With probably one of the most anticipated and monitored games ever, just around the corner, Spore from the creators of The Sims, is destined to fail and fall short of breaking any sorts of sales records that Maxis' most notable game has set. After 7 years in development, it seems already to be a classic.
Spore, allows the player to create his/her own world, through the use of the games protagonists. From tiny, defenseless lifeforms to space travelling pioneers, the game gives the user a massive scope for customisation, this and other innovative features (such as uploading/downloading usermade creatures from one game to another automatically) have attracted the attention of just about everyone in the gaming industry, from journalists to character designers. Split into three completely separate games (Evolution, conquest of the home planet and Space travel/combat) it would be a credible project from the man behind the game, Will Wright, but combined into such a massive production, surely it would equal The Sims.
The Sims checked all of the boxes for a blockbuster, reaching all the catergories of audiences, it was simple, based in the real world, seen as a sociable rather than geeky idea, had a massive level of customisation and the word of mouth recommendations ensured that the game reached people who had never played a game before (and therefore would not have known about the Sims from any site or magazine) the massive media attention it got made sure that it swept up anyone left. A massive part of it's audience were people who had played few if any games before
Being able to transport a creature from one world to another on your UFO, just to see it's impact, isn't what the majority of gamers want. Sci-Fi is percieved as a geeky subject and anything associated with it won't sell to a large section of the public. Realistic games appear to be the most popular, GTA, The Sims, Nintendogs etc all are based in the real world, and instead of using games as a way of escaping real life, many people are using gaming, to imitate real life, albeit with their own spin on what it should be like. Charging through hordes of Ganon's minions in the fantasy world of Hyrule isn't attracting massive audiences. However, World of Warcraft seems to be the one game out at the moment breaking the rule.
Riding on the wave of Lord of the Rings the mystical, fairytale setting of the game is one that would usually be associated with the stereotypical geek, but thousands of it's users, similarly with the Sims fanbase, have played few games before. So what makes these games so popular with the non-gamer? Nintendo have attempted to crack it with the Revolution and DS, but they have recieved partial success with Nintendogs, but is it the interactivity that sold Nintendogs? Or like the Sims and World of Warcraft, the social experience? These three games that have reached outside of the usual gaming audience share this characteristic, although Nintendogs and The Sims do not involve real people responding to the users' actions, the focus of the game is pleasing the character and being sociable. In World of Warcraft, people are happy to spend most of their time talking in town rather than fighting or going on quests, and when it does comes down to it the fighting is often in groups of people who know each other socially, rather than just a random person halfway across the world.
So has Nintendo missed the point in trying to encourage new gamers into the market? Certainly a easy-to-use interface, is one way of attracting a new audience, and simple internet based games are extremely popular with non-gamers (although I realize that's a contradiction that non-gamers play internet games) but is sociability the true way of attracting a new audience, and therefore creating a blockbuster like the Sims? In my mind Spore, however good the finished product is, lacks the components of the formula to be a true success, it won't attract many new gamers, or many consumers from the teenage market, who often base their purchasing choice on whether the title includes the words "Urban" or "street".
So. Is there a set formula for creating a blockbusting game? and/or attracting the biggest audience of all, the non-gamer. Go forth and discuss.
Spore, allows the player to create his/her own world, through the use of the games protagonists. From tiny, defenseless lifeforms to space travelling pioneers, the game gives the user a massive scope for customisation, this and other innovative features (such as uploading/downloading usermade creatures from one game to another automatically) have attracted the attention of just about everyone in the gaming industry, from journalists to character designers. Split into three completely separate games (Evolution, conquest of the home planet and Space travel/combat) it would be a credible project from the man behind the game, Will Wright, but combined into such a massive production, surely it would equal The Sims.
The Sims checked all of the boxes for a blockbuster, reaching all the catergories of audiences, it was simple, based in the real world, seen as a sociable rather than geeky idea, had a massive level of customisation and the word of mouth recommendations ensured that the game reached people who had never played a game before (and therefore would not have known about the Sims from any site or magazine) the massive media attention it got made sure that it swept up anyone left. A massive part of it's audience were people who had played few if any games before
Being able to transport a creature from one world to another on your UFO, just to see it's impact, isn't what the majority of gamers want. Sci-Fi is percieved as a geeky subject and anything associated with it won't sell to a large section of the public. Realistic games appear to be the most popular, GTA, The Sims, Nintendogs etc all are based in the real world, and instead of using games as a way of escaping real life, many people are using gaming, to imitate real life, albeit with their own spin on what it should be like. Charging through hordes of Ganon's minions in the fantasy world of Hyrule isn't attracting massive audiences. However, World of Warcraft seems to be the one game out at the moment breaking the rule.
Riding on the wave of Lord of the Rings the mystical, fairytale setting of the game is one that would usually be associated with the stereotypical geek, but thousands of it's users, similarly with the Sims fanbase, have played few games before. So what makes these games so popular with the non-gamer? Nintendo have attempted to crack it with the Revolution and DS, but they have recieved partial success with Nintendogs, but is it the interactivity that sold Nintendogs? Or like the Sims and World of Warcraft, the social experience? These three games that have reached outside of the usual gaming audience share this characteristic, although Nintendogs and The Sims do not involve real people responding to the users' actions, the focus of the game is pleasing the character and being sociable. In World of Warcraft, people are happy to spend most of their time talking in town rather than fighting or going on quests, and when it does comes down to it the fighting is often in groups of people who know each other socially, rather than just a random person halfway across the world.
So has Nintendo missed the point in trying to encourage new gamers into the market? Certainly a easy-to-use interface, is one way of attracting a new audience, and simple internet based games are extremely popular with non-gamers (although I realize that's a contradiction that non-gamers play internet games) but is sociability the true way of attracting a new audience, and therefore creating a blockbuster like the Sims? In my mind Spore, however good the finished product is, lacks the components of the formula to be a true success, it won't attract many new gamers, or many consumers from the teenage market, who often base their purchasing choice on whether the title includes the words "Urban" or "street".
So. Is there a set formula for creating a blockbusting game? and/or attracting the biggest audience of all, the non-gamer. Go forth and discuss.