Don't get me wrong, I love video games. Let's start there. Yes, I love video games very much. I grew up playing them and I still enjoy playing them even to this day. I, begrudgingly, admit to being a gamer (begrudging because of the stereotypes usually involved).
Now that we're clear on that we can move on to this: today's games suck. They're boring, trite, rehashes of old classics and while, yes, they do push the envelope a little from generation to generation there hasn't, in my opinion, been nearly enough pushing for my tastes.
No game proves my point better than Assassin's Creed. Same game, different skin. One released nearly on schedule every year with what is, in my opinion, minimal improvements. Even with that gem of gems that I love so much The Legend of Zelda I haven't seen much improvement since Majora's Mask (full disclosure: I haven't played Breath of the Wild, yet).
So, what do we need? What does the gaming industry really need to get itself moving forward? More production value? No problems there. Better writers? Certainly, but in my opinion this is only one part of the problem. Quantum Break taught us that. No, what the gaming industry needs is innovators and actors.
Why?
Because games need to offer new experiences if they are to continue to evolve grow, and be commercially viable.
Games are super appealing to a lot of those from the younger generation, but those of us who've been around a while are beginning to expect something better. If the industry wants to hang onto people like me, they're going to have to make games that grow along with us, not recycle the same idea over and over. For example, I remember being super excited about the Kingdom Hearts Sequel, thinking that they'd obviously go from the kiddy style to a much more mature, darker art style, story, and world vibe. They didn't. It wasn't actually more mature at all, Sora was just older.
All of this griping brings me back to Hideo Kojima and the great things happening over at Kojima Productions. After a brutal and, many felt, personal battle between Hideo Kojima's Kojima Production and the game company Konami, Konami decided to shut down game production and Hideo had to separate from them as a restricted subsidiary to reform as an independent company.
Now the first project out of that company is Death Stranding, a game about.... Well, nobody knows that exactly except Kojima, it seems. And not for lack of his trying.
If rumors are correct from those who have actually played a prototype of the game, Kojima has invented a new genre of game. Just as he invented the stealth genre with his hit Metal Gear Solid, Kojima is back to breathe new life blood into an industry of dinosaurs who just want to make money hand over fist.
Even better, Kojima is reconnecting with Norman Reedus and Guilmo del Toro, the actor and the director who were slated to work alongside him in the Silent Hills game that never happened (don't get me started!!). To that roster he's added Mads Mikkelsen and there are even rumors that Emma Stone might appear in the game.
Why is that important? Because at the current stage of gaming tech, artificial characters still aren't all that believable. To the extent that they are its usually because they're attached to excellent voice actors who cover up the deficiencies in character modeling. Starting with an actual professional actor is clearly better. I mean, go back and look at L.A. Noir, one of the first games to use this technology to map peoples facial expressions. The characters in that game, an Xbox 360 game from two generations ago, still look better than a lot of characters in games made today.
Kojima Productions is one of the companies ushering in a new age of gaming. NAMCO has always been a leader in innovation with games such as Katamari Damacy and the more recent The Last Guardian (which we all thought we'd never see). But we need more. What can we do? Well, your vote is your dollar. If you suspect a game will be unoriginal garbage, don't buy it new. Buy it used. It's time for us to start making some market pressure, guys.
With any luck, this time next year I'll be writing a review of Kojima's new game.
