Bringing Back the FUN

If you look at old NES games and especially games played in the arcade, you will see a common denominator. This common denominator is essential to experiencing FUN, something that seems to be sorely lacking in the majority of modern games. Pac-man, Donkey Kong, Space Invaders, Contra, Goldeneye: all these games are treasured pieces of video game history and in all of these games things moved FAST. If you were to play any of these games in slow motion they would be a lot easier and considerably less FUN. We grew addicted to these games because they required precision and timing amongst a screen full of chaos. When Pac-Man is being chased by angry ghosts, he has precious few milliseconds to decide to turn left or right, but a successful escape brings a sigh of relief from the player and spectators alike. This is what made these games fun. For the competitive crowd it provided a challenge and for those who simply play for enjoyment, the FAST paced chaos made for some heart racing moments.

Todays games have lost much of this magic, developers are more concerned with Micro-managing a games mechanics to the point that when all is said and done, you are left with a spoon fed and overall dull experience. In the spirit of fairness or more cynically, the pursuit of a larger demographic and increased profits, developers have made games easier and SLOWER. This applies especially in regards to shooting games, but I think it applies equally well to Games in general, as a pervasive theme. Rather than assuming the role of a Commando left to his own wits, most games now have the player assume the role of a tourist, ushered around from site to site and occasionally ordered to perform monotonous tasks like killing mindless enemies or flipping a glowing switch.

This spirit combined with the modern “Facebook” perspective that everything must be social and universally accessible has poisoned the core appeal of numerous game genres. If we look to a game like Goldeneye for the Nintendo 64, we can see a masterpiece constructed with blocky graphics and a scary amount of “Auto-Aim”, a dreaded word for many fans of FPS. Despite this, the game is truly entertaining primarily because of it’s fluid and extremely fast paced nature. When played competitively, fast maneuvering is the key to the game. Juking opponents and weaving in and out of position provides more entertainment than the now Universal “Aim Down Sights” mechanic of modern shooters.

Simplistic game mechanics are a lost art in console gaming, in an age where everything must come packaged with a complex story and layered multiplayer progression system. Rather than appeal to everyone it is my opinion that developers should really consider making more simplistic games with less of an emphasis on production value. This can only be done by offering the player something FUN, not necessarily deep or balanced, but fun. Give players a fast moving spaceship with a set of laser beams Instead of another shooter where one trudges at the speed of a shopping cart.

Ultimately Games are meant to be enjoyable challenges, this joy comes from the excitement and the anticipation of the unknown and the completion of an arduous task. When the puzzle comes already solved or the race is ran at a snails pace to accommodate the slow, you do the participants a disservice. Revive the challenge, Heighten the Intensity, and you will see the bells and whistles happily ignored. I am confident there is still a viable market for FUN.