Can the developers be blamed?

– Posted on December 10, 2014Posted in: Culture

Logan Hamby
Reporter

Anyone who has ever gamed, or played a video game in their life, can say that one of the most unsettling things that can happen is when their favorite game developer sells out or sells the right to their favor. As an avid gamer myself I have seen the effects that follow when one of a gamer’s favorite game developer is sold or bought out. It can be one of the most crushing things that can happen.

Many gamers can be cited saying that some of their favorite video game franchises have been ruined because of this situation. At that point the fan then stops buying the new studios games and simply play the ones that bring back good memories. The gamers state, without understanding, that they no longer like that studio or its games. But what many fail to realize is that sometimes the studio doesn’t have a choice in the matter.

Rareware

A good example of this is the studio Rareware. During the 1990’s Rareware developed games for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, the Nintendo 64, and other systems. Many video game players who grew up during the 90’s state that Rareware produced some of the best games for that era. Games such as “Donkey Kong Country”, “Killer Instinct”, “Goldeneye 007”, and “Banjo-Kazooie” were staples in many homes.

During 2002 however, Rareware studios was bought out in its entirety by Microsoft. Many fans cite this as the point at which Rareware began to decline. Rareware went from producing some of the most critically acclaimed games of all time to producing titles that most players don’t even consider decent. It stands to justify this belief.

Being bought out by another company, isn’t always a bad thing, though. A good example of this is the studio Insomniac Games. Insomniac produced some of my favorite games of all time. One such series was “Spyro the Dragon”. Insomniac allowed another developer to create a reboot of the “Spyro” series, this reboot being known as “The Legend of Spyro”. This game series came to be a personal favorite of my own brother.

A studio selling out, or selling the rights to a favored game series isn’t always a bad thing. It can lead to many new paths and ideas. Gamers shouldn’t be dissuaded simply because their favorite studio no longer makes their favorite games.