I posted through Twitter a few weeks ago about completing the newest BioShock in less than 24 hours, something I haven't honestly done since college! I enjoyed the game through the entirety and cannot wait to download episode one of the DLC and for episode two to be released soon!
But.......
As many avid fans have heard, as of last week Irrational Studious laid off roughly 75 employees to create a new, smaller, more entrepreneurial studio under Take-Two. A new studio where creator Ken Levine can focus on smaller, narrative work that will be released digitally.
Now thankfully this studio is not a Indie firm, otherwise we could have kissed goodbye any chance of a new Bioshock in the near future.......it's just that Ken's team put the time and effort in creating a well made game....most likely Take-Two will not take that much time........which brings us full circle.
The real reason why Irrational Studios "closed".
I honestly do believe Ken's team wants to focus on creative and well designed games, although they may be smaller projects. It's simple, a game was made over a seven year span and did not sell enough copies to keep the big producer happy.
Obviously this is the right choice financially, considering the Video Game industry is a business.
Is it is the right choice for the gamers though?
We as gamers are living in an age of fantastic, cutting edge technology, and creative gaming development....but there is clear shift from innovative gaming to producing agencies and studios that pump out big name titles(Usually Sequels) either yearly or bi-annually. I honestly feel that this has crippled the aspect of gaming.
What games are you excited about this year? A typical question right? It seems the answer is almost identical between the years. A Halo (Type) Game, Call of Duty, Batman (Even though I like the series), any sports or racing. Those are the big games, the games everyone looks forward to. I can't blame the hype, all of these titles or genres produce decent games with additive multiplayer. Just like you might always order the General Tso's chicken at your favorite Chinese restaurant, why try something new when you know the General Tso’s is delicious. And the producers and studious (not all) see this and continue to pump new titles with the tweaks to the system so that we will continue to stuff our faces…..figuratively.
My fear is not a financially strapped video game industry due to long, drawn out production, my fear is the material and development of games being produced by big market gaming. I fear a gaming console that controls all aspect of entertainment, games that are continuously built off their predecessor, a game that relies on multiplayer and not narrative. I fear the current path the industry is heading on.
Now I would be a complete liar and ass if I would sit here and type all this without saying that I have played these games too. Everyone does! That does not mean that when I get that one rare gem, that one game that changes the boundaries of gaming that I wouldn't prefer that over anything else on market.
Luckily, I know that I am not the only video gamer who has these fears. Look at steam, a whole community that encourages the creation of creative and innovative gaming......and it's wonderfully cheap
And I can't forget Kickstarter; several groups daily are presenting their ideas and dreams of producing their first title.(Although a whole other story could be said about Kickstarter!)
At the end though, the big titles are needed. They are the games that bring in the money. They keep the industry floating and are the only reason small studious even begin, but if creativity of a game is capped at seven years, we may be in trouble.
What games do you believe were a rare gem of creativity? What direction do you wish to see the video game to go in?
Please share your thoughts below in the comments or of course tweet over @Shwoodylove
Until next time!
Kyle
@ShwoodyLove
No comments:
Post a Comment