By Joel Smart (The Cascade) – Email
Date Posted: September 1, 2011
Print Edition: August 25, 2011
Growing distractions and the increased age of most gamers has led to reports that only one player in every 10 ever makes it to the final credits in an average video game. Although it is likely that the completion rate for most video games has always been relatively low, especially when compared with other media, the rates are headed in the wrong direction according to a recent article featured on CNN.
It was revealed in the article that even top-sellers, critically acclaimed for their quality and storytelling are subject to the same fate. Raptr, a company that has tracked well over 23 million gaming sessions, reported that “Game of the Year” Red Dead Redemption fit exactly into this percentage. It’s a pretty shocking realization as the industry fights for legitimacy and respect as an artistic medium.
Imagine if only one in ten finished watching one of the best-selling films released last year. Most people will never be able to talk about the game’s resolution or gain any kind of insight that the game’s creators intended. To say it isn’t an ideal situation is to put it lightly.
Unlike a film, most games take a considerably longer amount of time to complete. People might invest anywhere from 20 to 100 hours into Red Dead Redemption before making it to the end of the game. Yet, in a world where the average gamer is working a job and often trying to manage a family and a personal life, such a hefty time commitment is asking a lot. With the increased number of quality games available, the pressure to buy and try new and better games can often increase the pressure to abandon a game before the end. Add onto that the fact that gamers are large users of social media like Facebook, Google+ and Twitter and it’s easy to see why they might be less willing to spend an entire evening gaming without distraction than in the past. Times have changed, at least for most gamers.
Shorter, cheaper games that can be played in bite-sized increments can make all the difference, according to CNN. Although games of this variety exist, it’s a strategy that needs wider implementation. Unfortunately, a lot of what made Red Dead Redemption special would be lost if it was cut down to a 10 hour game, let alone a game you could play through in an evening like a film. As well, the thrill of getting lost in the wilderness on horseback wouldn’t be the same in a short bite-sized gaming session. The vastness of the world created for the game would not come across.
As the industry strives to better serve its audience, perhaps the grand epics will fade away (much to the chagrin of basement-dwellers around the globe). Perhaps more likely though, the epics will emulate television (how many hours did we all still manage to invest into Lost again?). Red Dead Redemption could easily have been re-written into chapters or episodes offered for much cheaper prices than full games. Would gamers be more likely to invest an hour a week the way they do with TV shows? Grand Theft Auto IV and a recent Back to the Future game tried something relatively similar. With a bit more fine-tuning, maybe a new era in gaming will arise and players will finally know what it feels like to finish what they started.
