Developer Warren Spector had some serious criticisms during his keynote at PAX Australia 2015. This isn't the first time he's criticized broader trends within the industry.
“We are all part of a medium nothing else can do: collaborative storytelling. And I think it’s important that we embrace that capability," said Spector. But he didn't stop there. He specifically called out Uncharted, The Walking Dead, and Heavy Rain as examples of games that don't take full advantage of the collaborative storytelling quality of videogames.
“It’s not that games like this are bad, but they limit your ability to interact with the game world, so the story can unfold the way the storyteller wants it to unfold," argued Spector. "You have very limited ability to express yourself; it’s about how do you accomplish a predetermined path to get to the next plot point.”
Indeed, there's been a large debate within the gaming community over the type of story these games create. Spector is voicing an opinion echoed by many others. The biggest criticism of games like these is that they're more like movies than games.
“If all you want to do is show off how clever you are, get out of my medium!" said Spector of these developers. "Go make a movie or something, because that’s what you should be doing." Harsh.
Naughty Dog disagreed, however. Community strategist Arne Meyer responded in a Q&A panel at PAX Australia. Meyer said that “right now, in the industry, we have such an great opportunity to create many different games, from blockbuster triple-A studios to indie studios, to address every type of play style and every type of ‘want’ that you could want in a game." Meyer appreciated the feedback but felt that Spector's criticism wasn't forward-thinking. Telltale Games and Quantic Dream have yet to respond.
