Do New Games Just Look Better?
April Fool's Column Switch
Donovan Martin
Issue date: 4/5/06 Section: The AT Wire
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Home consol games have come a long way since the days of the Nintendo Entertainment System, now affectionately remembered as the NES. At least, I thought they had until I rediscovered some of my favorite NES titles on emulators downloaded from the Internet.
Now I'm just not so sure we've come that far really.
Sure games look a lot better. The processing power of our software engines have been supped up to the nth degree allowing for all the camaraderie of sports, all the carnage of warfare and even the banal aspect of suburban life to be displayed in awe inspiring "3D."
Not since Rome has gladiatorial combat been so vivid, or fun. But are these games really anything different than what we had on the good old NES?
People often bring up Grand Theft Auto or the new Elder Scrolls title, Oblivion, as example of free roaming, decision based games that were unparalleled in older systems.
But I have to point out those differences are essentially cosmetic. Bigger maps, more detailed characters, dialogue; still The Legend of Zelda at its core. Doesn't anybody remember Castlvania 2? It was a free roaming side-scroller much like the later Symphony of the Night installment on the original Playstation. The only difference is Castlvania 2 was limited to an 8-bit system as was Zelda.
No don't get me wrong. I love all the marvels available via these new systems (when they don't crash and burn; Xbox 360) but I think that gameplay is often sacrificed simply for these cosmetic improvements. Oblivion may be an exception, but take Perfect Dark Zero.
The game looks beautiful and there were a few cool little additions, like the CPU hacking/lock pick/revive tool. But I finished the game in like 6 hours on the first attempt. Not to mention there were virtually no huge improvements in level design or objectives over the Nintendo 64 edition of Perfect Dark.
Joanna's hotter these days, but I prefer my sex symbols to be flesh and blood, something about differential equations just doesn't turn me on (at least sexually).
I know this is going make a bunch of gamers (mostly noobs) angry and gnash their teeth and say "That stupid Left Side guy doesn't know anything about video games," but they've really not changed in the past fifteen years.
The biggest innovations, I think, come from games that integrate new styles of game play into storytelling. The Legacy of Kain series comes to mind, as does the Elder Scrolls series.
These games bring new levels of story immersion to the table, actually utilizing the new technological developments to take gaming to the next level. Shadow of the Colossus is perhaps the best example of this trend in recent times and the amazing God of War title on the Playstation 2.
Overall though, I just don't think these games are getting the credit they deserve and gamers are still being marketed the same tried formulas that got the NES such widespread acceptance as the new platform of home entertainment.
Now I'm just not so sure we've come that far really.
Sure games look a lot better. The processing power of our software engines have been supped up to the nth degree allowing for all the camaraderie of sports, all the carnage of warfare and even the banal aspect of suburban life to be displayed in awe inspiring "3D."
Not since Rome has gladiatorial combat been so vivid, or fun. But are these games really anything different than what we had on the good old NES?
People often bring up Grand Theft Auto or the new Elder Scrolls title, Oblivion, as example of free roaming, decision based games that were unparalleled in older systems.
But I have to point out those differences are essentially cosmetic. Bigger maps, more detailed characters, dialogue; still The Legend of Zelda at its core. Doesn't anybody remember Castlvania 2? It was a free roaming side-scroller much like the later Symphony of the Night installment on the original Playstation. The only difference is Castlvania 2 was limited to an 8-bit system as was Zelda.
No don't get me wrong. I love all the marvels available via these new systems (when they don't crash and burn; Xbox 360) but I think that gameplay is often sacrificed simply for these cosmetic improvements. Oblivion may be an exception, but take Perfect Dark Zero.
The game looks beautiful and there were a few cool little additions, like the CPU hacking/lock pick/revive tool. But I finished the game in like 6 hours on the first attempt. Not to mention there were virtually no huge improvements in level design or objectives over the Nintendo 64 edition of Perfect Dark.
Joanna's hotter these days, but I prefer my sex symbols to be flesh and blood, something about differential equations just doesn't turn me on (at least sexually).
I know this is going make a bunch of gamers (mostly noobs) angry and gnash their teeth and say "That stupid Left Side guy doesn't know anything about video games," but they've really not changed in the past fifteen years.
The biggest innovations, I think, come from games that integrate new styles of game play into storytelling. The Legacy of Kain series comes to mind, as does the Elder Scrolls series.
These games bring new levels of story immersion to the table, actually utilizing the new technological developments to take gaming to the next level. Shadow of the Colossus is perhaps the best example of this trend in recent times and the amazing God of War title on the Playstation 2.
Overall though, I just don't think these games are getting the credit they deserve and gamers are still being marketed the same tried formulas that got the NES such widespread acceptance as the new platform of home entertainment.
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