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[Property of Jumpship]

I asked this question in another thread but it didnt get answered, or started really, so I thought I would try again.

Are the handhelds the future of innovation in videogames? Not to beat a dead horse we all know that development on next-gen consoles will be very expensive and will likely stifle creativity (to a certain extent) so will the handhelds be the place where devs take a risk? I used Ac!d as an example, very good game (although it is kind of maddening), innovative (at least when you consider the MGS series); but how much did it cost to make this game and how many people were on the team that made it? How many units does it have to sell to be a profitable title?

I could be wrong, probably am so dont start insulting me, but I see the PSP, even the next game boy, revolutionizing the video game industry.

 

[Speevy]

Short answer: Creativity can exist anywhere. There's absolutely no innovation in a handheld that can't be either connected with or simulated on a console. Nintendo proved this, and soon Sony will as well. If you ask me, there should not be any handheld exclusives. It's a waste. Sony has proved with the launch of the PSP that if folks are going to buy a handheld gaming system, they will do so whether they also have a console or not. I want to play Lumines, and I believe I should have that opportunity. Some may argue that it would be "nothing like actually owning a PSP." but so what? The bottom line is that no medium is more likely to produce innovation than any other. We saw Eyetoy on the PS2, Steel Battallion on the Xbox, and a bongo platformer on the Cube. Risk-taking games, niche genres, no handhelds required.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

Yeah, good point, but would Lumines have even been made if it wasnt for a handheld?

 

[Speevy]

Yeah, good point, but would Lumines have even been made if it wasnt for a handheld?

I would certainly hope so. If Lumines is as good as the reviews indicate, the game must transcend its small screen.

 

[Speevy]

I first played Tetris on the NES, btw.

 

[golem]

Yeah, good point, but would Lumines have even been made if it wasnt for a handheld?

maybe for a $20 pricepoint

 

[Property of Jumpship]

I honestly dont believe that Sony, MS, or Nintendo would have been interested in it for their consoles. They probably would have said "Nice concept, poor seller, no thanks." What was the last puzzler for a console. I dont remember one.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

I first played Tetris on the NES, btw.

My first Tetris game was for the original Game Boy. That game is the shit, broke it out last night and on my first try got 147. Good for me.

 

[Speevy]

Bah. Tons of financial flops get released every year. Look at the PS2. Over 1,000 games. Think about how many obscure titles were released to little or no sales.

Heck, titles flop that aren't obscure. Look at Viewtiful Joe 2. Beyond Good and Evil. Panzer Dragoon Orta.

 

[kaching]

The question PoM is asking though isn't really whether hardware X can simulate/duplicate innovation Y first done on hardware Z, the question he's asking is whether a particular platform, in this case the new handheld platforms, are more likely to play host to the kind of infrastructure that fosters greater innovation/risk-taking.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

The question PoM is asking though isn't really whether hardware X can simulate/duplicate innovation Y first done on hardware Z, the question he's asking is whether a particular platform, in this case the new handheld platforms, are more likely to play host to the kind of infrastructure that fosters greater innovation/risk-taking.

Exactly. Will small devs be able to whatever they want on handhelds? Actually, considering the PSP they better lower the friggin prices fast if this is to happen....50 bucks for a handheld game is re-fucking-tarted.

Speevy does make a good point, some games will not sell no matter what console they are for. And I am sure GBA, PSP, an the new GBA will have their share of shit games and poor sellers.

 

[VALIS]

Are the handhelds the future of innovation in videogames? Not to beat a dead horse we all know that development on next-gen consoles will be very expensive and will likely stifle creativity (to a certain extent) so will the handhelds be the place where devs take a risk?

You can look at handheld history to date to get an idea, and that would be a resounding no, with a few exceptions. Generally most publishers use handhelds for quick and cheap ports of their big brother console titles, or for pumping out cartoon licesned games. Again, of course there are exceptions, but in total I think the creative-to-generic ratio has been considerably worse on the handhelds than the consoles. We'll see if things change as the PSP and DS/GBA2 go on, but I'm not taking that bet.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

Crap. I didnt really think about the current state of the Game Boy. Well I guess we will see.. I think I read somewhere that Sony would not let this happen with the PSP. Maybe Nintendo will be more restrictive with GBA 2.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

Sorry to double post, I dont have an edit button, damn mods. :lol

Does anyone know how long, how many people, how much it cost, to make Ac!d?

 

[VariableTerry]

You heard it here first, PC games will make a comeback.

 

[kaching]

Exactly. Will small devs be able to whatever they want on handhelds? Actually, considering the PSP they better lower the friggin prices fast if this is to happen....50 bucks for a handheld game is re-fucking-tarted.

Well that's coming from the participants like Activision and EA who aren't exactly odds on to do the most innovative work.

Speevy does make a good point, some games will not sell no matter what console they are for. And I am sure GBA, PSP, an the new GBA will have their share of shit games and poor sellers.

I thought part of the thrust of your initial post was that some of these games don't necessarily have to sell better if the infrastructure is right.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

I thought part of the thrust of your initial post was that some of these games don't necessarily have to sell better if the infrastructure is right.

Well, huh...that's right but I...yeah, thats right. With smaller budgets and less payroll games wouldnt have to sell a ton of copies to be profitable. But I do believe that what Speevy said is correct, some games wont sell, but it wont mean that developers will stop trying new ideas on handhelds for the above reasons.

 

[Father_Brain]

You can look at handheld history to date to get an idea, and that would be a resounding no, with a few exceptions. Generally most publishers use handhelds for quick and cheap ports of their big brother console titles, or for pumping out cartoon licesned games. Again, of course there are exceptions, but in total I think the creative-to-generic ratio has been considerably worse on the handhelds than the consoles. We'll see if things change as the PSP and DS/GBA2 go on, but I'm not taking that bet.

I think that this generation, the console market has moved steadily closer to the GBC/GBA market in tht sense.

 

[rastex]

What do people want out of Innovation? What is this buzzword ya'll keep sprouting on about? I can name DOZENS of titles that have been released in the past couple of years as innovative.

 

[Property of Jumpship]

I'm using the word innovation as new franchises and ideas. Maybe what I should have said was creativity. I'm definately not talking about updated graphics and new features to sequels. They can call that whatever they want but it is not innovation or creativity.

 

[Musashi Wins!]

You can look at handheld history to date to get an idea, and that would be a resounding no, with a few exceptions. Generally most publishers use handhelds for quick and cheap ports of their big brother console titles, or for pumping out cartoon licesned games. Again, of course there are exceptions, but in total I think the creative-to-generic ratio has been considerably worse on the handhelds than the consoles. We'll see if things change as the PSP and DS/GBA2 go on, but I'm not taking that bet.

I'd agree with you very much. I LOVE the GBA, but not because it's innovative. The innovation is about nil. It's so bad that a collection of mini-games played fast (an excellent game mind you) is hailed all over the press as an especially "innovative" title. Maybe it was the limitations of the hardware and the fact that the older consoles had tread this ground before, but the GBA has very little innovation at all in it's library.

It's kind of like Nintendo is trying to force the issue by making the touch screen and other abilities on the DS. But as the current library shows...innovation is only as good as the innovator. It's still waiting for a great one.