Results tagged “pc” from Birmingham Mail - Technobabble

MODERN games are too complex.

There's a bold statement for a PC gamer to make, especially as I'm someone who looks down on titles released on consoles as being, shall we say, produced for the mass market.

I'm increasingly aware of friends who have got loads of games they have bought but have never really got into, or even started.

Some even sit on the shelf still wrapped in their cellophane. Heavy duty strategy games I know I'd love.... if I could just be bothered.

Perhaps it's because strategy games have got a bit samey. They all seem to operate at the same level of complexity so in some ways there's not a vast amount to take on board.

But for every one there's a whole new research tree to learn, the quirks of the game have to be got to grips with - and that only happens with a fair amount of play.

As someone who is not 'time rich' with young children, investing several hours in a game you might not even like much before you learn to play it properly is sometimes hard to justify.

So you almost get to the point where you just dig out an old title you know well for ease of use.

It even happens some times with more easily accessible genres. For example with Crysis I took a look at all the gubbins with the special power suits and wondered if I could face learning it all.

But then again - I'm glad I did take the trouble as it's such a great game.

Have you ever bought something and never actually got round to playing it, and why?

SO the latest 'next big thing' has arrived - and already Grand Theft Auto IV is making the news.

The BBC reports that it has already smashed through all sales records.

Not only has it beaten any previous video game with UK sales of £24 million on the day of release, but it's already been critically acclaimed with huge review scores.

I've been off work this week - but hopefully on my return a review copy will be waiting!

Mind you, there have also been many reports of faults - suggesting Rockstar might not have tested things propertly before going to release.

Some PS3 owners haven't been able to install it on their hard drives, with others revealing crashing problems on the same system.

It's not confined to the PS3 either - on the XBox 360 a 'faulty batch of disks' (according to Rockstar) mean that it freezes every time you leave the base apartment.

The slightly ironic thing is that now that consoles can connect to the internet, they're getting the same half-finished releases that PC gamers have been putting up with for years - after all why test something properly when you can get it in the shops asap and then cure the many bugs with a host of 'patches'?

One more thing - games are still somewhat ghettoised. Compare the sales of GTA IV to many cinema releases.

The simple fact is that games are bigger business than films these days. But if you look at the coverage in newspapers you would still think it was the other way around.

My own games review column in Saturday's Birmingham Mail is dwarfed by the film coverage.

But consider this - in the link it shows that top UK opening WEEKENDS(not days) for films as of 2001 was Harry Potter £16.3 million, Fellowship of the Ring £11 million, and The Phantom Menace £9.5 million. For a more recent update Spider-Man 3 took £11.5 million on its opening weekend.

GTA IV's £24 million puts it all in perspective - and shows how what used to be a genre for nerds and children is now for the mass market.

Could recent events be starting the beginning of the end of the creep of the 'super franchise' game?
Recently publishers of titles have taken on board the yearly update methods which formerly were only applied only to American sports games like John Madden.
This means that we get a 'new' FIFA each year, another Pro Evolution Soccer, Football Manager, Brian Lara Cricket, and so on.
Does this mean a better deal for gamers? I would suggest not - while the games in themselves are usually solid and enjoyable enough, they never really represent much of a step forward.
Slightly better graphics, a few more options and a new box don't make for a new £40 game in my opinion. But the developers know that fans are desperate that the teams are up to date. So effectively you're paying the cash for a list of names.
With one eye on the enduring success of the sports genre, publishers are trying to branch out - as witnessed by developments in the world action first person shooters.
A recent title is Unreal Tournament 3 (originally titled UT2007) - in fact the seventh incarnation of this high quality series. I enjoyed the game to start with, but rapidly came to the conclusion that it was no different at all from its predecessors.
Sure, the graphics were better, some amazing-looking new vehicles were added (as well as a horrific console-style menu system) but the single player and multiplayer were effectively identical to UT2004 (and UT2003 for that matter).
A test of the longevity of a title is to try and play multiplayer a few months down the line after launch - take a look and you won't find many UT3 servers going at the moment for the PC version of the game.
Perhaps the game buying public is getting wise, dusting off versions of the title they bought 12 months or more ago instead of lashing out large quantities of cash on the updated title.
I suspect though, that any thoughts of Pro Evo publishers Konami putting out a 'patch' for their title for free with the new player names might be a bit too much wishful thinking...