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Teaching an old game new tricks
Small and large innovations in the gaming industry
By Darin Kwilinski
In the technology game, typically something new and exciting happens everyday. At conventions, conferences and meetings, innovations and new ideas are presented, ideas that shape our world to make life easier (or more frustrating, depending on how you look at it). Take Apple for example. I always thought that the iPod would be just be another simple audio player that would replace CD players, but somehow it’s now become a phone, multimedia player and mobile internet. Technological evolution at it’s best.
Videogames are not always so well fortuned. New and exciting innovation seems few and far between these days. The Nintendo Wii is losing a little bit of steam, the Playstation 3 is still struggling to emulate the ubiquitous success of the PS2, and the Xbox 360 just got another “Halo” clone, this time ironically in the form of an official “Halo” expansion.
It is cookie-cutter games like “Halo 3: Recon” that now seem to saturate the market and stall innovation, as if the credo for producing games is if it can make money, do it. Granted, not much is known about the new “Halo” expansion, but from the looks of the trailer, it comes off as just another first person shooter set in Master Chief’s universe. Sorry if my excitement doesn’t pour off the page.
However, a few developers and producers are still pushing the boundaries, either reinventing an old idea with fresh tweaks or taking an older genre in a new direction. One need only to look to the upcoming PS3 title, “LittleBiGPlanet,” developed by Media Molecule.
The best way to describe “LittleBiGPlanet” would be “Spore,” but with detailed levels and characters. Instead of growing a creature, you create your physics-driven levels, customize your “sack” boy or girl, and run around with friends completing other user created levels. While it sounds simple, the level of creativity one can achieve is through the roof, allowing for hardcore level creators to build to their little hearts’ content. Early reports on the game are unanimously stellar, suggesting that the PS3 may finally have an online hit on its hands.
Up next is the game, “Mirror’s Edge,” which aims to revitalize the FPS genre. Have you ever been playing an FPS and looked down, only to realize you have no feet? Not only do you finally get feet in “Mirror’s Edge,” but you get flailing limbs as well. Players can jump, slide, and move about the urban environment Parkour-style with your character reaching out for ledges, and kicking off walls with her feet. The developers not only to put players in control of the character, but also to make them feel they are the character, something most FPS games to date have tried to achieve on some level. Yet most seem nowhere near the level of detail in “Mirror’s Edge.”
For the Wii, different boundaries are being pushed. Frankly, the Wii has been a little too cutesy lately, with its last real adult title being “No More Heroes” (of which a sequel has just been announced). “Mad World” is best described as a mix of mediums due to its plot, which mimics Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “The Running Man,” and it’s graphics, which echo the Frank Miller’s “Sin City.” The game itself doesn’t appear to be necessarily ground breaking, but it’s a stylish breath of fresh air to see blood and gore finally stain the family friendly Wii.
Lastly is “Left 4 Dead,” the upcoming Valve developed zombie romp. People are already raving about the game, praising its forced co-op and innovative A.I., which alters difficulty and spawn points of enemies depending on how you progress. Co-op is a big reason I still play Valve games like “Counter-Strike” or “Team Fortress 2,” but it’s hard to get a good group that’s also actually willing to work together. “Left 4 Dead” aims to change the game by only allowing four people per match and forcing you to work together, as leaving fellow players to go play the macho loner almost guarantees certain death.
Some of the previously mentioned games provide only small tweaks to already old ideas, yet others look to breathe fresh air into what is quickly becoming a stale market. Personally, I don’t need another “Halo” game. Thankfully, there are some developers moving beyond franchises to create something new and unique for those of us who need a little more than the standard run-n-gun.
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