I want to talk some more about me and gaming. Here is yesterday’s post in which I talked about indies versus AAA games. Funnily enough, one of the big debates this year for The Game Awards is what is an indie game versus a AAA game. Why? Because Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (Sandfall Interactive) is nominated for (among other awards) Game of the Year, Best Indie Game of the Year, and Best Debut Indie Game of the Year. Polygon wrote a great article about this, including the fact that CO:33 feels more Double A than indie.
To me, I think that if a game is up for Best Game of the Year, maybe it should not also be up for Best Indie AND Best Indie Debut. I know that CO:E33 does qualify for all these categories, but I would liek to see the love being spread around. I didn’t realize just how loosey-goosey The Game Awards are, and they really don’t mean anything (other than attention for the winners). Basically, different outlets nominate games in the different categories, and then people vote. There is no curating of the choices, so if a thousand people want to write in a decade-old game for one category, they can.
That’s why there are so few surprises, really, and why tthe awards skew towards the popular. I’m not saying that as if it’s a bad thing, by the way. Just that smaller titles aren’t going to get the love that the behemoths get. Or the critical darlings that everyone rallies around. They are safe choices, ones that go down agreeably with the masses.
Again, I am not slamming the awards for that–ok, yes, I am. Just a little, though. Can we at least have one category that is for the freaks and weirdos out there? A category that recognizes truly small games–and that is not a diss on Hades II (Supergiant Games) or Silksong (Team Cherry). They worked hard and they deserve all the flowers they get.
But, I will always have a very warm space in my heart for the oddballs and the misfits. The devs with so much heart, even if their games aren’t beloved by more than a very dedicated small group of people. I have several games that I played this year which would fit into this category, and in fact, I may do a whole post on them at some time closer to the end of the year.
Here’s the thing. I don’t care for many of the more popular categories (I’m talking about multiplayer games, mostly). That leaves out a huge swath of games that I will just never touch. I also don’t have a Switch or a Switch 2, so I don’t play Nintendo games. I’m fine with taht as most of them don’t seem like my type of game, either. Or, if they are, I can find similar games on the PC.
I don’t have a problem with only liking certain kinds of games, many of which are lucky to sell a hundred thousand to five hundred thousand copies. Well, mostly liking niche games. FromSoft is a bit of an anomaly, but they started out as a plucky underdog company that didn’t get the recognition they deserved. They became an industry darling with Bloodborne, but it was only with the advent of Elden Ring that they broke into the international zeitgeist. Now, they are definitely considered a popular Triple A company, which might mean they aren’t quite as creative as they used to be.
The Game Awards are much like any other big awards show–a popularity contest. it’s not a question of the best in each category (if there is such a thing). It’s what has the most buzz and catches the attention of the populace in any given year. It’s still fun to watch The Game Awards, but it’s unwise to put too much emphasis on it or creedence to its walue.
I will be very surprised if Clair Obscur doesn’t take home at least a half the–
OK. I have to say that I’m currently watching the Golden Joystick Awards which I have included above. I am very pleased that they have a category called “Best Independent Game (Self-Published)”, and one of the games I’m giving an award to this year was nominated.
I have to say that the Golden Joystick Awards are better than The Game Awards–they just are. They’re vetted more carefully (or at all, really), and the process is taken much more seriously. Sure, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is going to take home the lion’s share of the awards, but at least there is a wider variety of nominees in a better array of categories.
It’s interesting to watch this awards show versus TGA show. The differences are more than just that the former is British and the latter is American. The latter is mostly ads with a few awards sprinkled in whereas the former is 90% awards/games/studios focused.
What I hope to see next year: Less soulslikes. That’s controversial, I know, but I’m so tired of them because they’re just inferior versions of the real thing. Most of them take one or two aspects of a From game and repeat that, much to my dismay. And they all do the same aspect. Right now , it’s the fucking deflect from Sekiro. I did not like it in that game, and I have no interest in any game that makes the deflect the main (or only) combat option.
I’m gritting my teeth and trying to wait it out, but it’s tiresome in the meantime. It’s just time for me to admit that I don’t like soulslikes. I only like the real thing because any of the imitators just don’t capture what I like about the originals. It’s not the fucking parry/deflect (which, my god. Seriously. Give it a fucking rest), but the level design, the exploration, and the unexpected discoveries. No, it’s not even the bosses–which I accept as part of the package, but not the reason I play the games.
I am open to trying different kinds of games in the new year, but I know myself. There are genres that I just don’t like, and I will not play. Other than those, though, I hope to step out of my comfort zone, even if it’s just by a step or two.