With the PS1 and particularly the N64 the graphics and games started to become more immersive and my interest in consoles was re-kindled. Last gen Xbox (and to a lesser extent imo GCN and PS2) allowed even more immersion…take Thief 3 for example…very atmospheric.

This gen has really opened up worlds and interaction with those worlds and I am thrilled. Many people talk about the online as being the success of this gen, but I disagree…for me it is the little things like lighting and shadows, destructible environments, open realistic worlds, water effects, sound, new ways of interacting with the envrionment etc. etc.

Because unlike film games are interactive (as we are constantly reminded by the ‘sky is falling’ anti-games group) you can experience these environments and often choose where to go explore and look. It is more visual than books, or even comics which bridged the story-visual line, so the potential is there to really have strong story combined with participation by the person involved.

This hasn’t fully been realised yet in the conservative let’s just kill everything style of gaming, but I believe that many games are making inroads to where narrative will be deeper and the experience will be more participatory within that narrative.

This is why single player games are the only ones that will advance the medium and not deathmatch clones (though there certainly is room for them).

I’m all for new environments in games, and the more the better as far as I;m concerned. It shows developers are willing to look ourtside the box and try different approaches, rather than run their games on rails.

Not saying all games should be sandbox-based, as even that can limit what a developer wants or needs to have happen within the game world. But games where a combination of both following a path, but have multiple ones, some that change according to what you do within the game, are the type I like.

We’re seeing many developers use even mor intricate settings and ways of being within thegameworld, and it’s also showing that they do NOT need HUGE storage to do so. The myth of “needing Blu-Ray’s huge storage” is just that. A myth.

While it is great to have that storage, it also makes some developers lazy,and build HUGE code, when they could streamline their apps by making better engines that do much more intricate calcuations to enable better in-game physics and graphics.

What’s your take on the matter . .?