Katamari Creator: Games Aren't Creative Enough

[RAINMAN]

Katamari Creator: Games Aren't Creative Enough November 26, 2007
by: Brian Alexander (phillip@advancedmn.com)
Takahashi hasn't seen anything special lately.
In a recent interview with CVG, Katamari creator Keita Takahashi admitted that he hasn't seen any games (http://advancedmn.com/article.php?artid=10375#) lately that he would consider to be truly groundbreaking.

"Defining the word creativity is difficult in a sense. Even the likes of God of War, for instance, it is really well made. It's a great graphic game (http://advancedmn.com/article.php?artid=10375#) with an interesting story. It's not fair to tell them that their games have no creativity. Having said that I do feel many games do lack the wow factor in a sense. Something that you feel very surprised by."

Then again, Katamari isn't exactly in the realm of what most people would call "normal." But apparently for Takahashi, that isn't the case. "I feel that the setting is normal for me," he said of Katamari.

"There's nothing surreal about it. I think if Katamari is considered so creative then to me it feels like the videogame (http://advancedmn.com/article.php?artid=10375#) industry in general has lost its direction."

So if Katamari is considered "normal" for Takahashi, it could be a long while indeed before he finds a game that truly knocks him on his ass.


source: CVG (http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=176338)

[Silverstar]

Well, he's entitled to his opinion of course, but I find it ironic that Takahashi is complaining that games aren't creative enough when he himself has replicated the same game 4 times. The original Katamari Damacy was unique, but all of its' sequels were just carbon copies of the original with 1 or 2 minor technical differences.

[Roman Legion]

I find it ironic that Takahashi is complaining that games aren't creative enough when he himself has replicated the same game 4 times. The original Katamari Damacy was unique, but all of its' sequels were just carbon copies of the original with 1 or 2 minor technical differences.Who's to say that reflects his wishes and not, say, Namco's business needs? I recall that he wasn't keen on making sequels. We Love Katamari being an exception due to fan reaction, he wasn't personally involved in anything else.

--Romey

[MattThomasM2B]

Well, he's entitled to his opinion of course, but I find it ironic that Takahashi is complaining that games aren't creative enough when he himself has replicated the same game 4 times.

He stopped working on the series after the second.

[Gokou Ruri]

Hideo Kojima feels the same way about developers in Japan. Too much repetition in the market and not enough innovation, which I agree with him.

[bigdeath]

Am I the only one ok with this lack of "innovation". I often find for that I like a game has a classic battle system but has high quality character development, art, etc.

[silverwings]

And yet he wouldn't put the series on either the DS or the Wii, which would have allowed for them to get more creative with the title? :confused:

[Gokou Ruri]

Am I the only one ok with this lack of "innovation". I often find for that I like a game has a classic battle system but has high quality character development, art, etc. What about games with no story or fighting?

[Beat]

You mean like Tony Hawk 8?

[Gokou Ruri]

You mean like Tony Hawk 8? Or Sim games, Spore, Tetris, and other similar games.

[Tash]

Hideo Kojima feels the same way about developers in Japan. Too much repetition in the market and not enough innovation, which I agree with him.
Kojima had to fight to get the original Metal Gear on the market, so I don't blame him.

It's especially bad in Nintendo's case. Look at the e-Reader, N64 microphone, handheld connectivity, GBC IR port, Gameboy Camera, DS GBA slot, and all of the other great things that nobody bothered to take advantage of. The few companies who actually used those things always took the safe route and used them in the same 2 or 3 ways. I mean, it can't be THAT hard to come up with a practical way to use the e-card reader.

[Gokou Ruri]

Kojima had to fight to get the original Metal Gear on the market, so I don't blame him.

It's especially bad in Nintendo's case. Look at the e-Reader, N64 microphone, handheld connectivity, GBC IR port, Gameboy Camera, DS GBA slot, and all of the other great things that nobody bothered to take advantage of. The few companies who actually used those things always took the safe route and used them in the same 2 or 3 ways. I mean, it can't be THAT hard to come up with a practical way to use the e-card reader. Honestly, most of those are just gimmicky or just not practical. Microphones for games that aren't used for voice-chat, like when you have to blow into the DS, are just plain awkward and make you look like an idiot in public.

Innovation shouldn't be based on hardware (outside advances in graphics/programming) it should be based on the gameplay itself. Look at Spore, it's for the PC and uses the keyboard/mouse, which is about as standard as you get, but the game itself is deep, amazing, and just plain creative. Hardware can help, but it should ultimately be the game that's the innovation.

[danreyes1]

It's especially bad in Nintendo's case. Look at the e-Reader, N64 microphone, handheld connectivity, GBC IR port, Gameboy Camera, DS GBA slot, and all of the other great things that nobody bothered to take advantage of. The few companies who actually used those things always took the safe route and used them in the same 2 or 3 ways. I mean, it can't be THAT hard to come up with a practical way to use the e-card reader.

I was hoping that after Super Mario 3 came out on the GBA that we'd get some more support for the e-reader. Unfortunately it never happened. And we never did get those Game & Watch cards...

I think they're starting to come out with good DS GBA slot ideas. The rumble pack and expansion pack (even though it uses one game... which isn't even a game) are out, so there may be more possibilities in the future.

[Roman Legion]

Honestly, most of those are just gimmicky or just not practical.That's a line drawn by developers / publishers. It's only called a gimmick when no one else bothers to take advantage of it. Often enough, it's just the fault of the market when no one wants to take a risk on such accessories.


Microphones for games that aren't used for voice-chat, like when you have to blow into the DS, are just plain awkward and make you look like an idiot in public.If you're that self-conscious, it's your own problem. :p


Innovation shouldn't be based on hardware (outside advances in graphics/programming) it should be based on the gameplay itself. Look at Spore, it's for the PC and uses the keyboard/mouse, which is about as standard as you get, but the game itself is deep, amazing, and just plain creative. Hardware can help, but it should ultimately be the game that's the innovation.An all too broad opinion. Who are you to say innovation shouldn't be based on hardware? Should we still be playing with awkward 8-way joysticks with a single button? Care to draw the line at the NES controller? Something later? The physical means of interaction is important. (Beyond gaming consoles, it's a booming area of research.) There's no reason to draw a line anywhere.

--Romey

[Mynd Hed]

Innovation shouldn't be based on hardware (outside advances in graphics/programming) it should be based on the gameplay itself. Look at Spore, it's for the PC and uses the keyboard/mouse, which is about as standard as you get, but the game itself is deep, amazing, and just plain creative. Hardware can help, but it should ultimately be the game that's the innovation.

Arguably the first video game ever made, Spacewar!, was controlled with four switches each for two players. If not for hardware innovation, we'd still be playing games by flipping eight switches. If that's the world you want to live in, be my guest. As for me, I'm happy that there are folks out there who are exploring new avenues in hardware.

The analog stick was a gimmick, once. So was the d-pad. So were games on optical discs. So were memory cards and hard drives in game consoles. But they worked, and now they're standard features on every dedicated gaming machine. That never would have happened if someone wasn't willing to try new things. Just because some of those new things don't work out doesn't mean that the gaming industry should just give up on new hardware.

[Beat]

Even new controls can make some games seem innovative. Madden has been little more than a roster update until the Wii controls came into play.

[Gokou Ruri]

Arguably the first video game ever made, Spacewar!, was controlled with four switches each for two players. If not for hardware innovation, we'd still be playing games by flipping eight switches. If that's the world you want to live in, be my guest. As for me, I'm happy that there are folks out there who are exploring new avenues in hardware.

The analog stick was a gimmick, once. So was the d-pad. So were games on optical discs. So were memory cards and hard drives in game consoles. But they worked, and now they're standard features on every dedicated gaming machine. That never would have happened if someone wasn't willing to try new things. Just because some of those new things don't work out doesn't mean that the gaming industry should just give up on new hardware. Those aren't even comparable. More buttons on a controller is nothing like a Wiimote gimmick of shaking the controller to have Link slash his sword; something that serves no purpose other than to replace pressing a button, something that wasn't broken to begin with.

Games can be innovated without a gimmicky control scheme, look at Grand Theft Auto, Spore, and The Sims. They all use standard control schemes and still manage to be some of the most innovated and creative games ever made. A good control scheme can compliment a creative game, but even the most creative controls aren't going to do anything for a game that is the same old stuff.

Relying solely on hardware is basically telling developers to keep making stuff like Twilight Princess or Rival Swords, regular games that work best with a gamepad, with tacked on motion controls. They don't update the gameplay at all, because people apparently find wiggling a remote instead of pressing a button is better than any actual creative updates to the game itself. The only games that do take advance of the Wiimote past being a gimmick are the games that are actually new and creative, like Red Steel.

So yes, hardware can certainly help, but in the end, it's up to the gameplay itself to be creative. The 360 and PC have the most creative games of the new generation, and they're the two systems without new control schemes; because the developers focus on the gameplay first and foremost, the real meat of a game.

[Beat]

360 has more "Me Too" games than anyone. Then again, it has more game releases than anyone, which probably explains it.

[Roman Legion]

Those aren't even comparable. More buttons on a controller is nothing like a Wiimote gimmick of shaking the controller to have Link slash his sword.The former may be progress, but it's not quite the same as innovation. The latter is innovation (and an amazing technical achievement), even if its use is sometimes just a gimmick.


...something that serves no purpose other than to replace pressing a button, something that wasn't broken to begin with.The D-pad wasn't broken either, but where is it now? Ah, yes, it's now secondary to the analog stick. The Wii's controls are a freakin' consumer-level multi-touch interface device. Do you have any idea how significant that is? Do you have any idea what it's capable of? No? Don't blame the hardware innovation, blame the lack of developers willing to take the device beyond gimmicks.


Games can be innovated without a gimmicky control scheme.Yes, that's great, but so what? What bearing does that have on hardware innovation? Why can't the world have both?


A good control scheme can compliment a creative game, but even the most creative controls aren't going to do anything for a game that is the same old stuff.YES! Good. Absolutely correct.


So yes, hardware can certainly help, but in the end, it's up to the gameplay itself to be creative. The 360 and PC have the most creative games of the new generation, and they're the two systems without new control schemes; because the developers focus on the gameplay first and foremost, the real meat of a game.The 360 has advances in interface to thank for even being able to feature most of its games. The creativity in PC games, on the other hand, could be argued against, when weighed against the mountain of junk and rehashed gameplay unknown to any single console.

Again, you're right about gameplay, but all gameplay is constrained by interface. A game can never go beyond the interface between itself and the player. I'm just saying you shouldn't take interface advancement for granted.

--Romey

[Mynd Hed]

Games can be innovated without a gimmicky control scheme, look at Grand Theft Auto, Spore, and The Sims. They all use standard control schemes and still manage to be some of the most innovated and creative games ever made.

I never said software innovation was unimportant. I simply don't think it's MORE important than the hardware side of the equation. Innovations in both are necessary to keep games from stagnating.

[Tash]

Relying solely on hardware is basically telling developers to keep making stuff like Twilight Princess or Rival Swords, regular games that work best with a gamepad, with tacked on motion controls. They don't update the gameplay at all, because people apparently find wiggling a remote instead of pressing a button is better than any actual creative updates to the game itself. The only games that do take advance of the Wiimote past being a gimmick are the games that are actually new and creative, like Red Steel.
That was the point I was trying to make in my original post. Innovation is hard, but there is are all sorts of untapped hardware that could be used as a starting point. However, the only companies that chose to actually use them only used them as gimmicks.

It's similar to the DS. For the first year or so, the touchscreen was only used for minigames and things that could have easily been done with a menu. At some point, somebody finally figured out that there were ways to use it to actually improve the game, instead of just using it because it's there.

[CronoT]

Katamari Creator: Games Aren't Creative Enough November 26, 2007
by: Brian Alexander (phillip@advancedmn.com)
Takahashi hasn't seen anything special lately.
In a recent interview with CVG, Katamari creator Keita Takahashi admitted that he hasn't seen any games (http://advancedmn.com/article.php?artid=10375#) lately that he would consider to be truly groundbreaking.

"Defining the word creativity is difficult in a sense. Even the likes of God of War, for instance, it is really well made. It's a great graphic game (http://advancedmn.com/article.php?artid=10375#) with an interesting story. It's not fair to tell them that their games have no creativity. Having said that I do feel many games do lack the wow factor in a sense. Something that you feel very surprised by."

Then again, Katamari isn't exactly in the realm of what most people would call "normal." But apparently for Takahashi, that isn't the case. "I feel that the setting is normal for me," he said of Katamari.

"There's nothing surreal about it. I think if Katamari is considered so creative then to me it feels like the videogame (http://advancedmn.com/article.php?artid=10375#) industry in general has lost its direction."

So if Katamari is considered "normal" for Takahashi, it could be a long while indeed before he finds a game that truly knocks him on his ass.


source: CVG (http://www.computerandvideogames.com/article.php?id=176338)
Coming from a guy who makes me think he was on crack or something when he made it, I don't think I'll listen to his opinion about creativity.