Who Killed Videogames? (A Ghost Story)

[J T]

This is a brilliant story/article from someone inside the games industry that pulls back the curtain on how games use complex psychomathematics to make us play, make us pay, and kill gaming in the process.

This is highly recommended reading.
http://insertcredit.com/2011/09/22/who- ... ost-story/

[Hazerd]

Seems like it focused more on Flash games and stupid Iphone/Android games than anything, none which i play.

[Inazuma]

I started to read that article but it was really annoying so I stopped.

I guess the basic idea is that cheap and free mobile phone games killed video games? I'm sure there is some truth to that but I'd have to say that the major gaming companies killed video games. Sony, Microsoft, EA, Activision, Capcom, etc. These companies have completely destroyed video games over the past 5 years.

Not only do we not own anything or have any rights nowadays, but video games are way the hell more expensive. It's a complete fucking disgrace.

Gamers themselves are also to blame, for tolerating this shit. Even though many gamers complain about it, they still support it by giving these companies money. Gamers are pretty fucking weak willed. It's really sad.

Nintendo is all we have left at this point, and I fear they will either go out of business or be forced to pull the same bullshit in order to survive.

[o.pwuaioc]

Not only do we not own anything or have any rights nowadays, but video games are way the hell more expensive. It's a complete fucking disgrace.

They're actually a bit cheaper now than they were then. Granted if you waited long enough prices would drop significantly, but as far as brand new games go, they were SNES/Genesis games were more expensive.

[ZenErik]

If Nintendo is all I have left then I am screwed. Their gaming platforms tend to put out less games I really love to play and their first party releases generally just aren't for me.

I guess gaming is over for me. Time for a new hobby.

[AppleQueso]

Not only do we not own anything or have any rights nowadays, but video games are way the hell more expensive. It's a complete fucking disgrace.

They're actually a bit cheaper now than they were then. Granted if you waited long enough prices would drop significantly, but as far as brand new games go, they were SNES/Genesis games were more expensive.

This, just flip through the pages of an old nintendo power sometime and glance at all those $69.99 MSRPs.

[(-_-)]

Pretty insightful read. Also gave another perspective that answered some of my feelings about the need for "gamification". I agree that gamers are a huge resource of people with specific skills and work ethic. Namely persistant and problem solving. Jane Mcgonigal talks about this, but I feel the idea of "gamification" isn't complete. Sometimes I think the application of a reward system is enough to motivate people to do things because it is a tangible visual form of achievement. You can see how well you are doing because you have the recognition to prove it. So in the case of something for exercise or physical activity, I think it works. My problem though is that this kind of artificial reward will end up removing any form of self motivation to do things, which in the end, is way more important. I think gamification needs to go in the direction of "remodelling" the activity I guess. The way the recent events of the foldit project and nasa web browsing game turned out. From what I understand those used the core part of gameplay to provide a fulfilling experience rather than rely on some artificial reward system that addicts you using math.

rabble rabble rabble.

[J T]

What is upsetting to me about this story is how game design and monetization schemes are intentionally developing in tandum to get people hooked and paying, and what people are paying for is their own time. They know that time is money, and since the game can't reach out and take your money, they take your time instead and then offer it back to you in return for your money. While some games are explicit to the consumer about this up front, others are more underhanded and waiting to get you invested in the game world first so that you will want to stay in it, then they waste your time later so you will pay to make in-game progress.

It's like a more sneaky version of what we used to see in arcades. Back then you paid quarters to play and the difficulty level would ramp up to cheap, impossibly hard levels once you were approaching the ending so that you would drop fistfuls of quarters to just finally complete the game and be done with. Only a facebook, i-phone, or MMO game doesn't need to end, so they are just working you up into a costly addiction.

There's also a million different monetization schemes for games now. It's getting confusing and coming to a point where you have to research DRM and monetization schemes of games before you get invested in playing the game, but once you've done that, you're already invested. It seems like things were so much simpler in the past when you just bought the game and could then play it in its entirety without limitations. I think this could all lead to another crash in the videogame industry, or at least in part of it.

[o.pwuaioc]

I think this could all lead to another crash in the videogame industry, or at least in part of it.

It would be welcomed.

[Opa Opa]

I think this could all lead to another crash in the videogame industry, or at least in part of it.

It would be welcomed.

No. The last thing I want are more people without jobs.

edit: or should that be "is more people"? Too tired to care about fixing grammar right now.