Why are there so many bad games these days?

[Hylian Knight]

I have just bought Sonic The hedgehog for PS3, and I happened to stumble upon a couple of reviews of it over on IGN and Gamespot. They have given it what I would term one of the lowest review scores in videogame history. 4.5 out of 10. Sigh! I have never seen such a low score for...a Sonic game. A sonic game, for crying out loud!

 

Now, the reasons why they give it this incredibly low score is crappy controls, severe gameplay-hampering camera issues, and glitchy graphics dotted all over the levels. Not to mention a constantly dropping framerate. Which is incredible, given that Sonic Team had planned to make it a completely new experience to play marking his anniversary for the first Sonic game of that very name. Now it turns out that people say it´s an insult to Sonics name to use that title for the game. They are tempted to call it the worst Sonic game ever!! There was one private review on Gamespot which gave it 1 out of 10 encouraging anyone who gets near that game to destroy it on sight!

 

Being interested in another game´s review score, I looked up the current review for Lost Planet on PS3 which got 7.5 out of 10. Seemingly a much better score. However, gamers are here warned that the graphics there are worse than on XBOX360. And I was just starting to look forward to it on PS3, expecting perhaps even better graphics. But no, for they are worse than on XBOX360? Duh! And I almost bought the damn game today at GAME... Now I am glad I didn´t!

 

What´s happening to developers these days? In retrospect, the reviews of games across platforms today is...a rollercoasterride. I almost get dizzy! There is few which ever get a 9 out of 10. Wasn´t gaming from the start about developing the best possible gamer experience? With top notch graphics, excellent gameplay, wonderfull view by way of a great camera, and an involving story? Isn´t that what the developer must aspire to do? Instead we most often get games that for the most part become the opposite of all of that. That is my direct experience with many games since years ago. For this reason there are games that come out which I simply never play. And, yes, I have tried many times to actually play the badly reviewed ones anyway. And the reveiwers had nailed the reviews perfectly every time. They were truly awefull to play.

 

The point of this topic is to ask the forum members, if any of you have any explanation as to WHY there are so many crappy games these days! In my experience, the reviewers on most websites are sane people, who play a lot of games, and so know what they are writing about. So it´s not about bias or anything like that. They mostly agree about games that start out being reviewed bad by someone in the first place. Concluded it can then be that they aren´t on an evangelical mission to destroy the games they don´t like, and save the few they do like. They merely react to poor games, and give them their fair opinion. So the problem is... the developers. The directors and the producers and the armies of designers, sound engineers and what not under them.

 

So what do you people think is wrong with the people who make the games? Where do the problems come from? Has Sonic Team gone mad? Every game they developed after the end of the sidescrolling 16 bit days on all but handhelds (in most cases anyway), has gone worse and worse. In the IGN review of Sonic the Hedgehog for PS3 the reviewer gave his review the headline: "Maybe someone should put this animal down" and then proceeded to dissecting the enourmous problems with it´s execution on-screen.

 

I can tell you that I don´t feel like playing the game at all now. I mean, seriously: Is Sonic Team trying to kill Sonic? Doesn´t CAPCOM care about the fate of Lost Planet on PS3 anymore than they do a poor arcade adaptation sold in a Greatest Hits bundle? What happened to the love for the games made such as Nintendo has it and which produce hit upon hit in an almost never ending stream?

 

Why even release games that are as poor as Sonic the Hedgehog, as Lost Planet being significantly worse from platform to platform? I could give many more names of games that got the most incredibly low scores. But they are too many, and you people will, I trust, know your own bundle of games to avoid. The point of this topic anyways is to invite a discussion about this. I would just love to hear what other forum members think about rising problem, that in my opinion is coming close to besieging the game industry these days. We as the gamers pay a lot of money for the games out there. Because they cost a lot of money to make. That makes sense. But it doesn´t make sense why games that aren´t even complete are released to market regardless, threatening to one day playing havoc with gamers overall game affections!

[Daft]

There are so many crappy games for the same reason there are so many crappy films; money.

 

Saying that, 2007 has been a fantastic year for games and 2008 is looking pretty good as well.

[Cube]

There's always been a massive amount of crappy games and awful ports.

[gaggle64]

I've been gaming since I was seven, and now is easily the single best period in gaming I have yet seen. Blockbusters continue to seep out while independents have returned in massive style with the advent in downloadable titles. As result, quality and innovation continues to permeate throughout all genres, salving itself thickly over every surface like KY jelly at a bi-sexual orgy. From invigoratingly original applications like Audiosurf to new spins on classic concepts like Mario Galaxy and Team Fortress 2, story driven epics like Bioshock and technological blockbusters like Crysis, it seem like there's every base covered.

 

Of course there's always going to be the usual crap. The ports, the film-tie-ins. Just stop playing Sonic Team games. Yes they suck, they've been sucking for ten years. There are many, many fine titles for the full range of platforms sitting in your game store right now. Why are you Playing Sonic the Hedgehog? It's like watching a load of Ben Afflek movies and wondering when the action movie genre went all dull and girly.

[Shino]

Haha, sounds like you just realized that Sonic Team as gone down the crapper, they haven't really been that good for a long time, actually, Sega hasn't been that hot since the Dreamcast. Also, reviewers are good for an opinion but don't base your choices on what they say.

 

With that said, anyone here can make a list of 20 really good games just from the last year that are some of the best games ever made and 2008 is building up to be even better, and as Gaggle said, indie devs are back in the industry (as indie as 5000$ can get) with some new ideas and concepts. I don't have a PS3 or 360, but just between PC, Wii and DS this is without a doubt one of the best times in gaming.

[Mundi]

A recent Sonic game turning out to be crappy and a port looking worse on another console which it wasn´t originally developed for. Stop the presses!

 

Frankly i thing your just playing the wrong games, last year was in incredible year for gaming and this year is shaping out very well.

 

There has (obviously) never been a drought in crappy games, people just seem to remember them for some period of time and look back 5 years later and only remember the gems of that time.

Everything seemed better 5 years ago even though we don´t remember the crap.

[Haden]

Why wont you be satisfied?

I wish I was more attractive like Myamito

Im a one track gamer down a multi gaming age

Buying games to fast I must be insane

The GPU speed is to high my RAM is to hot!!

This Gen is to hot to lastt!

the Wii is smooth like ice

Cold to the touch and not very nice

When your left with no games

Your let her treat you badly when your left with no online games

Take off shove your gaming on the wheel leave it at the door

Sanj open the door the door Sanj open the door!

[Sanchez]

If you ignore the Wii and PC, gaming has a better good to bad game ratio than movies.

[flameboy]

There is more money in the industry then ever and its an obvious by-product of this as people try to cash in...

[Jimbob]

In the big gaming world, if you shift away all the rubbish and remove the debris, then the remains are all the great games to play, which sometimes can be hard to find amongst all the rubbish.

 

2007 was a good year for gaming, and 2008 is shaping up well so far.

[Wesley]

If you ignore the Wii and PC, gaming has a better good to bad game ratio than movies.

 

So if you ignore the longest standing gaming platform and currently the most popular one...

 

Heh. It's like saying if you ignore all Hollywood productions movies have a better good-to-bad ratio than - insert what-ever here -.

[spirited away]

So if you ignore the longest standing gaming platform and currently the most popular one...

 

Heh. It's like saying if you ignore all Hollywood productions movies have a better good-to-bad ratio than - insert what-ever here -.

 

I don't agree with the PC comment, but I do with the Wii. The ratio of shit:quality is alot higher than on other formats.

 

The industries growing rapidly and thus we're seeing a veritable cornucopia of games flooding onto the market. We're bound to see more bad game cash-ins. But we're also seeing alot more quality, innovation, and intuition in the market. I'm not too bothered at the multitude of crap games - but the uprising of outstanding gems we've been seeing the past few years and can look forward to in the coming months. Saying that, I don't want to see the market saturated with shovelware...

[gaggle64]

Lets not forget the PS1 and PS2. They both had enough shovelware to build a small working city, but that never stopped them from becoming a massive and significant bedrock in gaming's archeology. And I still say there's plenty to enjoy on the Wii right now.

[McMad]

Lets not forget the PS1 and PS2. They both had enough shovelware to build a small working city, but that never stopped them from becoming a massive and significant bedrock in gaming's archeology. And I still say there's plenty to enjoy on the Wii right now.

 

The PS2 had a constant flow of worthwhile third party titles though.

[spirited away]

The PS2 had a constant flow of worthwhile third party titles though.

Maybe the Wii, will eventually have a worthwile third party stream.

[McMad]

Maybe the Wii, will eventually have a worthwile third party stream.

 

That will only happen if third parties suddenly stop making more money from releasing games for the 360, PS3 and PC.

[spirited away]

That will only happen if third parties suddenly stop making more money from releasing games for the 360, PS3 and PC.

 

Soo...never?

[Sanchez]

So if you ignore the longest standing gaming platform and currently the most popular one...

 

Heh. It's like saying if you ignore all Hollywood productions movies have a better good-to-bad ratio than - insert what-ever here -.

 

Yeah, it's not really a valid comparison, but things could be worse.

[Shino]

Lets not forget the PS1 and PS2. They both had enough shovelware to build a small working city, but that never stopped them from becoming a massive and significant bedrock in gaming's archeology. And I still say there's plenty to enjoy on the Wii right now.

 

That's what I was going to say. Seems like the Wii is the only one where people notice crappy games.

[Hylian Knight]

There is more money in the industry then ever and its an obvious by-product of this as people try to cash in...

 

Yes! I agree, Flameboy. See, I was suspecting that a lot of them just seek to cash in, without necessarily having to invest much effort. So it shows in the games...and on the review boards. Sonic Team has to me now become one of the worst examples of relentless franchise milking in videogame history. I am relieved that we have Nintendo. They always made that huge difference, make the games that count, and hopefully they always will.

 

After reading all of the replies to my thread so far, I am convinced that Sonic Team is going to lose even more respect from the gaming community, and eventually fade into obscurity, if they don´t stop neglecting the Sonic series. Could the problem lie in lack of talent withing the developer group itself? There is so many talented developers who have left SEGA already. Three key developers that I recall leaving the company are Yuji Naka, Yu Suzuki, Tezuya Mizuguchi. They were all pioneers, who secured SEGA´s fame and fortune for many years. But they suddenly left for greener pastures, and I do hope that we will one day again hear from them in the way of other games from new companies. I wonder if not in the coming years we might see a further erosion of the base of talent within this troubled company which has been in troubled waters since the fall of Saturn and Dreamcast.

 

I think that the future will see the guaranteed end of a lot of game companies that somehow can nolonger manage- or nolonger care to develope quality games. A sort of upheaval from within, because individuals working within the game companies could finally get enough of greed, and lack of care for the games, and so quit for other more challenging and rewarding jobs in other game companies. Something the three that left SEGA may have done for that exact said reason. This scenario could then play out for some years until a new generation of companies have taken over the market, and we get more great games. I am all for that!