Videogames are broken – and why complaining won’t fix it.
by Editor In Chief, Mark Bohdanyk – published 01/08/15
Let’s face it. If there was one word to summarize practically every game launch this holiday season, it was broken. I was much happier with the games already installed in my system. That is one of the reasons why I also stopped watching the new launches of videogames and spent more time on net surfing through sites like https://www.yesgamers.com/info/6-ways-to-get-the-diablo-2-items-you-want/ to find ways to unlock and get new items. The only game to launch without a hitch was Destiny, and you could argue the game was broken despite multiplayer.
Now that the Xbox One and Playstation 4 are basically synonymous with PC development/gaming, we have entered the world of non-functioning code shipping at launch. People without internet connections in their home will have buggy/non-working code that is to be addressed in a Day 1 patch that they will never get.
The worst part of all is that no manner of outrage from gamers is going to fix it. You can complain all you want, but Assassin’s Creed will come out with another game next year, most likely in the same state upon release. That is, until the cycle is broken by people voting with their wallets.
Activision has long held the business philosophy of annualizing a franchise, like Call of Duty, to maximize yearly earnings potential. Ubisoft has adopted a similar philosophy with the Assassin’s Creed franchise. What is frustrating is that by accelerating and/or rushing development cycles, they not only release a subpar product, but also diminish their returns on said annualized franchise.
Call of Duty is a fascinating study in battling attrition that I wish to delve into in another article. (Quick Preview: This year’s entry marked decisive changes in gameplay mechanics that could have repercussions on the following year’s game. Activision has seen their player base and revenue stream erode over the last several years. With Advanced Warfare’s speedy and vertical movement systems and game design, next year’s version of the game could feel dated and slow if it does not retain or incorporate these systems. From a design standpoint, they are basically painted into a corner. If they don’t try something new, the install base will slowly continue to dwindle (not that they are unprofitable by any stretch of the imagination), but if they do try something new and it is unpopular, will it erode their base at a quicker pace? )
So if voting with your wallet is the only way to convince publishers and developers to stop releasing broken/incomplete games, that means we can just not buy the games and everything will fix itself, right?
Oh, ho ho — No. See, that’s great in theory, but not realistic in practice. Case in point:
Click here for the Destiny Video Review.
Destiny is one of my favorite punching bags in recent history. Bungie released a game concept with fantastic shooting mechanics — and virtually zero content. Yet I played almost daily for multiple months with my friends, because it was just fun enough, and I enjoyed playing, coordinating and playing tactician with my friends.
Just a couple months in, however, and I was already feeling the ‘lack of content’ fatigue. I wasn’t going to pre-purchase the expansions because I wanted to vote with my wallet. I verbalized this to my raid group partners, and one of them turned to me and said “So you just want to punish us?”
That caught me off guard. “The only ones you’ll be punishing is us, because you won’t be able to run the new raid with us. The DLC will still sell like hotcakes and the only persons your wallet will be working against is both you… and us.”
And I realized he’s right. No one thing a person does can affect the machinery that is the games industry. So where do we turn our attentions?
Certification. You see, games have to pass a certification process from the console manufacturers before they can retail launch. On top of that, the publishers have to pay the console manufacturers for the certification process for their software (rumored costs are around $30k). It seems like with the exception of the Wii U, this holiday season standards for certification approval were very, very low.
So how CAN we affect the product quality of consumer games so we don’t have a repeat of 2014’s broken game launches?
With the world of social media connectivity at your fingertips, a multitude of Sony and Microsoft executives are at your fingertips. Tweet them. Email them. I’ve listed them below for both companies, and let them know how you truly feel about the launches of your favorite titles this year, and whether the certification process served you, or failed you.
Until the console manufacturers themselves enforce certification quality assurance, your monetary vote simply doesn’t matter anymore.
Do you agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments below.
Shuhei Yoshida, Sony President of Worldwide Studios – http://twitter.com/yosp
John Smedley, Sony President of Online Entertainment – http://twitter.com/j_smedley
Kaz Hirai, Sony CEO – http://twitter.com/kazhiraiceo
