The Miscellaneous PC & vidya Games Thread

[Jacob]

Though yes. A 70s/80s UK based game would be the dream.
Or, probably a bit off piste for GTA , the same
Era but Hong Kong.

At the same time I was working on Bully, there was a Mods & Rockers game in development at Rockstar. It got canned, though.

[Jacob]

I seem to remember, they lost some of their most creative types back in the day, and never quite recovered.

 

... but the crazy but creative senior execs in charge of the shitshow have also been pushed out years ago. While that's probably good for workplace culture (who knows), I expect Rockstar has shifted into a Blizzard / EA / Ubi style "let's milk a well loved franchise with a string of continually weaker pastiches."

[The Minsky Moment]

 

... but the crazy but creative senior execs in charge of the shitshow have also been pushed out years ago. While that's probably good for workplace culture (who knows), I expect Rockstar has shifted into a Blizzard / EA / Ubi style "let's milk a well loved franchise with a string of continually weaker pastiches."

It's hard to blame them; with development costs going into the billion dollar range, the margin for error must be extremely low at the corporate level. That's Hollywood Blockbuster territory and we've seen what those kinds of costs have done to originality and risk taking in the film business.

[Sheilbh]

Feel like it's a criticism I've read of Bethesda too. The games are good but they're very much doing variations on a theme now.

[Jacob]

It's hard to blame them; with development costs going into the billion dollar range, the margin for error must be extremely low at the corporate level. That's Hollywood Blockbuster territory and we've seen what those kinds of costs have done to originality and risk taking in the film business.

Feel like it's a criticism I've read of Bethesda too. The games are good but they're very much doing variations on a theme now.

Oh that's absolutely the trend, and it has been for a while. Not a whole lot of risk taking available. It's an interesting ecosystem to observe (and often furstrating ecosystem to be part of).

[Tamas]

Isn't it a bit unrealistic to expect a given (group of) individual(s) maintain their exceptional quality level of creative output throughout decades?

[Jacob]

Isn't it a bit unrealistic to expect a given (group of) individual(s) maintain their exceptional quality level of creative output throughout decades?

Probably.

But this was the result of a long history of cut throat politics. I doubt there's much of the old guard left, especially the folks I'd consider the creative drivers.

[Tonitrus]

It looks fancy, but in many ways kinda indistinguishable from a UBI Soft open world game trailer IMO. If you showed me this and said it was for Far Cry 7, I would believe you.

I still have my fondest memories of GTA Vice City and San Andreas, and I wish they would return to make tackle a historical setting (we had 80s Miami, 90s LA/SF/LV, even 60s London, if we count 2D titles) ... why not a 70s title?

Or go into the future...a NYC clone inspired by NYC in the Fifth Element. 

[Syt]

On the lack of creativity - the business is quite differentfrom 20 years ago when e.g. GTA VC and GTA SA came out. There's a lot more money involved, and big investors tend to be risk averse, so they'll rather make "the sure thing" instead of gambling on an unproven concept (see also: movies). There's a reason why monetization post release and live services became so popular - steady streams of reliable income vs. uncertainty in multiple tent pole releases.

Creativity these days is IMHO mostly found in smaller titles and the indie scene - and to be honest, some of the "small" developers have about the same resources as what might have been considered "big" studios 20 or 25 years ago and also access to better tech and tools and distribution options that let them reach pretty mucht he entire world.

[Sheilbh]

Isn't it a bit unrealistic to expect a given (group of) individual(s) maintain their exceptional quality level of creative output throughout decades?

Although it kind of goes into the status of video games. They're a huge economic sector employing and enjoyed by millions - but I think we hear and read a lot about dearth of creativity in moves/TV, or Marvel issues etc. Which are similar issues as with video games, perhaps, but it's slightly carved out (I think for a normal paper the Guardian does good coverage - really enjoy their newsletter).

Or go into the future...a NYC clone inspired by NYC in the Fifth Element. 

I love Fifth Element.

[Josquius]

Triple A games budgets have ballooned to insane levels where risk is no longer possible.

On the other hand the barriers for entry and resources needed for indie development are lower than ever.

[Syt]

So GTA6 is coming to consoles in 2025 (unless delayed). And PC ... ? 2026, maybe?

[Iormlund]

I'm hoping AI can either help indies make more expansive games or AAA devs take more risk by reducing budgets. Time will tell, I guess.

[Syt]

Some areas where AI can already help is art asset creation and voice acting. You can still tell a lot of the time if it's an AI voice, but they're becoming better and better. E.g. some Skyrim mods use AI voices for new NPCs or dialogue to pretty good effect (there's also at least one mod that uses this to voice the player character's lines). There's also the coding aspect where AI can help to some degree. I'm wary of story creation yet (I've been playing around with NovelAI recently, and it's quite impressive in its customization options, but it's not a full replacement for personal creativity and requires a lot of guidance to work "properly" - feels more like collaborative writing if anything at the moment.)

[Syt]

Here's a lovely one, for 3.99:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2614200/Daily_Thread_The_Sewing_of_Discontent/

Blurb:

Henrietta is a seamstress in early industrial Manchester, enjoying Victorian age manufactory work. Relive your favorite moments from Dickens, Zola, and Marx, learn about the history of working conditions and worker rights and how they got where they are today, and think of where they could still go!

Daily Thread: The Sewing of Discontent

The textile industry is still one of the most exploitative industries in the world.

That is why we created this artistic view of working conditions in the 19th century Manchester in the wake of the first general strike. Play as Henrietta, a seamstress trying to juggle a 14-hour work day while taking care of her family and also engaging in the worker's movement.

The game alternates between two modes: During working hours you try to reach your quota, and at home you use your limited income to try and keep your family alive and well. Can you also find the time to involve your self in the socio-political problems of the era?

Half of all revenue from the game will be donated to Labour Behind the Label, a UK-based non-profit co-operative organisation which campaigns for workers' rights in the clothing industry.