Alright here's the question . I was wondering ... why do some developers release terrible games when they know its not gonna sell ? I mean , if you take time polishing it up , making it unique (please don't tell me there is only so much you can do with a touch screen . You've yet to utilise your brain to its full capacity as you lack lateral thinking) , it will stand out . I'm not saying every game has to be different . There can be some similarities , you just need to make them unique . Take Cut the Rope and Splitter Pals for example . There are some stages in SP where you have to cut the rope as well but are they different ? Yeah they are . Maybe it wouldn't be as popular like Tiny Wings or Angry Birds but those that buy it will leave good reviews . And besides , the less popular it is , the lesser chance it'd be cloned multiple times plus with good reviews , if we stumble upon them , the chance of us buying it would be higher (Yes I know I'm generalising) . Take Collision Effect or Max and the Magic Marker for example . Is it very popular ? I don't think so . Is it good ? Extremely . If I stumbled upon them , will I buy it ? After doing some research into the game (e.g. looking at reviews from both game critics and people who've bought it) , if they've good reviews , i'll certainly buy it . I would like both the community's and the developer's view on this . I'd certainly love to have less terrible apps / games on the appstore and more hidden gems .
Because devs don't understand their game is bad. The gameplay is fun, the controls work perfectly, it's not too hard, they like the art, ect. because it's all balanced to their tastes.
Each to his own , I understand that . But that's not what I was asking . This again fits in with the point of being unique . But when I mean bad , I mean it's terrible . Bad graphics , controls , gameplay and whatnot . I won't specifically mention any games but yeah . Just take a look around and you'll be able to see some .
Ok there is one very good reason that happens and I tell you why. For the most part everyone like something different and you cannot expect every game that comes out to suit your taste , so the game could be bad to you but a joy for someone else. Now for the bad games nobody likes , thats just developers that dont know had to program a game any better. Some programmers havent fully leared how to code , so the game is actually the best of thier ability. Thats the main reason why some games are really bad.
Yeah I know that but this isn't what I'm talking about . If this is the reason for these terrible games then I cannot complain .
You, as a developer, go into a project because the ideas or the art design or the whole concept sounds good. You expect the project to be as great as the expectations were when you came up with the concept but whats in the mind dontalways translate well on the sceen or paper. If you go into a project, spend the money for all the stuff needed (kit, employment, outside work, advertising, etc) and finds out that around 50-75% of the completion the game suck, then what are you going to do? Just stop and waste the money. You keep going and hope you get some money out of it.
Money. If I'm following your train of thought, the games you're thinking of tend to be cash-ins. They're either made with minimal understanding of what it means to be a programmer/developer or they're factory produced on contract for someone else. The former tend to have no budgets (and no talent!) while the latter tend to have fixed budgets that seek low-cost rather than quality. That's the primary reason, anyway. The one other situation is you have someone who really invests in making a good game, but doesn't know how or have the tools to take it all the way. I think a lot of GameSalad games fall in this category. There is some truly spectacular work in some of these games. But they're so hobbled by that overpriced POS engine, that making that leap to "GREAT" game is difficult to impossible. Hope that answers your question!
@Domino, It is true that although a concept may initially seem very good , putting it on paper is bound to bring in some complications . It is up to the developer whether they want to continue and try and solve these complications and make the game that they had in mind or sell an uncompleted product , hoping to recuperate some losses . @thewiirocks, Yeah we're on the same track . But what I don't get is how a game made with either of the 2 conditions mentioned by you would bring in money . I mean , okay , so assume 30 people buys your game . It's only 30 dollars . I'd rather find a part time job at MacDonalds . About the second reason that developers have yet to maximize the engine they're using, I can't blame them . Not all AAA games are optimized for their respective consoles / PC .
You have clearly never created a game before. I will try to explain it you. Most developers who put terrible games up on the store do not realize just how terrible their games are. You must understand, in general when making a game you pour your heart and soul into it, trying to make it what you originally had in your mind. Sometimes youre not very good at this though, or something geys muddled along tge way, and as a result, you get a real bad game. However its often hard to see how bad, as youve become so intertwined with the project you cant see quite clearly. You might concede here and there that the graphics arent totally perfect, and the gameplay can get a little boring after a while. But still its your game, its your creation, how could it posibly be absolutely awful? I suppose a good similarity is a mother and father and their newborn baby. You will never hear a parent call their baby ugly. Never. Yet there are very mamy ugly babies. So really thays the reason why alot of publishers post awful games. They dont realize theyre awful. Also some people are just complete and total idiots. Most are in fact. Theres also that factor too
Out of curiosity, under what circumstances would I be considered an idiot ? And yes , I have never made a game before . They don't offer computer science in my school and I've dropped the idea of becoming a game designer (only really to be an in game GM xD) . Out of all the reasoning here , yours is the most compelling . I understand now . Thank you for enlightening me
