Are games in general getting worse or is that nostalgia talking?

[KiKiweaky]

Sure games are certainly focussed on multiplayer but I always have the same argument with a mate of mine, he only likes older games and no matter how many times I show him a new game he's still like 'I prefer the old one', which when your talking about the Total War series. Rome Total War (to be specific) isnt a bad choice. He didnt like medieval at all (which I thought was leagues ahead of rome) and doesnt seem to be impressed by Shogun 2 much either. Its his opinion and I can respect it but there is only so many times you can play an old title over and over.

The funny thing is he never actually plays them either, he much prefers consoles. I reckon its becaue he spent alot of time in my house when we were younger and I would have been playing Rome at the time and he hasnt seen the same amount of Rome or Medieval as we were older so werent hanging around every single day as we have college/work now.

 

[scorptatious]

4) Reluctance to take risks, games these days dont really take risks, they cant afford to, it costs so much money to make a game they are afraid. Most of that is probablly spent on graphics. I just see shoter, after shooter, after shooter. I like shooters, but christ.

Aside from gmaes becoming worse, they also seem to become more similar in an attempt pull in the same numbers that CoD does.

The game industry has been doing that kind of thing since it was first created. When Super Mario Bros. and Sonic the Hedgehog came out, dozens of different companies attempted to create their own colorful mascot in a 2D platformer game in order to cash in on their success. Same thing happened when Super Mario 64 came out, several companies created 3D platformers from the mid 90's to the early 2000's. Now, thanks to games like Halo and Call of Duty, the same thing is happening with shooters. And thanks to the Wii, Microsoft and Sony are attempting to cash in on it's success with the Kinect and Move.

My point is, fads come and go. And I'm sure that eventually, someone will create a game or system that is both innovative and successful. And as a result, people will attempt to cash in on it. And then a decade or so from then, that fad will die out.

 

[Henkie36]

It really depends on the series you are talking about. Call of Duty: Hell yeah. Resident Evil: At question. Grand Theft Auto: No. But then again, it all depends on your personal preference. I think GTA IV is better then Vice City and San Andreas, not just because it looks better. I'm reluctant about RE, since everyone will agree that RE 4 was and still is the best installment in the franchise so far. 5 wasn't neseccarily bad, but 4 was better. Call of Duty started out pretty good, they kept getting better. Until Modern Warfare, WaW was pretty much more of the same only with different setting, more annoying characters and less likable multiplayer and it's downhill from there on in. But keep in mind that this is all my opinion, and I would ask not to go completely mad about it. This is the free world after all.

 

[Hyper-space]

snip

Frenchie to the rescue! props for madz info being dropped.

I find it quite disappointing these days that multiplayer trumps over gameplay and narrative.

Oh yeah, because who can forget all the NARRATIVE in Pac-man, Super Mario Brothers and Unreal Tournament? gaming of yesteryear sure was the apex of storytelling and NARRATIVE.

But nah, just fucking around. Gaming has always been like this, with developers aping what sells and pushing endless clones. Did you know how the second generation of consoles ended? death by drowning, namely drowning in a sea of terrible games. Yes, there was actually a time ('85 or '89 i think) where there was sooooooo much crap getting released that it CRASHED THE ENTIRE INDUSTRY and you are complaining now?

Hell, take the fighter craze and mascot craze of the nineties. The former came when Street Fighter 2 accidentally invented combos and rocked the fighter genre, what followed was tons of clones and coattail-riders (some good, LOTS bad). The latter was after the popularity of mascots such as Sonic, with every developer trying to cash-in on the craze by making their own cutesy mascot and as you might expect, most of the games were bad.

The point is, there will always be "crazes" that come and go, where suddenly developers might try to ape the success of pick-up-n-play lone-wolf multiplayers such as Halo and Call of Duty, or indie sandbox, this fixation on multiplayer is not something new. As always, there will be a mindless shooter that will top the charts (Wolfenstein, Doom, Quake, Unreal Tournament, CS, ect.) for FPS's are good at blowing steam without the hassle of extensive player-investment, something that people who have to work and do not have as much free-time like.

So yes, if the fact that you are looking back at gaming through the glasses of an adolescent (or even infant) nostalgic-eyes doesn't indicate a need for some perspective, i hope these aforementioned will.

What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.

 

[SpaceArcader]

I imagine its mostly nostalgia. A lot of problems we have with video games today were just as present when we were kids. We were probably just too young to care at the time that we honestly don't really remember all that much. We mostly just remember the stand-out games that we really enjoyed and such, ignoring the other shite.

Though speaking of which I did see a video that might help you out in explaining this (I'm really not good at explaining things) http://www.blisteredthumbs.net/2011/03/gaming-in-the-90s-sucked/

Hope that helps.

Thanks! Thats given me a good insight

My gaming gem for me last year was Arkham Asylum, I really didnt expect the game to be THAT good. That's the best kind of games I think, the ones that are out of the blue and become a classic.

 

[CrazyCapnMorgan]

When I play Final Fantasy 3 (US number), Chrono Trigger, Wild ARMs, Grandia and Secret of Mana more than the new games that are out, it either means I love RPGs and perhaps enjoy a good story or that the OP might have a point. Especially when I like Killer Instinct above all other fighting games, new and old.

 

[CiB42]

Worse.

The idea of (say) a mainstream RPG having a tactical combat system, or quests with multiple paths is now very slim indeed (Take Fallout and Fallout 2 compared to Fallout 3 and New Vegas- stylisticly, the first two require the player to actually think about the best way to overcome obsticals).

An example from a different genre: Command and Conquer is about tactical unit control, base building and resource gathering (all requiring the lpayer to think occasionally). Command and Conquer 4 is about putting your crawler out of harms way, churning out units as fast as possible and throwing them at the enemy. Recource gathering and base building doesn't enter into it at all.

Difficulties are plummeting as well. Back in the 90's it was not uncommon for people to have games they hadn't finished because they were hard. Now when people have games they haven't finished it's because they were crap and they lost interest.

Sure, the occasional gem still comes along, but with to many genres, their best was long ago.

 

[Hobohodo]

I'd say that, they are getting worse, but they are also improving in huge ways, because now and again, a game like L.A. Noire comes along, and blows me away, due to the amazing story, graphics, and innovation, which I really enjoy. I usually buy the newer innovative games these days, because im sick of games like COD, that are entirely focused on multiplayer, I prefer a game to have a strong story, that I can get attached too, such as Heavy Rain, or Metal Gear Solid.

I guess what im trying to say that, whilst the majority of games are the same, and are getting worse, I also believe games are getting better, because now and again, a rare game comes along, with incredibly innovation and new ideas, which provide a great experience, whilst, a while ago, most games didn't really focus on a story, but just about random fun, I rather a mix of story and gameplay. That's just my opinion though.

 

[standokan]

Like what´s happened to music, it´s not getting worse, it´s changing.

 

[scnj]

My problem is that multiplayer game content is included as a replacement for the lessened amount of sp game content.

I agree, but that's probably because single player content is much more expensive than multiplayer content, and a percentage of AAA gamers are only interested in the multiplayer.

 

[David Hebda]

Depends on the kind of game you want really. If you are looking for good adventure/explorer games... Well those are falling to the wayside. If you are looking for good RTS games, don't bother, the new ones are not as good as the old ones. Sure they look better but they really aren't, not if you want true strategy. M.A.X. now only on GOG is probably the best example of this.
Here is the issue, back in the day games needed to be founded on something, something solid. A idea or premise to drive a good story or a unique combat style or true strategy and logistics to make you play, these days games try to rely on graphics to pull you in and while that is grate for FPS and the like its a sad thing for real RTS junkies like myself, who still think Supreme Commander was worse than Total Annihilation.

 

[Guilherme Zoldan]

I think its unfair to judge the old school games by the standards of that time when comparing them to modern games. There was more inovation in mainstream games back then, but thats because the industry as a whole was new, there wasnt much that had been done before. If anything the less mainstream titles now-a-days are much much more creative then any games in any age ever were. I refer you to Braid and Echochrome.

 

[linkvegeta]

Holy Crap! that more games that I thought. Im talking more about games that EA are pushing like Biowares games. Even bioware didn't like how dragon age 2 came out, they said they had to release it because of EA crazy deadlines. I mean they have already announced Mass effect 3! ME2 is still new. there should not be a new ME for a few more years at least.

To be fair to Bioware, they have multiple divisions that work on each game. That's why they've been able to release: Mass Effect in 2007 (2008 for Windows), Sonic Chronicles in 2008 (2009 in Japan, funnily enough), Dragon Age: Origins in 2009, Mass Effect 2 in 2010 (2011 for the PS3), and Dragon Age 2 in 2011, as well as countless amounts of DLC. I do agree with you on how EA pushes them, but that's because I believe Bioware should have split for another EDIT: "publisher" :EDIT when EA crushed Pandemic Studios (I have a hatred for EA that I will not get into here).

You have a point. Athough I would have to say I hate EA more than anyone else haha. anyway if you ever decide to create a "I hate EA" group then send me an invite.

 

[chunkeymonke]

Really you don't remember the dozens of fighting games that came out in the 90s becuase street fighter was doing so well? or the 6 mega man games in 6 years all with same engine sprites and game structure? Or Street fighter 2 , super street fighter 2, super street fighter 2 turbo, super street fighter 2 x?
Face it all problems you see have exisited since to beginning of gaming you are just looking t it with nostalgia vision on. Face it people

 

[Scarim Coral]

I would like to think it's the nosalgia talking (I could be wrong) since the fondness of those game may have make us overlook the quality of the current games. Still I think there are still good or at least interesting upcoming games in the future.

 

[NinjaTigerXIII]

No, the problem is that not enough Amazing games are getting shipped now a days. And for the next year or so we will be stuck in Sequaltopia, so more of the same.

 

[ResonanceGames]

The number of titles that appeal to me as more than just a mild genre attraction is pretty small these days. I don't know if that's indicative of a drop in quality or not, but it's been a long time since I played something that made me feel the way that games like Thief or Deus Ex or Planscape Torment did over a decade ago.

However, now that we're nearing the end of this console generation, it looks like the next two years are finally going to bring some interesting things. Example: Prey 2 is looking like a really cool, new experience.