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Single-player games like Uncharted: Drake's Fortune wouldn't get approved by publishers today.
- Thread starter Lant_War
- Start date
What about Uncharted 4, God of War, TLOU, Spiderman, The Last Guardian, Astrobot, Days Gone, Ghost of Tsushima?
Another one for the 'did not read the OP' pile:
Uncharted 4 - MP
God of War - 20+ hours
TLOU - 15+ hours, MP
Spiderman - Open World, 20-30 hours
Days Gone - Open World, predicted 20-30 hours
Ghost of Tsushima - Open World
Astrobot - Close, but it has a second mode
The Last Guardian is a good example but that was greenlit well before The Order
Cant tell if people arent reading or if they are just being obtuse on purpose.
That said, what about action games? They arent usually that long to beat and they havent seem to have gone away. Are they expensive to make?
That said, what about action games? They arent usually that long to beat and they havent seem to have gone away. Are they expensive to make?
Lol that title is unfortunate.
It's true that unless your new IP is gonna be open world with the promise of lot of content/or come with multiplayer tacked on, it seems less likely to be greenlit.
Sony's new IPs like Horizon, Ghost of Tsushima, Death Stranding will all offer 50 plus hours of content. They are the antithesis of finite experiences like the original Uncharted.
There's nothing wrong with what's she's saying.
Hoping linear/shorter games you can beat in a weekend come back. I miss them.
It's true that unless your new IP is gonna be open world with the promise of lot of content/or come with multiplayer tacked on, it seems less likely to be greenlit.
Sony's new IPs like Horizon, Ghost of Tsushima, Death Stranding will all offer 50 plus hours of content. They are the antithesis of finite experiences like the original Uncharted.
There's nothing wrong with what's she's saying.
Hoping linear/shorter games you can beat in a weekend come back. I miss them.
Here's a free link to some 1st-10th grade reading comprehension worksheets. Y'all need them, lol.
https://www.k12reader.com/subject/reading-skills/reading-comprehension/
https://www.k12reader.com/subject/reading-skills/reading-comprehension/
Honestly I dont. What games were really great that fit that description?
Pretty sure out of several pages we can understand that's not what she meant.
Though I would say trying to pitch RE2 to any other larger publisher would be difficult. At least with capcom it had the benefit of a legacy brand and a long endured promise of production.
No, but it's relevant to the current situation. Budgets, development teams and expectations for AAA are completely different to then too, pretty much past the point of being profittable if you don't have all the other stuff or are 1st party. Which is why we don't get AAA games that are 6-8 hours long, with nothing else going for them, but do get AAA game with a mode that's like 10-15 hours instead with additional modes or 20 to well over 100 hours long without additional modes, AAA is a different beast to 2007, so limiting it to just AAA games isn't going to give you much results, it's pretty much a "yeah, no shit they won't greenlight it" it's complete overkill.
That 6-8 hour linear game, that offers very little else doesn't exist in the AAA space anymore and hasn't since like mid last gen really.
Oh so we're limiting the discussion to less than 10 hours single player game? U4 and TLOU would have sold the same without any MP mode.
A super polished singler player 10-20 hours game from a reputable studio can still sell IMO but you need that 90+ metacritic.
Not really,
Single-player games like Uncharted: Drake's Fortune wouldn't get approved by publishers today.
there's really no excuse to bring up UC4, GoW, Spiderman, RE2 etc.
They can sell the question is would have been greenlit or funded properly
Or would they be forced to tack on shit like multiplayer (which they did)
Of course she does, which is why the last linear, 6-8 hour AAA game that offers very little else she did was in 2007. She knows better than most how AAA has changed since i'd imagine, she was a major part in raising that bar.
Yes, that's specifically the sort of game that Amy Hennig was referring to.
Sony and Nintendo are the only big publishers that would still allow it I feel but it's getting rarer.
I wouldn't even put the blame solely on Publishers. I feel like "length" was a hot topic in the 360/PS3 era and any game under 10hours was an instant target for ridicule on forums. Particularly, I remember Metal Gear Rising getting roasted over its 7hr length.
The entire premise of this thread is why Game Pass is the future. You don't have to have each game be a service, you just have to have content on your service. Single player experiences are exceptionally good for driving that stuff, like how Netflix doesn't just rely on shows, but has movies sa well.
It's the difference between Games that are a service, and GAMES (plural) as a service.
It's the difference between Games that are a service, and GAMES (plural) as a service.
Uncharted 2 is a perfect weekend length game in my eyes.
Astro Bot is also a weekender. Loved TLG. Even a game like Journey. Been wanting to try Doom (2016) cause I hear it's not too long.
Been playing big games like Hollow Knight and Yakuza. Great games, but a high quality 10 hours would hit the spot right now.
I agree. Not trying to excuse anyone but you know how we can be on here lol
All the games that you said are much longer than Uncharted or are directly open world.
Remake of a very popular game in a long running franchise that is still big.
A sequel in a franchise that is proven to sell millions with each entry.
She's talking about pitching a new IP with AAA production values that contains nothing but a linear 8 hour SP campaign.
Again, all of these are guaranteed million sellers because of the strength of well established brands and Spider-Man/BotW are open world games with a ton more content than Uncharted.
Are you people doing this on purpose?
This is a trend I'm not against. Games are really expensive. If your game is shorter than average price it accordingly.
I edit out my post. It's 5 in the morning and I'm browsing/reading half awake. I miss the whole Uncharted thing the first time.
I mean...when Spiderman came out there were people going like "it's only a story mode and has nothing else" as a way to shit on the game...and it was over 8 hours of gameplay.
I simply hate games that have an online component just for the sake of it. Even if it adds nothing to them.
I simply hate games that have an online component just for the sake of it. Even if it adds nothing to them.
To each their own - outside of extreme cases I don't think length should necessarily determine price.
Does it really matter if the linear AAA experience is 8 or 20 hours though?
It falls under the same category in my book.
It falls under the same category in my book.
While people are saying RE2/God of War, etc. as titles that have, the thing people are missing with them are they are established series already.
I think it's more referring to an entire new IP.
I do think it's harder, (Mainly because publishers are used to MT money now), but don't think it's impossible.
Hellblade is a recent one in memory. Unravels too?
I think it's more referring to an entire new IP.
I do think it's harder, (Mainly because publishers are used to MT money now), but don't think it's impossible.
Hellblade is a recent one in memory. Unravels too?
The value proposition is different. 8 hours vs 20 hours is over double the entertainment quantity (not quality) for the same price.
Not a complete list, but Heavenly Sword and Bioshock would fit that mould
Games as a service aren't going anywhere but I do think the bubble is about to burst. The gold rush is ending and things will stabilize now after Anthem seems to be floundering. I hope this means more publishers will attempt to go back a bit more to linear SP games.
Can't wait for TLoU2 to come out and wipe the floor with everyone that said linear SP games arent the future.
Can't wait for TLoU2 to come out and wipe the floor with everyone that said linear SP games arent the future.
It's definitely a difficult sell. Consumers today have a lot more options and it's easier to make a long game than a good game. It's just too risky to make a short game, because if it doesn't turn out to be fantastic then it will probably bomb. Also you are much more reliant on a good story and strong narrative in a short game and that's very hard to get right.
With longer games you mostly just have to nail the gameplay and make the game fun to play. You don't have to make a GOTY contender to get good sales, so the risk of bombing is a lot lower. A mediocre "non short singleplayer game" can still sell well.
The last short singleplayer game i can think of is Quantum Break and it pretty much shows how hard it can be. It's a mediocre game and didn't sell well.
With longer games you mostly just have to nail the gameplay and make the game fun to play. You don't have to make a GOTY contender to get good sales, so the risk of bombing is a lot lower. A mediocre "non short singleplayer game" can still sell well.
The last short singleplayer game i can think of is Quantum Break and it pretty much shows how hard it can be. It's a mediocre game and didn't sell well.
How many games have they actually approved this gen that fits Amys criteria? Sony have what? The Order? Have Nintendo even one game that fits the criteria? Microsoft have Quantum Break.
Are you sure you are not just being a fanboy?
ehhhhh, they'd only require it to have some sort of loot box system and a half assed online mode.
It's probably why uncharted games now come with a really fun multiplayer mode. I could see it working in a life is strange way though, being episodic with a season pass. Part 1 being free to try to get folks hooked. But you could not charge $60 for something like drakes fortune now.......it's just not viable with how the market shifted. RE2 and RE7 are based on already huge popular IPs. One of them being a reimagining of one of the greatest horror games of all time. Hard to go by their success and sales compared to what she is talking about.
This is like the perfect thread to determine which posters even bother to read OP before commenting and which ones don't. Looking at the current slate of a lot of different publishers, very few publishers have upcoming games that fit this criteria.
She limited the criteria because that is exactly what Uncharted Drake Fortune literally is. A New I.P 8hr SP game with no MP. You don't get many of these kinds of games anymore. Not only are UC4 and TLOU on average 7 hr's longer (close to twice as long) than Drake's fortune but they both contain MP modes. We don't know whether the games would have been as successful with or without it but there is a huge lack of these types of games on the market now and going forward, I would find it incredibly unlikely that Sony greenlights such a title again. Most of Sony's own studio's know this which is a reason why the games are getting longer and larger. They only have two games this generation that fit this criteria. The Last Guardian and the Order. It's going to be three years since yet we're seeing Sony increasing the amount of new Open World I.P games by a larger margin than they used to.
I think the fact that you point out that it needs a 90+ metacritic to sell only goes to show the crazy expectations for SP linear experiences and further shows why it's happening even less.
Resident Evil 2 for example getting mentioned a lot. It's a remake and an established franchise. That is exactly the opposite of what she's talking indirectly proving her point. Capcom themselves haven't even released a New Big Budget I.P in years.
Kingdom Hearts 3, Final Fantasy, God of War and are all established franchises and they're 20-30 hr experiences. Difference is important because this is her perspective and experience as she was/is in a position for projects far more knowledgeable as to the kind of projects that get green light telling you that it's getting less for New I.Ps specifically.
She limited the criteria because that is exactly what Uncharted Drake Fortune literally is. A New I.P 8hr SP game with no MP. You don't get many of these kinds of games anymore. Not only are UC4 and TLOU on average 7 hr's longer (close to twice as long) than Drake's fortune but they both contain MP modes. We don't know whether the games would have been as successful with or without it but there is a huge lack of these types of games on the market now and going forward, I would find it incredibly unlikely that Sony greenlights such a title again. Most of Sony's own studio's know this which is a reason why the games are getting longer and larger. They only have two games this generation that fit this criteria. The Last Guardian and the Order. It's going to be three years since yet we're seeing Sony increasing the amount of new Open World I.P games by a larger margin than they used to.
I think the fact that you point out that it needs a 90+ metacritic to sell only goes to show the crazy expectations for SP linear experiences and further shows why it's happening even less.
Resident Evil 2 for example getting mentioned a lot. It's a remake and an established franchise. That is exactly the opposite of what she's talking indirectly proving her point. Capcom themselves haven't even released a New Big Budget I.P in years.
Kingdom Hearts 3, Final Fantasy, God of War and are all established franchises and they're 20-30 hr experiences. Difference is important because this is her perspective and experience as she was/is in a position for projects far more knowledgeable as to the kind of projects that get green light telling you that it's getting less for New I.Ps specifically.
Tons and tons. Most of the best games ever made fall in that category.
Metal Gear Solid series
Zelda series
Mario series
Uncharted series
Resident Evil series
TLOU
Mega Man X, Legends and Zero series
Castlevania series
Ico series
Tons of indieish games like Journey, The Witness, Celeste, etc.
Almost every action game
Almost every FPS campaign
Almost every 2D game
Etc, etc
She's right, but somehow, I don't feel what she's suggesting is negative. When you pretend as a studio to put a 60$ tag on a game light on content, you better deliver a top experience like Uncharted was back in the day. That's as true now, as it was then.
It's not that publishers wouldn't support a project so reductive: single campaign, 6 hours, take ir or leave it. The thing is that people wouldn't buy it either, unless heavily discounted. So you have to adapt and offer more, not less, when you want to win audiences over.
PS: Easy to say now, but in retrospective, whatever happened, she made the mistake of her career leaving Naughty Dog.
It's not that publishers wouldn't support a project so reductive: single campaign, 6 hours, take ir or leave it. The thing is that people wouldn't buy it either, unless heavily discounted. So you have to adapt and offer more, not less, when you want to win audiences over.
PS: Easy to say now, but in retrospective, whatever happened, she made the mistake of her career leaving Naughty Dog.
Ok but the first Uncharted was green-lighted because it was Naughty Dog and it's not like it was a standard or anything. It's not new that a 10h single player experience is considered on the short side and a difficult pitch. It was true in the PS2 era as well.