I'll Never Forget You, Call of Duty 4

A small opinion piece for this weekend. A big concern that comes along with every sequel is the issue of replacement. Does the presense of a sequel or next entry in a series mean that the previous game will be left in the dust? This is a valid concern. Games that we have grown to love getting replaced can sometimes be quite the upsetting thing. But I am here to tell you something: YOUR GAMES ARE NOT BEING REPLACED.

This issue used to be a big problem, and if this issue would have popped into my mind 7 years ago, I would have said get used to getting games replaced. It used to be that the sequel to a game was just that: a replacement. With every new game came an absolutely new experience, one that was so much better than the previous that the latter replaced the former. Take, for example, Medal of Honor. Allied Assault was one of the best PC games every created. It was one of the first shooters to have a narrative unfold while playing. This would become a staple in not only later iterations of the Medal of Honor franchise, but an industry standard in terms of war based first person shooters. Unfortunately, the next iteration replaced it. It had better multiplayer, a new singleplayer, better graphics. It overshadowed it by miles. So the great game Allied Assault was not played much anymore. Up until around the later half of the PS2 era of games did this trend of replacing stop. So, what happened?

It has a lot to do with how the game industry has evolved. At the beginning of the real game industry, the 1980's, development and innovation was emerging extremely fast. This is why in the span of only 6 years did we start seeing games like Super Mario Brothers and The Legend of Zelda, groundbreaking in their times. The industry wanted new things, and it wanted it quickly. Over the years, however, this idea of new game after new game slowed down. It started to become new game "in the series". Just like the movie industry, sequels make a lot of money in the game industry. The demand for new series was more important. But just like the previous demand, it too slowed down. Now skip to the current generation. We have hit the peak in many things technologically. Graphics are at their peak. Sound is at its peak. There just isn't much in the way of new tech. So things have slowed down.

Something of great importance these days is that of storytelling. It just isn't enough to make a game with a protagonist shooting a rifle. You need immersion in the story. You need gigantic setpieces. You need control over decisions and actions and playstyle. These are new things in the game industry. These trends weren't around in the time of Medal of Honor. This, therefore, gave the idea of replacement much more room. People didn't mind that the sequel replaced the old one. The new one was better, stronger, and far more likely to be time-consuming. And while these aspects of sequels exist today in a way, they aren't the same. Sequels are more likely to bring new stories, more innovation, and new ways to play.

So, what does this mean to your old games? First, in terms of singleplayer games, they won't ever go away. A great saying of one of my former teachers is that a good book "is meant to be read more than once". This remains true for any type of medium, including video games. There is a reason playing Tetris or Pac-Man is entertaining even today. THEY ARE GOOD GAMES. Good games don't go away, ever. So for those who fear that the story and gameplay of games like BioShock, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Assassin's Creed will fade away, don't be afraid. They will always be acknowledged as great, genre defining games. And they will be replayed, not replaced. New iterations in the series just aim to provide you the great game you played before in a better way, not a way of replacement. For those of you who fear your multiplayer games are going to go away, it is a little bit more shaky. Multiplayer is in a different place in the industry. We are just hitting the peak of innovation for multiplayer. There are still plenty of things to be done in this area, and therefore some games will replace multiplayer parts of games. I am sorry to say this, but many people will be lost from Modern Warfare due to Modern Warfare 2. It won't ever go away, but it won't be the same. These games will always be alive in multiplayer, just not to the extent when they were more popular. And just like singleplayer, if the multiplayer is good, it won't go away. Just ask StarCraft and Halo 2. People still play those, and will continue to play those.

So sit down and take it easy. And one more thing: if something is being replaced, it isn't necessarily a bad thing. New things are good. So just accept some of them. I don't see anyone complaining about Halo 3 multiplayer "replacing" Halo 2 multiplayer. At this point in gaming, you can accept that if something is replaced,it's worth it. :)

BioWare: Masters of the RPG

Here it is, folks. The last of the posts you voted on. And this one is on one of my favorite developers on the planet: BioWare. These guys are undoubtedly the masters of making RPGs. They know how to make a good RPG in any form. Every game I have played from BioWare (and I've played quite a bit of them, namely KOTOR, Jade Empire, and Mass Effect) is perfect in execution. Why is this? Why is it that in any form or setting, BioWare knows how to make a good role playing game?


The answer comes in a couple of ways, the first of which is sheer talent. BioWare is talented. Some of the brightest and most creative minds come from this company. Only through having several highly intelligent developers can games be put out on the market and still sell well everytime. The devs at BioWare just know how to make a game great. The best way to put it is that they come off as more of an artistic arm than a developer arm. They are creative in thinking, and this comes out in development. The best example of this creativity is the vast amount of new things they have done in their games. The conversational system, first shown in KOTOR, was a brilliant technique to impliment in an RPG and was the first of it's kind. They would develop this further in Mass Effect, where the true cleverness and versatility of multiple conversation answers is shown. BioWare has just the right creativity to come up with these workable ideas. Beyond this is the scope they always seem to put themselves in. They have yet to create a game that was less expansive and ambitious than the project before it. Every game presents a new look, and new story, a new area, and a bigger scope. Only people with massive creativity could pull this off. Think of J.R.R. Tolkien: it took him years and thousands of notes, records, and research to create the land of Middle Earth. In less than 15 years, the team at BioWare has created at least 3 different stories and legends comparable to LOTR. They have created an entire space drama in Mass Effect, and a complete pre-Star Wars mythos within this span of years. Impressive, to say the least.


Another answer is that of their dedication to story. BioWare is much different than most developers in this sense. They first think of a good story, then build a game around it. BioWare prioritizes having a good story before they even pick up a controller. Plainly stated, they know the importance of having a story to tell. BioWare WILL NOT make a game if the story isn't there. This is why their RPGs are always masterpieces. The story and intricacies are known before the game is even developed. This means clarity in development around a common idea. This means an importance on fitting to the story and staying within those important boundaries. Overall, this means that BioWare can make a great RPG and have all of the devs create their ideas with something to focus on. BioWare takes it a step further, though. In all of their games, it is more than just making an amazing story; it is placing you in that story. The player must experience the story, make the choices, and face the consequences. BioWare is and will always be the creator of real character choice. BioWare has always made it a priority to serve the choice of the player. If the player wants to punch that stupid reporter in Mass Effect for asking a stupid question, they can. This is the player's story. That is why their RPGs are so immersive. Not only is this story amazingly diverse and intrinsical, it is the player's.


The final answer is the most abstract. BioWare succeeds in something it doesn't do. BioWare has never made a game for the casual gamer. They haven't made any game to please newcomers. They haven't created a story that is aimed for younger audiences. They haven't even made an effort to grab this type of crowd. And because of this, they do grab that type of crowd. BioWare creates games for a great and immersive story set in gigantic worlds. They know what gamers like. They know what makes a good tale. And they know who they need to pay attention to. BioWare, unlike a majority of developers these days, doesn't really care much about appealing to a bigger crowd. They just want to make the gamer's RPG. If it ain't broken, don't fix it. They know the crowd is out there, and they want to make the best RPG that people know and love and want to buy. And because of this, their games sell like hotcakes. They don't make sacrifices for the sake of motion control. They don't take out a part of the game because it may be too mature. They just do the best they can possible, and they leave it at that. Think if it like a movie theatre. At any given time, you'll have chick flicks, animated movies, horror movies, and big-budget movies in the theatre. All appeal to different crowds. But if one of them is known to be a good movie, is getting amazing reviews, and making crap-loads of money, a majority of people in those other crowds will go see this movie. This is why BioWare games work. People just know the game will be good and high quality, and therefore buy the game. And newcomers are always welcome. BioWare doesn't lessen it standards for new ways to control or ESRB crankiness. BioWare doesn't adjust to these things; they adjust to BioWare.


Simply put, BioWare is one in a million. This company is simply amazing. Their attention to a great story and a great game is unparalleled. If you have never played a BioWare game, shame on you. You are missing out on some of the best storytelling of the last couple decades. BioWare is the pinnacle of creativity and care for gaming. Only a company of this calibur can excite gamers at just an announcement of a new game. Here's hoping that all of BioWare's future endeavors remain the high quality endeavors they are known for. I for one am extremely excited for Mass Effect 2. And you should be too.

A Nice Group

A post I have been wanting to write for a while is one featuring some of the great developers and designers of the gaming world. It is hard to find just one person to focus on in the gaming industry. Every game involves several people collaborating to make the best game they can make. It is in no way a single effort. But some people have showed by their hard work, determination, success, and a bit of luck, that they are the face of the development industry. These people are the best in their fields. They have created things and put forth ideas that have changed gaming. It is hard to pick five of these. If I could I would write a post of fifty developers, because they all deserve recognition. These five are just the tip of the iceberg in a room full of geniuses. So let's get started, shall we?

SHIGERU MIYAMOTO

There is no denying the supremacy and magnitude of this man in the last twenty years. Shigeru Miyamoto was and is vital to the history and development of video games. His ideas and leadership have set an example for all video game developers. Specifically, Nintendo would not be the company they are today without him. Miyamoto created the flagship games for Nintendo. Not one or two. All of them. Starting with Donkey Kong in 1981, Miyamoto created a fun and creative plumber named Mario. 1985 would bring another legendary game called Super Mario Bros.. The rest is history. Miyamoto created an enduring property for Nintendo in Mario. To this day, Mario is the number one most recognizable character in gaming. Miyamoto would also create similar enduring properties such as Zelda in 1986 and Pokemon in 1996. His contributions to Nintendo cannot be counted. Miyamoto is the greatest example of creativity. No man has ever brought so many properties into this world and had so much success with all of them. His ability to craft great characters and great stories is amazing. Recently, he has pioneered his original properties into the next generation, with the Super Mario Galaxy series and a new Legend of Zelda on the horizon. Simply put, Miyamoto should be on every list of best developers.

DAN PALADIN

Mr. Paladin should be given a medal. If there was ever a leader in the independent movement in video games, it would be him. His creativity and unique art style and his ability to create amazing games with his indie development company The Behemoth show his real commitment to a different type of game. Paladin has pioneered the way for independent development in the video game industry. Most successful games take years to make and use hundreds of people. The Behemoth's first game was a flash game on a self-run website. The fun and the uniqueness of the game would not go unnoticed though, and Alien Hominid, as it was known, would go for a full retail release, where it would send Paladin and The Behemoth at the top of the indie scene. Paladin's art style and commitment to a great game is awesome. The hope he provides to indie developers is important. He, more than anyone, has proven that anything can be successful with enough hard work and a great idea.

HIDEO KOJIMA
Kojima has done many things for the game industry, but no other person can make a claim to true narrative like he can. Kojima is the pioneer of story in video games. During his entry into the video game industry, real credible narrative only came in the form of cinema. Kojima should know this. He originally wanted to be a film director. But when he saw the oppurtunity to make that film in a video game, he took it. Kojima would create Metal Gear in 1987. This would be the only game of its kind to have a movie-like narrative. Kojima would continue to make several sequels to Metal Gear, where his attention to story and his power to narrate would be noticed. Today he continues to strive for great stories in games, with a new Castlevania and two new Metal Gear games.

CLIFF BLESZINSKI

If you were to create the perfect compliment to the eastern ways of gaming development, Cliff would be it. Clif added something that was needed in a gaming world that was dominated by Japanese leaders. He brought the tenacity and edge of western development. Cliff is a different type of developer. He is professional yet weird. He is there to do a job yet he has tons of fun. Bleszinski has done what many wish they could do: whatever they want. He has been very successful in the video game industry with his attitude of nothing left out. This is no better shown than in his flagship game series Gears of War. His focus on grittiness and seriousness is shown in the games. Cliff has created an industry bubble of uniqueness not only in the game but out of the game. He brings personality in real life just as he does in his games. This is important because it shows the real character and reputation that the industry needs. Cliff is exciting, intelligent, and different from any other developer.

JADE RAYMOND

Now, why would I put Jade Raymond on this list? I'll tell you why. She is a woman in an industry dominated by men. It is always great to see a woman strive in this industry. Jade Raymond has done way more than strive. Raymond initially found success in The Sims Online. She was a producer for the somewhat successful game. Ubisoft would soon notice her unique ideas and her real attention to well crafted games. She would soon become the lead producer on Assassin's Creed, Ubisoft's flagship title for the next generation. Jade would be put into the spotlight, showing off an amazing game. With AC's success, Jade would become known as one of the most successful women in the video game industry. So successful that in the recent months she has been promoted to President of the new Ubisoft Toronto studios. Jade Raymond is just the beginning of a changing demographic in gaming. No longer is gaming just for 16 year old boys. It is a sophisticated industry with room for all viewpoints. Jade Raymond is a perfect example of this.

I hope you will go and read more about these great developers in the industry. Like I said, I would put more if I could. These five are just five I picked that I thought represented my feelings on the way the industry could and should be represented. If you know of any other developers that you think should be on here, don't be afraid to comment. And if you disagree with my choices, don't be afraid either. Have a great Sunday.