Expanding the videogame audience.

[Sketcz]

by god, you really are an eliteist twat, it makes me cringe when i read crap like this.

aww, thats so sweet of you YOUWIN, thanks.
[hugs YOUWIN]


EDIT:
I may be a gaming snob to some, but I love gaming, no one can deny that.
And I will also go out of my way to help anyone who requests help from me about games.
I wrote very long, slightly rambly pages for someone wanting to know about buying games in the akihabara. Not to show that I had been, but I get a buzz hearing other serious gamers enjoy gaming.
If they end up enjoying their trip, and feel fullfilled gaming wise, then I also feel good.

With friends at school, when they wanted help, I would goto great lengths to help them out. I recomended to someone to pick up an N64, and showed all the games few had heard of, got him into importing, we played SSBM while others others bickered over systems.
If they want it, and they seek, I will help and inform.

I dont see why people make such a big deal out of my attitude.

I stick to my guns. I make no bones.

Gaming is not for everyone.

[chevkoch]

Well, otaku84, I sympathize with your dislike of generic gaming material thrown about the market to draw ever more unlikely target groups in.

Naturally, like all interests of a subcultural magnitude, gaming on such a dedication level isn't for everyone. But I don't want to exclude anyone showing some curiosity about the subject (and I reckon you neither). Enjoy sharing your love for games with like-minded people, and shrug off the sea of masscrap'otainment that the existing software gems backstroke in.

[Zanzaki]

I'm with Otaku on this one.

[TheShend]

Why does everything have to get bigger? Publishers & developers should slow down, slim down and simplify.

My g/f's brother was over for christmas xmas and played Halo, enjoy it as he did he said there were "too many ****in buttons" and i suppose he's got a point. The g/f's old NES i got recently only had 2 buttons and a d-pad to use during a game. I reckon more people could pick that up, play it and achieve something in the game, rather than intimidating an alien modern 8+ buttons modern pads have. Maybe folk would get 'hooked' if the pads were alittle more friendly.

Halo was a great game, but anyone unfamiliar to the pad, playing the game was abit of a chore.

Wait, i've completley ran off at a tangent!! I think it was relative?

[R.Y.N.E.X.]

No. Just no.
The last thing the industry needs, is more people being interested in it. Thanks to mass marketing, things are suffering now.

... [snip]

Oh Yeah,thats what I like to hear!!!!!!!!

[Ady]

If we are talking about expanding gaming's audience, as per the thread's title, then it can only be a good thing, leading to new types of games being made. This isn't necessarily the same as saturating the market with generic licences.

Like most here, I've been gaming for years, and yes, the PlayStation boom saw an influx of new players who have no genuine interest in gaming, but by no means do I believe gaming should become exclusionary. Being a po-faced snob isn't going to make all the "bad people" go away.

The problem with taking an elitist stance is that it sets one up for being looked down upon by someone with even more stuff ("By the same measure you judge..." and all that) - and none of this is what gaming is about.

I don't even have enough time to play all the games I want to play now so if fewer good games are being made these days, then maybe it's just as well.

[The Sheriff of Nottingham]

My g/f's brother was over for christmas xmas and played Halo, enjoy it as he did he said there were "too many ****in buttons" and i suppose he's got a point. The g/f's old NES i got recently only had 2 buttons and a d-pad to use during a game. I reckon more people could pick that up, play it and achieve something in the game, rather than intimidating an alien modern 8+ buttons modern pads have. Maybe folk would get 'hooked' if the pads were alittle more friendly.

Isn't this what Nintendo were trying to achieve with the GC pad (and to a lesser extent the N64 one too). The GC pad has 5 buttons, two triggers, two sticks and a D-pad. However you only have to look at the thing to see that the "main" controls are the big stick on the left and the big green button on the right. Pick it up and your thumbs position themselves naturally over these controls. Beginners (like my four year old daughter or 50-something dad) have no trouble working out for themselves that the button makes the kart go forward and the stick steers it. They had hours of fun on Boxing Day just using these two controls. Imagine the excitement when my daughter discovered using Y for items!

So, er, yes, I agree.

[Crispin]

Get more people playing games? Good thing.

I like the idea of sticking gaming booths into clothes shops and whatnot if only so I don't go out of my ****ing mind whenever I visit freeport or the Trafford Centre with the female side of my family. Indeed Selfridges in the Trafford Centre did this for a while IIRC. Kept me entertained just watching others, and if it helps people get into gaming, this can only be a good thing.

We need more pick up and play titles, but certainly not at the expense of more complex titles. DOAXBV is great for short blasts and only really utilises a few buttons and a control stick, unless you really want to make it a in-depth tactical game. The one flaw is that you need to use the d-pad for the most reliable volley. Should have been the default one, but never mind. Halo, is more complex. I like both.

Course, imagine if these demo-pods were live enabled co-op games. The person on the other end in their home would do the complex things, such as flying a plane, negotiating a Shipyard, all the hard stuff that requires time and a manual to get right. The other player could be in the gunner seat. Or a wee little man, next to the VT, with a simple gun. The 'A' button and a control stick.

So the demo pod player could contribute to a deep and complex experience, but without having to deal with too much complexity. A two tier world, populated with the Steel Batallion controllers used for mech driving, and normal controllers used to control little guys with RPGs, machine guns and gun emplacements.

Just my little idea. Feel free to use it Capcom. Making the sequel live only, grrrr....

[IcePak]

I think the original idea of introducing more people to gaming is a good idea. However the current business model of the gaming industry (basically the same as the movie industry atm) doesn't really allow for this to happen in a constructive way.

More gamers are only a good thing if more of a range of games is introduced, and with the current business model of the games industry being to only produce sure-hits that will sell **** loads, doesn't allow for this.

What we need is publishers willing to take a chance on something different and to make sure that the developers get it right rather than rush it out incomplete and unrefined for the Christmas rush (or in other words to make money from unsuspecting gamers).

If the games industry continues on the path it is at the moment, then they will more than likely lose gamers rather than bring in new ones. Even "the mainstream" (and I use that term lightly) will eventually bore of the same old formulatic games and end up finding another hobby that is more interesting.

The games industry is already losing the "dedicated" gamer who prefers to play retro games instead of the current crap that is being churned out to please the masses. What we need is a balance between the mainstream and dedicated markets. Then, and only then will the introduction of new gamers to the market be worthwhile to the industry as a whole. Otherwise there's going to be another crash similar to the one back in 84.

[chevkoch]

What we need is a balance between the mainstream and dedicated markets.

This whole notion of taking the edges off game titles to widen your target group ad infinitum, is an industry dead end I'd say. Lower the difficulty, prechew the content, make it so that every moron will instantly grasp what a given game is all about, that's the current motto. These titles may sell well (for a while), but in the long run, if you take out the depth, noone will keep on buying stuff for all the wrong reasons.

Trust people to recognize quality, damn it.

[Alf-Life]

Actually, as I mentioned in another post, I think they will. Perhaps some will continue buying the licenses, but c'mon they're not stupid a bad game is a bad game, just as a regular joe here can (mostly) tell a good film from a bad film without necessarily being a harcore movie critic.


And to the bloke that said:

"He'd be the first to admit he's a snob (look at his sig!) but he has a point when he says "More mainstream, means the type of games I like, are not made as often", why do you think you don't see as many shooters or 2D fighters as we used to, for instance? Because your average gamer would rather play generic licensed games."

I don't think that's necessarily true, or fair. Even Mario went 3D and I think 'everything' going 3D was more due to this once-in-a-lifetime leap of technology allowing games to evolve to the next stage rather than due to the massmarket only wanting to play.
In fact, it's probably more the developers wanting to make 3D titles as opposed 2D ones than the punters. If I were told I was going to be artist on a stealth game, I'd be hoping to be creating beautiful 3D models ? la Metal Gear rather than portly little bitmaps. Erm, unless it was for the GBA.

Anyway, as someone above said, I rarely get time to play the games I do have, and so more of a market doesn't necessarily mean more crap games. Besides, there'll always be gems just as through difficult times in cinema there've always been amazing films.


My ultimate view is, at the end of the day, it's up to the developers. Adapt or die. Sell the publisher a 2D wolf in 3D sheep's clothing, after all, they're the ones putting most of the money in.

[nips]

Like most here, I've been gaming for years, and yes, the PlayStation boom saw an influx of new players who have no genuine interest in gaming, but by no means do I believe gaming should become exclusionary.

My gaming interest really grew with the Playstation. I've always had access to consoles, but usually only through hand-me-downs. I was always endeared by gaming, but only with the Playstation and the media attention that got, coupled with the social links that gaming provided during my early teens I began to explore further. Then I started to read EDGE, and then their forums and I've found myself here. In that time I've come along a lot.

Of course some people will jump on the bandwagon and only buy a PS2 for the hell of it. Others, like myself, with the aid of media attention, easy access to a broad base of games at reasonable prices and the opportunity to expand their knowledge of gaming with flourish and one day develop interests similar to ours.

So, if more people have the opportunity to develop these interests it means that more people can appreciate games at a level 'we' do currently. The sacrifice is that you get more mediocre games to satisfy the increased levels of massmarket-geoffreys.

There probably isn't a balance, but personally, if it means more people can enjoy games at a level I do currently, then I'm more than happy to expand the gaming audience!

EDIT: Oh, and welcome back Crispin! I hope you had a nice holiday.

[Crispin]

EDIT: Oh, and welcome back Crispin! I hope you had a nice holiday.

Cheers, I did indeed. Mmmm Hope you all had a nice holiday.

Don't forget, none of us were born knowledgeable. I can remember buying some incredibly dubious licensced **** for the Game Gear, the world's greatest (and worst) handheld ever made.

A buggy Simpsons game, some appalling Disney cash-in, generic F1 game, a 3D golf game with questionable ball physics (it didn't even have a FPS above 1!), Primal Rage, the world's second worst fighting game (that honour goes to Clayfighter 63 1/3) and many more licensed tat such as Ren & Stimpy and Beavis & Butthead.

We all make mistakes. Some take longer to learn than others.
Course, I did have Space Harrier, Sonic games, Treasure games and the 4 in 1 Sega Pack, with the superb columns, the haunting Rally game music and the ace Penalty shootout.

[razu]

As long as the current rate of good games is sustained I'll be happy. I've had too many to choose from for over a year now. But then, I am only just getting properly stuck into Final Fight One which I've had since release.

I have adapted my views on gaming-morons over the years. I used to see them as the death of MY hobby, I now see them as nothing to do with what I do. I now ignore their existance and am much happier.

I also now take a longer term view of gaming: every new good game just adds to the massive list of good games. With that in mind, gaming has never been better and it'll get better with every good release. Today I played Final Fight, (GBA and MAME), yesterday I played some pac man on NGPC and at lunch today I played PES3. I am the gaming equivalent of local radio, just without the adverts

So, more people interested in gaming means more money for the industry, (which is good for my work life). But it'll have a tiny effect on MY hobby. Putting more booths up, don't reckon it's a goer myself.

[Alf-Life]

Oh well, at least the sea of 'crap' massmarket games makes the true gems look better.