Poll: Who is the greatest videogame visionary?

[The Jovian]

If videogames are ever to be taken seriously as an art form we will need our own Orson Wells, Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, etc, etc. Who do you think will eventually take this role if he/she hasn't done so already, a person that drives forward storytelling and technical innovation, without which our medium would be poorer as a result. I know that the poll probably doesn't contain your personal choice (which is why I've added the "other" category), but I've only got 8 option slots so fell free to voice your pick as a response. If he/she gets more hits than one of these 8 choices I might replace them with the one you chose.

My vote goes for Gabe Newell, where do you cast your vote?

 

[Berny Marcus]

I'm going for Kojima, the guy is a mad genius!

I honestly haven't played any of Valve's games, or fond of Final Fantasy.


Bioshock Infinite was a really great game, but Levin hasn't really blown my mind away.

And Molyneux, while he is passionate for his games, and that is something to admire, he opens his mouth way more, then deliver on his promises.

 

[GoaThief]

Molyneux, he doesn't always deliver but has done some great things in the past. Combine that with genuine enthusiasm plus a desire to do it different and he's a really good candidate.

I think instead of holding up single individuals on a pedestal it would be more appropriate to name software houses or teams that consistently deliver as even design is a largely collaborative effort in this industry.

 

[MammothBlade]

Warren Spector and Ken Levine. Between them, they created several of the greatest series in game history and set new benchmarks for the mesh of story and gameplay. They at least deserve that much credit.

 

[alphamalet]

If videogames are ever to be taken seriously as an art form...

What the hell is with this...

GTA V just made 1 billion dollars in three days. Is that not something to be taken seriously? Who cares if not everyone thinks video games are art or something to be taken absolutely seriously? They make record-breaking amounts of money, have legions of fans, and are creating entertaining experiences that are enjoyed by millions of people around the world. We don't need to beg for approval from anybody, nor do we NEED this visionary that you speak of.

Now if we are going to have a conversation about true visionaries in the video game industry, I'm really not sure if I could pick one person. Each person on the list you made has both hits and misses, and creating a video game is such a collaborative process that it almost seems insulting to a development team to boil success down to one person. I think I would personally rather look at individual games and analyze their contributions to the industry instead of looking toward a single person's body of work.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

Gabe Newell. There's a lot more to video games than actual video games. He revolutionized an entire industry and he wants to do it again.

 

[Legion]

We don't need "visionaries" for games to be taken seriously as an art form. We need the people who claim it isn't or cannot be to actually play games before forming their opinions. The people who say such things are almost universally people who have never actually picked up a controller. They are generally the kind of person who hears a rock song on the radio one time and says "Rock isn't real music".

OT: My vote would be Gabe Newell. Not because I am a crazy fan of Valve, but because he has contributed to gaming as a whole beyond simply being in charge of a company that makes decent games. Steam may not be perfect, but it has done a lot of good for PC gaming, and as Adam Jensen said, he is also looking to push the industry forward again.

That's not to say it will be perfect, but most companies seem to prefer to imitate rather than innovate, Valve at least tries to always do their own thing.

 

[eimatshya]

I'm not really sure why people are so hung up on "being taken seriously as an art form." I mean, there are some amazing video games that I would definitely call works of art, but if other people don't want to take those seriously, that doesn't bother me in the least. It doesn't diminish my enjoyment of the medium.

That said, my vote would be for Chris Avellone. He was the lead writer on both Planescape: Torment and The Sith Lords, which are two of my favorite examples of games that let you explore serious issues. Both games have their rough edges, but they challenged the existing narrative conventions for their genre (PS:T) or setting (KoTORII) and made me think about my actions in ways that previous games had not. Both games are, in my mind, serious works of art.

 

[Sigmund Av Volsung]

*Makes a "best visionary of gaming" thread*

*Forgets it's the Escapist*

Why I would have to say that it's Gaben!

Also because as Yahtzee rightly said, Half Life is responsible for a lot of trends in shooters, so it's quite influential in modern gaming, that and he had worked on Windows 3.0, the former best version of Windows(before XP and 7), is sort of responsible for the state of PC Gaming as it is today (it's hard to imagine PC Gaming without a binding platform such as Steam).

Oh yeah, why is there a lack of Shigeru Miyamoto?

I know that the Escapist does not harbour a lot of love for Nintendo, but he still has had a lot of influence on gaming.

 

[Rossco64]

Where's Miyamoto? In a survey of more than 9000 game developers 30 percent named him as their industry hero. A lot of those names wouldn't even be on that list if it wasn't for him and his influence on the industry.

 

[lightsentry]

Has to be Miyamoto right? At least put him on the list >>

 

[The Madman]

Warren Specter is responsible for quite a few of my favourites, even if he hasn't been doing much lately. And Ken Levine even when I don't necessarily like the game itself it's at least creative, which I like.

Chris Avellone is another of my favourites. Even if not every project he's worked on has been a great success, his style of writing and his knack for unusual settings and story make his rpg among the most unique in the gaming industry. If Avellone is involved in a project that alone is enough to catch my interest in a way few other 'big name developers' can.

 

[TrevHead]

Gabe got by vote for HL1/2, Steam and the recently annouced plans, but Nintendo as an entity is up there aswell, if not more so when it comes to game design and new controllers.

Hideki Kamiya is one of my faves aswell

That said who do we have to prove that gaming has grown up? pretentious twats that think their art is better than others? No THX we have enough ppl like that already in the hobby

 

[Shadow-Phoenix]

I'm stuck between Miyamoto and Hideo Kojima.

Miyamoto Because he's pretty much got the title of "modern father of gaming" and developed many a good game from the likes of Mario to Zelda along with the development of the 3DS.

Kojima because of the amazing Metal Gear series which hasn't failed to capture my interest.

 

[Doom972]

Warren Spector. Every game that I played that has his name on it, I consider a masterpiece.

Honorable mentions go to Gabe Newel, John Carmack, Ken Levine and Feargus Urqhart.

 

[mechalynx]

Shigeru Miyamoto and Sid Meyers somehow did not make your list. My personal favorite and guiding star - Jason Rubin.

But if I have to pick from the list, Gaben I guess.

 

[Right E O]

Shigeru Miyamoto. If you're going to talk about a visionary who made great games and understood the industry behind them, then you go with Miyamoto. Some of these guys made decent series of games of their own, Miyamoto made several series of games which redefined gaming in his era and set a standard and inspiration for all games that followed.