Task 4 - Be able to develop responses to media products

Task 4 - Final Critical Essay

Introduction 

In this essay, I will be talking about how I think graphics in modern games have changed the market. I will be discussing a variety of games and how I think those games sell considering their graphics. 

Graphics in the games industry has become one the driving forces to sell games in recent years because they promote a game saying that the better the graphics then the better the game will be. Whether this is the case is up to the audience, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder". 

The way a game looks is a very subjective topic. One member of the audience may prefer a more retro style over a photo-realistic version. Over the course of the last 30 years, graphics have undoubtedly become a lot better, games have become a lot more realistic because if you look at the graphics for one of the first games they are very blocky and unrealistic but the newer games like Uncharted is Photorealistic. 



For this essay, I am looking at three different games to compare from the last three decades. The first is the 1996 Crash Bandicoot which was developed by Naughty Dog and Published by Sony Computer Entertainment. The second, from the 2000's is Gears of War which was brought out in 2006 and 2016 released Battlefield 1. Each of these is a very good and exciting game in its own right, They are very different from one another and bring something new to the table. 

These games can be considered single player games on their own. Crash Bandicoot, since it was brought out in 1996, it does not have an option for multiplayer neither could it ever have. The graphics for this can be considered a cut above the rest in this year although other games like SuperMario 64 and Duke Nukem 3D.
You can consider that because these other two games were made earlier in the year and they still hold up against it that they are better but I personally think that Crash Bandicoot is above the others. 

The reviews for Crash Bandicoot were very good overall. Game Informer gave it a 9/10 and Gaming Target awarded it 9.3/10, furthermore, it won Game of the Month from Electronic Gaming Monthly. When it comes to the graphics Dave Halverson form GameFan said it has "the best graphics that exist in a game".  

This game has been created to appeal to a younger audience because of the brighter colours and simpler gameplay, all you have to do is jump, duck and avoid objects, anyone could play it. 

Gears of War has the option for multiplayer but can be bought for the player just to play the story than to get rid of it. The graphics for the time are very good and realistic for a science-fiction game. Other games that were released during 2006 were Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories and Just Cause.

The first Gears of War has one of the best scores from all the other Gears of War games, receiving 94% for the 360 version from GameRankings and the same from Metacritic.
IGN said it was "the most gorgeous looking game on the Xbox 360"

The last and most recent game I will be mentioning will be Battlefield 1. Published in 2016 by EA. The graphics for this have had much praise since its release and rightly so, the game is unbelievably realistic. 

Perhaps it is not just due to the fact a game has high standard graphics that it will sell really well on the market, a lot of the time it can be just due to the gameplay itself. The experience you get from playing the game may have more of an effect on whether it sells or not. 
For example, Battlefield 1 has received more good reviews for its story over how it looks because, in modern games, the visuals are supposed to be outstanding and are supposed to make us feel immersed. IGN said, "Battlefield 1's single-player is more interested in telling the human stories of WWI." 

Also, why would a game like No Man's Sky be rejected by so many gamers despite looking like a contender for the best game before its release? The graphics for the game are good enough and looks semi-realistic and so it much be due to the game itself being a waste of time as to why it hasn't sold. 

Audience theory

Back in 1996 when Crash Bandicoot was released there we a number of adverts released promoting the newly developed game. But the video below showing how Crash came to exist is a perfect example of the 2-Step Flow Theory, in the advert they have the man talking say "play our game and tell your friends" meaning that once on child sees and play the game they will pass on how good it is to their friend and hopefully they will then buy it. It could also be an example of the Hypodermic Needle Theory, despite it not being in a film of being fed to us passively, there is a somewhat catchy song being played over the video. Once the video is over the song has the potential to be stuck in the child's head persuading them to buy it. 

Content Analysis

To help me with this essay i have created a content analysis which discovers what features a product has and can affect the sales. In my own table I have involved features that may affect the sales for example some people may be put off at the idea of micro-transactions when deciding to buy a game and so if they have a choice of all 3 games ( the older two being re-mastered) then they may choose Gears of War since it has the option for Multiplayer with no micro-transactions which people claim to ruin the enjoyment of a game since in some cases its pay to win. 

A game that has been recently released that can compete with Battlefield 1 is Call of Duty: World War 2 which is basically the same game give or take 30 years time frame. But how do these games differ in sales? In its first week Battlefield 1 sold around 3.46 million units according to VGChartz Global Weekly Chart where as Activision's WW2 sold a proposed 3.57 million in its first week. Yet afterwards both Metacritic (by 9%) and and TrustedReviews (by 1 point) gave Battlefield 1 the better ratings. 

The availability for online services entices players in cause they can play games with their friends who are miles away it also increases the competitiveness of the game because everyone is challenging themselves to better than one another, this then can lead to pro leagues such as in Gears of War. These are leagues in which we find out the best player(s) are in the world and they can win up to $70,000 overall the earnings has accumulated $252,195.57 From 18 Tournaments.

Cultural Relevance

In recent times games have been the most relevant they have ever been with so many platforms competing there couldn't be a better output of games if we asked for it. But with this comes a lot of a developers asking the audience what they want to be produced this leads to many games becoming undoubtedly better looking because its what us as the audience we want to be a submerged into that world as possible. Games like Gears of War allow us to be in a reality that is far beyond our own which has gave it such the success it has gained leading it to release four games each earning many accolades on the way. 

Fandoms 

Although not the biggest, games like Crash Bandicoot have accumulated a following mainly the same people that played it back in 2006 like myself. This demographic has stood by it so much it called for its remastering in June 2017. Activision gave us Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy which was an instant hit among fans selling 1.14 million units which is pretty good considering it is PlayStation exclusive. At the minute it has sold an estimated 3.56million copies which shows how big the fan base of the game is as it continues to grow. 

Q&A: 

1.       Does better graphics mean a better game?

·         Not necessarily

·         No, a lot of games that are better than current games have worse graphics

·         Sometimes, something to look at

·         Not always really depends on the resolution though. As always framerate before visuals.

2.       Are more recent games better than older games? (ps2 vs ps4)

·         Yes

·         Yes, a lot more complex things can be involved in recent games.

·         Not necessarily

·         This is a very subjective question since I like many ‘older’ and ‘newer’ games. However I out of all the games I like, most of them would be classed as ‘newer’ games.

3.       Do you prefer retro or modern style?

·         Modern

·         Retro, nostalgia

·         Modern, maybe, for new things that are coming out.

·         Once again it really depends on the game, however for this questionnaire I would probably say modern.

4.       Would you consider playing a game more because of the graphics?

·         Yeah, for testing purposes

·         Yes, to see if they are as good as what people have said

·         Yes, Battlefield adds to the realism of war

·         Probably not, because If one game was better optimised but had ‘worse’ graphics, then a newer game which had ‘better’ graphics, I would more likely play the better-optimised game.

5.       What would you rate this game simply based on this image from 1-10?

·         7/8

·         8, the fire lets it down

·         9, the copy-pasted planes

6.       Why do you think people prefer better graphics?

·         To keep trendy

·         Immersion

·         Immersion (as well)

·         Because it may appear more realistic, more visually appealing etc.

7.       Would better graphics make an old game good?

·         In terms of remastering a game, yes

·         No, the gameplay makes the game

·         Remastering, yeah

·         Sometimes yes (remastered games such as Day of the Tentacle), however sometimes it can lose the charm of the original game.

8.       Would an older graphics style make a new name good?

·         no

·         reducing aspects of a game won’t make it any better

·         if it’s a gimmick yeah and if they can make it work in a modern world

·         Depends if the gameplay will work with the visuals if so it can work (e.g Starcraft 2 carbots mod)

9.       Does the gameplay triumph over the graphics?

·         yes

·         Yes, you’re playing it for the gameplay itself not how it looks

·         Yes, in the end, you’re playing the game not staring at the screen.

·         Always.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, I believe that it is not just the graphics that have a say in whether or not a game sells or not. It comes down to multiple factors. The main of these is the gameplay, the story and maybe the meanings behind the game. To sell a game you can't focus on one area such as graphics and make the game look outstanding and not give some time and thought into the story etc. 




Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_video_games_notable_for_negative_reception
http://uk.ign.com/articles/2016/10/21/battlefield-1-review
http://www.vgchartz.com/article/266537/battlefield-1-sells-an-estimated-346m-units-first-week-at-retail/
https://www.vg247.com/2017/11/20/call-of-duty-ww2-vs-battlefield-1-which-is-the-best-shooter/
http://www.vgchartz.com/game/170599/call-of-duty-wwii/
http://uk.ign.com/wikis/best-of-2017-awards/Best_Graphics
https://www.esportsearnings.com/games/214-gears-of-war

Image Sources:
http://www.playm.de/2016/02/crash-bandicoot-spielzeughersteller-deutet-neues-spiel-an-274720/
https://gearsofwar.com/en-us/forums/e9b54fc61eb74ad783d533ca502b0132/threads/aesthetics-in-gears-metallic-look/245e273e-0d17-4a91-a87f-3c9c272d67e5/posts
https://battlefieldforum.net/index.php?threads/new-battlefield-1-in-game-screenshots.447/
https://www.gamespot.com/forums/system-wars-314159282/uncharted-3-versus-gears-of-war-3-ingame-graphics-27529909/
http://fraghero.com/battlefield-ones-dynamic-weather-can-unfair-multiplayer-mode/