Expert: gameusurper - 10/13/2007

Question
*If Money and time were not an issue*

First Question: With the new technology [PS3, Xbox 360, PC] we have now is it possible for a game developer to make a game with the highest quality without losing any game quality? And if so how can they achieve this?

Example:
- Great game play [story, game features, physics]?
- Great graphics [looks almost like real]?
- Fun to play?
- Great online play?
- Highest frames per second and TV Resolution support [60fps and 1080p]?

*Please explain your answer and also please provide your source of information*

Answer
This is a very long and involved question and as such I need to take more time to give it the attention it deserves. Therefore, I am posting a partial answer and will update it as I finish the various sections. I have broken down my answer into the various components I feel are important in crafting a good game. I think that any answer to this question will be very subjective and based on the person's tastes and preferences about what kind of game they consider to be deserving of a perfect 10.

Firstly, I don't believe a game must have a perfect score to sell well and be a success. Nor do I think that having the best of all the things you mention in your question guarantees a perfect score, or is a requirement either. But having said that, I do believe that developers should strive to create the best possible experience.

Nor do I think time is part of the equation in the long run. Money and the need to make a profit is by far the major limiting factor facing the industry. I think if we didn't have to worry about deadlines and the need to see a return, there would be much more innovation and creative risk taking. If a company could simply create something for its own sake, truly talented studios would thrive, instead of going tits up. *cough* Clover *cough* Of course this would be in a perfect world, mind you.

Anyway, on to answering your query. First, to paraphrase your question. You are asking if it is possible to make a game of the highest technical quality, (this being things like graphics, sound, control, physics, fps, features) without sacrificing game quality. (I take this to mean game play, fun factor and the like) And if so how can one accomplish this? I will give you an answer based on this understanding of your question.

I would like to start off by stating that I am not a tech hound. I do not make purchasing decisions of a game or system based on how sharp or true to life the graphics are, the resolution it can push, whether it has surround sound, how many buddies I can slaughter online, whether its physics engine can put reality to shame, or any of that other stuff that seems to dominate current gen advertising. This is in part due to my early exposure to videogames during the NES and 8-bit era where that stuff didn't matter. And frankly, I just don't care all that much. I would much rather see a game company impress me with innovative game play and an interesting experience, than make my eyes bleed with teh uber graphics and 10 pounds of features in a 5 pound bag.

I also don't claim to be competent when it comes to knowing the logistics of what goes into making a game from a creation and technical perspective. I can only offer an opinion on the finished product from the standpoint of a consumer, just like most of us. I do not possess any insider knowledge other than that which I glean from reading game magazines, which are readily available to any who care to take the time, and my 20 years experience playing games and observing the industry.

My preferences when considering a purchase are story, game play, fun factor, challenge, and overall presentation (this includes graphics and sound). Notice how most cosmetic and technical considerations are missing from my priorities? This is not to say I don't think they are important, but that I would much rather see developers spend their time on making a game good than making it pretty.  

So with that I will give my thoughts on the various aspects of what comprises a good game. Know that my answer will primarily consist of my opinion with some examples of games that I have played that either possess or don't possess those attributes. Obviously, depending on if you are of like mind or not, your mileage will vary concerning my statements.


STORY: I have listed this first as it is one of the main things I look at when assessing whether a game is for me or not. As you can see by reading my profile, I lean toward the side of RPGs and games with a story. With limited time and attention, I need to have a reason for playing a game and a motivating factor to finish it. Obviously, one cannot know all aspects of a game's story from the beginning and must experience it to get the full picture. It is one of those things that's easiest to look at in hindsight from a macroscopic point of view. There are many aspects that contribute to a game's story. I will take a look at some of them and offer my thoughts on why they are important.

Characters: This is a very integral part of whether I can care about the story. You experience the game through the eyes of the characters. So if they are wooden or paper thin, it can detract from the total narrative.              

Dialogue: Tied intimately to the characters is the dialogue. This can make or break a cool character. If it is voiced, bad dialogue can be excruciatingly painful and stick out more than it normally would.

Voice Acting: If you choose to use voice acting in a game, it is imperative that you do it right. Bad voice acting can take normally dynamic dialogue and make it unbearably dull, needlessly confusing or a straight up joke. There have been many head shaking, chuckle-worthy performances in this area.

The original Resident Evil had numerous instances of bad voice acting in it.
Magna Carta is also a culprit for some pretty horrid vocal performances.
The Soul Reaver games have quite good and effective performances.
Metal Gear Solid is the epitome of well thought out voice acting.
Final Fantasy 10, while melodramatic, had mostly good acting with a few notable exceptions.

Narrative: The base story needs to give me enough to care about to want to commit the time to playing the rest of the game.

Motivation: The story needs a driving force to grab me and and keep me playing the entire time without getting old and without dropping off. It needs to stay consistently interesting throughout the entire experience.

Most of the Tomb Raider games were unable to keep my attention long enough for me to finish them.

Believability: The way the characters respond to the events that happen and the events themselves need to have weight to them and not be so outlandish that one has to question their suspension of disbelief to enjoy it. Obviously every world has its own rules about what types of tales are appropriate within its confines.

Cohesiveness: Does the story flow in an intelligible manner, or is it all over the place? Does it consistently leave loose ends lying around, or does it make an effort to resolve everything? Are the meanings behind events and actions concrete and logical, or can many things be left up to interpretation? Neither of these extremes is necessarily better than the other.

At first glance, the stories in both Xenogears and Xenosaga seem to jump from place to place and leave you wondering what the relevance to the main plot each of the little side stories has, until you get further in and find out how everything connects.

Shadow of the Colossus has a single goal driving the entire game and little to no exposition throughout yet still manages to be intriguing. The true relationships between its main characters is left completely up to interpretation.

Ending: What do I have to look forward to if I take the time to go all the way through your creation? Many games skimp in this area. They provide an incredibly long and involved plot, or a massive game experience, but fail to reward the player adequately for all their hard work in reaching the inevitable end of the story, or at least, the story of the moment.

The Tomb Raider games up until Legend had a serious issue with having any kind of ending worth the time and aggravation it took to complete the games.

Most Final Fantasy games have lengthy and satisfying conclusions that were worth the time it took to play the game and offered closure to the story. This was particularly true of FF6, FF8, FF9 and FF10.

When I update this answer again soon, I will go into the subjects of game play and fun factor and the things I feel contribute to these areas of game creation. As well as share some examples of games that got it right and ones that didn't so much.
Then later I will cover challenge, control, animation and physics, game features and online play, graphics and sound and finally overall presentation.