Gaming in a parallel universe (aka 'The What If thread')

[Ady]

Imagine you've just slipped into an alternate timeline to our own where everything is pretty much the same save the fact that pivotal and defining moments in videogaming took a different path to our own.

Here's a working example of what I mean by this:

In an alternate reality, Bungie didn't get into bed with Microsoft and Halo came out on the Mac instead as originally intended. Unfortunately not even this was enough to get the Mac recognised as a viable gaming platform and the game disappeared without a trace, not getting the attention it deserved.


Here's another one:

In an alternate reality, Commodore didn't make the catastrophic schoolboy errors that eventually put them out of business and the Amiga became model on which all future "PCs" would come to be based (capitalising on the fact that the Amiga hardware was able to do things in 1985 that PCs was not able to approach until the 90s). As a result, Commodore ends up becoming a major player in the PC market as we know it today.

I'm sure you get the idea now. I can think of loads more, but I'll let others post first.

OK...

[Guts]

John Carmack became a full-time rocket scientist and the FPS genre was never invented. Point-and-click adventures are the most popular genre on PC with Lucasarts being the biggest developer/publisher. Consoles are flooded with different Mario copies as Nintendo reigns supreme on that side.

[toythatkills]

In 1974, Shigeru Miyamoto leaves work early to surprise his wife; she surprises him, however, by being in bed with the plumber when he gets home. He goes to work the next day to start work on his new 3D platformer, in which you control a giant turtle thing and screw up the life of a plumber by constantly making off with his woman.

[toythatkills]

Actually, 1974? It probably wasn't the next day. A few years later, like.

[Flabio]

Square and Enix fail to negotiate their merger. Square collapses under the financial losses from their Hawaiin studio and vanishes without trace. There are no Final Fantasy games after 8. Kingdom Hearts is never created. Nomura ends up working for Sega and does the character designs for Shenmue, as a result it sells well enough for all the episodes to be made, and the Dreamcast defeats the PS2.

Yes, I'm blaming Square for the death of the Dreamcast. Is that enough of a leap? Hehe...

[noobish hat]

Ahhh, no Final Fantasies after VIII. We'd lose the fantastic IX, but I think it would be worth it.

[toythatkills]

We'd lose XII, the best one! NO DEAL!

[noobish hat]

Dude, you put an X instead of a V. Don't sweat it though, easy mistake to make.

[Guts]

We'd lose XII, the best one!

Not when this guy is the lead character.

[toythatkills]

I would argue, but that would derail the thread more than it already has been

[kryss]

Nintendo didn't drop the price of the GameCube just prior to launch, sales weren't affected but the profits reaped allowed them to add a hardware expansion and extend the life of the console, delaying the Wii into oblivion and paving the way for the HDii, which would even upsample GC games to 720p. The 3DS was released with dual sticks, and the public complained it was too big and heavy for a handheld. Nintendo was forced to release a revised model with only one stick which sold like hot cakes on a cold day.

[briareos_kerensky]

All websites and blogs will offer well written reviews and articles. No more philosophical discussions on "games are art" or "hardcore VS casual" bull.

[Neon Ignition]

New annual iterations of popular franchises are announced, gamers rejoice and partake in balanced non-biased discussion. World peace ensues.

I can dream.

[Dogg Thang]

The the crash around the ET game, investors decide that the games industry is a lost cause and gaming ceases to exist.

I live a much more productive life.

[Flabio]

Meh, the crash of 83 is overstated to be honest. Yes, it screwed the US side for a few years, but it didn't affect the European or Japanese industry at all. It's only made into such a massive deal because a lot of the history of gaming pieces are written from a US centric position.

Here's a good one:

Atari accept Nintendo's offer to distribute the NES in the US, people still smarting from the 2600 ignore it completely. The market is instead revitalised by an emergent Sega. Gamers 20 years later are lamenting the 'mario cycle'.