The James Pattersons of Video Games

For half of a century the United States has had an embargo with Cuba, prohibiting the trading of various goods and services between the two entities, therefore making any product from either supplier somewhat of a luxury because of the limited access any consumer will have to it. Take for example a true, homegrown and hand rolled, Cuban cigar. In the world of liquor, fedoras and manly legends it is almost an enigma because of its rarity. The same can be said for any other tangible object of human interest; a bottle of Three Floyds Zombie Dust, a first printing of The Walking Dead #1, or a holographic Charizard Pokemon card from the 90's. It's the level of access we have to them at any given point that makes an item that much more attractive and special. Yes, perhaps there are better cigars than Cuban ones, maybe you don't like The Walking Dead, and you collected baseball cards instead of Pokemon cards, but regardless, there is always that Honus Wagner baseball card that you crave. The same can be said for books, movies, and video games. At what point does it become routine? When do you stop loving the work for what it is rather than what it is going to be? The answer: When the opportunity to gain more of said desirable is a year or a system away.

The Lord of Rings books are the greatest work of literature ever, hands down. Why is that? Because the beautiful, romantic story of the fellowship crossing Middle-Earth and journeying into hell is just that. Tolkien felt no obligation to add on another trilogy or epilogue book because of the consumer's demand, and had he been alive today to view the masses that flock to the films his works inspired I can't say he would succumb to the ludicrous pleas for more. He is able to step back and appreciate the adoration and respect he has garnered for providing a wonderful and complete story. The story of Frodo and the ring is just what it was meant to be and no matter how much I long to know what happens to the company members, I'm happier in knowing that I will never know. I'm content with having the ability to appreciate the emotions and feelings that the series has moved within me and with that, move forward to being involved in something else.

So, why can't I say that about video games? Why does the idea of another Assassin's Creed leave a bad taste in my mouth? Why am I not excited for the next Call of Duty anymore? Simply put: Because I want a game that's not going to kill time. I want a game that is going to end my sex life and take me away from the real world for more than a little bit. I want something that I can appreciate because it may be a while before I see something better. I don't want garbage that EA is telling me is "The deepest, most enjoyable and the most skill-based Call of Duty multiplayer to date" because it's not. What we as consumers want is real work and a real product that a company is proud to put out, even if that means we have to wait (cue the screams). The fact that we can't grab the next one in a year is what makes them special. We want novelty from rarity.

That's what this blog is all about, exposing the issues of titles that are spammed and shelled out every year in November just so moms can buy them for their kids to poop their pants playing for hours, and so that we can be up to date and current on the same stuff we've been playing for the past decade. What's wrong with video games now? The sheer volume at which they are put out promising something new and different.

http://www.polygon.com/2014/12/17/7407869/assassins-creed-unity-glitch-broken-problems-xbox-one-patch

Here we have example A. Ubisoft is hopping on the COD train to put out a new iteration of the Assassins Creed series every year and it results in not only, texture pops, and FACES BEING GONE, but a lackluster, unmotivated story, and a simple one button, hillbilly friendly parkour system that floats you across rooftops and up buildings. Remember when it was a trilogy? Here's a quote from the publisher's VP, Lionel Raynaud, to Edge, discussing the idea of an annual AC.

"We are able to offer people a new Assassin’s Creed every year because they want Assassin’s Creed every year… As long as this is true we would be very stupid to not satisfy this need, but it puts a lot of pressure on us to create something that will never disappoint."

I couldn't agree more. I've said this a lot, and people tend to disagree some time, and that's just their opinion, but I really think that yearly releases are one of the worst things in gaming today, and have led to the downfall of a lot of great games. Obviously the best example of this is Assassin's Creed, a game whose publishers just don't even seem to care anymore, but there are other examples too, like Battlefield. the problem with these games is that the publishers just don't care about games. Perhaps you could argue that many developers are still game players and care about a good game, but the first thing on these publishers minds are what they can do to make the most money out of a game. They don't care about the long time fans of the series, and they don't care if the game is broken or it plays terribly. As long as people buy the games, and they get their paycheck, who among them is really going to care. I'm not saying that yearly releases should be forbidden, and if people want to play these games then that's their choice, but as a fan of games, it's hard to standby and watch as many great and meaningful game series are cut down by corporate decision making. I think we need to make our voices heard, and show that there are still people who care about these games and want to see them succeed, and send a message to publishers that there are still players out there who value quality over quantity

@waffleboy22: I'm not saying that they should be done away with either! It's the constant cookie cutter releases like Battlefield, Call of Duty, and Assassin's Creed that pollute the market. They cram broken, half finished games down your throat and then apologize for them later on. If studios can efficiently put them out, then by all means, but the fact of the matter is they can't.