It’s 2024 and we’re at a very advanced technological level when it comes to creating computer games. Every month, many productions are created, each of which struggles with a very similar problem. One thing makes it very difficult to tell them apart.
Creating, regardless of what you ultimately decide on, is a form of self-expression. It’s about conveying emotions, values, or information. At least that’s how it is in practice. So why have modern game creators, especially independent ones, forgotten about this so easily? I don’t want to lump everyone together, it’s more about outlining a certain problem that has grown over the years with technological development.
Modern producers usually focus on the two most popular graphic engines: Unity and Unreal, of course. Players probably associate the latter program the most. Unreal 5 debuted on the market on April 5, 2022, which is quite recently, and it has already managed to dominate the industry, making many top studios decide to transfer their projects to it. Smaller creators, those that few people have heard of, also seized the opportunity to prove themselves. They quickly rushed to the engine, not fully considering the idea of their own production. This, in turn, led to quite a plague, and it quickly spread in the indie developer zone. As a result, we now get a number of repetitive, bland, and identical games.
Where is the problem?
Now, the vast majority of games aim for hyperrealism. As a result, many productions look almost the same, and dozens of identical products simply bore the audience. After all, the game is not about ray tracing, but about gameplay.
The incredible capabilities of Unreal Engine 5 allow for the creation of incredibly realistic games, relying mainly on what is already ready in the engine. The implemented and available tools, assets, textures inside the program, cause many developers to take shortcuts, not adding enough of themselves to distinguish their product.
In the past, small and large studios had to fend for themselves, which is where the great variety of styles comes from. Sometimes the unique look of a given title is due to technological limitations. A good example is “Silent Hill” and its fog. The fog perfectly emphasizes the atmosphere of a mysterious and peculiar town, and at the same time hides the lack of buildings, which are only rendered when the player is close.
Of course, things are completely different now. Studios with huge amounts of money don’t have to cut corners. Sufficiently large funds allow them to create unique AAA productions. This problem mainly affects those who don’t have such funds. In indie studios, one person is often responsible for several things. It’s no wonder that they use tools that make their work easier, after all, who wouldn’t want to create a beautiful, life-like game. Realism alone, however, is not enough.
The solution is at your fingertips
The unique style of a given production comes primarily from the fact that it is not based entirely on ready-made products. The recipient will not be pleased if you see the exact same asset for the hundredth time, bought for just a few dollars or even completely free. It is worth adding something of your own to it, transforming it so that it fits better into the created world. However, you need to have a plan for this world. What colors will you use, what will work well with what, how to distinguish the player’s character, how to use lighting to your advantage. These are things that you need to think carefully about and consider how they can help you build the right atmosphere.
It’s the same if all creators use the basic engine settings and don’t change anything. Instead of trying, having a plan for everything, they decide to go for what seems the easiest. On the one hand, someone could say that this is a sign of extreme laziness, but personally I would say that it is more likely due to lack of experience and time they have invested in the artistic aspect of production.
Taking care of the appropriate style, colors, atmosphere, refining the post-process, using interesting shaders will allow you to create a unique production that players will love.
You won’t convince a player with just his looks
In their pursuit of realistic graphics, many creators make a cardinal mistake by focusing too much on appearance alone, neglecting the most important element of every project – gameplay. It is the mechanics, fluidity and interactivity that should be the foundation of every production, not its visual setting.
Don’t get me wrong, the art style is also important and very helpful in standing out from the competition. Ultimately, however, it’s the gameplay that decides whether the game will stay in the players’ memory for a long time or not.
Still not convinced? Then guess what the best-selling game in the world is. “Red Dead Redemption 2”? “Grand Theft Auto V”? Or maybe “The Witcher 3”? No, the first place at the very top belongs to “Minecraft,” a game made of blocks. It’s not its appearance, but the actions it can perform that earned it the title of the best-selling computer game in history.
A pretty picture will only appeal to us for a certain moment. It is the interior, i.e. the mechanical aspects, that decide whether the game will engage us. Engaging activities, adapted to the existing world, can be the key to the creators’ success. Independent developers should remember this the most, who care more about standing out from the competition than top companies. They are the ones who have to build a brand for themselves from scratch, presenting an interesting idea, gameplay and art style, taking into account a small budget.
Source: antyweb.pl
