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Portables (Games) Entertainment Games

GBA - A Wasteland For Creativity? 53

Posted by simoniker from the parents-like-buying-dem-licenses dept.
jvm writes "Having been intrigued by heated discussions over licensed games and stagnant creativity in the videogame market, I did some investigation into just how many original titles can be found in the library of games for Nintendo's GameBoy Advance. Depressingly, out of the hundreds of games catalogued, only 9% are not licensed, not sequels, and not remakes of older games. That's fewer than three dozen games, and most of those fall into well-known categories. Graphs and downloadable data are provided for interested readers to do their own examination."
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GBA - A Wasteland For Creativity? More

GBA - A Wasteland For Creativity?

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  • Reasons why the lack of creativity (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Alpha27 ( 211269 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @07:23AM (#6721573)
    • Sometimes new things do not get a good chance when they first come out so it becomes more of a cult following. Therefore it's less of a chance of a good sell, and return on investment.
    • People like franchises/sequels.
    • Some new games are just reinventions of old ideas.
    • How new can you get? Many games are similar to each other. We have FPS, RTS, Platformers, RPGs, fighting, sports, card, 2d scrollers, etc. Each genre has their style, and everyone sticks to the style that works.
    I'm curious to see a report on other platforms, including SNES, and alot of the older systems. I wouldn't be suprised to see the percentage of new games shrink overtime.

    • Re:Reasons why the lack of creativity (Score:4, Interesting)

      by SmallFurryCreature ( 593017 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @07:37AM (#6721622) Journal
      Original games become ever more impossible. There are after all only so many things a person can do that is still fun.

      The only thing left is to make hybrids, putting more then one game genre together, or to improve an existing genre.

      Is this bad? No. All my favorite games had been done before, just not as well as those games did it.

      As for sequels, well it is easy isn't it. Try selling a game to a company it is easier if you can say, hey the previous version did a X amount of sales rather then trying to convince them that yes people will love a fat italian plumber.

      So this research falls into the category, "Women buy more dresses then men" AKA the "No shit sherlock" category. Still nice to see someone taking the time to put it all in writing.

      • Re:Reasons why the lack of creativity (Score:5, Interesting)

        by PainKilleR-CE ( 597083 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @07:47AM (#6721684)
        I noticed the article also forgot to mention something else that was blatantly obvious:
        The top two original titles (Golden Sun and Advanced Wars) both have sequels now.

        Of course, he also ignored franchise titles with original gameplay, such as Wario Ware, Inc. which could be viewed as a commentary on the game industry very much in line with the article, if you follow the storyline. It's much easier to simply examine the titles and figure out which are sequels or franchise games than to figure out what titles actually have original gameplay.

        • Re:Reasons why the lack of creativity (Score:5, Insightful)

          by jvmatthe ( 116058 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @08:13AM (#6721826) Homepage
          The definition of original for this article was chosen because it was unambiguous.

          Does a title use a license from a movie, cartoon, etc.? Is it a direct sequel? Does it use properties developed in previous games (i.e. is it a franchise game)? Is it a remake of an earlier game? Is it a retrofit of a game from another platform?

          As far as I know, each of those questions can be answered definitively "yes" or "no", without debate. Had I chosen to try to find a definition by which Wario Ware, Inc. was considered original, it would have necessarily included defining original gameplay.

          The definition of original gameplay is not something I'm even going to attempt at this point. I admit up front (and even at the end) that there is a weakness with the definition. But to push it further makes it an issue of opinion, and probably an intractable problem (for a single person or even a small group of people). Intractable because one would need to play each game considered in its entirety and make a decision, a subjective one, on whether it had enough original gameplay to be considered original.

          Hope that makes the choice of definition a bit more clear. It wasn't that Wario Ware, Inc. was ignored. Quite the opposite: it was considered and then binned appropriately under the working definition.
          • I realize all of that, and frankly, I don't think it would be possible to increase the percentage of original games all that much by considering them individually, unless there was an extremely loose definition of originality. Of course, the simple fact is that over time the number of original titles by either definition decreases significantly, especially in the US market, regardless of platform. Adding in the consideration of gameplay would, in fact, reduce the number of original titles on most platforms
            • But even reusing characters is, in many ways, a cop-out. Same reason so many TV shows start with a known character from another show (you know, Joni loves Chaci (sp?) Syndrome). Perhaps it's a very novel and creative show, but the point is that people are still banking on that name recognition and brand familiarity.

              To me, that's by definition not as original as creating a new game from scratch. I'll readily admit that I haven't tried Wario Ware, but just hearing Wario conjures up certain connotations --
              • But even reusing characters is, in many ways, a cop-out. Same reason so many TV shows start with a known character from another show (you know, Joni loves Chaci (sp?) Syndrome). Perhaps it's a very novel and creative show, but the point is that people are still banking on that name recognition and brand familiarity.

                I'm aware of this, and pretty much stated as much, but again, at least publishers are willing to fund a risky game if it's tied to a franchise. I may not like the fact that this is what it some
          • A: The GBA is "a wasteland for creativity" because most of its games are sequels.

            B: To clarify the argument, "sequels" here is defined to mean any game in which has a character from a previously-existing game. (Wario in WarioWare, Inc.)

            C: Thus, WarioWare is not original, regardless of its considerable originality and the fact that it has almost nothing to do with the "historical" Wario besides using the character. Also, the following games were also not original when released: Mario Bros.(Mario originat
          • In other words, as in most statistics, his numbers may be be precisely right, and his conculsions can still be precisely useless.
      • I started as an arcade game freak in the 80's but gradually became more and more disillusioned as time passed. What I found was the replacement of creativity, imagination, and planning with graphics, sound, and simplicity. In other words, the substitution of art with technology.

        The ULTIMA series exemplifies this. I acknowledge that a certain amount of processing and grunt power is needed to provide the visual and aural stimulation to the mind. That is why Ultima 1 and 2 are creative gems, but someho
  • While a lot of the games are just ports of other games, the fact that the GBA is portable gives them a renewed appeal. Sequels may also benefit by association. If someone liked playing the original game in a series, they'll probably assume that the GBA sequel is just like the original, but portable.

  • I bought my GBA so I could get a flash card, and play NES roms. It does that. I'm very happy.

  • error in original games (Score:4, Informative)

    by hiroshi912681 ( 589840 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @07:40AM (#6721641)
    Motocross Maniacs Advance is actually a sequel/remake of an old B&W gameboy game, a great one, mind you. I believe there was a sequel on GBC, also.

    Advance Wars is a derivative of (Nectaris) Military Madness... but he fails to realise that Hudson at the time also was making the (X) Wars series, too... like Famicom Wars, Super Famicom Wars, GB Wars, (64 Wars got canceled)... as great as Advance Wars and Advance Wars 2 are, they still are just sequels/remakes.

    originality is dead =( oh well, I like retrofits.

  • We've Got to Support Originality! (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Gothic_Walrus ( 692125 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @07:41AM (#6721648) Journal
    One note - Advance Wars is actually a continuation of a previously Japan-only series of Game Boy games.

    Unfortunately, originality on all consoles has been vanishing as of late. Publishers make the easy decision and decide to go with what's guaranteed to sell. No one really needs four different NFL games for each season or a tie-in piece of shovelware for every blockbuster movie, but that's what we're getting.

    As was noted in the article, the blame falls squarely on the shoulders of us, the gamers. As long as we're content with retreads of old franchises and sequel after sequel to an unexpected hit, that's what we'll receive. It would be nice to see console manufacturers award originality (maybe a price break on the media or the license fees?), but that probably won't happen. Therefore, we, the gamers, need to support originality. We need to buy the games that are different, the ones that take chances. Praising them isn't enough. More often than not, even a mediocre original game is far better than a licensed one. The problem is that we don't do that. We buy the franchises, the crappy licenses (Enter the Matrix, anyone?). We don't support originality, making it an unneeded risk for publishers.

    Until we reform our buying habits, nothing is going to change.

    • Meh... (Score:4, Insightful)

      by JMZero ( 449047 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @09:26AM (#6722268) Homepage
      You can go ahead and buy original games (Fantavision? Blix: The Time Sweeper?), I'll keep buying good games (Metroid Prime, Zelda: TWW, Yoshi's Island GBA).

      I think we need to realize a couple things. First, "sequel" doesn't mean "not original". Second, "original" doesn't often mean "good".
    • "One note - Advance Wars is actually a continuation of a previously Japan-only series of Game Boy games."

      Advance Wars would have been so much better without the incredibly stupid anime crap. If they would have just stuck with strategy and units and left out all the stupid cutesy characters it would have been a much better game.
  • How bout doing a comparison on original movies nowadays? Similar trend without a doubt.
  • This is a somewhat timely topic for me. This past weekend I took my 6 1/2 year old soon to good 'ole WalMart so he could get a GBA game.
    What an exercise in frustration. He would have nothing to do with my and oldest son's (he's 12) suggestion of Golden Sun, Metroid Prime, etc. Instead he was fixated on some Yu-Gi-Oh game, which I eventually gave into. He seems to enjoy it though.

    But I completely agree with most of the GBA selection being simply sequels of each other......

  • This shouldnt surprise you (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Cassius105 ( 623098 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @08:48AM (#6721995)
    This is to be expected

    you cant really expect there to be that much creativity when 90% of the ideas for that technology were used up a decade age

  • The bright side of it (Score:5, Informative)

    by edwdig ( 47888 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @10:03AM (#6722553)
    On the bright side, the GBA is by far the most friendly console/portable ever released for homebrew development. I'm going to ignore the special limited edition PlayStations you could program that were only released in Japan, as you could only run programs that fit in RAM, which made it extremely limited.

    For under $100, you can get a flash ROM cartridge and the cable necessary to program it. The GBA is high powered enough that development is usually done in C using GCC rather than in assembly like on most 2d systems. The hardware is very well documented. The system is simple enough that it can be emulated at full speed on any Pentium 3 based system. It's hard to top that for homebrew development.

  • Not a problem. (Score:4, Interesting)

    by raygundan ( 16760 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @10:24AM (#6722727) Homepage
    No matter how hard you tried when you were a kid (and believe me, I did) you just couldn't possibly have played ALL the good NES and SNES games out there. I am more than happy to play these "rehashed" games for the first time, and am even happier to see sequels to games I enjoyed.

    • you just couldn't possibly have played ALL the good NES and SNES games out there. I am more than happy to play these "rehashed" games for the first time,

      I agree whole-heartedly on that point. I didn't even own an SNES, which only makes it better in some cases because I can get games that play on a current console which I never got a chance to play before, even though I would have if I had owned the system they were originally released on.

      and am even happier to see sequels to games I enjoyed.

      I think th
  • It's only their biggest franchise (and it originated on the Game Boy). If this isn't in the list, then all the data must be suspect.

  • Wrong expectations (Score:3, Insightful)

    by techstar25 ( 556988 ) <techstar25.gmail@com> on Monday August 18, 2003 @11:03AM (#6723031) Journal
    I was under the impression that the GBA was designed so that you could bring your favorite console games along with you when you travelled. I didn't think the goal was ever to create new games, but was really to bring NES/SNES/PSX games to a portable platform. If you want new games look at the consoles. Obviously that is where the innovation will take place.
    I think we should not look at GBA as another independent platform, but more as a supplement to the existing console platforms. This is especially true if you think of it as a supplement to the Gamecube, with all the connectivity features.

  • Didn't RTFA... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by GeorgeH ( 5469 ) * on Monday August 18, 2003 @11:14AM (#6723140) Homepage Journal
    ... And this doesn't deal with the statistics of sequels, but Wario Ware [amazon.com] for the GBA kicks all sorts of ass. It's the most original game that I've played since Typing of the Dead for the Dreamcast, and I can't recommend it enough.
  • I'd be more interested to see a similar breakdown for the PS2, XBox, and GC. The true wasteland of creativity is on the big consoles, not the GBA.

    The reason I sold my XBox (and never picked up a PS2) is because my personal, subjective analysis is that there is basically no innovation going on there. The original PlayStation pretty much killed it all. Yes, there were great and novel games for every platform, but compare the PS to the Saturn--its original competitor--and later the Dreamcast and N64. Deve
    • Haterade, its not just for breakfast anymore eh?

      In general, there has been absolutely nothing creative or innovative in Nintendo's lineup in a long time. I am not saying they are bad games, but I would like you to point out the creativity. I will now set about to point out the utter lack thereof, in brief:

      1) Zelda: WW = Zelda: OoT - Horse - difficulty + boat. That is all. The gameplay is the same, if not simplified. Sure its on a boat, but those sequences only serve to make the game arbitrarily longe

  • Anything else any better? (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Chris_Jefferson ( 581445 ) on Monday August 18, 2003 @11:49AM (#6723446) Homepage
    Are you sure that the X-box / PS2 / Gamecube will fair any better? Having a quick look through a list of games I'm not convinced they would.
  • prove that people is so stupid to make e-mail spamming profitable as well.

    Ok, that was the flamebait... but think about it... GBA Lineup wouldn't be so full of shit if people didn't go to kwik-e-mart, bought the same buggy platformer with the brand new Disney character that looked like coming out from the Commodore 64 era and then went back to kiwk-e-mart only to buy another platformer based on a Cartoon Network show.

    And considering the cost of those fucking games (50 euros here in EU), I wonder if the

  • One of th more original titles - like a cut down version of Acid on the GBA - sadly not available in north america. Instead we get more crappy platformers.
  • 373 titles seems like a very poor sample size.
  • It's great that the GBA is giving a new generation of gamers the opportunity to play some of the old classic SNES games.

    Some of these games (Zelda: A Link to the Past, for example) are very good. Porting them to the GBA makes them attractive even when they can't hold their own against the glitz of modern console titles.

    I, for one, am having a great time playing some of my old favorites.

  • There Must be an Explanation (Score:1, Funny)

    by Anonymous Coward
    I'm sure the esteemed Dr. Samir Gupta has been doing research on this very topic. I'm eagerly waiting his informed take on originality in the Game Boy Advance's software library.
  • It seems obvious that a franchise title will have lots of automatic sales, while a truly original title has to work for all it's sales. What's the problem with having a franchise game that's good?

    What if the characters in Golden Sun were named Cloud, Aerith and Tifa, and it was Final Golden Fantasy Sun? It would still be a kickass RPG. Or if the minigame title had Wario in it, and was called Wario Ware? err...
  • Afterall, Nintendo has basically had complete dominance of the handheld market for the last decade or so. Given the poor showing of Gamecube among the other alternatives, one would think that they would do everything they can muster to keep their portable dominance.

    And while I wouldn't say that the games for GBA are breath takingly original, I don't think I have thought that of any games I've played since I picked up... uh... damn, I can't remember ever thinking that. Old age and cynicism are starting to

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