Where has all the creativity gone? Even more so, where is my content?

I recently had this debate with a good friend of mine of how games seem to be turning 1 shade of gray now and days. Yet he thought the opposite so hopefully ill hear more input on the topic from other gamers but in an overall sense games have lost their charm or just dont seem to peak my interest. Now im not referring to every game thats been out or will come out in the future of this gen its just an overall feeling i get. Its more commonplace than i would like so let me give you my perspective.

First off, what happened to creativity and content? They seemed, at one point, to go hand in hand. The days of unlockables, long single player adventures, and loads of content have all but vanished. Now replaced with DLC, map packs, and multiplayer being the standard if you want any sort of longevity. Have shooters become the quick cash in that developers can no longer bring something fresh and inventive to the table? I hate to say it, but yes seems to be the answer. Now granted, games on the nes and genesis were short and often cost 60-80 dollars a game. I understand that, but from there we started to progress forward where games were cheaper, a whole lot longer, and came with tons of extras, unlocks and replayablity. Now we are in the process of going back down that slope again. Shorter games, less content and the only thing that seems to be increasing is how much we have to pay, which just doesn't sit right with me. Is it so wrong to ask for more for a fair price? If the games pack less than the standard they should be priced accordingly and i have seen a few such as sengoku basara and majin and the forsaken kingdom, both of which came out at 40 dollars. That is how a feel most shooters should be priced now and days but thats just my opinion.

Now im not trying to pick on fps games or bash them in any way, but the market is extremely over saturated with more shooters than i can handle. I like the fps genre, its not my favorite, but its just as enjoyable is any other genre out there. My complaint is not with the fps genre itself but how the games are presented. The standard is a 4-5 hour campaign, some multiplayer and you have a winning formula to sell millions. Now see, why cant those types of games be priced cheaper, especially since the content is, for the most part, underwhelming in favor of DLC. There are fps games on last gen systems that have double the maps, double the modes and even map creators right on the disk. Not to mention full campaigns with 10 or more hours. My point is that its far to easy for the developers to squeeze every nickel and dime out of us and it pushes me away from certain games.

Sadly though, i have to turn to last gen games to play anything different or out of the ordinary. Heck, even the wii packs more interesting games than what i have been seeing as of late and people refuse to acknowledge it half the time and merely dismiss it as a "casual only" kind of system. Im not the kind of person who will list endless amounts of games but a few that come to mind are games like rez, ape escape, tomba, psychonauts, katamari damacy, and okami. I can keep going on and on but im sure you get the point so ill only list a few. I mean look at seaman on the dreamcast, that game was ridiculous. Its wasent the best game and was kind of just mediocre but it was creative, inventive and outside the box. You talked to a fish who whittedly remarked back, where are the games that take that sort of inventive approach? You just wont see those sorts of things now and days since its not considered a money maker which is disheartening.

Overall, last gen and even the gen before had a general quality much higher than just about anything you'll see today. There will be exceptions to that statement but thats all they are, exceptions instead of the rule. I think some gamers have lost sight of what makes a great game. You dont necessarily have to have 1080p graphics, more pixels than the competition and online play to enjoy something outstanding. The industry seems to be taking note and following along one path and to be honest i just dont want to be apart of that. You cant really blame them though. Game developers and publishers are a business just like any other business and the number 1 goal is to make money. I wish that more unique, niche games sold better cause 9 out of 10 times they flop making it harder and harder for developers to risk trying something new and in turn resorting back to what works. Which is, as of now, just one endless cycle. THQ comes to mind as of late. They didnt always make or publish the best games but what they had was fun and entertaining. Yet now that homefront is out and their pre order sales are through the roof i expect them to follow suit and continue along the fps path.

Hopefully i didnt ramble on to much but maybe im not the only one who feels this way. Or maybe im just missing the point entirely. Id like to hear feedback on how others take this situation.

[Nate-Dog]

Your second-last paragraph about this gen's games being of less quality than those of the previous two gens brings up an interesting point. On a gamers forum I'm on this topic was brought up and everyone seemed to differ in opinions. Some said that the past two gens have indeed been great but this gen has knocked those two out of the park in regards to what game consoles and systems and developers can do now. Others said that this gen, while taking steps forward in things such as gameplay and graphics, has been more of a step down, with such a focus on multiplayer, DLC, FPSs, and in general a lack of innovation across the board (apart from the few exceptions). The ones in favour of this gen said that those saying this gen sucks are allowing nostalgia to take too big a part in their opinions
and that clearly gaming has advanced to a whole new level.
Those in favour of the previous two gens said that it isn't nostalgia but the innovation that came along at that time and that has disappeared that makes them feel this gen is worse, yet the superior graphics makes people deluded to think everything's better now.

Personally I can't say myself which side I belong to; I have reasons to attatch myself to both sides and to agree and disagree with both sides on certain points. I do think that the emphasis on FPSs ruining the games industry and innovation, and their domination of the gaming market is way overplayed. There are a lot of FPSs out there these days, I'll admit to that, and indeed almost all of them are just rehashes of previous games or of other games, but FPSs only dominate the market for casuals in my opinion and I think people focus too much on what is seen in the media or from the casual point of view and take it at face value for the market for all gamers, including bigger and more core or "harcore" gamers.

But I do have to agree on a number of things in regards to certain problems with this gen. The use of DLC (as you rightly pointed out), rising prices for gamers while we receive less content, choppy and unfinished games being sold at full price, devs being free to sell these unfinished games at full price and to issuing patches out later on to finish it (I think really this is a shocking practise and that certain quality control measures really have to be introduced into the gaming market in regards to fairness for the consumer), among other things. As regards to changes in games themselves, I think with the ability for devs to make better and more advanced games with more advanced options (in general) leads to easier games which is certainly what has happened this gen too.

Innovation is still there I think, and there are a good few examples of it, but either a lot of companies aren't willing to take the risk of that and prefer to go down the safe route of something like a multiplayer-focused FPS, or that companies like Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo aren't willing to take on enough first-party devs. (I highlight that particularly in the case of Nintendo, but that's for another day).

Short-version: This gen has its advantages and disadvantages over the past two gens, and vice-versa. I don't think FPSs really do dominate the market like they are made out to, but at times they can suck the innovation out with new devs being to worried to take a risk on something new which they would prefer to do if they knew it wouldn't be their ruin.

Man I really need to stop writing so many ridiculously-long blog replies. >_<

[christheredhead]

haha i like the more worded feedback. i didnt mean to pick on fps games so much its just that they are the most talked about and the "go to" kind of genre. All game genres seem to have weak spots this gen its just that they are more dominant in fps games. we always seem to get the short end of the stick on that one.

[Active Reload]

What system do you have? I can vouch for XBLA, they have a decent amount of variety on there. I don't know about PSN or w/e the PC crowd does, as far as what your complaints are about. The 360 is so cheap in price I'd pick one up just for XBLA.

[christheredhead]

@active reload

right now i play ps2, xbox, dreamcast, wii, ps3, advance and ds. yah thats a lot haha but i somehow still manage to find time to play on all those systems. i had a 360 back when it first launched but its gotten the red ring quite a few times and i just haven't had the money to get a new one. ive been spending all my extra cash on games. hopefully i can get that new black 360 before the year is over.

i do see what youre saying though and i didnt really touch on this in the post, but were seeing a shift from core retail games over to some unique and interesting handhelds and network downloads. ive seen some really cool stuff on psn and xbla but games and ideas of that nature never transfer over to full blown 60 dollars purchases. i guess there just isnt any money to be made on new ideas unless its in bit sized chunks where the dev cost is lower and the profit margin is higher.

[INehalemEXI]

Yup, the markets flooded with em and no end in sight.

[theonlylolking]

The creativity has gone...only on the playstation.

Heavy Rain, flower, LBP(used to be), etc...

[Ducky]

There's creativity for those who seek it. Lately I've been chugging through plenty of indie games on PC... most of them are available on XBLA and PSN as well.

Wii is, well... its doing its own thing and has creative games too.

Consumers mostly buy what they're used to, and a game where the main character is a pair of guns in a dark-brown world is more recognizable than something like zeno clash. The majority will pick what they're familiar with, so the big publishers focus on those kind of games. Or well, that's how I see it.

[RememberThe357]

I agree. Creativity is still there just not on as large a scale. Theres more money riding on these titles so I can understand publishers not wanting to take those kinds of risks.

[Captain Tuttle]

Plenty of creativity on Xbox Live Arcade and PSN. You people with tunnel vision are missing out.

[Godmars290]

If you have to use XBLA and PSN, especially if you mean indy games on XBLA, to defend creativity on the 360 and PS3, then you've got no right to accuse people of having tunnel vision. More so that at one point MS practically had to be shamed into really supporting XBLA with games like Shadow Complex.

As for me I will always insist that the indusrty wasn't ready for the move to HD consoles. That it should have happened one if not two years later. That the UE3 as the early backbone of this gen was itself broken. Also that HD graphics cut far too much into costs and general resources.

[christheredhead]

yah i definitely see the creativity on psn and xbl, there is no denying that, but where is the substance in those games? what happened to picking up a game at the store that you planned on playing for weeks or even months. we've moved so far into multiplayer as a crutch that 4 or 5 hours of play time is ok and repetitive multiplayers seems to be the only way to get any life or extension out of you're game. either that or trophies. even so, and this is just my opinion, those multiplayers are very bare bones offering very little unless we are willing to spend more and more. same goes for the single player. if you wanted to experience the full story be prepared to dish out additional amounts of money.

i would love to see that creativity and drive return to full retail releases as those seem to be fleeting. its not like they are non exsistent they are just becoming less popular in the wake of more "standard" money making games. ive played a lot of cool games on the psn and frankly they never last very long though as they arent intended to anyways. thats nots a bad thing by any means as they are still great games, its just never what im looking for. good point though.

[jack_burt0n]

Full Retail Games that have quenched that thirst for me this generation:

Uncharted
Bioshock
Infamous
Batman AA
The force unleashed 1
Darksiders
Valkyria Chronicles
Heavy Rain
RUSE
Mass effect
Dead Space
Alone in the Dark
The Sabotuer
Motorstorm
SIREN
Sports Champions
LBP
WKC

Only listed new IP or reboots, I never felt creatively bored with the above. Just thought i would share.

[itsralf]

Alone in the Dark and White Knight Chronicles are definitely on my list of the best over-looked games this gen. They certainly had their flaws, but they're two of the few games I actually wanted to complete and play again.

[Godmars290]

Personally, WKC is one of the biggest disappoints of "next Gen." When you consider what the fist trailer promised, that the originally the online component was added *after* the game was actually released in Japan and that the story and world was just so generic and uninspired, I'd almost say that its as bad as FFXIII. Almost, if not for the small following who feel in love with its multiplayer aspect.

It actually - honestly - pisses me off that "your" character in the singleplayer is such a non-entity. If they had just taken the silent protagonist role from past JRPGs, made it a joke where you're giving inspiring speeches and advice off-screen, maybe hooking up with certain NPCs, it could have been a real rather than a cult classic.

[itsralf]

Eh, sorry you didn't like it. I got about 100 hours out of it, though, and made a few friends online. The campaign may have been a little uninspired, but there was still a ton of content and they continually added new quests. From what I've read and seen, WKC2 improved on a lot of things and I'm looking forward to it.

[Blacktric]

Most developers can't risk making creative games anymore due to sales. Unfortunately, only a couple of companies left that makes creative downloadable and retail titles (like Double Fine), thanks to the people who never buy or give credit to games like Beyond Good And Evil, Brütal Legend and so on.

[wenaldy]

Wow, glad you put Seaman screenshot in your blog.. I remember that game was weird and intriguing at same time..

[MARKUS_MAX1MUS]

Interesting Article!

Ive noticed the same trend you have but only for certain games and certain game genres.

A prime Example of this is the Splinter Cell Series.

If you look at how the series changed from "Splinter Cell" to "Splinter Cell: Double Agent" you will notice how the gameplay became deeper and how we were allowed to interact more with the Game environment and the Game NPCs.

Then you look at the transition to "Splinter Cell: Conviction" and you notice how it actually has LESS ways to interact with your environment and enemy NPCs. In short there is LESS CONTENT and im sure there is a few Spinter Cell fans who would agree with me on here.

The only advancement made was graphics but Double Agent looked as good if not better in my opinion.

The Content taken out mainly were the interactive stealth mechanics such as holding people up, intergation, putting to sleep, breaking neck.....Id be here all day if I listed them.

Other content removed were all the gadgets and tool sets. Movement mechanics such as the "wall split jump" general wall jump.

To sum it up It felt like I was directing an action film by pressing one button to tell Sam where to go rather than actually playing a game were I performed the actions myself.

This Lack of Content seems to be spreading through the games industry, Ive seen the latest dues ex gameplay walkthrough and it looked great right up until the point were he approached and enemy from behind and pressed 1 button and entered a scripted animation take down.

Dont get me wrong! It looked badass but I cant help but feel the effect will wear off after the first 5 times. I thought why could I not have held that guy up, interogated him, patted him down for weapons/items , put him in a sleeper hold, broke his neck, got him to open a door for me, held hostage in first person etc

To me no game seems to have that depth anymore that older games had. It seems we are leaping forward in terms of graphical and animation technology but have taken a few steps back in the gameplay department.

[s45gr32]

I agree with your blog and you clearly pointed out the issues this gen has:

Less content
Map editors, unlockable characters and character costumes, etc. Replaced by DLC meaning we pay for something that used to be free.
Paying 60 dollars for games that are full of bugs, glitches, etc.

These are issues that should not be ignored and we as gamers should do something about it. Like buying say new game a month after its release to show these game developers that we are not buying say untested game. Nowadays, is all about indie games that while creative and fun they are smaller and dont offer replayibility. Now what I dont agree is this delusion that NES and SNES titles were 60 to 80 dollars, I remember paying 20 dollars or 40 dollars at best. The N64 yeah games were 60 dollars or more. Wii is great for new gamers and is filled to the brim with PS2 titles like Okami, bully, Manhunt, etc.,etc. PS3 exclusives have proven time and time again what a next gen title should look, play, feel, sound and the next gen online game should be like. MGO, Uncharted franchise, LBP, Heavy Rain, Folklore, Infamous, etc. Etc. Are the true next gen titles pushing gaming forward an bringing innovation fun and well supported by its creators. Is a crying shame tat the most poopular titles are titles with little to no support by its creatos full of bugs and been there done that type of affairs.

[christheredhead]

I agree. I mean not all nes and snes titles were that high but some were so i thought id get that out of the way. Seeing as how you could pay an upward of 60 dollars for a very very short game back in the day.

Yah the creativity its not necessarily gone its just shifted more towards handhelds and downloadable games where there is more profit if you stand out above the rest. Which now makes its less common on full retail releases.

The 60 dollar price tag should be expected to have a certain amount of quality but when im given half a game and even so when that half of a game is nearly broken its very frustrating. It gives me an uneasy feeling to see the rest of my game broken up into 5, 10 dollar segments and sold to me as "new dlc", when its very clear it should have been included from the beginning.

[InFAMOUS1]

Great article!

It is my opinion this gen has seen more map packs and DLC is simply because of COST!
In a market that only 5% of games are profitable it is difficult to spend 5-25 million on a game that may not make 1 million.... Publishers like Activision have found the wonderful secret of DLC as it extends the life of the title for 2-3 years until their next game comes out, this is especially true with console gaming as the PC community has mods that allow a game to thrive for YEARS.
Now from the creative stand point I agree with you but the reality is the current generation of console gamers don't.
There are too many 14-18 year olds playing video games now that only want to shoot and blow shit up. They don't care about small indy games that pop up on PSN or Live, they don't care about RPGs bcuz they require thought! This all comes together to make a developer who is spending millions of a publishers $ on the type of game they develop as well as the publisher saying they only want a FPS. Business is business and you always go where the money is and while for the select few gamers that is totally sad, for the rest it is 100% acceptable and expected