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Game developers debate Xbox achievements
Love them or hate them, those Xbox 360 achievements have become a staple of the system. The little blips of joy are so annoying and addicting for some that we're shocked the PS3 and/or Wii didn't implement them. There's an interesting thread going on over at the International Game Developers Association forums started by Raphael Van Lierop (Relic, 3D Realms) where he believes the achievements have taken gamers off course.Lierop writes, "I have many friends who LOVE achievements. They love the bragging rights, they love being able to compare achievements they obtained to other people ... Personally, I dislike them...a lot. I find they are changing the way we play games, and the focus of the games we play, and make. I feel that games should be crafted to have enough intrinsic reward, that a secondary external reward system should not be required... was it really necessary for us to go back to the old 'High Score' system from the days of arcade games? I would have hoped that the gameplay and immersiveness of the 'next gen' gaming experience would have been enough reward, and that we wouldn't have had to fall back on cheap gimmicks."Now before y'all go flippin' out, go and check out the thread first. Remember, it's an IGDA thread, so for the most part these are the guys who make the games the rest of us play. And please try to keep the comments on the topic of thoughts related to achievements. Have you found "achievements" to be actual achievements as part of regular gameplay or have you found them to be asinine randomness? Should you only hit the 20% mark in achievements for a game after you've beaten it? Should you get the easy level achievements automatically if you beat a higher level (that one's annoying as anything)? The achievement system is here to stay, what can developers do to tweak it so that there's some uniformity to the system and only a minor amount of absurdity?[Via GameSetWatch]
Japanese devs hop off the PS3 boat into the Wii wagon
The Los Angeles Times has posted a quote from Kyoshi Shin of the IGDA (International Game Developers Association) regarding developer interest in the PlayStation 3. It isn't good. While it isn't good, that doesn't mean it isn't true. In fact, the quote pretty much explains exactly what I'm thinking in food terms. Shin said: "When people talk about the PS3 on chat forums they say it's like going to a very expensive restaurant and not getting anything to eat." This is an obvious play on Kutaragi's previous quote about the PlayStation 3 being a fine restaurant.The context of Shin's quote relates to developer interest -- namely, they're leaving the Sony restaurant and taking some drive-thru from Nintendo's Wii window (so to speak). If devs focus on the Wii, we've got a problem. Games will reverse engineer themselves to lesser graphics and scale. More minigames isn't the only issue to arise -- porting from the Wii would be nearly impossible due to the control scheme. It's a waste of the PS3's power, too, as Kojima's quote from a long time ago will explain: "The PS3 is like the theatre, it's a little bit high-priced but it has to be high quality as well. The 360 is a DVD, it still needs to be high quality but you need more variations, while the Wii is almost like a TV channel, because every game you have it with your family." We need games that will take advantage of the PS3's power and Wii titles simply may not do that. If devs leave, there's no reason to buy a $600 console when most games are on a $250 one.[via Gamasutra]
Developers are flocking to the Wii
During a review of where the PS3 is at and Sony's goals, rep Jack Tretton spoke about the market impact of the PS3 and its long-term plan compared to the immediate market affects the Wii and Xbox 360 have had. Not something we care that much about, but during the piece, Kyoshi Shin of Japan's IGDA (International Game Developer's Association), commented that even with a long-term plan in mind, many developers are ditching the PS3 for the Wii. Adding insult to injury, Shin stated that "When people talk about the PS3 on chat forums, they say it's like going to a very expensive restaurant and not getting anything to eat," he added."With the Wii doing so well month after month, we're sure this is going to continue to be the case.
Thompson balks at free game violence debate
We know it's been a Jack-Thompson-filled couple of weeks here on Joystiq, but we can't help it if the guy keeps doing newsworthy stuff (or can we?). Anyway, we were kind of surprised to hear today that the latest bit of hate-filled invective Thompson hurled at IGDA president Jason Della Rocca actually came close to developing into something more than name calling. Apparently, Della Rocca tried to accept Thompson's challenge "to one or more college debates, anywhere anytime, to discuss whether violent video games in any fashion caused school killings..."A series of e-mails, reprinted on Della Rocca's blog, details the back and forth between the pair on the debate's location and particulars. When the subject of money comes up, Thompson reveals that they can "expect to net approximately $3000 or more per event" though he's quick to add that he's "not in this issue for the money." When Della Rocca balks at being paid to talk, Thompson puts it bluntly: "That isn't how it works and I can't justify leaving my family to go to Montreal on a freebie. Sorry. Have to pay the bills."Now we can understand the need to make ends meet as much as anybody, but when you make a boast to publicly debate someone "anywhere anytime," the cost of a plane ticket shouldn't really be a deal breaker. That is, unless Thompson can't live up to his own taunt to "put your mouth where your money is." As Della Rocca puts it, it seems that sometimes "the critics of media violence are in fact the ones profiting most from real-world violence and fears of virtual violence."
Off the Grid: I was a student scholar
Every other week Scott Jon Siegel contributes Off the Grid, a column on gaming away from the television screen or monitor. Since I couldn't find anyone to play Robo Rally with me this week, I thought I'd take this opportunity to instead discuss my experience as one of the IGDA's Student Scholars at this year's Game Developers Conference.For the past seven years, the International Game Developers Association has been sending students interested in a future career in video games to GDC. A panel of professional game developers judges all the submitted applications, and each year 25 students are selected to receive free passes to the event. Each student is also paired with an industry mentor, and all the scholars are given an orientation session for the conference, and a tour of a local studio. I was honored to have been chosen as one of this year's student scholars, and found my first GDC experience to be all the more worthwhile as a result.The three-day conference started on Wednesday, so Tuesday morning we met as a group for a special orientation session. A few of the scholars had already met up the previous night, as part of an unofficial pre-GDC get-together. Some of the student scholars were undergrads, but others were graduate students, and the group ranged widely in age. The disciplines and interests of the students varied widely as well, with artists, designers, coders, and audiophiles all equally represented. Part of our orientation had to do with simply meeting each other, exchanging business cards and conversing with peers who might very well be industry bigwigs in a few years; some of them just give off that vibe.
IGDA to honor Miyamoto's lifetime achievements
Next month's Game Developers Choice Awards are set to feature someone very close to our hearts. Shigeru Miyamoto, the daddy of all good things Nintendo, is going to receive this year's Lifetime Achievement award. The official announcement lauds Miyamoto's two decades of contributions to Nintendo, highlighting his involvement in all the best games ever. Previous recipients include Yuji Naka and Will Wright, and while they're great and all, frankly we're surprised they don't hook Miyamoto up with this award every year.
Oblivion, Okami top GDC Awards Nominations
The 7th annual Game Developers Choice Awards nominations were announced today, with Okami and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion taking the most number of nods at four each. Wii Sports and Gears of War also earned high honors with three nominations apiece. With Capcom's recent bitterness over the AIAS "snubbing," four Okami nominations and a Technology nod for Dead Rising should satiate their ego. We're also glad that Rayman Raving Rabbids, Dreamfall, and Sam & Max: Episode One are getting some much-deserved kudos.The awards ceremony will occur Wednesday, March 7 at 6:30 p.m. and is being hosted by Tim "Psychonauts owns your soul" Schafer (also known for Monkey Island and Grim Fandango). The nominations are listed after the break.
Getting a game idea published
Over at the IGDA, there's some advice for a hobbyist game developer looking to pitch (and protect) a game design. Pitching a random idea for a game to a developer or publisher isn't easy, but there are some solid hints on how to get an idea towards reality: Come up with a demo Attend game industry events to make contacts Read up on the pitching process Pay attention to NDAs Indie game development competitions and pitching opportunities offer a lot of scope for an idea to become an actual game; accessible platforms like Flash and the Xbox Live Arcade add further ways it can happen. One thing's for sure, though -- you have to be serious and committed to make this process work.See also:Advice for wannabe game developersThe life of a lapsed game developer
Defining academic scholarship in games [Update 1]
The International Game Developers Association's "Culture Clash" column this month takes a look at the boundary between games and scholarship. Academia, and games academia in particular, can be the victim of a lot of stereotyping, but if developers look beyond the tweed-clad perceptions they may find a valuable resource:"One application of game studies is to help make better games by better understanding the medium. We've already seen it in a few places – think about Microsoft's HCI and usability labcoats working with Bungie on Halo, or behavioral scientists colluding with developers to make next-gen MMOs even more engaging."Of course, persuading your college professor that studying World of Warcraft is really going to help your tribal ethnography project is a different problem, but we've heard of several college papers that studied games.[Via Acid for Blood][Update 1 - fixed IGDA typo]
