June 24, 2005
Are Games Movies... or Cars?
I've been playing some Battlefield 2 - which, I must say is a very strange name for a third game in a series, the first two of which had more descriptive tags. (I guess Battlefield Iraq wouldn't fly?) At any rate, it's an excellent game, a big step up from BF:Vietnam.
What I find most interesting about the game is that it is so obviously not a brand new product. The graphics and subject are both compelling enough that they will hook plenty of new players, but most of the innovations (the squad system, saved ranks/medals, tank/anti-tank/special forces balance, the simple but effective fatigue model) are clearly built upon years and years spent developing exactly the same type of game. Simply put, Battlefield 2 is so much fun because DICE really knows what they are doing.
Which, as a game designer, begs the question: could I possibly make a game to compete with Battlefield 2? Could they make a game to compete with Civ 4? I am constantly being reminded by the fans about all the details they expect from a Civilization game. Hitting F1-12 should open AND close the Advisor screens. There must be options for Quick Attacks AND Defends. Sometimes they'd like to watch all rival moves and sometimes only enemy moves. Yes, double-click may select all units in a tile, but what if they just want to select all the workers? I don't envy the next guy who has to remember all of this.
It's not the '80s anymore, when EA seemed to reinvent gaming each Christmas. (http://www.mobygames.com/browse/games/electronic-arts-inc/1985/)
Posted by Soren at 10:52 PM | Comments (0)
