It's obvious why Palworld's publishing arm has so many small games
I feel this way as I get older. I don’t care how “realistic” the latest iteration of Call of Battlefield 19: Looty-Shooty Palooza" is, give me compelling gameplay; Not a generic “go here, shoot that, loot this” gameplay loop.
I feel like this is pretty reductive, really, to blanket all AAA games as one thing that are all bad. Just like all indie games aren’t great. In fact, the vast majority are kinda trash, really.
For every Call of Duty, you can find amazing games like Death Stranding 2 that have insane budgets but swing for the fences (and succeed in my opinion). And on the flip side for every Silksong you have three million, anime-girl-on-the-cover trash indie game.
There’s no “one is better than the other” when comparing the totality of AAA vs indie.
The AAA label can be misleading. I’ve been playing Dying Light: The Beast, which is technically a AAA game, but it has an indie jankiness to it that all open world Techland games have which is part of its charm.
People who swear off AAA games seem to think that they’re all COD, and they’re missing out on the good ones.
FromSoftware is a AAA studio. And there are plenty of AAA studios that resist the typical enshittification common to big budget studios. Now that I’m thinking about it, a lot of the “good” triple A studios that come to mind are based in Europe or Japan. USA style capitalism is the problem, not AAA studios themselves.
We have capitalism here in Europe too, and don’t get me started about the work culture in Japan.
I think there’s something else in the US. It’s a lack of cultural diversity. Yes, the country is a mixing pot of cultures, technically speaking - but it’s also kinda not. US mainstream media (I don’t mean news, I mean games, movies, etc) in general is quite homogenized. It’s also a huge export, so of course people in other countries get influenced by a lot of it too, but we have a lot of our own culture, which doesn’t much influence the US, but influences us.
I blame the death of mid-budget movies for the death of American media diversity. Which of course is largely due to Netflix et al. So capitalism is still the root cause, but it’s also the extreme cultural dominance of the US. Whereas here in Europe most movies and TV shows get made with the expectation that they’ll be watched by people of the country where it’s made, so it can afford to be jankier, American media has the expectation of being consumed around the world - so it’s a bit more generic and polished.
What do you consider Obsidian? They put out two bangers this year. Does Split Fiction count? They’re at least an order of magnitude under the budget of a marquis Sony game, let alone the likes of Grand Theft Auto or Call of Duty. How about Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves? The Alters? Dispatch? Have you heard of a little game called Clair Obscur: Expedition 33? I hear people like that one. (I’m joking. I’ve played it, too. Budget estimates are still in the tens of millions of dollars.) I’m strongly of the opinion that AA is back right now.
I just go into all games with no expectations or influences. its a much better way to game, imho.
rather than writing off AAA entirely. if I avoid reviews/ forum discussions etc and just play, then the labels kinda fall away. every game has a chance to be fun. regardless if it was made by 100 person dev team or 2.
Indie games have had a far better hit rate with me since about 2017 or so, but this year, bigger budget games have been more my speed. I agree; there’s no need to stick to those sorts of categories when your favorite can come from anywhere.
very apt meatphor, especially when you consider the development and enjoyment of games has consistently been part of the human experience.
a lovingly crafted game is a gourmet meal, each ingredient lovingly selected based on experience and a desire to give the recipient a special experience that will stay with them emotionally long term
a big studio game is fast food combination meal, each component focus tested after optimizing the whole pipeline to reduce cost to the investor and the resulting experience leaves the recipient feeling empty and unsatisfied. sure, occasionally something innovative will come along like a first person openworld sandbox or a 4 pack of cinnamon poppers, but eventually the big firms will replicate what’s working at other firms and you’ll be left with every studio offering the equivalent to chicken nuggets, hamburgers, fried chicken sandwhiches, french fries, and soda
I think this is pretty normal as you grow up. You get kind of bored of playing games that use the same gameplay mechanisms and you just look for a change. Even if the mechanisms in these indie games aren’t as good, just being different makes the game more interesting.
Nowadays I’d much rather play a short indie games that a big budget game.
I fully agree! This is a perfect example of how true the cliche “variety is the spice of life” can be. Novel experiences are abundant when you’re young, but when you’ve “seen/done it all” life can become boring or perhaps feel like the movie Groundhog Day…every day the same routine, no change in schedule or behavior, no change in outcome or expectation. There’s certainly comfort in routine but i find learning and trying new things to be one of the most rewarding experiences as i get older.
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I feel like this is pretty reductive, really, to blanket all AAA games as one thing that are all bad. Just like all indie games aren’t great. In fact, the vast majority are kinda trash, really.
For every Call of Duty, you can find amazing games like Death Stranding 2 that have insane budgets but swing for the fences (and succeed in my opinion). And on the flip side for every Silksong you have three million, anime-girl-on-the-cover trash indie game.
There’s no “one is better than the other” when comparing the totality of AAA vs indie.
Nintendo Lawsuits have entered the chat
The AAA label can be misleading. I’ve been playing Dying Light: The Beast, which is technically a AAA game, but it has an indie jankiness to it that all open world Techland games have which is part of its charm.
People who swear off AAA games seem to think that they’re all COD, and they’re missing out on the good ones.
FromSoftware is a AAA studio. And there are plenty of AAA studios that resist the typical enshittification common to big budget studios. Now that I’m thinking about it, a lot of the “good” triple A studios that come to mind are based in Europe or Japan. USA style capitalism is the problem, not AAA studios themselves.
We have capitalism here in Europe too, and don’t get me started about the work culture in Japan.
I think there’s something else in the US. It’s a lack of cultural diversity. Yes, the country is a mixing pot of cultures, technically speaking - but it’s also kinda not. US mainstream media (I don’t mean news, I mean games, movies, etc) in general is quite homogenized. It’s also a huge export, so of course people in other countries get influenced by a lot of it too, but we have a lot of our own culture, which doesn’t much influence the US, but influences us.
I blame the death of mid-budget movies for the death of American media diversity. Which of course is largely due to Netflix et al. So capitalism is still the root cause, but it’s also the extreme cultural dominance of the US. Whereas here in Europe most movies and TV shows get made with the expectation that they’ll be watched by people of the country where it’s made, so it can afford to be jankier, American media has the expectation of being consumed around the world - so it’s a bit more generic and polished.
I’m not impressed by either. I want AA games back.
What do you consider Obsidian? They put out two bangers this year. Does Split Fiction count? They’re at least an order of magnitude under the budget of a marquis Sony game, let alone the likes of Grand Theft Auto or Call of Duty. How about Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves? The Alters? Dispatch? Have you heard of a little game called Clair Obscur: Expedition 33? I hear people like that one. (I’m joking. I’ve played it, too. Budget estimates are still in the tens of millions of dollars.) I’m strongly of the opinion that AA is back right now.
And mid-budget movies!
Indie games buy day1.
AAA+ games buy on massive sales of 75% or greater, Or pirate
I just go into all games with no expectations or influences. its a much better way to game, imho.
rather than writing off AAA entirely. if I avoid reviews/ forum discussions etc and just play, then the labels kinda fall away. every game has a chance to be fun. regardless if it was made by 100 person dev team or 2.
Indie games have had a far better hit rate with me since about 2017 or so, but this year, bigger budget games have been more my speed. I agree; there’s no need to stick to those sorts of categories when your favorite can come from anywhere.
Nowadays indie games are where it’s at.
to me AAA is mark of lesser quality. Maybe it looks pretty, but so do those hamburgers on adverts.
very apt meatphor, especially when you consider the development and enjoyment of games has consistently been part of the human experience.
a lovingly crafted game is a gourmet meal, each ingredient lovingly selected based on experience and a desire to give the recipient a special experience that will stay with them emotionally long term
a big studio game is fast food combination meal, each component focus tested after optimizing the whole pipeline to reduce cost to the investor and the resulting experience leaves the recipient feeling empty and unsatisfied. sure, occasionally something innovative will come along like a first person openworld sandbox or a 4 pack of cinnamon poppers, but eventually the big firms will replicate what’s working at other firms and you’ll be left with every studio offering the equivalent to chicken nuggets, hamburgers, fried chicken sandwhiches, french fries, and soda
I think this is pretty normal as you grow up. You get kind of bored of playing games that use the same gameplay mechanisms and you just look for a change. Even if the mechanisms in these indie games aren’t as good, just being different makes the game more interesting.
Nowadays I’d much rather play a short indie games that a big budget game.
We need novelty yep. When you’ve been around long enough, you start having to look around harder to find it.
I fully agree! This is a perfect example of how true the cliche “variety is the spice of life” can be. Novel experiences are abundant when you’re young, but when you’ve “seen/done it all” life can become boring or perhaps feel like the movie Groundhog Day…every day the same routine, no change in schedule or behavior, no change in outcome or expectation. There’s certainly comfort in routine but i find learning and trying new things to be one of the most rewarding experiences as i get older.
I agree, indie titels are more unique/diverse.