The Monday letters page discovers just how much triple-A video games cost to make, as one reader is convinced GTA 6 will end up being hated by fans.
Games Inbox is a collection of our readers’ letters, comments, and opinions. To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@metro.co.uk
Switching plans
Seeing how expensive components are at the moment I wonder how this is going to affect the Switch 2 Lite? We all assumed this was a given for Nintendo, a couple of years after the original launch, but now I’m not so sure. The Switch doesn’t have a hard drive, so that’s not a problem, but it has a lot of RAM so trying to cook with a different recipe seems like it might not be possible at the moment.
That’s a shame for me as I was waiting for the Lite before I get the console, since I never used the original in TV mode. And because it was cheaper. Now I’m thinking I should probably just buy the current model as soon as possible or it’ll increase in price.
At this point, even if the Switch 2 did come out it’d probably be no cheaper than the original was at launch anyway, so I’d barely be gaining anything. This generation really has been a disaster on every level, even if not all of it is anyone’s fault.
Saint
Undead formats
I find myself agreeing with most of what the Reader’s Feature said about Xbox and PlayStation already being dead. We can all see Xbox is just running itself into the ground but I don’t see any sign from Sony that they’ve got any real plan for the future.
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For either of these companies, if their plan revolves around people buying new hardware then they’re doomed, because nobody’s got the money or the inclination. As other people have said, Nintendo got really lucky releasing the Switch 2 when they did. Even just another couple of months and things would’ve got a lot worse for them.
Sony and Microsoft aren’t so lucky and since they seem to be out of ideas for doing anything different I don’t see them surviving for long as they are. Sony will be fine as just a publisher but I bet they take too long to admit to themselves that’s all they’re good for.
It’s the children who are wrong
Given the amount of time people have been waiting for it, and the state of Bethesda (and Microsoft) at the moment, I don’t see any way that The Elder Scrolls 6 doesn’t turn out a massive disappointment. How it will sell I couldn’t say, but I don’t get the feeling that the name The Elder Scrolls is anyway nearly as well-known as Skyrim.
Fallout is much more likely to come out well if Obsidian is doing it but if The Elder Scrolls 6 being a disaster is what causes real change at Bethesda it will be for the best. Things should have changed massively after Starfield and I don’t get the feeling it did at all. They just tried to convince themselves that it was good and people didn’t understand it properly.
Focus
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Unlikely prediction
I know the game has already made enough money to run a small country, but I think GTA 6 is going to go down as one of the most hated games in history and a massive watershed moment in gaming.
Not only has it helped to give the excuse to kill off physical media, obviously talks were going on behind the scenes with Sony/Microsoft and Rockstar, but now government digital ID checks are coming in to be able play it (do Rockstar get government grants?).
The fact that nothing has been shown of the game says to me that’s it’s going to be pretty awful and a buggy mess when released. None of that matters because everyone has rushed out to pre-order a digital game and the money has already been made. Plus, once the online stuff turns up (late 2027?) then it will just be another money printing machine.
The future of gaming is very bleak and I can’t see anything out there to turn it around at this point.
Simon
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Award snub
It’s a shame 007 First Light is going to miss out on any game of the year awards this year because of GTA 6, because I agree that it really is great and a better action movie than most actual movies. People talk about the training montage, quite rightly, but the game is filled with clever and fun stuff, and that’s before you even get into whether it’s Bond or not.
Any game released this year is going to be steamrollered by GTA 6 so not only are all those games coming out in September going to eat each other’s sales they’re not going to get as much critical attention as they deserve because of Rockstar’s monster.
Taylor Moon
Shmup gold
I know GC were fans, but I’d like to say if you’re looking for a modern 2D shooter with sky high production values and bold and engaging mechanics that shake up the genre, then I’d heartily recommend the excellent Cygni: All Guns Blazing.
Although it features a pretty comprehensive tutorial, the game doesn’t do that great of a job explaining the intricate game play systems, but once you’ve done a few runs and adjusted to the central power distribution management aspect of its design (think the X-Wing series and Star Wars Squadrons) there’s a riveting, challenging, and visually sumptuous experience to be had.
The gameplay loop involves activating attack mode to enhance your armaments and lay waste to the deluge of interstellar opposition with homing missiles, then swiftly switch back to defensive mode to amplify your shield reserves and absorb hits; like the same way traffic smashing mechanic in Burnout Revenge.
Knitting your brows, dodging scores of laser beams and deadly pyrotechnics, oscillating between defensive and offensive modes, and engaging with aerial and ground forces with ambidextrous aplomb, all whist sweeping up the energy items to prolong your survival as you deal with the torrent of arrivals. To describe the experience as exhilarating would be an understatement.
GG
Buyer’s remorse
It doesn’t seem that long ago all the gaming news was about Microsoft desperate to buy Activision Blizzard and paying $70+ billion for them. I wonder if they just wished they hadn’t bothered now or do you think they will turn a profit on the deal?
Same with ZeniMax for $7 billion – that doesn’t seem to have gone great either.
Mark Matthews
GC: We doubt there’s anyone at Microsoft that doesn’t regret buying Activision Blizzard, since it accelerated Xbox’s demise into the mess you see now. Phil Spencer, in particular, must be wishing he never suggested it.
The cost of fun
It’s shocking that when I asked the internet how much it costs to make a triple-A PlayStation 5 game the answer came back as between $200 to $300 million dollars. And Grand Theft Auto 6’s production and advertising costs are expected to be more than that.
I guess I shouldn’t find these astronomical figures that surprising after watching the end credits roll on for ages after completing 007 First Light a short while ago. But $200 to $300 million? Is a single game really worth that level of investment? And isn’t most game production done by using software engines and tools nowadays, so developers no longer have to code a title from scratch.
In the movie industry, throwing bags of money into the production of a film is no guarantee of artistic quality or commercial success. Think of how many ultra low budget films have out-performed conventional blockbusters. If this is a fact it stands to reason that low budget games can perform better creatively and financially than the $200 to $300 million dollar triple-A releases.
I can’t help but think that the core fundamentals of a game, specifically whether it’s fun to play or not, just don’t cost that much to create. Back in the eighties there were some classic games that were made by single programmers who often pulled off coding miracles with next to no budget.
Michael Veal
GC: Publishers don’t want to make the modest profits of a low budget production; they want to make GTA and Fortnite money. Keep that in mind and their actions are easy to understand, even if they are nonsense.
Inbox also-rans
I wish Capcom would bring back Final Fight, I always like that better than Streets Of Rage. Doesn’t have to be super big budget, just something a bit more modern looking.
Ransom
Did I blink and miss it or was Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave not in the summer Nintendo Direct? I don’t remember seeing it at all.
Pascal3
GC: It was in there, briefly. It got a September 17 release date.
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