Learning patterns: What’s difference between games and sports?

I was looking around the web for some videos/info regarding that playful event i went to a few weeks ago (my last post was about this) and found a link for Kars Alfrink's whole transcript/speech, one of the speakers from the event: Here is the link if anyone is interested:
http://leapfrog.nl/blog/archives/2008/11/17/a-playful-stance-my-game-design-london-2008-talk/
Here is good point he made in his speech if you don't fancy reading the whole thing:

“ The Z-Boys were trying to figure out what the limits were of the combination of their equipment, their bodies, and their environment. Why were they doing this? For the sheer enjoyment of it. They weren’t doing it because it had some outside purpose. In fact, in my opinion, they were doing it exactly for the sake of its uselessness. Play is an end in itself. Later on in the film you see how, for some of the Z-Boys, skateboarding looses its charm when competition and money get involved. (For those of you who are familiar with Roger Caillois’ classification of games — I think skateboarding started out firmly in ilinx territory, which is all about physical thrills, and only later moved towards agôn, which is about competition.)”

I think its interesting how something playful can become competitive leading it to become a type of sport. This is caused when a player has mastered and learned the rules of the game competing for mastery of skills not necessarily fun, although gaining pleasure via alternative means such as battling for status enhancement. In other words, these players have learned all lessons and patterns that game has to offer and play for game for test of their skill with pure concentration on the task at hand. Whereas when you look at the beginning of skateboarding, it was new unexplored activity where people were discovering and learning new patterns behind the use of the skateboard (tool of fun) and the fun of breaking the boundaries of velocity within our surroundings. You could argue that any game could be considered as a form of sport as its down to how individual players grasp the patterns of the game and their reasons for playing it, but certain games have certain factors that are more deemed as competitive or worthy of sportsmanship. For an example, American football could be considered just tactical as Chess but Chess wouldn't be deemed as a sport, why is this? Despite the obvious things such as the lack of physical activity, in terms of player psychology, does American Football provide fewer patterns so players can grasp the game easier, to truly master it as a sport than Chess? Or do the variables behind the patterns encourage a certain player's mentality and attitude towards the game deeming it competitive?

I think our perspectives and attitudes as players change to particular game variables as time goes on when we are exposed to new alternative aspects which itself creates new patterns and playing styles from old games. For an example, “Mario kart” on Nintendo DS, would anyone be using snaking if it wasn't for the online play? Or without other players exposing such exploits within previous popular online games, would this exploit be discovered? The video below is example or this:

Nintendo has underestimated players’ current knowledge and ability of breaking game systems and willingness to grasp the game fully, knowing every nook and cranny as players are learning patterns quicker than new patterns being developed. You could argue that “Mario Kart” hasn't changed with the times and wasn't designed with online competitive nature in mind as multiplayer gaming has enabled us gamers to learn gaming patterns at incredible rate, as we learn and share game tactics and exploits together, learning with other people is more fun and easier than doing it solo. Looking at Mario Kart's previous history 11 years ago with “Mario kart 64”, famed for it's split-screen, multiplayer never had such aspects of intervention, have people evolved the gaming infrastructure? In other words, are players changing the way how we interact with games and how we perceive or learn from them?

With this perspective in the future, as football is a sport with huge following, we may see it evolve as fans demand expansion becoming bored of the traditional rule set. Who knows maybe we will see football players with chainsaws within next 20 years becoming a “gladiator” sport. Maybe this is why Chess is considered trivial among competitive game players as Chess hasn't evolved to teach us new unexplored patterns that we currently seek. A good way to conclude this topic would be to quote from my favorite games design book “A Theory of Fun” written by “Raph Koster” which sums up this topic perfectly.

“The lesson for designers is simple: A game is destined to become boring, automated, cheated, and exploited. Your sole responsibility is to know what the game is about and to ensure that the game teaches that thing. That one thing, the theme, the core, the heart of the game, might require many systems or it might require few. But no system should be in the game that does not contribute toward that lesson. It is the cynosure of all the systems; it is the moral of the story; it is the point.”

My experience @ event “Playful” during London Games week

This past week, I've been attending to lots of events during the “London Games Week” and It's a really exciting time to be part of the games industry seeing so much support and hard work invested into this upcoming growing games festival. I've attended this festival every year since 2006 and I have to say that it has come a long way with better organization and understanding of what people want from a games festival, bringing in gamers (consumers), industry people, students, etc. One event I went to which I thought was a perfect candidate for such festival was called “Playful” which is a whole day (of course my favorite subject) about games design where designers spoke about their design ideals and approaches from all different backgrounds ranging from web/graphic design to architecture. It was very inspiring and insightful and it's both challenging and interesting to hear different points of view and to clarity your beliefs on the subject, it certainly expands your horizons. Here is the link for the event; you should check it out next year: http://www.thisisplayful.com/welcome/
With this post I would like to go through my favorite speakers and briefly the points they made which I thought were most avid and important towards games design. I will go into further detail about these processes and approaches/theories in future posts.

Matthew Irvine Brown http://www.irvinebrown.com/

Matthew Irvine Brown isn't a games designer but is interaction designer for a music website called Last.fm (Great site), his point of view towards design is a simple ideology of “Draw more dots. People like to connect them” in other words as designers we create tools for personal customizable interaction and people create their own reason/purpose for the interaction. He says this referring to his site which connects inspiration between music bands, a point of reference/ form of connection between the dots is a part of the experience and fun as people like to see conception and where things are from to form the final outcome. Say a trumpet, people automatically connect that instrument to Jazz music for an example, or someone makes assumption with black and white silent films like “Charlie Chaplin” (the ones made in the 30's with sound) with the cheeky trumpet sound. That's the beauty with music as the medium allows anyone to make their own connection with it, which is why some people believe that music is the most social interactive entertainment medium. Matthew demonstrates this approach with his puppet sock toy; here are some videos he showed on his talk:

Singing Sock Puppet & The Meters - Blues in F from Matt Brown on Vimeo.

http://vimeo.com/1953335 from Matt Brown on Vimeo.

Chris Delay http://www.introversion.co.uk/
Chris Delay is a lead games designer/artist for the company “Introversion” who made titles “Darwinia”, “Uplink” and “Defcon” which are unique stylized art house games within a small development team and budget. He talks about his design and technological method towards game technology called “Procedural Generation” to save money and time when you can’t afford an art team. In a nutshell, basically he defined simple rules and perimeters within his own game system/software which enables the software to automatically create game environments (an urban city landscape) via an organic process by following these rules for his new game “Subversion”. It's an innovative approach as many development studios build their game/design approach around their new technology rather use the technology to build the game. Also interesting he claims that he used these rules to game systems to quickly create prototypes for experimenting and I wonder if the final game will use these rules in regards of gameplay. This demonstrates how pre-planning basic core rules on paper goes a long way but seeing it in action within a game system where you see if ideals work.

Tom Armitage http://infovore.org/

Tom Armitage I actually don't know what he does, but by going by his talk, he knows his stuff. He has an interesting theory where he believes that all multimedia devices (computer games included of course) are multiplayer interlinked with other devices into a bonding social network via software. It is true to a certain extent which is also referred as “Supercontext” theory http://www.futurehi.net/archives/000172.html. He goes on saying how we are a part of social network and these exist to connect a person to shared objects that connects us together, for example, people connect to the site “Flickr” through photos, “Youtube” through videos, etc. He goes on to relate this topic to how Xbox Live only works as tool/service when millions of people connected to allow online gaming to coexist and function as social network. “Even single player games are played in a multiplayer context of persistent profiles” he quotes from Raph Koster ( Raph Koster wrote “Theory of fun” which is a great game design book) referring to games like “Fable 2” or “Geometry Wars 2”, (primary functional and designed as) single player games which use features of connectivity of other players without being online/multiplayer which he calls “Sync activity with shared context”. In other words, single player games aren't single player any more as they all share data/info with other players expanding the experience as part of a social network. He believes that all games will be like this which I think would make for interesting debate as I argue that certain games wouldn't benefit/work within such design ideal like say “survival horror games”.

Kars Alfrink http://leapfrog.nl/

Kars Alfrink is freelance interaction designer from Utrecht, the Netherlands who spoke about designing fun and what fun is? To explain his theory of fun he refers to the film “Dogtown and Z-Boys” which is about the beginning of skateboarding (before it become a sport) where they discover the use of empty swimming pools to create momentum to perform tricks. He used this example to demonstrate how people create fun by changing a tool's rigid useful normal form/function to invent their own useless function becoming playful. These tools allow users to create and communicate their own meaning/purpose, designers can't create meaning via tools, which I don't fully agree with to be honest. He backs up his point by quoting from Mitchel Resnick - Turtles, Termites and Traffic Jams (This is his book he wrote) “What’s needed are microworld construction kits, so that you can create your own microworlds, focusing on the domains you find most interesting” I agree with this statement which reflects the design approach of “Little Big Planet” but I believe tools have to be created with some form of connection/meaning towards the user to allow their interpretation to take place, this links to Matthew Irvine Brown's talk. In other words, the tools have to inspire the user to be playful with. For an example, “Little Big Planet” is nothing new in regards of its function of a level editor but it's the accessible in-game use of UI and charming cute visuals makes the game feel fresh and inspiring.

Eric Zimmerman http://www.gamelab.com/

The last and my favorite talk (most inspiring as he was so passionate) was by “Eric Zimmerman” who is designer at “Gamelab” who made “Diner Dash” (which is hugely popular flash game) and wrote the book “Rules of Play” He spoke about three components of ‘game literacy’: System Play and Design, which are needed for any game to exist. “System” is series of perimeters/commands that a game world must follow to exist just like Chris Delay with his approach with “Procedural Generation”. “Play” is tools of interactivity within the game just like Kars Alfrink and Matthew Irvine Brown theory to design. Then there’s “Design” which is deciding on the rules/purpose of the game. So in other words “Play” needs “Design” and “Design” needs a “system” and “system” needs “play” as Design = Rules/purpose, Play = Tools/mechanics, System = technology/perimeters.

To conclude, this event was very insightful and I really enjoyed it, learning a lot. I will definitely come again next year, you should too! Anyways thanks for reading!

Remakes I wish they would make one day

I've been playing "Bionic Commando Rearmed" recently, I'm loving it, if you haven't got it, get it now! Its a good example of blending old school gameplay inspired by the orignal's retro roots with modern conventions that we all have grown to be used making the whole experience feel modern and fresh. Anyway This is the reason,I started thinking about remakes I would to like to see in the future and how I would do them if I were to making them.

Final Fantasy VII

This is bound to happen but I can't wait for it even since seeing that tech demo of Final Fantasy 7 on PS3 and also with all these other Final Fantasy 7 spin-off games and the film referred as “Compilation of Final Fantasy VII” makes you wonder when are they going to finally produce the the remake of FF7 that everyone wants. During the development, I hear they had to cut out lot of story sections/villages they didn't have time to finalise/polish them cutting down the game from 4 discs to 3 discs. This would be interesting to see if they include these sections giving a player choice to play director's cut version or the orignal version to play it how you remember it. Let's face it, this remake would make “Square Enix” mountains of cash but the question remains “When will it happen?”.

Goldeneye/ Perfect Dark

“Goldeneye” was the first FPS on console that designed ground up with console in mind taking advantage of their aspect of the Nintendo 64 console especaily the console's abltly to split screen multiplayer featuring so many modes and ways of playing for hours of fun. Still to very day, both “Goldeneye” and “Perfect Dark” remain be very playable although obviously the graphics are so dated now. I hear rumours that Microsoft wanted to re-release/remake “Goldeneye” as Xbox Live Arcade game with online play but “Nintendo” and “Microsoft” couldn't agree on a deal as “Nintendo” wanted to release it too but “Microsoft” wanted to exclusive rights and obviously nintendo has the rights. I can't see why they can't come with up with some form of compromise where both can release “Goldeneye” on their consoles as these days, their markets they appeal to are very different it's not as if they would be confronting each other's interests and everyone wants to play “Goldeneye” is winner. Although who actually knows if this rumour is true, certainly like to think so gives us some hope that it will happen one day.

Alien Breed

“Alien Breed” is getting remake by the original development studio “Team 17” being released as Xbox Live Arcade game in 2009. The orignal classic was released in 1991 on the “Commodore Amiga” as its been a long wait for fans. Unfortunary there is no other details comfirmed yet but its good news that its actually making it.

Metal Gear – very 1st in the series

This is any Metal Gear fan's dream having the orignal “Metal Gear” remade. This would be great opportuntidy to link up the whole Metal Gear universe/story arch with modern filmic production values creating the link between “Metal Gear Solid: Portable” to “Metal Gear Solid” titles. “Metal Gear” is about how “Solid Snake” discovers who “Big Boss” is and of course defends him and from the most recent revelations of MGS plot within “MGS 4” (I'm going to reveal any spolters/details for anyone who haven't played it yet). I think it would proud to be very interesting to see this chapter of the story retold.

Half-life

There is actually a remake of “Half life” being made as mod called “Black Mesa” using the “Half life 2” engine and its been in production for 3 years now, check it out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Mesa_(game_mod) It is very suprising that “Valve” don't make it themselves but I'm sure they have many other projects on their plate which will push the industry.

Shenmue 1 and 2

This is one of my favourite adventure and dreamcast games/series ever due to it's vast ambition of story telling, game design/mechanics, pushing the boundries of 3D environments. Shenmue was one of a kind series which was orignally planned as trilogy (at the time, this was unheard of) but sadly only able to produce two although they both did sell well for a dreamcast title (1.2 million sales) but it wasn't enough to make profit due to high production valuess of $70 million making the most expensive video game of all time. Shemue was too ahead for it's time and the market wasn't there, whereas today I believe there is such an market for such story driven/filmic game. I think as the whole foundations of the game are already there, it wouldn't cost too much to remake it with updated graphics and perforance. Also in today's market, there are many options how to approach a remake from such title, if I was Sega I would either:
Market it towards the casual/non gamer releasing on “Wii” being people's first adventure game experince as people would be relate to it being set within realisation world.
Release in episodes like “Siren” for PS3 or “Sam and Max” on pc.
Release it on all three main consoles as one big game including the yet unmade “Shenmue 3”
You never know they may do this with the success of the “Yakuza” games being more focused towards action than adventure/story.

Beyond Good and Evil
I feel qulity saying this but I've never played this game which received critical acclaim with a underground cult following but typically was a commercial failure. It was designed by “Michel Ancel”who created Rayman who has creativity colorful flair to his games and certainly see that in this title. I think it was overshadowed by a lot of completion with many adventure games released at the time like “Persia of Prince: sands of time”, “Siren”, “Manhunt”, “Zelda: Wind Waker”, “Silent hill 3”. I think this game deserves another chance and especailly as the sequal is being made making it good reason to recap on the story.

Final Fantasy 5 and 6

This is another no brainer for “Square Enix”. Without a doubt it's going to happen, just the the question of when? As Final Fantasy 3 and 4 have already been remaked for Nintendo DS, so I can't see why they won't do the same for final fantasy 5 and 6 unless “Nintendo” or “Sony” releases a new portable console which I can't see happening anytime soon.

Earthbound series
I've been very curtious about this niche nintendo RPG francshie even since I saw the character “Ness” in Smash Bros: Melee on gamecube and sadly none of the games in this series have been released in europe so I never played one. This series has a big cult following among nintendo fans and I hear it has very unique story and characters making something which you must experience and it has to have such a following for an reason and I would like to find out why. I think this warrents a remake for Nintendo DS which would be perfectly suitable console for this remake as it already filled with many old school RPGs.

Kid Icarus or Ice climber

These are “Nintendo Nes” classics have remained to be individual sole titles for years but I certainly would like to see some form of remake with an either 2D meets 3D approach like “Bionic Commando” or complete 3D makeover like mario with “Mario 64”. These are the only Nintendo classics games which haven't been remake yet for modern gaming even “Excitebike” been made again for Nintendo 64 although at the same time, I feel they shouldn't touch them, leave them as you remember them to keep that classic status.

Written by: Jonesy

Jeff Minter and the rest of the industry, what a interesting fellow!

I have to say that I’m neither the biggest “Jeff Minter” fan with his game creations such as “Gridrunner”, “Tempest 2000” for Atari Jaguar, “Attack of the Mutant Camels”, “Revenge of the Mutant Camels”, “Sheep in Space”, etc to name a few, I certainly see the hook to his games but just too hardcore for me. It’s amazing how he survives with such aggressive gaming market these days, when you hear about “EA” and “Activision” spending multi million/ sometimes billions dollars deals doing this or buying that development studio up, etc. It is such breath of fresh air and sign of hope to see such figurehead among retro gamers can remain producing games that he loves and presents him as person without compromising. This is video is talk/presentation from “Jeff Minter” talking about his history of video game production. To be honest, it isn’t the most informative or insightful presentation by any means but certainly very inspiring and interesting to see such personality able to do what he loves, he certainly touched my soul. I wouldn’t recommend watching it all but at least skip to 25 minutes in where he talks about his ideal/process of games development which I found to be uplifting and profound approach to where refers to games development as “moulding some clay which you don’t know what it’s going to be till you get there” which sounds so liberating. Anyway I you hope watching it and be inspired by it like I did.

The Old, the Modern and the Future of DLC

These days I'm loving indie gaming with titles like “Braid”, “Castle Crashers”, “Bionic Commando Rearmed”, “Geometry wars 2”, “The Last Guy” and “Pixel junk Eden”, etc this trend of gaming has finally taken off with a wide range of creative original titles taking advantage of their low budget and small team development process. It's refreshing to see that this notion/approach is finally being taken seriously within the industry as a profitable and desirable game development form, giving indie gaming it's own identity away from traditional £40 game model. As Digital Distribution is becoming a more acceptable form of gaming, capturing the attention of both hardcore and casual gamers and possessing the vibes of art house and simplicity, games developers are becoming more ambitious exploring many avenues of this model. These games certainly have very promising bright future reflecting the latest trends and needs for a wide array of gamers.

Another digital download trend which is mainly pushed by Microsoft is DLC (Download Content) which hasn't got such a clean cut bright future ahead as it still has many hurdles to overcome, especially appealing to mainstream audiences. Also there is the challenge of placing DLC appropriately as many people feel that DLC is a con/gimmick to generate more revenue for less extra content, and to a degree I believe their argument is valid, but the real question here is, how can the approach towards download content change to broaden it's potential and change people's attitude towards this concept?

With indie games, the demand and profits are there and growing, therefore development studios can afford to become more adventurous with price models, content and game structure like “Sam and Max”'s episodic paced game structure. However, DLC lacks such options due to the demand and profits being limited primarily towards the first person shooter genre for hardcore gamers, to fund experiments for such concepts. Obviously due to this fact, the content itself is priced highly to cover development costs and DLC is typically customized towards multiplayer which benefits from a high volume of players. This works very well for AAA titles like “Halo 3” and “Call Of Duty 4” but with smaller titles like “Stranglehold” or “Timeshift”, DLC proves a risky option for both developer and player as there is no guarantee that there will be the numbers willing to invest to make a profit for the development studio and to create a worthy solid experience for the players. That’s why this traditional method of DLC only works for established titles and as a big Halo fan myself; I love DLC as I just want more, although I can see the cracks appearing within this system that requires reconstruction for modern demands for a new generation of gamers. The current method can prove to be very uninviting and intimidating unless you are part of the FPS gamer generation who grew up with such games in late 90’s and early 2000’s. You could argue that these new gamers who wouldn’t normally invest in DLC are the type who never will, or the games (genres) they play aren’t designed with DLC in mind. So therefore the concept doesn’t appeal to them but I think the concept itself is appealing to everyone as “human beings” we always desire more of things we enjoy, but in the case of DLC I think it’s down to how it’s delivered to make it desirable for users fitting into the subject of the game for their overall experience.

My next question is: why do certain genres like adventure games do not typically contain DLC feature? The design mentality towards the adventure genre requires a coherent structure within a game world and the FPS DLC model doesn’t provide that as it just attaches/adds elements to the game system (like a dessert with a meal) rather than placing them inside the game world (ingredients of a meal). This is where new forms of DLC need to be introduced to work with other genres and game requirements which introduce many new game design challenges and choices where the most trivial feature can make such a difference towards the user’s experience. For example, Halo 3 has separate matchmaking playlists for the new content/maps whereas Call of Duty 4 incorporates the new maps within the same playlists everyone uses creating a bigger number of players (always guaranteed a match) but mixing the skill levels of pro/casual players. These games have been developed with DLC in mind from day one that’s why their model works for the target audience whereas with experimenting with other forms of DLC is hard to determine and structure towards the impact of final product/ game playing experience without long term pre-plan or focused objective the game is trying to achieve. For example, let's say in “Metal Gear Solid 4” (minor plot spoilers ahead about MGS 4, if you haven’t played it yet) you could download alternative story arches about “Meryl” seeing more development of her relationship with “Akiba/Johnny” or how she really feels about “Solid Snake”, and this gameplay being based in middle east, covertly backing up “Solid Snake” without his knowledge. This could be great idea adding depth to the plot, etc but there are many consequences and design elements to consider for such a concept like wouldn’t this rid the surprise for the story for people who aren’t yet aware of this story event to come, what would this DLC explore gameplay and story wise without it feeling like an add-on?

Many gamers are looking forward to Grand Theft Auto 4’s DLC with the so far announced two episodes within the story universe of Liberty Island. I think this could be the game to break this attitude towards DLC making it commercially acceptable for mainstream, although the question is: how are “Rockstar” going to execute their DLC?

The title “Crackdown” (Sandbox game made by: Real Time Worlds – ex Rockstar) is a good example GTA may be inspired by which has evolved the design mentality towards DLC. Crackdown’s DLC introduces new features/modes which as an player I didn't expect see from such a title, like the access to an debug mode (Like Halo's Forge mode), co-op and competitive multiplayer modes that expanded the playing style scope adding diversity that creates a different flavor/side to the crackdown experience which you wouldn’t think would co-exist/work within such a title. This DLC also includes typical game elements that we all want from “Crackdown” such as extra cars, weapons, characters, etc it was designed to have a balance of filling in with more of the same as well as expanding the experience which creates an broad spectrum of freedom allowing players to play with this content in any way they choose making it feel very coherent within the game world. In a way, it is like adding toys to the toy box (game system/world) and this is very smart approach towards DLC allowing anyone to enjoy the DLC allowing the player to have their own experience via flexibility without requirements rather than to rely on linear structure of FPS DLC where huge numbers of players are needed to enjoy, required for competitive FPS gameplay.

Burnout Paradise is another title that has been built in such a way, its evolution of MMO design ideals within racing genre where elements like weather, bikes, extra islands are added to Paradise City seamlessly without charge (free, shocking isn’t it?) and even the radio DJ gives the player hints regarding future DLC, making the experience feel fresh and exciting every time you play it, organically inserting the DLC expanding the experience further without DLC feeling like separate unity. Even though I don’t like racing games, this design approach has added a whole new perspective to my thinking and feelings about how racing games and DLC should be produced in the future.

Imagine the possibilities with GTA 4’s DLC: each episode is about different character in Liberty City with different timeframes, before or after Niko Bellic’s (GTA 4’s main character) story arch within Liberty City and all their stories all interlink with each others like a Quentin Tarantino movie, or each character has completely different gameplay styles and not just the alpha male gangsters/ex-solder like Niko Bellic, therefore players could buy only DLC with characters that interest them with their personality. The design approach of DLC needs to change to suit the gamer's needs and requirements, as the FPS DLC remains suitable for the hardcore gamers for competitive multiplayer games as there is need to reach out to other demographics by addressing their needs as gamers. As gaming technology is constantly developing and progressing changing the way we interact with games and how we experience them so does the way content is imported into the game worlds, making the world feel coherent and organic with the extra content. The beauty of DLC you can explore many venues of gameplay, idea and business models without risk of high development costs, like indie games and also if a development studio can’t complete features by their deadline, they have no excuse to not release it at a later date as DLC. DLC certainly has a bright future and I look forward to it.

Written by: Jonesy

Other contenders which didn’t quite make it into the Nintendo list:

Nintendogs (2005: Nintendo DS)

Wanted to include this game because typically it created an appeal for Nintendo DS with female audiences which it did at the time but now I feel that other games have achieved female appeal better within industry with broader audience scope like “Sims” or “World of Warcraft” as I think its a bit of cliché making cute animal game to appeal female audience as It's been done to death throughout the years although I have to say that this “animal sim” game is well executed with a lot of charm (very Nintendo) and it's the best of its kind. This game was almost on this list as he has made minor impact on the industry with lots of clones from Ubisoft with “Tigerz”, “horses”, etc but it’s not inspirational enough compared other Nintendo's creations.

E – card reader (2003 Gamecube/Game boy advance connectivity)

Wanted to include this peripheral as I loved using it during my “Animal crossing” addiction scanning in cards to gain more items and play NES games although it was good idea, it wasn't fully explored by Nintendo and soon died off as an gimmick with lack of support. I guess Nintendo didn't think it was profitable enough with their business model via cards sales and it didn’t help that the cards were produced in small numbers for American market so I guess Nintendo I didn’t have much faith in this creation.

Game and Watch machines (1981)
This is old school and retro gaming! I really wanted to include “Game and Watch” as this was the beginning for Nintendo which we all know now but with the game history of the early 80's makes it hard to define how inspirational and innovative the “Game and Watch” consoles was towards the industry when there was so much going at the time with millions of consoles coming out every week, people easily copying games, etc which lead to the “Game crash” (1983) which was triggered by the gaming market overflow. It was hard call but I decided that I couldn’t place it.

Super Nintendo/Snes controller (1992)

I thought about including this due to it being the only 16-bit console controller with shoulder buttons and four button layout, Y, Z, B and A which used by Sony for Playstation but I wouldn’t classify this as being innovative for controller design adding more buttons despite being such a iconic 16-bit controller.

Power Glove Controller (1989: Nes)

Nintendo shockingly wasn’t involved in the design or release of this accessory (I didn’t know that myself till I researched it) and wanted to include due to its historical tacky 80’s style of gaming fun and also the fact that it is a really silly and pointless accessory which is really embarrassing now but at the time, you thought you were so cool.

Nes Zapper/light gun (1985)

Wanted include this due to my memories of childhood being the first light gun I played with, but Nintendo weren’t the first lightgun nor created any innovative improvements over the inspired pre-successor “Shooting Gallery” light gun on the console “Magnavox Odyssey” in 1972 I was very surprised when I researched myself, have a look: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_gun I remember wasting hours playing “Duck Hunt”, they were the days.

Tetris (1989: Gameboy)

Tetris has been released on almost every successful console ever just like “Bomberman” games. “Bomberman” and “Tetris” are the two games that every good console should and will have and for that fact alone I couldn't include “Tetris” within this Nintendo list despite it being such a huge success for the “Gameboy” making it the first major handheld console who survived battle against both “Game Gear” and “Atari Lynx” in the early 1990's.

Fire Emblem (2003: Game boy advance and 1990: Nes)

I wanted to include this due to “Fire Emblem” being one of the first tactical role playing games and also one of my favourite games but “fire emblem” is quite recent franchise within the west with the first English release in 2003 on “Game Boy Advance” whereas “Fire Emblem” has been going for years within Japan with the original release in 1990 on the “Famicom”. In today's standards, “Fire Emblem” isn't that innovative or inspirational but the original was but sadly never reaches these shores so It’s hard to say how innovative or inspirational it truly was.

N64 DD (1999)

I was thinking about this including “N64 DD” as I remember wanting one back in the day because I couldn’t get one as it was only released within Japan only. Looking back now, I’m so glad that I didn’t import one as I would have been very disappointed with its lack of software support with only 9 games released on it. This console was bigger commercial failure than “Virtual Boy” as it wasn’t even that innovative of a concept although it did introduce features such as internet browser and online play via modern but “Dreamcast” was released year before with the same features. I don’t know what “Nintendo” was thinking when they released/produced this console but I guess we all have our bad days.

Doshin the Giant (1999: N64 DD and 2002: Gamecube)

“Doshin the Giant” was originally released on the 64DD being the only original title on the console among all other titles which were apart of other Nintendo franchises. Most people have never hear of this one, sadly it never sold that well being an one off experiment. It was basically god sim game which is very similar to “Black and White” where you control a Giant called “Doshin” where the actions from the player reflect the behaviour of the villagers of the island. Due to the fact that it's similarity with “Black and White” I'm not sure if you could fairly say that this title is innovative or original and also wasn't too inspirational with low sales, so either way I couldn't include it although I'm quite fond of this charming little game which is very Nintendo.

Nintendo’s 20 most inspirational and innovative products that changed the game industry - Part 4

5 . Donkey Kong (1981: Arcade - Shigeru Miyamoto’s first game)

“Donkey Kong” was the game that placed both “Nintendo” and “Shigeru Miyamoto” on the gaming map, leading Nintendo to become one of most inspirational leading video game console manufacturer and publisher ever. Without the great success of “Donkey Kong” there would be no “Nintendo” that we know now, probably still producing toys and cards which was their main business before their gaming boom took place during the early 80’s. “Donkey Kong” is a great success story not due to the game itself, as I think it isn’t the most innovative or playable game that Miyamoto has made (still amazing achievement for your 1st game title) but the actual impact of the game had on the whole industry and remains the most iconic game character along with “Mario” (who was known then as “Jumpman”) a huge part of pop gaming culture.

4. Metroid and Zelda (1987: Nes)

You are probably wondering why I grouped “Metroid” and “Zelda” together under position 4, well I think they explore the “adventure game” genre with the same innovation of the first non-linear game experiences although they both take very different directions with the gameplay, they also share many similarities, they are head and tails of the same coin so to speak. “Metroid” was designed by “Gunpei Yokoi” who designed the “Game boy”, and “Zelda” was designed by “Shigeru Miyamoto” (Miyamoto’s 4th game he designed), both releasing in the same year and console, the NES (“Nintendo Entertainment System”). At the time, all side scrolling games would only require the player to go left to right (one direction) whereas “Metroid” required to explore all directions (up, down, left and right) backtracking to previous areas using new found items/weapons to unlock new areas. This is a huge innovation towards gaming. It’s interesting to see how these two games have created two popular franchises which have shot off very different influences towards other games through the years of their evolution, like “Fable” games are inspired by the 3D Zelda games, “Castlevania” games are inspired by the 2D Metroid games, “Bioshock” (Sci-fi adventure FPS game) is inspired by the “Metroid Prime” titles. These two games have created the design template of ideals for the “Adventure game” genre and how many games can say that?

3 . Nintendo 64 controller with the 3D analog stick (1996: Nintendo 64)

Analog stick for games console controllers was nothing new as many 1970’s game consoles used the analog sticks on their controllers which proved inoperative with the games at the time which was replaced with the more suitable d-pad on successor controllers. “Nintendo” redesigned and modernized analog stick for Nintendo 64 controller enabling varied levels of pressure and 360-degree control within 3D space, translating into more precise movements in games such as “Super Mario 64”. In other words, they designed a controller for (at the time) the new evolution of gaming using 3D space and this was revolution by itself not just making Analog stick gaming standard for 3D gaming but how the games were designed with the full use of the controller and many gamers would argue that the games themselves wouldn’t be as good without the controller. This was the first controller to be designed with mentality/way of thinking; you could say that “Wii” has applied the same approach as the controller interface confines the experience of the gaming software. Yet again, this controller feature (just like Rumble Pak) was copied by Sony for the “PlayStation” with the “Dual Shock” releasing it two years later in 1998 with two analog sticks (a massive innovation in itself). For me, personally this still remains to be one of my favorite controllers for user comfort, button layout and controller design along with Xbox 360 controller for comfort, although 360 controller is evolution and the N64 controller will always be considered revolution in my book.

2 . Lock on system within Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998: Nintendo 64)

This is another one of Nintendo’s genius game design moments when they introduced to the world the “Lock on system” which first appeared within “Zelda: Ocarina of time” released for Nintendo 64 at 1998. Now every 3D game almost in existence uses the basic principles of the lock system enabling the player the ability to lock on/aim at moving target within 3D space. This is an amazing innovation which changed the way we play games and amazingly this system is still getting used with modern games development improving the concept/system with extra depth and mechanics like with Grand Theft Auto series with GTA 4. This is one of most reasons why this game is rated to be one of the best games ever made, as you always see “Zelda: Ocarina of time” within top 10 of any best games ever list and the other thing I can’t believe is how no one else has come up with alternative system as yet.

1. 3D camera control within Mario 64 (1996: Nintendo 64)

Mario 64 is certainly one of the most important 3D games ever made along with of course “Zelda: Ocarina of time” and titles like “Tomb raider”, “Quake”, “Virtua Fighter” which were the first create the core principles for 3D gaming. Mario 64's biggest achievement wasn't only the obvious transition of placing Mario from 2D to 3D world but the creation of the 3D camera system creating the simple principles which us gamers take for graded such as collision detection, level boundaries and the ability to change to a preferred camera angle following Mario around 3D environment so seamlessly. The user friendly controls via the N64 controller making the camera control seem so natural and non – mechanical running with such freedom and flexibility with great sense of energy unlike other previous attempts with 3D space movement, a lot of people believe that the N64 controller was built with Mario 64 in mind, which I deeply agree with. Even Mario 64 made the camera a character which I thought was charming touch/hint at Nintendo's own awareness of the importance for this 3D camera system, “Lakitu” is the camera man, if you remember that character? Mario 64 was so revolutionary for it's time not only changing the way 3D games are made but also the way we play them and even to this day, I don't think there even has been a game that has achieved so much but remains to be so playable to this day. A timeless classic that deserves the one number spot.

Nintendo’s 20 most inspirational and innovative products that changed the game industry - Part 3

10. Mario Party (1999: Nintendo 64)

The year of 1999 was the year for new Nintendo IP along with “Smash Bros” released on the same year. People think I’m nuts to include this within my top 20, the game on its own merits in regards of gameplay I agree, “Mario Party” games have never been the most solid executed games ever but “Mario Party” series were very original/experimental with unusual game formula for their time introducing the concept of mini games reflecting pure sillyness and fun which anyone can get into and enjoy. “Mario Party” created the basic principles of the “Party game” genre and created stark/demand for this type of genre hence Nintendo creating far better executed fun party title called “Wario Ware” in 2003 on “Game boy advance” (First game in the series) and both of these game series have inspired the industry in the recent years with titles such as “Rayman: Raving Rabbits” and “EA: playground” games especially on “Wii”. People would argue that I should place “Wario ware” within this position as “Wario Ware” titles have always been better conceived in regards of both gameplay and game sales but without “Mario Party” success; you wouldn’t have “Wario Ware” or probably the “Party game” genre.

9. Brain age/Brain Training (2006: Nintendo DS)

This is one of the first titles that embraced Nintendo recent conquest towards the casual gaming market back in 2006 and still sells by the bucket lot with 13 million sales so far worldwide and still remains placed within the top 40 chart after two years from release, impressive! Gamers intend dislike this new wave of “Quiz/puzzle” games but you can’t denide that Nintendo have been very clever and creative with the whole design approach towards these brain training games making them perfectly suitable for portable gaming. This is where the innovation taken its poll as it tries to emulate next evolutionarily step of crossword/sudoku puzzles due to it’s pick up and play nature and accessibility of varied play lengths varying from quick short bursts to full intense hours of gameplay popping a few new brain cells testing how logical brain is. This is why they proved so popular becoming the crossword puzzles of the 21st century.

8. Nintendo DS (2004)
I remember when Nintendo first unveiled the “Nintendo DS” back at E3 2004 and people thought “Nintendo” had lost the plot with its ugly blocky design (often compared to “Game and Watch” console) , gimmicky dual touch screens control scheme, lack of original titles which fully took advance of the DS’s hardware features. To be honest, I was so worried that Sony PSP would take over handheld market as it had promising propositions. Satoru Iwata had (Nintendo’s president) said "We have developed Nintendo DS based upon a completely different concept from existing game devices in order to provide players with a unique entertainment experience for the 21st century.” Nintendo have certainly have achieved that goal with diversity array of titles for appealing wide audiences of hardcore gamers, gamers, casual gamers, non- gamers, etc selling 77 million units worldwide so far with support of 586 DS titles smashing PSP out of the water. I think DS will eventually become most successful with more sales than “Game Boy” with a total of 118.69 million units worldwide (combined with “Game boy color” sales). Nintendo deserve their success as they took a big risk re-inventing what the handheld gaming is about as it could of easily went other way with Sony controlling a monopoly on the handheld gaming market.

7. Four player split screen games/console (1996/1997: Nintendo 64 with Mario kart and Goldeneye)

I remember playing Mario Kart 64 four player for the first time ever; it was magical moment for me which I hope never forget. Four player games was nothing new especially if you were pc gamer back then with games like “Doom” and “Duke Nukem” playing LAN or over the internet but it was niche market limited to hardcore gamers only. Myself and like many others, Nintendo 64 with games such as “Mario Kart 64” and “Goldeneye” were my first multiplayer experiences and Nintendo 64 made multiplayer gaming more accessible and mainstream with smaller requirements of only 4 controllers and TV than dedicated PC alternative. These days, Multiplayer gaming is huge part of social gaming culture with online services such as “Xbox live”, “PSN”, “Stream”, etc playing huge epic matches with millions of players all around the world but its not quite the same as killing your friend in the same room as you, seeing his/her reactions to your skills, screen watching to outdo your opponents. “Goldeneye” put multiplayer on the map for console games before then 99% of games were single player only affair whereas today it’s considered to be suicide to have a game without MP/online functionality especially on 360. “Goldeneye” was the first game where I wanted to create my own fun coming up with my own ways/modes of gameplay like the famous “One shot kills” with pistols which became legendary made-up way of playing “Goldeneye”. The way “Goldeneye” and “Mario Kart” were made with solid overall experience for both single player and multiplayer, I wish games were made like that today with that much thought, innovation and polish into the final products, they didn’t need patches nor download content, multiplayer games will never have the same impact but I’m maybe just old school!

6 . Super Mario Bros (1985: Nes)

You can’t miss to mention such important title for the industry such as “Super Mario Bros” in a list like this, like do I really need to say more? It’s “Super Mario Bros” the best selling video game of all time (selling over 40 million copies so far) putting Mario to be Nintendo’s most famous mascot and gaming icon. This is one of Shigeru Miyamoto's most influential early successes; as it has inspired countless imitators placing the platform genre as the main genre of the late 80’s and early 90’s with “Sonic” from Sega, “Zool” from Gremlin, “Dizzy” from Codemasters, “James Pond” from EA, etc. The success of “Super Mario Bros” has caused it to be ported to almost every one of Nintendo's major gaming consoles, in some form or another. “Super Mario Bros” was also largely responsible for the initial success of the “Nintendo Entertainment System” (Nes, Nintendo’s first games console), as well as ending the two year slump of video game sales in the US after the video game crash of 1983.