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Andy Phelps Proposes 'B-Sides' For Games
Andy Phelps has once again begun blogging. A recent post of his to the Corante Tech site suggests an intriguing idea: B-Sides to major commercial games. "I think there is an interesting opportunity here: stick some "B-Side" experimental games on the DVD with the big title. Little Flash games, or student games, or Internet games that haven't taken off yet. Don't advertise them on the box, sell the "big game" just like always." Thanks to Hylton Jolliffe for the submission.
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Companies would start to fear seeing the words "The B-Side game is actually better" in the reviews for their next AAA title...
rm -rf / is the evil of all root
If the industry wanted this, they could easily do it out of the profit margins of the larger titles. Easily. So if the industry really believes itself about the lack of innovation that it touts at GDC every year, put your money where your mouth is, and offer some incentive for experimental throw-away games. The way you innovate is make 20 totally different different games and find the one (or parts of some) that works. No one in the art world has every really had a different model.
But that's the thing - the industry doesn't want it. Only game designers and hardcore gamers really care about "innovation". As a game designer myself, I'd love this and heard this suggested in no less than four other places, but the truth is that it isn't really a profitable endeavor.
Why spend X dollars on a B-side that isn't neccessarily related to the A-side game at all when you could spend those X dollars to make the A-side game better (or, in most case, bigger)?
If you can figure out the answer to that which would convince an executive, I'd love to hear it so I can get to work on some B-side games.
By the way, if you are looking for a fun and innovative game, go pick up Katamari Damacy for the PS2. I just picked it up this week and it is the freshest, most original fun I've had on a console in a while - and it is twenty bucks. It gives me hope for this concept in the form of EPs (shorter, cheaper standalone games) rather than B-sides.
Not everyone has a high-speed internet connection.
Not everyone has internet access, period.
Not everyone is willing to leave their computer on all night for a download when they're being billed for the amount of time that they're connected to the internet.
Not everyone has access to a GameStop, EB, or a store that sells more games than the big-budget titles that Wal-Mart sells.
Not everyone feels comfortable buying games online.
Beyond all of this, the fact remains that publisher pays the development team, even a relatively small amount ($10,000, perhaps) might more than cover the costs of making the game.
Really, who loses out if a company decides to try this? All we'd lose would be the pretty screenprinting on the top of the CD, and that's not a very big loss...
Goo goo g'joob.
it already sounds like a few games that I've played.
And they have in lots of games, whether as Easter Eggs, unlockables or just fun minigames. Presumably, these are side projects thrown in to add something to the mix
These major ones spring to mind:
Pyoro 1 and 2 in Warioware Inc. Fantastic fun little things
The lightgun game Demolition Racer for Dreamcast. Lovely fun little game
The useless VMU games and both Pocketstation games that no-one ever played
Galaxians in the Ridge Racer loading screen
All the retro games in modern titles (PoP and the NES games in Animal Crossing)
NiGHTs and Puyo Pop for GBA in PSO and Billy Hatcher for GC
Blackhole Assault with an inbuilt pong game
After Googling, there's a whole FAQ full at http://www.steverd.com/faqs/hiddengames.htm - dates back to 1999, but the point is still there.
You know what's great? Little mini-games you can play while the main game is loading. Too long have we been fobbed off with high-res ingame shots or unused coverart! Give us scrolling text that adds to the story, or a mini-game to occupy us - because sitting still for more than 30 seconds is *hard*.
We can also have games released on vinyl, because it would "sound better" and make the vinyls like $150. Then we can release singles of games with different dj-mixes and club beats. Maybe we can make one bigass game, but split it up into two releases (each with its own b-sides) and release them both at the same time. One company..two games. One game can be called "Bullet" and one can be called "Stealth"
- The crude-but-playable prototype from two years ago. There's a clear line of ancestry there, but it's always nice to see how things have evolved.
- A bit on how the game's focus changed, and why we incorporated building elements into it.
- A segment on the actual development process, from the initial concept to media development, coding, and refining.
- Outtakes! Maybe you'll get a chuckle seeing the early AI as it forced the multi-segmented Parade Dragon to loop in and collide with itself.
- How you can create artwork without a budget or artistic talent.
- Why I think (hope?) indie studios can earn a living.
So, the question that follows from Andy Phelps' article is: will added meta-content make an enjoyable game much better, or should developers spend their time on the game proper?____________________________ ____________________________
Inago Rage - Bound between rooftoops and create your own 3D arenas.
Give the Stress Test a whirl, and let us know if you enjoy it.
We're indie. We're working on our 14th game.
I think software companies should bundle REAL things in the box, like manuals, action figures, cloth maps, anything to reward people for purchasing the package. A bunch of tossware would be pointless.