10 Things I hate about you, gaming

[Senlis]

Garcian Smith said:

Senlis said:

 

I can only comment on the games I have played.

Super Mario Galaxy similar to Super Mario 64
Bioshock similar to System Shock 2
Portal is an exception.  It is well know to be one of the few amazing and original games developed recently.
Crysis similar to Far Cry
Mass Effect similar to several of Bioware's previous games, mainly Jade Empire
Zack & Wiki similar to several point and click adventures, but now has motion controls
LittleBigPlanet similar to almost every 2D platformer before that
World of Goo is original
Left 4 Dead is an amazing multiplayer fps, but similar to many fps games before it.

I could go on, but you can see how many games on your list are not really that original or genre defining.  The only ones I see there that are is Portal and World of Goo.  Any other games bear striking similarities to games before it.

Well, if you want to be absurdly reductionist about it, let's take a look at those games from 1998...

Grim Fandango: Similar to every LucasArts adventure game before it.

Resident Evil 2: A bigger, better RE1.

Half-Life: A prettier, more story-based Quake.

Zelda OoT: Similar to ALttP, except in 3D.

Metal Gear Solid: Basically Metal Gear with polygons.

And so forth.

Very few, if any, games exist in a vacuum. Each is built upon the innovations of previous ones. However, just as one cannot discount the innovations of Half-Life's storytelling, OoT's seamless 3D dungeon-crawling, or Gran Turismo's realistic driving controls, nor can one deny the profound innovation of SMG's mind-bending gravity-platforming, Bioshock's immersive atmosphere, Zack and Wiki's stripping-down of the adventure game genre to its bare essentials, or L4D's chill-inducing co-op (seriously - similar to many FPS games before it? Name just one that involves anything remotely like tossing furious hails of bullets at hordes of brain-chewers while barking desperate orders at the three other guys on the couch playing your fellow survivors-in-arms.)

Innovation is alive and well in modern games.

Any entertainment/art industry is more original and innovative when it is young compared to when it is older.  Look at the movie industry for example.

Note that I never said I agreed with the games in the OPs #10 item.  Some of those were sequals.  But lets take a look at them.

Half-Life is not Quake.  Quake is multipayer based and Half-Life is not.  They are completely different experiences.  I question if you have even played them if you make that comaprison.

Grim Fandango: Well known famous game I've never gotten around to playing.

Resident Evil 2: Not really original or innovative.  Don't know why he put it in the list; maybe because it was 'epic'?

Zelda OoT: Mario 64 was the first major 3D game and Zelda was the first to do it in its genre and do it really well.  Saying it is ALttP in 3D is a huge leap.

Metal Gear Solid: Same statement as Zelda OoT.  Successful 2D to 3D is a major leap.

But more than that, I disagree with peoples' list when they say "but 20## was so cool, it had blah blah blah Tony Hawk 3 and GTA3" and I'm thinking they can't be serious.