AAA games falling short for me

[BlackCherryTime]

Note: I use the term AAA loosely to describe big budget titles that received a lot of media attention.

Recently I've found myself to be enjoying older "middle tier" games a bit more than the BIG releases of last fall. Aside from Destiny, yes I know it's not on PC and yes I liked it, I didn't really find the big names to be all that great (AC Unity, CoD: AW, Halo MCC, Evolve). I've now gotten to the point where I'm skeptical of future releases.

What I have been enjoying however, are lesser titles like: Kane and Lynch 1 & 2 (I got them in the SE humble bundle and played through both in 4 sittings), Hitman Blood Money, Murdered Soul Suspect, and Alan Wake.

Other games, that I suppose are "AAA" but weren't really hyped, that I was pleasantly surprised by are: Wolfenstein, Dying Light, and The Evil Within.

Games that I have an interest in playing are also smaller titles like: Stranded Deep, Nazi Zombie Trilogy, Among the Sleep, Shelter, Hotline Miami 2, and RE Remastered.

Has anyone else been feeling this way as of late?

Exceptions-- Dragon Age Inquisition, Sunset Overdrive, and Destiny.

tl;dr-- Big games I should be excited for don't entertain me as much as the lesser titles.

[Τhe Rolling Cheese Wheel]

I think you're confusing AAA titles for newly released games and lesser titles for old games. I can assure you that blood money and alan wake are not lesser titles. Blood money was AAA in it's day and so was Alan wake. You know who made Alan wake? That's right, the same people that made Max Payne.

Hotline Miami 2 isn't small at all, it's by far the most hyped indie game for Q1 2015. RE Remastered is an AAA game facelift.

[Ressurected Goth]

The biggest issue with the video game industry is that games now cost a lot more money to make. Like, a LOT more money. Go look at the numbers on google somewhere, and you'll be surprised to find out how much of a cash and time investment games can run these days compared to long ago.

The point of this statement is that when you have lots of money invested in something, you're careful not to do anything that might ♥♥♥♥ it up. So what happens is that a lot of people (video game companies) try and play it safe. They work off of material that is already popular and is tried and true. But can you blame them? The economy today doesn't treat mistakes very well. One bad game could mean an entire companies downfall, and several jobs with it. Such is the way of making and selling expensive products.

The issue is that naturally, you're bored with these games because they offer nothing new. Games have been around a long time, and the available concepts to use in a game are limited, the amount of original story-line is limited, and eventually, people search for greener grasses. So you like games that are different from the norm. It happens to a lot of gamers as they grow up. They find that the games of today are nothing but the fabrications of yesterday, and thus, no new enjoyment can be found.

So like me, you search and search for something to itch your nostalgic eyes, or something that has a refreshing and new taste, until you realize few exist. I've taken on new hobbies as of late, perhaps you should give video gaming a break and do other things, and maybe come back to another time.

[WhiteKnight77]

This article will help you understand what is happening with todays video game market: Gaming Companies Need Quality Blockbuster Hits, Not Quantity[seekingalpha.com].

[Quint the Alligator Snapper]

@OP: You might just be feeling let down by the hype surrounding the latest-and-greatest games when they turn out to be just decent but not quite what their hype sets them up to be, while you're discovering that there's a rich variety of great games from beyond the recent past.

[BlackCherryTime]

Yeah, I guess you guys are right. I've been having a blast with the titles that kind of went under my radar. I mean, I played thru Kane and Lynch 1 & 2 in 4 sittings. XD

I think that is probably one of my favorite things about playing on PC.. there is such a wide variety of experiences that various developers offer, so there is always something new to try.

And it's no wonder gamers would be getting bored, there's only so many different ways to make an FPS or Third Person Shooter. But some games just have a good feel or atmosphere. Bioshock games for example. I think that's what I enjoyed about Kane and Lynch... it's mechanics were mediocre and the story was laughable, but it offered a gritty, balls to the wall action experience that just felt raw.

Still looking forward to Batman later this year!

[WhiteKnight77]

Master Roshi님이 먼저 게시:

Yeah, I guess you guys are right. I've been having a blast with the titles that kind of went under my radar. I mean, I played thru Kane and Lynch 1 & 2 in 4 sittings. XD

I think that is probably one of my favorite things about playing on PC.. there is such a wide variety of experiences that various developers offer, so there is always something new to try.

And it's no wonder gamers would be getting bored, there's only so many different ways to make an FPS or Third Person Shooter. But some games just have a good feel or atmosphere. Bioshock games for example. I think that's what I enjoyed about Kane and Lynch... it's mechanics were mediocre and the story was laughable, but it offered a gritty, balls to the wall action experience that just felt raw.

Still looking forward to Batman later this year!

See, you just pointed something out. Most FPS games feature instant health regeneration with a med-kit or just by hiding behind a wall or something or characters are bullet sponges. This goes back man years. When a game like Rainbow Six comes along and does something different, complaints of its too hard are found due to no med-kits, no regenerating health and getting killed in one shot (and it won GOTY awards).

R6 also had the innovative feature of in game characters needing real world time to regain strength or heal when exhausted or wounded from a mission and worse, if a character was killed while on a mission, that character stayed dead throughout the complete campaign. This is completely different from all the other games where you are a hero character and only die for a mission and come back to life for the next one.

Small companies can give such experiences unlike nowadays where the big companies have to make big blockbusters of regurgitated game experiences. CoD 11 plays just like the very first CoD. The only thing different is weapons and settings. Not a big change.

[BlackCherryTime]

I really, really hope they don't screw R6 Siege up. I need it to be good.

I hate how there's so much politics and corporate greed that infect the industry. But, hey, everyone's just trying to make a quick buck... or a million.

[WhiteKnight77]

Master Roshi님이 먼저 게시:

I really, really hope they don't screw R6 Siege up. I need it to be good.

I hate how there's so much politics and corporate greed that infect the industry. But, hey, everyone's just trying to make a quick buck... or a million.

Don't count on it. Ubi has such disdain for their customers it is amazing how they are still in business.

[BlackCherryTime]

WhiteKnight77님이 먼저 게시:

Master Roshi님이 먼저 게시:

I really, really hope they don't screw R6 Siege up. I need it to be good.

I hate how there's so much politics and corporate greed that infect the industry. But, hey, everyone's just trying to make a quick buck... or a million.

Don't count on it. Ubi has such disdain for their customers it is amazing how they are still in business.

Agreed. Watch Dogs and AC Unity didn't do anything for me; Far Cry 4 is okay though. I just wish every game they made wasn't the same... FC, Watch Dogs, and AC all have the same mechanics.. Hideouts to take over, towers to climb, etc. The only difference is: one is an fps, the other a cover based shooter, and AC is an action adventure game.

It's a shame, really.

[belaerdei]

There is always a trend recipe what will sell.Just like the indy vanilla survival games or mmorpg games there will be always a trend. Anything outside of that trend is under the radar.This is nothing to do with AAA games.

[Ineffable Anathema]

Dr. Báthory Mengele님이 먼저 게시:

The point of this statement is that when you have lots of money invested in something, you're careful not to do anything that might **** it up.

{COUGH}Ubisoft{COUGH}

[Tux]

I am going to try and use different terms than AAA or indie because that just gets people off topic and into semantics

I gave up on 'mainstream gaming' (?) in 2008. My first exposure to 'non-mainstream'(?) games was Darkfall which was light years ahead of what I was playing prior. I havent gone back to 'mainstream' since. I just havent seen anything that comes close in the 'mainstream' market to what I have been playing

[Ineffable Anathema]

Tux님이 먼저 게시:

I am going to try and use different terms than AAA or indie because that just gets people off topic and into semantics

I gave up on 'mainstream gaming' (?) in 2008. My first exposure to 'non-mainstream'(?) games was Darkfall which was light years ahead of what I was playing prior. I havent gone back to 'mainstream' since. I just havent seen anything that comes close to what I have been playing

Do you mean Darkfall: The Journal (adventure game) or that other one which is I think an rpg ...?

[Tux]

Ineffable Anathema님이 먼저 게시:

Tux님이 먼저 게시:

I am going to try and use different terms than AAA or indie because that just gets people off topic and into semantics

I gave up on 'mainstream gaming' (?) in 2008. My first exposure to 'non-mainstream'(?) games was Darkfall which was light years ahead of what I was playing prior. I havent gone back to 'mainstream' since. I just havent seen anything that comes close to what I have been playing

Do you mean Darkfall: The Journal (adventure game) or that other one which is I think an rpg ...?

http://store.steampowered.com/agecheck/app/227400/

but the first one