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Oasis would be the perfect portable game. A bit like a Minesweeper meets Civilization, it uses the simple control system the DS stylus would provide, a complex strategy system, random levels so games are never the same twice, and rounds rarely last longer than 15-20 minutes. Add in a multiplayer mode, and this would be sweet!

When we were younger we had lots of time for games but little money. Now we have the money for games (but much less free time).

I haven't seen any ads that target the adult gamer segment specifically; I guess they figure ads that work for a 17-year-old will work just as well for someone twice that age. But soon enough we will probably see ads: "Forget the Civ games! I play Oasis because I can get in several games between feeding the newborn and changing his diaper."

BLATANT PLUG: If you are a member of The Video Game Generation and you have money now, why not bid on my auctions to benefit Child's Play?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item =170059988064
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item =170059999729
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item =170060001967

steveha

Some older games do cost a similar amount to new releases. I just checked at gogamer.com and Age of Empires 2 Gold lists for $27.95. Compare this to Age of Mythology at $29.95 and the cheapest (import edition) version of Age of Empires 3 at $36.90. Even Age of Empires Gold still sells for $14.95 - a respectable amount for an almost 10 year old game. This isn't just online, these prices are a bit cheaper than what I've seen at my local GameStop. Other games such as Warcraft 2 and 3, Diablo 2, the original Sims etc. still sell at pricing higher than your average old game.
Why? Supply and demand. These are truly classics and sell well for years because of that fact. You should also note that most of these games have very low system requirements by todays standards. So someone stuck with a 5 year old Dell with onboard video can still enjoy a game of Age of Empires 2.
What's even better is that these old games STILL have active communities of players! I recently purchased the Quake 4 special edition at a discount price. Try finding an online game of Quake 4 - the pickings are slim. On a whim I installed the included version of Quake 2 and opened Gamespy Arcade. What do you know! There are 10 times as many people playing Quake 2 as their are playing Quake 4.
So these older games retain value by being:

1. damn good games
2. having low system requirements (hence appeal to someone without the greatest hardware)
3. still having active online communties

Not every game fills these criteria and consequently not every game is worth even a fraction of full price even 6 months after release. You are right that a game shouldn't lose it's value immediately just because it's a bit old - my point is that in general the BEST ones - the real classics don't. They have a longer shelf life.
I'm also talking about games with a broad appeal. Now niche games have a different problem, they don't appeal to as many players and they may also represent a "risk purchase" for those interested because they are innovative in some measure. This isn't a bad thing, but niche developers need to realize that an entry point of $20 (or even $15 depending on the type of game) is much more comfortable for a risky purchase. I think a lot of them do, certainly in the puzzle game space. I would imagine that games like Bookworm and Bejeweled have done will with this model especially given the reduced cost of development versus something like Doom 3 (which honestly never should have been sold at $50 - that sucker should have been considered a tech demo bundle for video cards only). It should be noted that Bookworm and Bejewelled STILL sell at the $20 price, whereas you can probably find Doom 3 in a bargain bin by now. You could easily argue that a good selling indie game will hold it's price steady for longer than a mediocre big publisher's game.
It's also difficult to find reviews of indie/niche games which means 9 times out of 10 I'm flying blind on the purchase. Hopefully there is a demo, but demos can be deceptive.
I purchased Oasis based on a review in Computer Games magazine. It's a great game and well worth the $20. I may never have heard of it if I hadn't seen the review. I would love to see more reviews of indie/niche games but I also do realize that the big media may not be interested in reviewing the little guys.
Now some games - no matter how classic they once were - just don't hold their value. Should you really pay $9.95 for Might and Magic 1??? I have fond memories of the game, but is it really still worth $10? Honestly, I think games like this are better suited to a GameTap setup then being sold for $10 online. The same goes for the early Ultimas and action games like Karateka or Bruce Lee on the Apple 2/Commodore 64. Fun stuff to download and play for an hour, but hardly worth $10 today.

First of all the title of the box was poorly chosen since not all Independent games are casual.

Casual games aren't exactly new to retail. What you don't see at Best Buy are the non-casual games produced by independent developers. It is a shame too, as independent developers are forced to make boat loads of casual games precisely because they can't get retail space without a big name publisher. Not that there aren't incredibly good indy casual games (Oasis comes to mind... http://www.oasisgame.com/), but I think gamers are starting to clamor for more innovation in regular games and they aren't getting it from the big name publishers.

Publishers and retailers are idiots as far as we the gamers are concerned. Some may be good at what they do, but they know nothing about games. They shouldn't be calling all the shots but they are. They basically have homogenized interests: big name sequels, flashy graphics, me-too gameplay. At best publishers might sometimes insist on "checkbox innovation", but that's all.

I think the industry senses gamers venting on message boards and blogs, and they are seeing it in declining sales on all games that aren't huge mega-productions. The industry itself is starting to employ "checkbox indy" as a stall tactic. You can already see it creeping up like in this article and like in XBox Marketplace speeches (if there are mostly non-casual games on marketplace correct me, but all I hear about is Geometry Wars and other casual games). When Sony and Nintendo launch their own online marketplaces they'll probably spin a similar line about offering 'exciting innovative games' while in reality the only (non-classic) games available will be casual.

The "casual" game market has expanded substantially over the past few years. Companies like PopCap have been publishing lots of little games and seeing great success with ones like Bookworm and Bejewelled.
Console networks such as Xbox Live are creating new ways for these little games to get into people's houses. Hopefully Nintendo's Wii and the PS3 will offer the same.
Lower development costs also mean lower cost to sell the game. The same goes for distribution - no need for retail packaging and fighting for shelf space.
I had a lot of fun playing Oasis last year. It's a great little strategy/puzzle game. It's great for busy people who don't have time to commit to a large complicated game. I think there is plenty of oppurtunity for this type of developement.
Interestingly enough a developer can make more money if they have a casual game catch on then they would as a salaried slave for EA.

I'm sure there's still a couple of independent games around

10) New Star Soccer 3
System Requirements: Windows 95/98/ME/2000/XP
http://www.newstargames.com/

9) DROD: Journey to Rooted Hold
System Requirements: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP, Linux, Mac OS X
http://www.caravelgames.com/Articles/Games_2/JtRH. html

8) Professor Fizzwizzle
System Requirements: Windows or Linux, Mac OS X
http://grubbygames.com/

7) Darwinia
Windows 98/XP/2000, Linux, Mac
http://www.darwinia.co.uk/

6) Democracy
Windows 95/98/ME/2000/XP
http://www.democracygame.com/

5) Mexican Motor Mafia
Windows 98/Me/2000/XP
http://www.scienceoftomorrow.com/mmm_main.htm

4) Tribal Trouble
MacOS X / Linux /Windows NT/2000/XP
http://tribaltrouble.com/

3) Zombie Smashers X2
DirectX 8+
http://www.totallyscrewed.net/newsite/home.htm

2) Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space
Windows 98/ME/2000/XP
http://www.shrapnelgames.com/digital_eel/weird_wor lds/1.htm

1) Oasis
Windows 98/Me/2000/XP
http://www.oasisgame.com/

Not a popcap game, but one of my favorites is Oasis. While it is essentially a puzzle game, the use of the Egyptian setting and the exploration, empire building flavor make it a lot more interesting than countless click on colored blocks puzzle games.
I don't think it's a clone of other games, although I could be wrong.

I agree that the majority of reviewers in the industry are pretty useless. I also don't know why half of every magazine has to filled with re-written press release previews. Well, I do know why and it has everything to do with advertising dollars and nothing to do with quality reporting on the industry.
To be fair, just because a game may be "good" doesn't mean everyone will enjoy it. It's all subjective. What I usually look for in a review is explanation of the gameplay itself. That's about the only information that a reviewer can give me which will allow me to judge if I think the game will be enjoyable.
I would love to see more indie game reviews myself. One of the reasons I like Computer Games magazine is because they will review some oddball items. Web only releases or niche products such as hardcore sims or wargames. Some of the most fun I've had recently was with a game called Oasis. Computer Games is the only place I've seen it reviewed. Which is a pity because it is a great little puzzle/strategy game which is really a lot of fun. I couldn't care less about the latest Madden but I am really interested in unique games that due to lack of exposure slip through the cracks.

Link? I'm always looking for fun, little PC games.

Oasis is the last one I found.

Been enjoying oasis recently. Clean game play and brilliant mechanic. A little bit of Civ and levels that play in 3-5 minutes. Fantastic game.

Oasis is one of the most intuitive games I have ever played, and it's fun and original enough that I actually plopped down the $20 for it.

You can learn all you need one piece at a time in the tutorial levels, and then you've got three skill levels: Easy, Normal, Hard that are, get this, easy, normal, and hard! ::Gasp!::

It's turn-limited Minesweeper meets Civilization-lite. It is very enjoyable, and it's proof that pickup-and-play games aren't dead. They just seem to have moved away from the console market.

if you're so inclined, you can download the demo from their site.

if you're so inclined, you can download the demo from their site.

Having minor carpal tunnel from typing and my (brace yourself) sport, I've been taking a break recently from
games like Counterstrike which heavily employ my left hand on the keyboard, and have been going mostly mouse only...

The most recent addictive game I've played is called Oasis. I describe it to my friends as a 5 minute
version of Civilization. It has no time limit or anything that might be limited by slow mouse control, and although their
website states that it's currently in beta I had no problems with it during my binges.

The poster said he wanted to play "by himself" so I'll exclude multiplayer games and suggest two other obvious ones
which come to mind: Snood and Zuma. These two have taken myself and probably many
others through some long nights. Good luck!



(The sport is rowing, for those in disbelief)

At the IGDA awards, three games were given "Game Innovation Spotlights": the EyeToy, Viewtiful Joe, and WarioWare Inc. All three of these seem quite novel and worthy of the attention.

At the Experimental Gameplay Workshop, both indies and mainstream games were shown. On the indie front, this year's Indie Game Jam games (full disclosure: I co-run this event); Yohoho! Puzzle Pirates; and Zoesis' The Demon and the Princess. On the commercial front, the creator of Namco's Katamari Damashii spoke about and demoed the game ("Was it difficult to convince Namco to let you do this game?" "Of course." was even funnier with the long pause for translation between question and answer); we had presentations about WarioWare and about the explorations of time as a game mechanic (specifically in Prince of Persia, Max Payne 1 & 2, and Viewtiful Joe).

(There were a few more presentations about more academic "games": Ken Perlin's work on natural-language-programming for kids, "Haptic Battle Pong", and I forget what else, as I was developing a fever during the 3-hour EGW.)

The winner of the Indie Games Festival's web downloadable grand prize, Oasis, is a fairly original and creative game (full disclosure: I did contract work for Oasis' developers on a different project), and since this is announced at essentially the same ceremony as the IGDA awards it has a fairly significant cachet.

So I think the Reuters reporters just didn't go to the right events at the GDC.

The story itself has plenty of debatable claims. Are gamers, as the article claims, getting more conservative, or are publishers just getting extremely conservative and releasing more sequels and focusing their marketing dollars there? Hint: nobody debates the truth of the latter.