Poll: Who is responsible for bad games?

[Omnific One]

So, I was thinking about a couple terrible games I own (FEAR Files, Timeshift) and I began to wonder about who is to blame for bad games. Is it the developer, publisher, consumers, or just plain fate? In your opinion, who is most at fault for bad games? Please choose the one that fits the most cases in your view.

Edit: Strange poll issue going on. Only two options will go through.

 

[Julianking93]

Whoever wrote/directed/produced/designed it.

 

[imaloony]

The developers. They're the ones who actually make the game. The producers are mainly in charge of marketing and sometimes graphics and/or engines provided, but the developers are the ones who put the substance in it, and if it sucks, its their fault.

 

[Proteus214]

It's a combination of developers, publishers, and consumers. Publishers for not giving the developers enough time to finish/polish their work or giving them ridiculous metrics for a project. Developers for taking on and producing projects that overshoot their resources and abilities. And finally consumers for eating shit and asking for more.

 

[reg42]

It depends on the game, though most of the time I think it's the devs fault

 

[Irridium]

Publishers. Since their the ones who fund the games, they're the ones who ultimately decide what gets released and what doesn't, and the content in said game.

Not to mention its the Publishers who rush a game and cause the developers to force it out into the world. Imagine what Knights of the Old Republic 2 would have been like with a bit more polish and development time.

EDIT: Upon further consideration, its a combination of the developers, publishers, and even the consumers.

Publishers because they tend to push the devs and make them rush the game, developers because, well we've all seen bad design decisions that make no damn sense. And consumers for constantly asking for something new, yet when something new comes out few of them buy it.

 

[erbkaiser]

Most times the developers, except for those cases where the publishers forced the developers to scrap all the content that would make it good just to get a timely release.
Any game with zero day patches that sucks is likely the publisher's fault.

 

[DeadlyYellow]

It's a combination of developers, publishers, and consumers. Publishers for not giving the developers enough time to finish/polish their work or giving them ridiculous metrics for a project. Developers for taking on and producing projects that overshoot their resources and abilities. And finally consumers for eating shit and asking for more.

Sums it up quite nicely. Theoretically, if given enough time for proper polish, the devs could be ruled out. However, publishers push and push for a product and will release one unfinished if one of the major sales seasons is approaching. And since they largely control project funding, they also get to decide what goes into production based on market trending. This is why when a space shooter hits it big the market gets flooded with them.

 

[Rakenar]

Ok, first, you'd need to put way more options, and better understand the difference in each roles.

Producers are the people who manage the ressources of the game : time, money, people.
Designers are the people who actually chose the storyline, the environnements, the monsters who are gonna be in the game.
Programmers are the people who give tools to the designers, artists and integrators to succeed.
Artists do everything art-related in the game : menus art, animations, meshes, etc
Integrators are the people who put the things the artists did in the game with the tools the programmers gave them.
Developers is way too wide a term to define any real job in the domain : a janitor cleaning the workspace as helped in the "developement" as well (ok, that example is maybe a bit farfetched, but you get what I meant).

In the end, it depends on what makes the game bad in your opinion : if it's the story, then the designers are to blame. If it was the glitch/bugs, then the programmers are to blame, etc.

 

[Omnific One]

Ok, first, you'd need to put way more options, and better understand the difference in each roles.

Producers are the people who manage the ressources of the game : time, money, people.
Designers are the people who actually chose the storyline, the environnements, the monsters who are gonna be in the game.
Programmers are the people who give tools to the designers, artists and integrators to succeed.
Artists do everything art-related in the game : menus art, animations, meshes, etc
Integrators are the people who put the things the artists did in the game with the tools the programmers gave them.
Developers is way too wide a term to define any real job in the domain : a janitor cleaning the workspace as helped in the "developement" as well (ok, that example is maybe a bit farfetched, but you get what I meant).

In the end, it depends on what makes the game bad in your opinion : if it's the story, then the designers are to blame. If it was the glitch/bugs, then the programmers are to blame, etc.

Sorry, the poll isn't allowing me to edit it. I had other options in mind, but it didn't work out as I had hoped.

When I say developers, I just mean overall. Game developing is a group effort between the different areas so if say, the GUI was terrible looking, the programmer who was scripting an event could inform them of that issue.

 

[Ironic Pirate]

It depends on the situation.

"Hey, a new movie comes out tommorrow. Can you make a game of it? The rest of the team will be paying poker in my office so you'll be going it alone. Also, the computers are down, so you'll have to use my laptop - just don't open the pictures folder. The laptop only has a two hour battery and I left my charger home, so work quick." That would be the publisher's fault.

Shit writing, lag, unbalanced multiplayer, un-fun gameplay, short campaign, a 50 million dollar budget and several years to make, then it's the developers fault. *Cough*

 

[Mr Scott]

Consumers are responsible for bad games.

 

[dex-dex]

everybody yes even the consumer because you are supporting how crappy it is

naw i am just kidding it is the creators

 

[Omnific One]

The....creators....?

I'm not sure what to say in this thread...

Some people think the publishers for deadlines/lack of funding/stupid forced additions/etc. Think about the IW/Activision issue.

 

[The Undoer]

Michael Atkinson! Well, maybe.

Seriously, it's when the Publishers get too involved with the development process. But if Valve ever make a bad game, gold help them. (It's funny 'cause they don't work for a publisher)

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

In my opinion, the consumer. If the game fails to make money, the incompetent staff is fired. We need to, as a community, spread the word quickly about how terrible a game is without being biased by developer loyalty or whatever.

 

[The Rockerfly]

Hitler that's who

 

[Tele-screen]

In my opinion, the consumer. If the game fails to make money, the incompetent staff is fired. We need to, as a community, spread the word quickly about how terrible a game is without being biased by developer loyalty or whatever.

Consumers are definitely to blame. How is it possible that they can even make shovelware like Mary Kate and Ashley or Barbie games? Because uninformed consumers (well meaning moms and dads) buy them. Because they are produced so cheaply and shoddily, they turn a nice profit even when they suck and not very many people buy them.