Download or disc?

The good old days of buying games that come in cartridges are gone. Gaming has evolved in to the disc era. While you can buy CD's, DVD's, blu-rays or UMD's some manufacturers are going with the modern era and switching to downloadable games. Take Sony for example. They are releasing their newest hand held system, the PSP Go on October first. This system has built in memory and will no longer support the UMD's that were sold for the original PSP. You can read the official details about the PSP Go here.

This change from UMD to download (DL) is a bit concerning to me. First, because I own several UMD games that wouldn't be playable on the new system, and B) I always enjoy getting the latest and greatest gadgets but not when they sacrifice my ability to use things I already own. If you're a first time buyer of a PSP it would seem like a great idea. It's essentially the same thing as an iPhone/iPod touch, but with a slightly different set of features, and it's not a phone (though you can use Skype for FREE). Is this switch from hardware to software good or bad?

On the one hand fewer discs being produced means Sony is becoming a greener company. Just think of how much plastic goes into packaging games. Places like GameStop exist because old games get returned and re-sold. If all media switched from disc to DL this would pose a serious issue to game stores.

I'm a big fan of DL content: bonus levels, extra cars/guns/maps/etc for current games. But if all games become DL only, then there's no need for stores. Color me old fashioned but there's something exciting about going to the store to buy a game. Having demo stations where you can try stuff out. And the biggest thing for me, the people. Your local game store nerds can tell you all about the games they've played and why they like or dislike them. I tend to take someone's opinion more seriously if I've formed a relationship with them, rather than reading simple online user reviews. This change over makes sense from a business stand point. It reduces cost, labor and makes more money. But is it worth it to lose the experience of going to a store, or being able to physically hold your favorite games? That's for you, the consumer to decide...

Grinding vs. Linear Gameplay

A major issue of concern for both developers and players is the method in which you work through a game. When designing the story for a game the choice between a linear track or an open world is a big one. Gamers love having an open world, but I know I've played through games where the open-ness proves to be more of a hindrance. One way to make open world games more fun is to have “leveling up” as a feature. Players improve traits by battling enemies, etc. In other games the player maintains similar abilities throughout the entire game but simply access to better weapons or devices. In the same token, games that are so linear that you feel like you have no real choice in how the story unfolds are also a bit boring.

So where does this leave you, the gamer? In my mind it's all about the implementation of the idea. I'll provide some examples. Back in the days of Playstation 2 I played a game called Midnight Club. This game is an open world racer through multiple cities. As you can imagine, having limitless places to drive leads to tons of exploration time. However, when you're racing through the city and there's no real indication as to which way to go it can be quite irritating. More modern open world racers solve this issue by adding a GPS style tool which indicates which direction is the most direct route, without giving away short cuts (smart players find them anyway). In the linear arena I recall the Medal of Honor game series, in which the early entries are so straight forward the only way to get lost is to go backward. Newer linear games offer small areas of exploration, or make level maps more complicated so that the desired route isn't immediately clear.

Which of these do you prefer? I can only speak for myself, and for me I prefer the open world, with a bit of direction. One of my favorite games currently, is the Pokemon series. This series is great because the path of the story is linear, but the player is free to explore as much of the world as is available for most of the game. This creates HUGE opportunities for exploration, but there is a large amount of “grinding” that occurs. In order to level up your characters you're forced to spend large sums of time (hours) fighting similar or even the same opponents over and over in order to gain experience and increase your battle level. While this can become tedious I enjoy the ability to earn higher levels and customize your character.

One way to determine what type of style you like is to think about the games you truly enjoy and then categorize their style. By identifying what style games you like it can limit the number of poor purchases you end up making. Take it from me, a small amount of thought will save you tons of time and gas money since you won't have to return your new games.

The Interweb and Console Gaming

Since the advent of the Xbox 360, the PS3 and the Wii console manufacturers have taken a lot of time, effort and money to develop online communities and networks. The result has been a gigantic increase in the number of games that allow online user v. user play, and also an increase in update-able games. Both scenarios vastly increase the re-play value of a game.

Games like the original Counter Strike (remember that game?) which served as only an online versus forum could be played over and over without losing their appeal because the high level of competition kept gamers coming back. Conversely, games like Burnout Paradise have a large set of updates which allow users to play both online and add new tasks/goals to the game. Both of these games have large followings of players who continue to play the same game for long periods (in some cases years) after the initial purchase date.

I personally struggle with online versus modes in games. I don't devote enough time to a game to become world class at it, and subsequently go online and punish the rest of the gaming community. I think I played Counter Strike 5 times in college. Each game consisted of a scenario like this: I stock up on ammo, I load up some great looking guns, I walk across the map and before I realize where my team is going I've either been knifed or sniped. After the fifth time of this happening I'd had enough that I simply sat and watched friends polish their skills. Halo produces similar feelings of gaming inadequacy for me. Racing games, like Burnout, aren't quite so bad. Though racing another user and having them log out just before losing is very irritating.

As a gamer I'm a huge fan of the online components of games. I don't agree that users should have to pay for the game network (take note Microsoft) when they also have to pay for a majority of the content (game updates, movies, shows, etc) but I'm still a fan. I think being online creates a great way for players to interact, make friends, keep playing older games and spend time with people that live in different areas. I use the Playstation Network as a way to talk with/hang out with old college chums who have since moved away for “real” jobs. If you don't have high speed internet at home, get it. If you do, then start using it. It's more than worth the effort for set up, and it's a great way to keep playing the games you already have, assuming of course the games you own were made to use the interweb.

On a side "note"

Music in games is an integral piece that can play a very important role in satisfaction and game association. For example, anyone who has played the original Super Mario Bros. knows the theme music.

Over this past weekend I was attending a party and we dusted off the original NES and played Mario. The sound wasn't working at first and so 3 or 4 of us began making our own soundtrack with hummed versions of the music. Eventually we figured out how to make the sound work and we all sat in silence for a moment until someone shouted "Hey! The sound works!" We were all so familiar with the music we almost didn't notice it was on. This illustrates the power of association with music. In fact, just today on the radio I heard a song I haven't heard in 5 years, yet I knew all the words still. Kinda scary, right? I guess that's what my brain was storing rather than subject matter in college.

These examples all show that game music can be a really powerful way to pull in an audience. Think about your favorite games and see if you can remember the sound track, or a piece of music during a pivotal boss battle. I can still remember the Tetris theme music, which seems odd because I never really liked that game. My point is that a strong musical score can make a poor game memorable, or a good game great.

Mobile media is attempting to take advantage of this musical pull, however hand held games offer unique challenges. I usually play my Nintendo DS with the sound off so that I can listen to conversations, or simply so my gaming goes unnoticed by other people. Do you know any good mobile games with good sound tracks? The Final Fantasy franchise has always had good music, and it transferred well to mobile platforms (DS, PSP, etc).

Essentially what I was reminded of this past Labor Day is that while music can often be used as a background tool, there's a major place for it in memories and in gaming as well.