A Rant on Episodic Content - Page 2 of 2

A Rant on Episodic Content

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So how does this translate to video games? Essentially it means chopping up a game into smaller chunks, releasing them separately, and charging less for them. The current examples I mentioned above are priced at $20, which isn't much more than an expensive movie ticket and lasts for significantly longer. In this way, game developers can publish games which the market traditionally doesn't support very well, and still make a profit (ie. Bone, a point&click adventure). In some sense, though, it's simply a matter of reframing an idea. Expansion packs have been around for a long time, and that's what Valve's Episodes are. They reuse the engine and assets from Half-life 2, simply adding a bit of new story and content. Does it matter what they call it? I say yes. It gets us used to the concept, paving the way for games that are episodic from the get-go.

The new Sam & Max game will also use episodic content delivery.

This model won't work for all games, though. Episodic content is essentially best suited for story-driven games, just as television is story-driven. I see it encompassing FPSs, RPGs, perhaps even platformers, and of course adventure games. The Movie-style games don't necessarily have to be narratically coherent, as long as they keep the audience distracted with enough nifty content; in this box I'll throw sports, fighting, and possibly action/adventure games. The current model of video games isn't going to disappear, it's going to grow to include new styles. Evolution, not revolution.

I'm excited, if only because story-driven games are my favourite type. If the emergence of episodic gaming means the return of Sam & Max, I'm happy. Who cares if I end up spend $120 to get all six planned episodes, instead of $50 for a one-shot game? I'll end up with a lot more content in the end, and the cost will be spread over most of a year, rather than a one-time bite out of my wallet. I say bring on the episodic games. I recently read that American McGee is planing episodic content based on Grimm's fairytales. Just please, please leave the commercials in TV-land.

Opinion piece by David Pettitt.
Sep 17, 2006

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