As Capcom unveil more on Pragmata, Onimusha, and Resident Evil Requiem at Gamescom, a reader applauds their approach to making sequels.
If you want to make a movie sequel then there are certain limitations. Actors get old and while there are beginning to be ways round that problem, they only work to a degree. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny was a flop but, ironically, the game The Great Circle was much better received and managed to seem more authentic despite none of the original actors or writers or directors being involved.
No doubt they’ll keep on with the digitally de-aged actors thing but the reality is that at some point the originals just aren’t going to be there and you’ve either got to recast or give up. Will there ever be an Indiana Jones without Harrison Ford? Or a Back to the Future reboot? They’ll probably try at some point, but I don’t see it working. Those films owe too much of their success to the original actors and creative people.
Video games are nothing like this though. Often there’s not a single voice actor for a character and it’s not common at all to have the same director or writers every time. Video game companies chop and change what characters they use all the time, with a freedom they’d never have if these were actors on a contract.
The point I’m trying to make is that video game sequels will never stop. Unless a game becomes so unpopular it’s no longer worth it (which will probably never happen with most series, as they can just be downsized to indie or mobile games – just look how they’re brining back Ninja Gaiden) a video game franchise will go on forever.
That’s good for publishers trying to make a buck but it means these games don’t exist because someone had a vision for them, but because some exec told them: ‘We need a sequel out by next year.’
I’m not saying this as a complaint or anything, they’re businesses after all, but there’s a certain pressure where something has to be released and a bad sequel is better than no sequel, in the eyes of the publisher.
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And that’s why I want to praise Capcom for Resident Evil. It’s not like there haven’t been bad sequels – most people would agree Resident Evil 6 was awful and 5 wasn’t great – but even those ones were attempts at something different. It wasn’t like they were just copies of the previous games they were making an effort at doing something new.
It seems obvious to me that this is the secret to success and now we have the preview of Resident Evil Requiem that says it’s the complete opposite of Resident Evil Village, even though that was such a big seller. As far as I understand there’s no guns in what has been show so far and it’s super scary, which is nothing like Village.
Then on top of that they’ve got this new Onimusha game that is apparently good and the new game Pragmata. I know it’s not a good idea to say you’ve got a favourite company or anything, because companies don’t have favourite customers, but I think if a lot more publishers acted like Capcom then everyone would be a lot better off right now.
Publishers would be making more money, developers wouldn’t be getting laid off, and gamers would be getting great games. Everyone’s happy. Unfortunately, that’s not how it usually works out but I’m glad that it is for one of my favourite franchises.
By reader Candale
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