Gaming going Mainstream - How does it affect us?

[Deleted]

Not to sound conceited but "us" means the hardcore, experienced, regular etc gamers. Basically anything besides casual gamer (not meant as an insult). We played through the NES era, some even the Atari days, we learned the combos and the secret locations, and saw franchises rise, die, and live on. With games going mainstream, is that also making them more "casual?" in a bad sense?

An example would be the FPS domination, like it or not, these games are among the most played. They're even the FACE of gaming and gamers to an extent. Name a fox news segment about video games that didn't mention CoD or GTA.

I like casual games as much as the next guy, Geometry wars, tetris, basically anything that can be played to the maxxx (I love a challenging puzzle game). But I can't help but feel that other games are threatened, you would never see a new Jak and Daxter type game because there's no money in it. Adventure games today involve third person shooting, or quick time events and button mash combos. They're great (in fact I just played Majin for the 360, surprisingly good) but you can tell how they're influenced by what's selling.

Am I right to think this? Are developers ACTUALLY sticking to formulas and focus groups instead of trying to create new magic? Or is it just the ramblings of panicking gamers who "see the end is near".

 

[Psycho Cat Industries]

Games are mainstream.They're pulling a rabbit from their hat as is popular but on the side making it blue or giving it fangs.

 

[vault69]

Name a fox news segment about video games that didn't mention CoD or GTA.

the one where they attacked Mass Effect

OT: you are right in a sense, there is a decline of non-FPS games, but even then the non-FPS games(Mass Effect 2 prime example) are being targeted towards a more casual audience(I can't really think of a good counter so I'll stop that here).

While also the ramblings of panicked gamers, seemingly mostly PC players, are a bit off they are also a bit correct in saying that because games are being more generalized to reach a broader audience, they will suck more. And to an extent they(me) are correct, I turn back to Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age 2. You could say that those were dumbed down, well because they were. Bioware tried to reach out to the shooter/fast-paced combat audience by making these both fast paced in combat, and somewhat lacking in story(only slightly(<3 Bioware)). I felt as if I could play Dragon Age 2 for 30 minutes and no more, at a time of course, due to the fast paced combat and similar areas.

What happened to all the good RPG's that almost forced you(mind you they didn't) to explore every nook and cranny of the game world to find the best items/armor?, or level up enough to beat a tough boss, mind you all on the one difficulty level the game had(could go into a rant about that but I'll stop, I promise).

 

[Soviet Heavy]

It is good for us. The more recognition that gaming gets as a viable industry and as an artistic medium is only going to be beneficial.

 

[New Vegas Samurai]

I don't think the right term is "going Mainstream" is the right term anymore...
Ever since the advent of MW, and online gaming, I think that gaming has expanded quite well over the years, and there will always be games just targeted to the online crowd.

Hopefully, that won't destroy the deeper games I've come to love.

 

[DeadlyYellow]

You sound like video games "going mainstream" is a new thing.

 

[Thealchemistofwhite]

Name a fox news segment about video games that didn't mention CoD or GTA.

the one where they attacked Mass Effect

OT: you are right in a sense, there is a decline of non-FPS games, but even then the non-FPS games(Mass Effect 2 prime example) are being targeted towards a more casual audience(I can't really think of a good counter so I'll stop that here).

While also the ramblings of panicked gamers, seemingly mostly PC players, are a bit off they are also a bit correct in saying that because games are being more generalized to reach a broader audience, they will suck more. And to an extent they(me) are correct, I turn back to Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age 2. You could say that those were dumbed down, well because they were. Bioware tried to reach out to the shooter/fast-paced combat audience by making these both fast paced in combat, and somewhat lacking in story(only slightly(<3 Bioware)). I felt as if I could play Dragon Age 2 for 30 minutes and no more, at a time of course, due to the fast paced combat and similar areas.

What happened to all the good RPG's that almost forced you(mind you they didn't) to explore every nook and cranny of the game world to find the best items/armor?, or level up enough to beat a tough boss, mind you all on the one difficulty level the game had(could go into a rant about that but I'll stop, I promise).

I actually thought this first as I saw the thread, however, I was reminded of L.A. Noire and Heavy Rain. The generalization of games past 20 year old white males, will probably bring us more artistic games of this type. The type of game which people can come over and all participate together in this fantastic interactive film. Even though Heavy Rain isn't the best example, L.A. Noire showcases a pretty good example of an interactive artistic game that does well with a variety of people and is rather artistic.

Games like these will introduce people who are not interested in gaming to this certain type of artistic film-like interactive experience. I myself bought L.A. Noire, but my Grandmother, Grandfather, and a few other of my somewhat older relative's that had the appropriate consoles, also picked it up as it was a rather engaging crime thriller. I think the games industry will eventually level off like the medium of Literature and Film. A LOT of pandering in the highly advertised stuff, stupid and shallow. However, you'll have those few games that come out that are intellectually stimulating, such as when There Will Be Blood came out four years ago, amidst a flurry of pandering shallow films. As a young budding developer, quite of a few of my classmates in the Game classes, and also Film classes, have high Bohemian standards for art, and since it's easier to do in games, I doubt we'll ever lose art in our games.

 

[Amondren]

If it affects us in anyway it may improve tutorials or create new genres to introduce more players and possibly make some games more user friendly to new gamers.

 

[ShakesZX]

It's upsetting to hear this again. It's not just you, and nothing new on the subject is going to be said on this topic for a while.

This scenario has both good and bad points. No there is not as much focus on the kinds of games that the crowd who calls itself "hardcore" wants and yells about. But on the other hand, there are more smaller companies cropping up, and more generalized products being created for general consumption. And all of this has been said before.

Everything is changing, and that change will bring with it both positive and negative aspects for everyone. If you are a "true gamer", or even someone who only has a peripheral interest, you will undoubtedly keep up with current trends and support (pay for) the games and systems you like.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

There's a VG cats cartoon that sums up what you're describing pretty well.
http://www.vgcats.com/comics/?strip_id=280
I always find it hilarious and accurate. Expanding gaming to everyone can be a bad thing--I'm sorry, but it can be. More people does NOT always equal better. Look what happened to Burning Man, X-Play, E3, and many other once favorite events. More people tends to draw the eyes of people not interested in the event itself, but making money off of the event. This leads to people eventually being turned away from the very event they helped start.
Let's take Jak and Daxter type games, since you give the example. Those games used to be huge. People loved them and they were everywhere. Then FPSs did something different, and suddenly more people were interested in gaming. That's great, but companies suddenly went, "We need to do what THEY did," and started forgetting about their original fans, trying to cater to the new crowd. As such, said fans were left out in the cold, until eventually they simply shook their heads at what their hobby had become and walked away. Has the market gotten to that point yet? No, but there are signs. More and more of one type of game, less and less of other types. Personally, I think the video game bubble is going to pop eventually, and then we'll find out who's really a Gamer, and who's someone who just played video games.
Disclaimer: I'm not blaming FPSs, I'm simply using them as an example. I play Call of Duty and Halo just as much as I play Final Fantasy and Adventure games.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

This is kinda why I'm so keen on supporting companies like CD Projekt. Sure, they are a smaller company, and their game has its flaws, but they are on the right page in my book. They keep things pretty hardcore, and don't let you get by with an easy ride the whole way through.

I also love casual gaming, I can hammer on my wife's iPad or my cellphone at any given time, but dumbing down of certain types of games to appeal to a wider audience is kinda depressing sign of things to come. Can you blame them really, I mean they must be making more money reaching out to a wider audience. But I've seen this pattern emerge in lots of things, especially with my favorite bands.

Having said that, I'm still a huge Bioware fan! And no I didn't find DA2 as easy as most people, and I don't mind the action elements either, but I can see how the change can put off many fans of the franchise.

 

[Wintermoot]

1. more stories of Nintendo enriching the lives of people
2. more casual games/casual gaming commercials
3. a future for games

 

[Steppin Razor]

Am I right to think this? Are developers ACTUALLY sticking to formulas and focus groups instead of trying to create new magic? Or is it just the ramblings of panicking gamers who "see the end is near".

It's both. Gamers are being panicky little bitches about the intrusion of casual gaming and the dominance of shooters, as there are still a fair few games being made with original ideas in them. And at the same time, a lot of developers are sticking to proven formulas. There are a lot more copy-paste style games out there nowadays. But you know who is to blame for that?

Spoiler

You. Not you in particular OP, but gamers in general. The people that express concern over the rise of the FPS and casual market and whine about the death of creative and original games. Well you know what would have helped us stave off this situation?

IF YOU BOUGHT THE FUCKING ORIGINAL GAMES IN THE FIRST PLACE.

 

[Waaghpowa]

I don't think there's an issue with gaming going mainstream. My only problem is with the hypocrites. I mean the guys who bullied you in highschool for being a geek who played video games because it wasn't mainstream now flocking to it because it's "cool".

 

[loc978]

Well, I started gaming with the Atari 2600 as a kid in the 80s... and lately I find myself interested in fewer and fewer new games... but it doesn't really bother me. There are tons of worthwhile games that I missed along the way. Between those and the replay value of many of my newer games, it wouldn't really affect me too badly if the entire industry imploded. Not that it's going to.
There are still great AAA games coming out once in awhile. Batman: Arkham Asylum was the Batman game that I've been dreaming of since my first playthrough of this [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoTG1nR84MU], and I don't doubt Arkham City will fill me with a similar feeling of fulfilled nostalgic dreams. There's still a market for great games, but filler is a little more prevalent lately (though certainly not more common. We had crap games growing up, but everyone knew they were crap before they were even released. There's a... different... gaming crowd nowadays).

 

[KaidenDager]

Social Degradation has been the chief concern of every generation and sub-culture for as long as people have been writing history. The observation of this generalization is made in many forms "In my day...", "When we were kids..." or more acutely in sub-cultures as "I knew about ____ before it got popular".

The answer (as it has always been) is to let go. Everything changes and there isn't much one person or an entire generation (see '60s hippies) can do about it. As the OP cites growing up in the NES generation I'd guess we are talking early to mid twenties. The thoughts held about something as a "childhood pastime" often incite feelings of being sacred or untouchable when they really shouldn't. Handing the keys of childhood over to the next generation and allowing them to decide marketing trends is an inevitability. Besides, you're inheriting the entertainment market from your mothers and fathers and believe me they are worrying the same way.

 

[Vault101]

what ever you call it its inevitible and stoping it is counterproductive