The release of Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection marks yet another addition to the long line-up of video games that are undergoing the remaster/HD collection trend that started all the way back in 2009 with the God of War Collection. Since then, more developers have pushed towards remastering games from the last generation with current generation technology.
On one hand, these old games can be experienced with improved resolution and performance, and can also be played by gamers who may have missed out on them the first time. On the other hand, the frequency of these remasters have become a source of criticism, either for their lack of value compared to HD collections with only one remastered game sold at a high price, or for only offering mild upgrades that do not offer much of a benefit to those who have already played the original game.
With so many franchises getting the remaster treatment, I think it would be a good idea to detail the history of these remasters – the good and the bad – and explore what makes a good remaster.
Console limitations may also come into play here. I'm thinking particularly of the Metal Gear Solid HD Collection for the Xbox 360. The controller lacks the pressure sensitive buttons of the Playstation 2 controller, meaning the developers had to come up with a new, clunkier way of being able to put down a weapon while aiming. – ODude9 years ago
I think remasters also have a lot to do with cashing in on a franchise. Final Fantasy X/X-2 (which I love, by the way) can only be remastered so much. It has now been remastered three times, and people have been rolling their eyes. I personally don't mind remasters because they usually have some kind of bonus content (i.e. the Kingdom Hearts HD Remixes), and I also like having as many of my games as possible on the same console. But I do have to admit that the frequency of remasters can be annoying because it is an obvious cash-in, and it also means we have to wait that much longer for a new, original title. – Christina9 years ago
As someone who has never been able to play first person games they have always fascinated me and have made me wonder; in what way does the players perception change with the medium? First person games feature a visual perspective as if the player was physically doing the actions; these are particularly popular in shooting games. Third person on the other hand displays a character completely and as such the player is viewing their actions as they would view another person's. This perspective can be seen in various puzzle games such as any Mario or Zelda game. How does the perspective that the player is shown influence the perception of the player? Would Mario be as entertaining if it was in the first person? Or is there something unique about a genre that leads its games to be in a certain perspective?
This COULD be a very interesting topic, but you need to explain what you mean by "first person" or "third person" in relation to video games. It will be hard to expand this topic into a full-length post unless you explain it a bit more. Also, "mario" should be capitalized and "In" should be lowercase. – Dominic Sceski9 years ago
I made some adjustments! Hopefully that helps clarify the question and expand upon its meaning. – jonavitua9 years ago
Games like Skyrim and Fallout (I'm specifically thinking 3 and New Vegas as they're the two I've played) should be mentioned, because at the press of a button you can change from that first person perspective to third person. i think this may actually be true of GTA V too and is definitely true of driving games.
First person I think is meant to immerse yourself into that game, or in other words, the gamer and the character are one. These games also probably give the gamer more options with dialogue and actions.
Third person as you already said gives you a complete display of a character and I would say this is used with more fleshed out characters and a strict narrative structure. – Jamie White9 years ago
Like Jamie said, first person is a lot more personal in that YOU are the player/character, whereas in third person you simply operate the character. However, I would also argue that it goes even deeper than that. Either first- or third-person can be even more unique. In the Bioshock series, for example, you play as Jack in the first Bioshock game and the only time he speaks is in the opening cutscene. In Bioshock: Infinite, however, Booker regularly speaks, either to other people or aloud to himself. I think that dynamic can alter the way a player experiences the game. – Christina9 years ago
I don't know if this will be a worthwhile notation, but I experience a frequent physical limitation to first person games, and I'm not the only one. A number of us have to take motion sickness pills or sit down with a bottle of Ginger Ale anytime a video game (or movie) is in this form. Could that be creating a barrier for consumers? – Piper CJ8 years ago
Many video games provide a morality system and dialogue options, but Mass Effect goes above and beyond to put the player in total control of the universe. Your choices affect not only your relationships, but also major cinematic moments, character deaths, the difficulty of the third game in the series, etc. Your choices will even be carried over to the next game in the series. If you choose to start with a later game, some events will not have happened in-universe because you have not had the opportunity to make a choice. How does this level of control affect the player's relationship with the game?
I think this is a very interesting question. I would also go a step further and ask how this increased personalization could potentially affect video games journalism, specifically video game reviews. If a video game experience becomes so subjective that everyone plays through it in their own personal way, then how could anyone be qualified to give a objective review. – CalebCox9 years ago
I don't mean to be 'that guy' but an article on this topic is already being processed. It's written by H4zel. I'm not saying don't write it, it's a very interesting topic and the more variations of opinion we have on this, the better, given the controversial nature of the third game. That said, whoever takes this up, I think the title should be changed, the meaning remains the same, and make sure to have a different way of going about it than the other similar topic. – SpectreWriter9 years ago
Yes, the article that H4zel is writing is on this same topic. I think this topic was revived automatically by the system since it's been two months since she claimed it, the same thing happened to a topic for an article I have under review right now. – Grace Maich9 years ago
The thing with games with choice-triggered content is that developers have to create a lot of content that players might not even see. – ChrisKeene9 years ago
A look into the culture that has sprung up around the "Souls" titles created by From Software. Undoubtedly, one of the biggest franchises to come out of the 7th generation, the Souls series has captured the attention of gamers worldwide. Praised for its daunting difficulty, incredible atmosphere, and attention to detail, the Souls games have cemented themselves as one of the premier "cult" titles of the past generation.
Explore character, story gameplay, narrative etc
I've always wanted to know more about the lore surrounding Dark Souls. IT's all there if you look into the subtext, but I suppose I'm just too lazy to actively seek it out. I would love to read something like this, and maybe see some relation from the lore and how it effects the plot. – leydifwee9 years ago
Great topic! One thing I noticed though was the difference between your title and your actual topic. You describe how you'd like to explore the characters and narrative of the Dark Souls games but didn't make a mention of the fanbase and those people and the culture surrounding these games like you mention at the top of the topic. I think I'd rather be reading an article giving possible explanations as to why Dark Souls has become so popular and such a well-renown game franchise. Why are people so attracted to it? What makes the game so interesting to gamers? What was From Software aiming for and does the community think they achieved it? Most importantly, who is a part of the community and why are these games so defining for this generation of games? I think that this kind of approach is what you intended but didn't word 100% correctly to the thoughts in your head. However, with what you've written here it sounds more like a walkthrough or lore explanation than anything else. – TheLegendofPie9 years ago
I wrote an article that was an exploration of the lore hunting that souls fans do by going through a lore hunt of the Old Dragonslayer from Dark Souls 2, unfortunately due to my poor rating on my ratio for the website it was taken away from the pending section of the website. Im working to fix my ratio so that more poeple can read my article cuz the few comments I got about it before it was taken away were pretty positive. – Cojo9 years ago
Analyze 'choice' in video-games ranging from games that present choice (e.g. Mass Effect, Telltale Games) to games that are more open (e.g. Fallout, GTA) and discuss how both types of games are in-fact linear experiences.
Choice in video games is undoubtedly a linear experience because regardless of the "choices" you're given, you are still limited in what you can choose. You can choose A or B (sometimes C, or D, or even beyond) but that's as far as you can go. Ultimately, you are heading in a direction with only one or two possible endings, thus you are still being guided to the ending in a linear fashion. Choice is certainly an illusion, and games like Bioshock and Bioshock: Infinite almost satirize choice by arguing that it is, in fact, an illusion, and therefore nonexistent. – Christina9 years ago
Some games have legitimate deviating paths but they are few and far between. – ChrisKeene9 years ago
As there are many genres of video games, it's usually difficult to compare two different kinds. You can't compare a FPS shooter with the Legend of Zelda series for example. However, these two genres are polar opposites of each other and are often brought up in forums when discussing their own genre. Identify what each genre is, the pros and cons of each one, the limitations of each, and what kind of audience each would appeal to.
You also have MMOs (massively multiplayer online). These games usually consist of a story plot but also leave the map open to explore. With the online multiplayer option these games give the player the ability to team up with people in their server and work together. Depending on the game what type of character you have in the game can also affect what missions are given. There are several different types of video games that people play today. – amandajarrell9 years ago
While games with an interesting, plot-driven experience are fun to play, it seems that game with player-driven content are timeless. Games where there are a variety of choices as far as character creation and exploration seem to be games that can be enjoyable while experiencing the main plot or creating your own adventure. An example could be how in Skyrim, you can do the quests provided in the game, or roam around the map running into random spawn, looting, and adventuring by your own rules.
You could also explore how gaming developers are expanding upon player-created content from immediate release of new games/multi-player gaming – Ryan Errington9 years ago
There are a few games that completely rely on the player looking for their own fun (Minecraft, Grow Home) but whats important to remember is that the developers still had to make it viable. In Skyrim the developers had to say "In this cave on a random spot that half the people playing this game will never see we are gonna add some fun things to do". Thats a strong commitment to the player – Cojo9 years ago
Giving players choice is a really neat thing in games- not everyone wants to play multiplayer or single player all of the time. This could also be expanded on how the game's audience is affected by player-created content. – James Smith9 years ago
McLaren, the famed manufacturer of Formula One cars for generations, only entered the road car business in the early 1990s, debuting with the McLaren F1. Since then, a myriad of models made by this English company have been featured in a variety of racing games, from the original F1, to the MP4-12C, to the all-new hybrid P1. McLaren's continued presence in motorsport has been accounted for as well, such as the McLaren F1 GTR "Long-Tail," or the 650S GT3. From Need for Speed to Gran Turismo, McLaren is an English company that cannot be ignored.
