Video game executives say making cinematic games is getting so expensive and time-consuming that investing in graphics is providing diminished financial returns
The gaming industry spent billions pursuing the idea that customers wanted realistic graphics. Did executives misread the market? Bluesky: @baldsavant , @anolen , @thestrangerous , and @thegamechief . Mastodon: @zeh@mastodon.gamedev.place . Threads: @carnage4life . X: @megaapple18 Forums: r/Games , r/technology , and Slashdot Bluesky: Nathan Savant / @baldsavant : Have they considered just, I dunno, not making games into movies? — Maybe make games that are just really good at being games. — Maybe you don't need to wear someone else's clothes to fit in. Maybe you can find your own style. [embedded post] Andrew Nolen / @anolen : How many gamers can tell if ray tracing is being used? I think the “diminishing returns” are based on our diminishing ability to perceive increased graphical performance. [embedded post] Jason Murphy / @thestrangerous : This makes a pretty obivous argument for indie games. Brian Reynolds / @thegamechief : It's a hell of a lot *cheaper* to make a game “more fun” than to give it hyperrealistic graphics and hours of voice-acted cinematics, that's the good news. — www.nytimes.com/2024/12/26/a... Mastodon: Zeh Fernando / @zeh@mastodon.gamedev.place : Nice, if short, article on the doomed industry of AAA games https://www.nytimes.com/... I frankly think AAA makes no sense anymore. Maybe I just have less time, but I am in fact annoyed with games that get stuffed to the brim with checkbox requirements. … Threads: Dare Obasanjo / @carnage4life : Making a AAA game costs between $50 - $300 million given increasing expectations from users about the content, depth of gameplay and storytelling. However the AAA gaming industry has shrunk post-COVID and has to compete with streaming, TikTok, and perennial games (e.g. Roblox, Fortnite) for people's time. … X: Hemang Chauhan / @megaapple18 : @ZacharyHSmall Would add perspective that lotta folks are missing = word-of-mouth. Magazine/TV era dominated 90s-00s home consoles and that's how teens and YA/adults formed their tastes (along with retail stores). Internet boom and E3 videos/trailers/fan content formed the basis in early 10s.. Forums: r/Games : Video Games Can't Afford to Look This Good r/technology : Video Games Can't Afford to Look This Good. The industry, which was hit with layoffs and studio closures this year, is now wondering whether … Msmash / Slashdot : Video Games Can't Afford To Look This Good