Sat Feb 07, 2009 4:09 am
2D 2-Day!
There are currently a few genres that seem to have fallen out of favor with the gaming public as technology marches on and graphical limitations are removed at mach speeds. Namely anything 2D. For the purposes of this article 2D refers to gameplay, not graphics. And no, I’m not just talking about adventure games. The action side-scroller, puzzle platformer, and others have either been buried and forgotten, or relegated to smaller budget-titles that rarely push the boundaries of what can be done with the style. This is not because there is no room left to grow, but instead that we as an industry refuse to acknowledge the style as a viable option.
Some may point to services such as Xbox Live Arcade, and Nintendo’s virtual console as bastions of the 2D experience, and indeed they offer several titles in the space. However many of these are little more than nostalgia cash-ins in the form of a direct port of a game from years and years ago, or the same but with updated graphics only. Titles that truly bring something new to the table (like Braid and N+) or make a meaningful leap forward in technology while preserving the spirit of the originals (like Bionic Commando Rearmed) are few and far between.
We see similar patterns in handheld games. How many full priced re-releases have there been for 10+-year-old games on the GBA and DS? Perhaps I’m doomed to my western bias, but Cooking Moma just doesn’t cut it for me as an original offering. Even the new Castlevania titles have failed to evolve beyond the formula established so well in Symphony of the Night eleven years ago (yes, we are that old) and indeed, I would argue that they have yet even to match that seminal title. We seem all too content to relegate 2D gameplay to a novelty for on-the-go diversion, or a fond memory of the past in which we occasionally allow ourselves to indulge. We then quickly return to the more complex and mature games of the present.
It’s tempting to think, “Surely if there were sufficient demand for 2D triple-A titles, someone would be making them.” Rather, I believe that gamers (and most developers) don’t realize that such a thing can exist simply because it hasn’t for so long. The general consensus seems to be that any game that is top quality and highly engaging must be set in a full 3D world, otherwise the devs just aren’t trying hard enough. But allow me to propose a somewhat absurd scenario for the sake of illustration, in which the concept of a three dimensional game world never existed, and yet technology marched on as it always does. In this world games like Oblivion, WoW, and the Halo series were all developed in 2D and brought the same advancements to their respective genres. Why couldn’t you have radiant AI powering a world full of unique townsfolk; or play a rousing match of CTF at Warsong Gultch; or even take a warthog off a sweet jump, all in 2D? I’m sure this sounds like sacrilege to many, and I really don’t need an in-box full of death threats from furious fans of these titles (which I very much enjoyed just as they currently are…in 3D). My point is not that these games should have been different, but that the features that lend them some of their greatness could be transferred to the 2D realm for a whole different kind of experience.
Western film has informed much of the evolution of the games industry, and I think we may be able to take a lesson from them here. Could Spielberg have shot Shindler's List in color? Of course. But he understood that the film needed to be black and white for the emotional impact of the concept to meet it's full potential. Our tools have matured enough now that the question becomes not what can we do, but what should we do to best serve the themes and fun of the game. Sometimes, less really is more. Limiting the pallet in some way can both help developers to be more creative in our solutions, and force players to focus on the essence of the experience. A certain charm and accessibility is lost in the leap from two to three dimensions, and we should be aware of that cost when we chose our format.
I cut my teeth during the golden age of the Apogee side scroller. Those titles still constitute some of the best gaming I’ve had, not in spite of being limited to a single plane, but I believe because of it. A lot of us grew up on these games, and I would like nothing better than to see us help them to grow up a little too. Rather than abandon the style as out dated or merely for beginners and hand-helds, I challenge developers to meet the expectations of modern gamers in the 2D realm with full production value and cutting edge feature sets, and gamers in turn to keep an open mind when you read your next preview for a 2D game.
- Braid is one of the few 2D games to introduce new features in recent years.
Some may point to services such as Xbox Live Arcade, and Nintendo’s virtual console as bastions of the 2D experience, and indeed they offer several titles in the space. However many of these are little more than nostalgia cash-ins in the form of a direct port of a game from years and years ago, or the same but with updated graphics only. Titles that truly bring something new to the table (like Braid and N+) or make a meaningful leap forward in technology while preserving the spirit of the originals (like Bionic Commando Rearmed) are few and far between.
- We can see that the Castlevania games haven't evolved much over the years. [Left: Symphony of the Night. Center: Dawn of Sorrow. Right: Portrait of Ruin]
We see similar patterns in handheld games. How many full priced re-releases have there been for 10+-year-old games on the GBA and DS? Perhaps I’m doomed to my western bias, but Cooking Moma just doesn’t cut it for me as an original offering. Even the new Castlevania titles have failed to evolve beyond the formula established so well in Symphony of the Night eleven years ago (yes, we are that old) and indeed, I would argue that they have yet even to match that seminal title. We seem all too content to relegate 2D gameplay to a novelty for on-the-go diversion, or a fond memory of the past in which we occasionally allow ourselves to indulge. We then quickly return to the more complex and mature games of the present.
It’s tempting to think, “Surely if there were sufficient demand for 2D triple-A titles, someone would be making them.” Rather, I believe that gamers (and most developers) don’t realize that such a thing can exist simply because it hasn’t for so long. The general consensus seems to be that any game that is top quality and highly engaging must be set in a full 3D world, otherwise the devs just aren’t trying hard enough. But allow me to propose a somewhat absurd scenario for the sake of illustration, in which the concept of a three dimensional game world never existed, and yet technology marched on as it always does. In this world games like Oblivion, WoW, and the Halo series were all developed in 2D and brought the same advancements to their respective genres. Why couldn’t you have radiant AI powering a world full of unique townsfolk; or play a rousing match of CTF at Warsong Gultch; or even take a warthog off a sweet jump, all in 2D? I’m sure this sounds like sacrilege to many, and I really don’t need an in-box full of death threats from furious fans of these titles (which I very much enjoyed just as they currently are…in 3D). My point is not that these games should have been different, but that the features that lend them some of their greatness could be transferred to the 2D realm for a whole different kind of experience.
- Ralph Fiennes in the black and white Schindler's List.
Western film has informed much of the evolution of the games industry, and I think we may be able to take a lesson from them here. Could Spielberg have shot Shindler's List in color? Of course. But he understood that the film needed to be black and white for the emotional impact of the concept to meet it's full potential. Our tools have matured enough now that the question becomes not what can we do, but what should we do to best serve the themes and fun of the game. Sometimes, less really is more. Limiting the pallet in some way can both help developers to be more creative in our solutions, and force players to focus on the essence of the experience. A certain charm and accessibility is lost in the leap from two to three dimensions, and we should be aware of that cost when we chose our format.
- I still have fond memories of the pogo stick and hidden rooms from Commander Keen.
- commander-keen-4-ss1.gif (12.52 KiB) Viewed 452 times
I cut my teeth during the golden age of the Apogee side scroller. Those titles still constitute some of the best gaming I’ve had, not in spite of being limited to a single plane, but I believe because of it. A lot of us grew up on these games, and I would like nothing better than to see us help them to grow up a little too. Rather than abandon the style as out dated or merely for beginners and hand-helds, I challenge developers to meet the expectations of modern gamers in the 2D realm with full production value and cutting edge feature sets, and gamers in turn to keep an open mind when you read your next preview for a 2D game.
Producer - Novo Interactive
