Robots, spaceships, and aircraft! Oh, my!
Simulator games of all kinds are dying off pretty hard right now. Flight sims, space sims, and giant robot sims have all dried up. Many fans were devastated to here that Microsoft has no plans to make a Mechwarrior 5 for instance. In this I understand. While Mechwarrior 4 actually did really well, Mechwarrior 3 was a boondoggle they barely recovered from. Other robot sims have had similarly checkered pasts, enough so that trying to make and support them looks like a dodgy prospect at best.
Many fans of the various sim sub-genres argue that the games are too complex for gamers who are simple-minded and possess short-attention spans. The problem I have with that arguement is that it seems to fault the end-user for not being engaged, which makes me question the entertainment value of these games. For instance, although I was once an avid flight sim fan, I never played some of the more "hardcore" flight sims. The simple reason being I was more into action then technicalities. I'd rather have multiple aircrafts that are reasonable representations of each than fly a single aircraft that is a detailed representation. Mostly because the hardcore, one aircraft style simulator has tended to become more immersed in technical detail then gameplay.
The second problem is repetition. We all know what lies in store for most of these games. Dogfight, bomber run, escort mission, reconnaissance, rinse and repeat. If we are very lucky we might get a game like Wing Commander: Privateer or Freelancer and also have the option in engaging in interstellar commerce or piracy. Though for the most part, it's all been done.
To shift gears slightly, it was just a few years ago, I believe around 2000 or so, that making everything have RPG elements was sort of the new trend. In 1998, EDO released Might & Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven, which reinvigorated the RPG genre. Prior to that the genre had been dying off, mostly due to complexity and production costs. RPG's tended to be low-technology and low priority, despite being very popular. After EDO's launch, suddenly RPG's came back into popularity. The irony here is that the Might and Magic series since then has become the epitomy of stagnation, but that is a topic for another day. With RPG's in vogue, many games latched onto the craze by introducing RPG elements into their games. Stat-building, gaining experience, and other hallmarks of character creation and evolution were introduced across many genres.
Guess which genre it skipped altogether?
If you said simulators, you get a cookie. Go dig a couple of bucks of change out of the couch and go buy one.
Some of my most memorable flight sims are games that gave you a sense of achievement, that made you feel like you were an important part of the story. You received recognition and rewards. One of my favorite examples was Wing Commander, which had genuine atmosphere on top of all that. Although you probably did gain rank far too quickly, part of the fun was going back to your locker and seeing which new medals you had earned. They had everything from awards for valor to more mundane ribbons that signified experience with a specific craft. On top of the faux career, you had a bar to hang out in, a simulator/arcade game, and there was that damn drip in the barracks ceiling.
Which made Wing Commander II an absolute shock because they went all-out interactive movie on it and tossed aside many of the elements from the first game that made it so immersive. Of course by Wing Commander III we had totally tossed off any pretense of character building and were exposed to full-motion video and Luke Skywalker all grown up and cranky. (Note - I love Mark Hamill, especially as a voice actor. No disrespect intended.)
The problem I see with many sim games is that they offer very little out-of-mission interaction for the player. There might be a few nods here and there, but for the most part it's all very dry. Freespace 2 had a nice nod to Wing Commander in that it displayed medals and rank that you could earn, but there was nothing behind it really. The war took place around your character, but you never felt much of the impact. Compare that with the original Red Baron, an excellent World War I flight sim, where the war also happened around you but there were still tell-tale signs of the player's influence on the war. You couldn't win the war for the Germans, but some aces might meet untimely ends or you might find yourself in the headlines.
Sim games are probably not going to be very conducive to stat building, although it has possibilities in relation to wingmates. Furthermore, I'd like to see more true responsibility of command. As a player gains higher rank, they gain more responsibility. It would be even neater if the player wanted to simply be the experienced veteran who never achieves much in the way of rank but has a great reputation. Perhaps in the same game another player may pursue command of a large group of fighters or robots. Despite all the flexibility and extensibility of modern gaming, simulators have largely remained stagnant. The use for most of the raw CPU power going to larger maps or more detailed models, while offering nothing notably different in the way the games themselves are played. In short, while a direct RPG conversion is unlikely and probably unnecessary, there are definitely aspects of RPG's that could be adopted into sims. In particular, building a character and getting the player personally involved would bring back an interested audience.
Getting gamers back into sims is going to take more than the most highly detailed F-16 rendering we've ever seen. They need a new game that is fresh right down to the foundation. I have literally stacks of older games that will give me the same gameplay experience that some more recent (and ever rarer) releases will. Why do I need to buy a new game to play the same thing? When developers answer that question, then they'll see the genre come back.
Many fans of the various sim sub-genres argue that the games are too complex for gamers who are simple-minded and possess short-attention spans. The problem I have with that arguement is that it seems to fault the end-user for not being engaged, which makes me question the entertainment value of these games. For instance, although I was once an avid flight sim fan, I never played some of the more "hardcore" flight sims. The simple reason being I was more into action then technicalities. I'd rather have multiple aircrafts that are reasonable representations of each than fly a single aircraft that is a detailed representation. Mostly because the hardcore, one aircraft style simulator has tended to become more immersed in technical detail then gameplay.
The second problem is repetition. We all know what lies in store for most of these games. Dogfight, bomber run, escort mission, reconnaissance, rinse and repeat. If we are very lucky we might get a game like Wing Commander: Privateer or Freelancer and also have the option in engaging in interstellar commerce or piracy. Though for the most part, it's all been done.
To shift gears slightly, it was just a few years ago, I believe around 2000 or so, that making everything have RPG elements was sort of the new trend. In 1998, EDO released Might & Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven, which reinvigorated the RPG genre. Prior to that the genre had been dying off, mostly due to complexity and production costs. RPG's tended to be low-technology and low priority, despite being very popular. After EDO's launch, suddenly RPG's came back into popularity. The irony here is that the Might and Magic series since then has become the epitomy of stagnation, but that is a topic for another day. With RPG's in vogue, many games latched onto the craze by introducing RPG elements into their games. Stat-building, gaining experience, and other hallmarks of character creation and evolution were introduced across many genres.
Guess which genre it skipped altogether?
If you said simulators, you get a cookie. Go dig a couple of bucks of change out of the couch and go buy one.
Some of my most memorable flight sims are games that gave you a sense of achievement, that made you feel like you were an important part of the story. You received recognition and rewards. One of my favorite examples was Wing Commander, which had genuine atmosphere on top of all that. Although you probably did gain rank far too quickly, part of the fun was going back to your locker and seeing which new medals you had earned. They had everything from awards for valor to more mundane ribbons that signified experience with a specific craft. On top of the faux career, you had a bar to hang out in, a simulator/arcade game, and there was that damn drip in the barracks ceiling.
Which made Wing Commander II an absolute shock because they went all-out interactive movie on it and tossed aside many of the elements from the first game that made it so immersive. Of course by Wing Commander III we had totally tossed off any pretense of character building and were exposed to full-motion video and Luke Skywalker all grown up and cranky. (Note - I love Mark Hamill, especially as a voice actor. No disrespect intended.)
The problem I see with many sim games is that they offer very little out-of-mission interaction for the player. There might be a few nods here and there, but for the most part it's all very dry. Freespace 2 had a nice nod to Wing Commander in that it displayed medals and rank that you could earn, but there was nothing behind it really. The war took place around your character, but you never felt much of the impact. Compare that with the original Red Baron, an excellent World War I flight sim, where the war also happened around you but there were still tell-tale signs of the player's influence on the war. You couldn't win the war for the Germans, but some aces might meet untimely ends or you might find yourself in the headlines.
Sim games are probably not going to be very conducive to stat building, although it has possibilities in relation to wingmates. Furthermore, I'd like to see more true responsibility of command. As a player gains higher rank, they gain more responsibility. It would be even neater if the player wanted to simply be the experienced veteran who never achieves much in the way of rank but has a great reputation. Perhaps in the same game another player may pursue command of a large group of fighters or robots. Despite all the flexibility and extensibility of modern gaming, simulators have largely remained stagnant. The use for most of the raw CPU power going to larger maps or more detailed models, while offering nothing notably different in the way the games themselves are played. In short, while a direct RPG conversion is unlikely and probably unnecessary, there are definitely aspects of RPG's that could be adopted into sims. In particular, building a character and getting the player personally involved would bring back an interested audience.
Getting gamers back into sims is going to take more than the most highly detailed F-16 rendering we've ever seen. They need a new game that is fresh right down to the foundation. I have literally stacks of older games that will give me the same gameplay experience that some more recent (and ever rarer) releases will. Why do I need to buy a new game to play the same thing? When developers answer that question, then they'll see the genre come back.
Trackbacks:
http://www.unfetteredblather.com/nucleus/action.php?action=plugin&name=TrackBack&tb_id=75
Trackback
There are currently no trackbacks for this item.
Use this TrackBack url to ping this item (right-click, copy link target).
If your blog does not support Trackbacks you can manually add your trackback by using this form.
/nucleus/action.php?action=plugin&name=TrackBack&type=form&tb_id=75
Comments
Corvus wrote:
09/16/05 04:44:27
Thomas wrote:
I thought about this. But nowadays, so many sims are also multiplayer, and could you actually pull off a flight sim MMO?
Actually, that'd be badass. Never mind.
09/16/05 16:10:24
Botswana wrote:
Sorry for the late response. Busy weekend,
Corvus,
I'd be all for story-driven flight sims. There have been a few on the consoles, though the lower resolution of consoles tend to work against them since being able to see at a distance is often important when engaging.
All the same, I didn't touch on that so much because I didn't think "story-driven" was much of a genre. Though by adding more RPG elements I would hope that for the most part we'd see more story-driven sims. Or for that matter, more options since maybe you could be either the brash young hotshot or the high decorated war hero at your whim.
But I also know a pipe dream when I see it.
Thomas,
There have been some attempts at a MMO space sim that have never really taken off. Since flight sims have been dying off before the MMO craze, I seriously doubt anyone would conjure up the moolah. The failure of WWII On-line is probably not helping the case either.
Though maybe what would work would be a Crimson Skies MMO. Something more free-form to give the players more choices, and a world that is unique enough to attract people from more than just the hardcore sim background.
09/19/05 10:51:08
Add Comments
This item is closed, it's not possible to add new comments to it or to vote on it
Give me a sim where I can be the brash young hot head who'll never get promoted, but always gets sent on the worst, most dangerous, missions and you've got a sim I'd be willing to play!