Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser has spoken out recently on one what he thinks is one of the most misunderstood things in gaming; casual gamers and the difference between them and the hardcore gaming elite.
In an interview with Develop, Houser outlines why he thinks there isn't actually any divide between hardcore and casual gamers, claiming that Rockstar as a whole doesn't get the divide. Instead, all it comes down to is making good games that are accessible to all.
"The division doesn’t make sense to us," said Houser "good games will usually sell and be popular, bad games will struggle – of any type or genre or style. But we still believe big, high impact games will help the industry evolve and further surpass the movie industry as the next mass-market story telling medium."
"We always tried to make games that anyone could pick up and play. They may, over time, reveal a lot of structural and mechanical complexity, but the first mission of more or less any Rockstar game is very easy and engaging for a reason – because new people playing the game have to be gently led into the world of 3D action games"
Interestingly then, Houser doesn't see Rockstar as a company which is developing hardcore games, but one which is focused on the market as a whole, claiming that "This is the way we try to cater for a mass market".
"The challenge is to make a game in which ‘depth’ does not result in complexity the first minutes you play. This is a challenge we’ve always tried to embrace, and I hope we are getting better at it, just as I hope we are getting better at everything."
All we'll say is that though the Grand Theft Auto 4 is accessible, it sure is long too - there are members of bit-tech who've been playing since release and are still struggling to finish the main quest. Let us know your thoughts on the game in the forums.
In an interview with Develop, Houser outlines why he thinks there isn't actually any divide between hardcore and casual gamers, claiming that Rockstar as a whole doesn't get the divide. Instead, all it comes down to is making good games that are accessible to all.
"The division doesn’t make sense to us," said Houser "good games will usually sell and be popular, bad games will struggle – of any type or genre or style. But we still believe big, high impact games will help the industry evolve and further surpass the movie industry as the next mass-market story telling medium."
"We always tried to make games that anyone could pick up and play. They may, over time, reveal a lot of structural and mechanical complexity, but the first mission of more or less any Rockstar game is very easy and engaging for a reason – because new people playing the game have to be gently led into the world of 3D action games"
Interestingly then, Houser doesn't see Rockstar as a company which is developing hardcore games, but one which is focused on the market as a whole, claiming that "This is the way we try to cater for a mass market".
"The challenge is to make a game in which ‘depth’ does not result in complexity the first minutes you play. This is a challenge we’ve always tried to embrace, and I hope we are getting better at it, just as I hope we are getting better at everything."
All we'll say is that though the Grand Theft Auto 4 is accessible, it sure is long too - there are members of bit-tech who've been playing since release and are still struggling to finish the main quest. Let us know your thoughts on the game in the forums.
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