#thesteamproject

[thesteamproject-blog]

Longevity in Games: Counter-Strike Source

Games Played: #6

Title: Counter-Strike Source – Steam Page

Time Played – 12 Hours

Total Time Played: 659 Hours

This is a hard one. Named as number three in my Top 20 Games of All Time and reviewed in 143 words over here, Counter-Strike: Source (CSS) is a game that keeps on giving. I’ve already devoted 659 hours to the game (just behind World of Warcraft) and it sits as my second most played game ever. Fact.

Longevity is a good topic for Counter-Strike (touched upon in my ode). It’s been seven years since the game was released on Steam. Most FPSs struggle with seven months. FPS churn is a major issue in the industry and it's causing many studios to shy away from the immensely popular genre. Why then does Counter-Strike survive?

You can’t argue its focus – most multiplayer shooters are built with MP and teamplay in mind (although aside from TF2 very few manage to actually get teamplay to work). It’s not its maps. Realistically only four / five of the roster are played. Office, Dust 1 & 2, Train, Italy, Tides. OK, I’m joking with Tides.

Fire in the Hole

Maybe it’s the modding community, something that’s proved particularly strong. Zombie Escape is massively popular and arguably spawned Left 4 Dead. Gun Game has recently been announced as an officially developed mode for upcoming Counter-Strike: Global Offensive called Arsenal. Fight Yards, AWP maps, Deagle arenas – all these things lead to replay. Counter-Strike is a platform for entertainment, not just a game.

It’s arguably the most successful of Valve’s franchises. It’s the game that keeps giving. Its lifespan isn’t yearly, rather it’s generational. It lives on, never-ending. It’s first person shooting in its rawest of forms. It might not be as welcoming as Call of Duty or Battlefield, but it’s a better multiplayer experience.

People will stick to a server for years. If I return to the [INC] Office only server, people are still there from five years ago. The same goes for Bloodlords Gun Game – All Round Champion and Raiden are as old as the maps.

In an ad-hoc world of digital shooting, there’s generally no community for those unwilling to join a clan. Counter-Strike isn’t the same. Mixing and IRC clan organisation are things casual players don’t have time for (I’d still class myself as low-mid skill – in contrast, I’d put myself as a high-skilled player in CoD).

Counter-Strike manages to plug that gap. You feel wanted. It’s an old friend, just the one that wants to shoot you in the face.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Getting Into Character: Aliens vs. Predator

Games Played: #4

Title: Aliens vs. Predator (2010) – Steam Page

Time Played – 30 Minutes

Total Time Played: 10 Hours

Two weeks ago I looked at Alien Swarm, the Source SDK game that’s free to download. To continue the extraterrestrial trend I spent some time with the 2010 reboot Aliens vs. Predator today. Having completed the single player on release, I thought its multiplayer would be good to try.

You see, the Spring of 2006 saw substantial time spent in my local LAN cafe playing AVP2. We’d all get into character playing Evacuation as we tried to survive. One would play as the Predator, meticulously planning their attack, slowly picking off the Marines. The others would blind-fire and team kill in the fear-induced panic. It was marvellous and while it was slower paced compared to other games of the time, we were all Aliens / Predator fans and let imaginations run wild.

2010’s remake struggled to find this escapism. Its campaign was short and unfulfilling. It had some nice touches, but never felt you were the characters you were supposed to be. It boiled down to a Press-E to win game that destroyed any impression of hunting your prey / being under siege from a hidden source.

Speaking of which, the only other game to elicit such a experience was Hidden: Source, the fantastic free HL2 mod.

Pure Prey                 

AVP (2010) is an example of wasted promise. Sure, its atmospheric lighting engine successfully recreates the Aliens / Predator feeling of dread. It just doesn’t have the enjoyment factor to back it up. After ten minutes of server searching, I found a populated server. Infestation was fun, but Predator Hunt begun to relight my nostalgic fires.

As the Predator, I’d be motionless, waiting for a Marine to distance himself from the pack. My instincts from yesteryear quickly returned. I remembered how to play, leaving the remaining players confused and firing at each other. I was pouncing around, setting off decoys, using the motion scanner to scare. The VoIP taunts were testament to my skill.

With the right amount of patience, 2010’s AVP echoes the greatness of its predecessor. After all, there’s nothing quite as thrilling as a Marine staring right through your cloak as you stay motionless. You think they’ve clocked the glimmer, but they scurry away unaware of their impending death.

And did I sure bring death.

[thesteamproject-blog]

Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Augmenting like a Boss

Games Played: #1

Title: Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Steam Page

Time Played: 3 Hours

Total Time Played: 16 Hours

Yesterday I kicked off The Steam Project proceedings with musings on Deus Ex: Human Revolution’s representation of Asia, a setting not often seen in games. Today’s about the functionality of boss battles and whether they’re still a legitimate development choice.

With many genres, test-your-might incidents have waned in popularity. Games have moved on, partly because technology has allowed it, but also because player tastes have shifted. Skill isn’t necessary the key metric. Narrative exploration, multiplayer competitiveness and artistic merit are stronger drivers. Many critics think bosses are defunct – an archaic concept that needs to be removed from the future. They’re barriers, preventing many from continuing their enjoyment of a game.

This is particularly relevant to Human Revolution. Its bosses are ludicrously difficult, often throwing you into battle with little ammunition or idea how to defeat the opponent. It breaks the game’s flow, taking the player away from an immersive universe.

Leader of Men

It is a ceremonial presentation – a definitive challenge; a fragmented objective – beat the individual to proceed. There is no alternative way pass – the answer always violence. You can’t sneak your way past. Neither can you elicit the help of your silver tongue. A gigantic roadblock and one that has caused many to give up on the game.

It goes against Deus Ex’s philosophy of presenting the player with open-ended gaming. Yes, choices are often limited to dialogue, stealth or violence, but that’s still a choice.

The battles of wit are a better inclusion. They offer the same purpose; reveal major plot points, break up narrative chapters and progress the game. Instead, they can’t be failed. They don’t need to be repeated. You live with your decisions, but you are never halted in your tracks. DE:HR would have been a better game if it’d left the boss battling in the 90s and gone with its clever dialogue mechanics.

What do you think? Let me know on Twitter.