Re: Begun the Anomaly Loop wars have

Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote at 17:01 this Sunday (GMT):

>
The other day, I praised "Exit 8", a game with a very simple premise:
you walk down a corridor, and are presented with a simple choice: if
the current stretch of corridor you are in is identical to the last
bit, keep moving forward. If there is something different - an anomaly
- then turn around. Repeat until you get to the end of the corridor.
It was a simple premise, wonderfully atmospheric, and quite fun. It
was also a game you could finish in five minutes. But given its
limited gameplay, I think that was fair: enjoyable as the concept was,
it alone couldn't carry a longer experience. While not the first to
explore the idea (arguably, Kojima's "P.T." demo was the originator)
"Exit 8" explored the idea so thoroughly that little more needed to be
done with it. "Exit 8's" biggest sin was its cost; even with today's
inflationary prices, $5 for 5 minutes of gameplay was a bit steep.
Still, it was well received by both critics and players.
>
So of course now we're starting to be inundated by clones of the game.
>
Well, perhaps 'inundated' is a bit excessive (then again, we're only a
couple of months since "Exit 8" was released). Still, already three
new games using the exact same concept have been announced: "Platform
9" (from the same developer as "Exit 8"; "Anomaly Loop", and now
"Stairway 7". None of which do anything to really expand from the
original idea.
>
We often praise Indie developers for helping to push new ideas,
especially in comparison to so-called 'triple-A' publishers who are
often seen as stick-in-the-mud developers who shy away from any game
that doesn't rehash tried-n-true 'safe' mechanics that will appeal to
the largest audience. Nonetheless, we should also recognize that
Indies are equally likely to fall back on 'safe' ideas too. In fact,
Indies are often even worse, doing little more than skinning over
somebody else's game and then calling it a day. It makes the worst
'Doom clones' or 'Mario clones' of yesteryear look expansive in
comparison.
>
Indie development is a double-edged sword, and as much as we condemn
the big-name publishers for their lack of innovation, so too should we
be wary about Indies. Good ideas can come from anywhere, and so too
bad trends like lazy copying.
>
It's a shame. I quite enjoyed "Exit 8", and felt that its ideas - used
in moderation in a much fuller game - could be quite effective. But I
fear that - like crafting and survival games - it's going to end up
being used everywhere, watering down its effect.

    I mean, "poorly coded generic indie game ripping off stuff" is so common
someone made a parody game about it (tERRORbane)