Is there any innovation in gaming?

[Sandman]

Nintendo and Sega innovate more than Sony and Microsoft...

[Maquiladora]

Thats an unprovable statement, and pointless to argue over. All push out the boundaries in different areas.

Anyway my point about innovative was good innovation, im talking about Half-Life, Civ, Command & Conquer, Sim City. Not half-baked ideas, that while original, arent successful.

[MORON]

Greatest innovation ever is DOTA

I'm petty sure most good ideas start small, and by the time they give picked up and is big, it isn't all that new anymore....

[lord of the mark]

What time frame are you talking about Verto - the last year? If so my hardware prevents me from addressing things directly, and besides, I think the important innovations in games (as in most things) are only clear in retrospect.


Innovation in PC games over the last SEVERAL years -
1. Paradox - using RT to do realistic historical strategy, games of a kind not seen before
2. TW series - RT and TB uniquely integrated, IIUC. With this progressing as the series went on
3. The Sims - love it or hate it, different from what came before, and a huge seller.
4. Children of the Nile - from what ive heard, significantly different from previous citybuilders.


Im sure fans of other genres could come up with some other things.

Broader innovations - the rise of MMOG's. The rise of digital downloads. The growth in free downloadable games like Bejeweled. The rise of cell phone games.

These may not be the traditional games we play, but theyre growing categories.

I mean it sounds like youre asking, where is the innovation in the same old platforms and genres - inevitably you'll find only piecemeal improvements there.

[lord of the mark]

Originally posted by Verto



My original statement was that, consoles and PCs both feature identical games, with the exception of a few things, like TBS/RTS.

well to ME its like this

Consoles only Sports games, misc action games - thats 2 genres
Consoles and PCs both - RPGs, FPS - 2 genres
largely PCs only - TBS. RTS. War historical games. City builders. Misc sims (the Sims, Flight sims, etc)
thats 5 genres

Of course as that genre list shows, I have a pretty warped view of the games market, which doesnt match too well with sales figures

[Imran Siddiqui]

Well, we'll have greater innovation due to hardware increasing what we can do with games. Its made games have more realistic physics and effects. It's allowed for games like Grand Theft Auto, where you can have an entire city to just explore, with plenty of stuff to do outside of the main quest. That was particularly innovative (you were playing in a living, breathing city)

[:) Smiley]

Graphics, physics, AI, sound, etc aren't innovations, they are improvements.

Innovations include multiplayer, modding, forum games, tournaments, and open source. These change not just gameplay but the player's relationship with the game.

The next big one will be connecting directly to the physical world. Already, there are games where game currency can be exchanged for real currency, a first step in that direction.

[DrSpike]

Originally posted by Smiley
Graphics, physics, AI, sound, etc aren't innovations, they are improvements.

Graphical innovations are innovations, just graphical ones rather than gameplay ones.

And the improved physics in modern games is clearly an innovation, one that increases the sphere of what can be achieved in games.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by lord of the mark
2. TW series - RT and TB uniquely integrated, IIUC. With this progressing as the series went on

I have only limited exposure to the Total War series. My impression is there is no real "turn based" component. It is just a thin layer to chain the "real time" battles together.

[Urban Ranger]

Originally posted by DrSpike
Graphical innovations are innovations, just graphical ones rather than gameplay ones.

It is an innovation only if it breaks new ground. Better shading, more polygons, faster rendering speeds don't count.

Sprite with collision detection was an innovation.

[DrSpike]

And new games will likely have things in that are not just more polygons. One might call them innovations.

[Alex]

How innovative are games nowadays? Just look at AOE III and you'll realize how innovation is dead.

[DrSpike]

Yes, one game does indeed prove that all games are not innovative.

[Apocalypse]

What is more disturbing is that good ideas (like ones in the Fallout series) are being forgotten.

[Sandman]

An easy way to force innovation is to simply use more interesting settings. A lot of Fallout's charm came from its post-apocalyptic theme.

Killing fantasy generi-kingdoms and space 'marines' for a single year could lead to all sorts of new gaming worlds.