but they do better in regards to story and atmosphere than most AAA games have in recent years.

I honestly believe if these few changes were to actually be implemented it could only be a positive thing, I'm not sure how we can make this happen but I believe whole heartedly that we must somehow if we want AAA console gaming to start delivering more fresh ideas.

Well hopefully I got my point across, I know I'm not the only one with these views but I just wanted to get them out there and get people talking about all of these points openly.

Thank you for reading my blog, if you want to add something or disagree with me then as always please feel free to leave a comment.

fsfsxii3941d ago

Very good blog. TBH mainstream AAA games are less appealing to me than ever. Most of the AAA games this gen were either a shooting a game or a shooter game with elements from another genre. Who's to blame? Well, yeah, the mainstream casual audience is to blame, want a proof?? Check out any gaming website like Playfire.com, etc.
And publishers should be reasonable with their budgets, remember BF3 and 100$ million marketing budget?? Yeah, with all BF3 sales record, it still didn't pay off, so they had to be jerks and implant "Rent a server" crap.

I'm more likely to be a handheld gamer by next gen.
And yeah, Sony has done their part with the PS4 by making the console easy to develop for because devs and pubs were bitching about current-gen consoles being hard to develop for and thus requiring more man-power and cash. we'll see how devs moan in the next gen.

Again, very good blog

NewMonday3941d ago

as far as big publishers I think their will be less investment on mid range games like Dead Space and Prototype and bigger investments on games targeting 6 million sales minimum to break even. examples are the Division, Destiny and TitanFall.

but on the bright side next generation heralds the rise of Indy developers who bring creativity and mid/low price options, and they are not shackled by focus groups or "pleas all" pressure, some of them are making games that resemble big budget productions like Outlast and the Witness.

their will also be some rising studios who make games that rival big publishers but for a fraction of the cost like CDPRED and Avalanche.

all in all I think this generation was a learning experience for everyone, big publisher, middle budget developers, Indies and platform holders, next generation will see the results of it all.

zerocrossing3940d ago

Thanks for commenting!

Handheld gaming is certainly gaining in popularity largely due to it having more original titles to choose from, but there's honestly nothing stopping publishers from ruining that the same way they have with AAA console titles, the problem needs to be dealt with at the root otherwise I think the issue will just continue to rear its ugly head.

fsfsxii3940d ago

I think that Western publishers aren't interested in the handheld market due to Nintendo's dominance there, they own that market and pubs think that Nintendo's tech is "Outdated" and they can't do all of the BS they do on consoles. Thats just how i see it.

dedicatedtogamers3941d ago

This is why I'm excited for indies, and like fsfsxii above me said, this is why I'll be doing a lot more handheld gaming over the next several years.

The AAA bubble will burst eventually. Minecraft sold more than Halo 3 and Halo 4 combined with a fraction of the budget. Mario Kart Wii probably cost only a few million to make and is one of the highest-selling games of all time. Eventually, publishers will figure out a way to shrink their budgets because they're gonna want a taste of those insane profit margins.

Good blog. Gamers need to do their part, too. Instead of jumping on bandwagons with crap like "Wii has no games lolololo" they should be buying those lower-budget, high-quality games that are available on Wii to show publishers that variety - not production value - is what is most important to us.

zerocrossing3940d ago

Publishers know they have us gamers right where they want us, most of us don't want to loose our favourite franchises so we end up just tolerating them getting watered down and made more accessible.

The best thing we can do is stop purchasing games that we know have been watered down, casualised and/or have designed for mass appeal, even if we end up loosing franchises we enjoy the publishers will eventually have no choice but to develop games that cater to a core audience rather attempting to please everyone.

kewlkat0073941d ago (Edited 3941d ago )

There is a bubble.. I wish we could go back to late 90s-early 2000's gaming industry structure..

it needs a reboot...only a crash would help

zerocrossing3940d ago

I agree, during those times the industry was still finding its feet and had not yet entered the "mainstream" We were still seeing all sorts of interesting and original new IPs being developed and publishers weren't so scared of taking risks.

An industry crash is unlikely to happen anytime soon, but a can see a major change coming as gamers start becoming less ignorant and tolerant towards publishers and their poor business structure.

Donnieboi3941d ago (Edited 3941d ago )

Amazing blog! Every fat-cat publisher should read this, and realize that their movie budget games are hurting creativity (with a few exceptions, like The Last of us game).

If I could vote this early on best/most relevant blog of the month, I think i'd have to choose this one. U should write more blogs, Zero.

Behold, the key to saving many development studios from shutting down, lies right here in the points made in this blog.

zerocrossing3940d ago

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed my blog.

Publishers have sacrificed more than enough development studios due to their current poor business structure, it's high time they got their act together and stopped looking for scapegoats.

ravinash3940d ago

I do find it funny how when the games industry has been falling and harder to make sales, the publishers answer is to make more of the same. More COD, More Battlefield, more shooting action pieces.
If we make it more pretty and throw more money at it, then they will come.

What Gamers have been asking for is more original stuff, new ideas and new IPs.
Just look at what happened with the Last of us!
Completely new IP with nothing but the good name of Naughtydog behind it and see what happened.

I really hope that the publishers take note and try to manage their money more wisely....but I'm not holding my breath.

3940d ago Replies(1)
Show all comments (25)
210°

Fallout 4's 'next gen' update is over 14 gigs, breaks modded saves, & doesn't change much at all

We were expecting problems with mod support, but there are a lot of other issues.

isarai9h ago

Wow what the actual hell 🤣🤣🤣

just_looken8h ago

This is why you get the GOG version on gog you can select the version of the game to download.

On pc fallout 4 fallout new vegas and skyrim are all broken on steam because they all got the same "next gen" update.

Skyrim dec 2023
https://www.pcgamer.com/sky...

Can not find new vegas but anyone that modded it knows the script extender there was also broken

Valkyrye7h ago

Not accidental, they want modders to stop modding their older games to force them to mod Shitfield.

just_looken5h ago

There doing the same on starfield with a mods store and blocking mods

There goal is like blizzard and what they did with fallout 76 you make mods they can sell and you become a slave.

On skyrim they have "trusted" mod devs now basically a badge that lets your mod on the store you get a crumb of the sale when someone buys it.

Inverno3h ago

lol to the disagrees, the last Skyrim update broke mods too. They've been trying to kill mods to monetize them in creation club for years, it's not a stretch that they purposely put out patches just to break free mods.

porkChop2h ago

The disagrees are from people who have common sense. They aren't trying to kill mods. Most mods for any game will break with a new update because they rely on files/code that have been changed. This isn't new. Even with Bethesda this would happen way before the creation club. Mod support is literally one of the things that got Bethesda to where they are, and they're one of the only devs that releases comprehensive mod tools for each of their games.

Chocoburger3h ago

Over 14 GBs and doesn't change much at all? What? Taking up that much drive space for a pathetic 'remastering' is shameful.

Par for Bethesda.

Aussiesummer2h ago

It's not a remaster, it's a next gen update.

badz1491h ago

LOL people are actually expecting massive improvements or something? From Bethesda?? the same people who released Skyrim multiple times and the all look like shit? THAT Bethesda? are people for real?

Profchaos1h ago(Edited 1h ago)

The ps5 version doesn't change a ton but from my small playtime it's enough to make me want to replay it just to have it running at 60.

A side note to this my PS4 version no longer boots after it's "update" so I guess that's what it feels like to own a Bethesda game on PC

Show all comments (14)
120°

Why Monopolies In Gaming Must Not Be Allowed

As of right now, there are no monopolies in the games industry, and for the sake of the medium as a whole, they never should either.

thorstein7h ago

Shouldn't be allowed in any field.

Inverno4h ago

And yet the biggest tech companies in America are essentially that. They buy up all the small comps only to kill them off and steal what they have, and if they can't buy em they bleed them to death.

jwillj2k42h ago

Eventually they’ll realize the value is with the employee not the company. Buying an IP means nothing if the people who contributed are let go. They’ll get it one day.

MrCrimson2h ago

tech is different because they buy threats and then kill them. Twitter bought Vine and did nothing with it. Despite people seemingly liking it. Could've had tiktok a decade before bytedance. go figure.

Zenzuu3h ago

Monopolies shouldn't be allowed regardless. Not just for gaming.

MrCrimson2h ago

They buy IPs not talent. That's why these buyouts never work and the IPs die. Right now it's too expensive to develop games - but I expect that to shift maybe as AI tools can make it easier. The best games have been indie games for awhile as big developers fuck their ips to death with "games as a service" -

100°

Gears of War Voice Actor Hints At New Game Announcement Coming In June

A voice actor from The Coalition's third-person shooter series, Gears of War, has hinted at a new game announcement coming in June.

Read Full Story >>
twistedvoxel.com
Ra30302h ago

Hopefully Microsoft will go back to the original story line and get away from that woke nonsense from the last Gears game Gears of Woke! But were talking about Microsoft so all the betting money is on more of the same woke nonsense.

Sciurus_vulgaris1h ago

The Locust trilogy concluded with Gears of War 3. I don’t get how Gears 4 and 5 are “woke” .