May 25, 2007

Support the arts, I always say, and give independent filmmakers a chance by buying a ticket to their movies. I can say the same thing about video games since there are independent game designers out there designing games that will one day make these gaming geniuses household names and move them into the ranks of Gaming Gods like Hideo Kojima or Peter Molyneux. With game design schools and courses in universities across the country paving the way for new talent, indie games are the gaming world’s independent films and thus should be supported by gamers … and next-generation consoles.

Alien Hominid didn’t come from a major developer but it’s still way too much fun.

As a gamer girl deeply devoted to my Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii, I’ve come to haunt the online hub for each console to download a variety of classics as well as excitedly download new content for favorites like Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion (there’s  just way too much to do in this game now). With the Xbox Live Marketplace as well as the PlayStation 3 and Wii download stations making retro dreams come true, I can’t help but think that this is the perfect platform for independent game makers to display their latest entries and introduce their games to gamers looking for something fresh and interesting.

Online through the Xbox Live Marketplace, we can already find independent games such as Alien Hominid HD, a game that started as a free Flash game for the PC and has since found itself on the GameCube and even mobile phones. The PS3 is also a great place to showcase games you won’t find in store shelves such as Calling All Cars! by God of War creator Dave Jaffe. By allowing new game designing talents to display their games through the online marketplaces of our next-generation consoles, gamers can experience games outside the industries big-budgeted titles as well as encourage already established designers to follow Jaffe’s example and develop downloadable games that don’t require all the resources or the budget of a major release.

Imagine you’re a student of game design in the near future and your final class project is to design a Quake-styled first-person shooter using any tools available to you as well as your own person touch to the project. A professor then asks all his students to make their games available as downloads on the Xbox Live Marketplace where now other gamers can not only play said games but also comment on them. A professor can grade their students on other gamers positive or negative reactions and feedback because, hey, these games were meant to be shared with gamers outside the classroom in the first place.

Gaming fun from the man who brought us Kratos and it’s only available online, PS3 gamers.

I applaud the next-generation consoles for their ability to see the online possibilities other than just a way to play Capture the Flag or downloading extra maps, but rather a place where you can purchase games (including those forgotten gems) and promote ideas such as episodic content. Wouldn’t it be cool to play a fresh new game not available in stores where every month something unique and interesting happens? How about a game where you’ll have to wait next month to see what happens at the end of a level’s cliffhanger ending much like an episode of Lost or 24?

By opening up the Xbox Live Marketplace as well as the Wii and PS3’s online hub to new game talents to display their work as well as allow known game designers to express themselves through means that don’t have to require too much time and too much money, we will be seeing new and interesting projects that will inspire a new generation of game designers. The future of gaming is here and if these next-generation platforms will allow it, gamers like me can come to expect a bright future and some interesting times ahead.

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