Different Mediums for Playing Games

[Fancy]

I have taken some Electronics classes where we talk a lot about computers and I hear of people making their own gaming computer from scratch which is pretty admirable in my opinion, but the debate between Consoles/Handhelds vs PC often arises. The PC in itself is very versatile and powerful, evidence of that is in the fact that the PC is the tool that composes the very games that go on Consoles and Handhelds.

Regardless, when playing games on the Console or on the Handheld, I think it has a particular feel to it that would be lost if it was on a PC or any other medium for playing the game! For Example, Main-Series Pokemon Games have always been on the handheld and they emphasize friendship, connectivity, and interaction on-the-go! If it were on a Console or a PC, you wouldn't get the same feeling of connectivity as encountering someone in your day, battling, and trading with them whilst also making a new friend in the process with you only carrying a little handheld in your pocket to do so (Pocket-Monsters).

Do you think that games can perhaps lose parts of the experience or genuine feel to the game if it were on different mediums for gaming (Such as Handheld Games on Consoles/PCs, Console Games on Handhelds/PCs, or PC Games on Handhelds/Consoles) and Why? I used an obvious example with Pokemon, but have you noticed any other games that would lose its feel/part-of-the-experience if on another Medium? Or, do you think games would retain its experience regardless of the medium of which it is played by?

 

[BigfootAUS]

I brushed over this a while ago in Forum Games, so here's a quote:

Certain games are good for certain areas. Simple games are good for phones (Flappy Bird, for example, would never be a success on the PC because that would've made it harder to be virally successful.) Simple YPPY games wouldn't work on a forum, and Drohn has said they're not allowed. So, if you're gonna do a YPPY game, think up a good concept/goal for it.

It's also worth noting that a lot of games' platforms are decided on very early in the development process so that the developers can make the most of the 'feel' that that platform provides. You'd either end up with a developer who is creating a game around the experience that a certain platform provides, or a developer who is creating a game and chopping bits off so that it will feel like the game belongs on that platform.

With big multiplatform games such as Assassin's Creed, people can play the game on all consoles and the PC as well. The difference in the gameplay experience then comes from the player: a PC gamer typically has "the curtain pulled back" and doesn't have the magic experience of just plugging in a game and playing it - there's modding, hacking, different controller setups, different 'battlestation' setups, etc etc. A console gamer typically doesn't care about the magic behind a game and simply plays the game for what it is and usually enjoys the gameplay experience a lot more because of that.

There's a good "Kids React" video where kids react to old computers and they point out that there's a lot of setting up to do before people can play games on old PCs, and that still holds true to today. Setting up a game to play it VS "plug 'n' play" affects a game's experience a lot, which is why consoles and handhelds manage to exist even to this very day. It just provides a smoother experience for the player, and that's what the majority of people like.

And this brings me back to my quote and how I mentioned Flappy Bird: It's a phone game. Press a button, game loads. Press a button, game starts. If you die, press a button and play again. There's no computer crashing, no controller batteries dying, no complex menus or setting up, you can just play the game with minimal "setting up" fuss and boom, you're having a memorable experience. If Flappy Bird was on any other medium, the experience it provided just wouldn't be the same and it would've been much harder to become a viral sensation.

 

[Athena]

I don't really play many games on the computer because it simply feels weird to my brain. I use my PC primarily for online communication (skype, forums, facebook) and work (writing). When I do play games, they're usually simple time fillers, like dumb FB games or solitaire. I will occasionally play a ROM (though I prefer my Wii for that) or a Steam game, but it's difficult for me to get into. Thankfully, there aren't all too many games that I'm interested in that can only be played on a computer, so I guess that's not a big deal for me. There are exceptions, like Plants vs. Zombies and The Sims, but most of those games use frameworks that would be more difficult on a console anyway. It's the more console-like games that I have a problem with.

Handheld has always been my personal, preferred method of gaming, probably because that's where I started. The first real gaming console I owned was a Game Boy Color that I got as a secret present from my aunt (because my parents were anti-gaming); later, I saved up enough money and bought a GBASP. I never actually owned a proper full console myself until I got a Wii, so much of my early gaming was done on portable. I like the ability to curl up on a comfy couch or bed or corner of the floor or wherever I like to play a game, and some of my favourite game series have been strong in the handheld market (Pokémon, Fire Emblem, Phoenix Wright).

Consoles are definitely nice, and they provide a nice environment for long-term gaming. Using a controller is nice for my hands (as opposed to keyboard/mouse or portable device for very long periods) and you have a lot of options. The controller is definitely the best part, though, at least for me. My husband has homebrew set up on his Wii so that we can play ROMs and stuff, and I really love being able to play some games that I've only been able to ROM previously (like Chrono Trigger). It's also very nice for multiplayer gaming, and any kind of game where a lot of detail is needed since TVs are much larger than the handheld screen.

I don't have a smart phone and I've only recently gotten a tablet, so I don't have all too much experience with the mobile gaming market, but I haven't been really impressed with it too far. I loved the first PvZ, for example, but the mobile PvZ2 too is very cash grabby, boring, and artificially difficult. I don't really care for the whole micro-transaction model that so many of these games thrive on. So I have my Candy Crush that I play occasionally (and have never given any money to), and... that's about it.

Funnily enough, there is one game that I've played on.... numerous different gaming experiences. The original sidescrolling Sonic the Hedgehog games. I played them all (the original all the way through Sonic 3 & Knuckles) at daycare on our Sega Saturn, and then later had them at home when we got our very first computer in 1999 since the games came on disks with the computer (we actually got a shittonne of games with out computer; it was pretty great). My sister later got a Sonic pack for her PS2 that I played with her, and I got the same collection on my DS. My previous mobile phone also offered the original Sonic as a download (not a smartphone, but one of those flip keyboard phones; it was a pain in the ass to play). When I bought a Sega CD to play Lunar, I also got an original Sonic 2 cart, so I was able to play that again, and the the various Sonic games were some of the first games I ever purchased on Steam. So. Much. Sonic. Though for those games I do think the console controllers were better than handheld.

 

[xxashxx]

I know they use computers to create the frames of games and the characters items stages and how the game will operate on the corresponding system(s) but I am not sure how they transfer all that data to a 3DS memory card or a CD for Wii though. Also past systems are not excluded. The transferring part would be interesting to see because I wonder what they use to transfer data to the systems they create but I know they use desktop computers for the major core of every game and they start out by using a wire framed program to create everything the make for every game.

 

[BigfootAUS]

I know they use computers to create the frames of games and the characters items stages and how the game will operate on the corresponding system(s) but I am not sure how they transfer all that data to a 3DS memory card or a CD for Wii though. Also past systems are not excluded. The transferring part would be interesting to see because I wonder what they use to transfer data to the systems they create

They typically have two options when they manufacture the games for retail: Either create the cartridge/disc/etc and burn the game software to that item (like how you'd burn a DVD with a movie to run it on your DVD player), OR (as they'd commonly do back in previous systems) write the game software to a circuitboard and insert it into the cartridge. You'd also have to note that game manufacturers have access to specialized hardware specifically for manufacturing games; while we have SD card readers, Nintendo has 3DS cartridge readers.

I personally prefer digitally packaging my games just because I can click 'export', shove the results on to my chosen platform (usually Android or Windows phones), and install the game. No fuss with physical media~

but I know they use desktop computers for the major core of every game and they start out by using a wire framed program to create everything the make for every game.

Can confirm, 'wire framed programs' aren't usually used for specifically for game development any more. I know some people like to make games in Blender (there was a guy doing a Super Mario 64 remake in that, I think), but typically only animators and artists will see wireframes at any point in development. Maybe testers and programmers, but that really depends on how the game is being developed.
Because I'm an animator and 3D modeller, this is what I spend a lot of my time seeing - a wireframe program:

Spoiler

[img=853x480]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/97142242/Screenshot%20(139).png[/img]

What usually happens is that artists, animators, programmers, designers, etc etc, will compile all their work into one game engine. This game engine can visualize what the game will look like and make development a lot easier. It also helps developers see and play what they're building! I use Unity 3D for my realtime (game) stuff:

Spoiler: Before compiling

[img=853x480]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/97142242/Screenshot%20(140).png[/img]

Spoiler: What the actual thing will look like

[img=853x480]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/97142242/Screenshot%20(141).png[/img]

(Remember to right-click and open those images in new tabs to see them at full size!)

Then, the developer uses their development kits (specially modified versions of their chosen gaming medium) to export their game to a dedicated gaming platform (or PCs) and test it. Developers will constantly do this just so they can actually experience the experience they're making on their chosen gaming medium/platform.

I had this one game that was great on the PC but horrible on my phone because my phone screen was so tiny. I didn't export and test my game enough, so I didn't get the proper experience that I was aiming for on my chosen platform. I had to redesign a lot of my game so I'd be providing the experience I wanted players to go through on smartphones. It's a rookie error. Of course, I'm just a uni student and not an actual professional yet, so professionals won't get this problem! =P

To go back to my first post in this thread: "It's also worth noting that a lot of games' platforms are decided on very early in the development process so that the developers can make the most of the 'feel' that that platform provides. "
It's a huge aspect in game development and is very very important to the final product. You can often judge how good a game developer is by how 'natural' their game feels on the platforms they released the game on.
Nintendo is lucky in that they have a lot of first-party exclusives and don't have to spread their experience out on so many platforms. Super Smash Bros is going to stretch this; when the Wii U version comes out, compare it to the 3DS version. Which one will feel more 'natural' on its platform? The Smash Bros series has typically been a console thing, but does it feel any better/worse on the handheld 3DS? Does it feel about the same? Ideally it should feel roughly the same (aside from obvious graphical differences), which would mean that HAL Laboratory/Namco Bandai/Nintendo did a really really good job on SSB4. I guess we'll have to wait and see to know for sure!

 

[Warrior Weasel 1986]

I have Final Fantasy XIV for both the PC and PS4; I much prefer to play on my PC. It's not even a matter of controls as I play with a controller (albeit an Xbox 360 controller) on my PC. I'm not really sure why.. Maybe because that's how I've been playing it for a few years now?

I've always liked consoles better and I actually bought the PS4 because I planned on switching from PC but in the end it's just another expensive paper weight as, I had mentioned, I still prefer it on the PC.

Besides the Sims games it's the only game I have for PC so I can't really add too much more to the conversation..

 

[xxashxx]

Yeah same Here but can you trade on Wi-Fi if you do that? I don't think I have seen an actual 3DS circuit board but I have seen a circuit board for the SNES for Super Star Wars which I have played before the programmers were completely done with the game. I have an older brother that works for the company and in 1992 and 1995 I had exclusive access to the rooms where they created the games and I played a few SNES games and the circuit board was wide open and me and my sister were the first to make it to the 2nd level of Super Star Wars. The Guys said go as far as you can until you loose all your lives and we went for a very loooong time before we lost and before the finish line was even on that level too. There were a few wires and a big wire connected to the system and the top of the game pak was not closed up yet. The programmers were shocked we made it past the first boss too. I have seen the PC's they use and what they did at the time to create the games. It was really cool too.