Count 2K Games President Christoph Hartmann among those who support the transition to new hardware. Despite the challenges the industry currently faces, Hartmann believes, “the market is ready to take console gaming to the next level.”
Hartmann has a lot to say about the coming generation. In a lengthy, wide-ranging interview with GamesIndustry International, the 2K Games President offers his take on the prospects for Wii U, the importance of dedicated games consoles, and the boon to creativity that only increasingly powerful hardware can provide.
2K Games has a stable of notable titles on the horizon (including Borderlands 2 and BioShock: Infinite), but only one game slated to arrive as part of Wii U’s launch lineup, Visual Concepts’ NBA 2K13. Is the publisher taking a wait-and-see stance toward Nintendo’s new hardware, or betting against the console’s success? Not according to Hartmann, who has faith in Nintendo’s ability to deliver new experiences, but thinks gamers may not immediately recognize the system’s “beauty.”
Nintendo’s vision for the next-generation emphasizes (once again) the importance of novel new play experiences, and while Hartmann doesn’t discount that approach, he believes that the opportunities presented by the sheer (presumed) graphical muscle of Sony and Microsoft’s next consoles are vital to the industry’s future. As he sees it, game design won’t be able to truly evolve without “photorealistic” graphics.
Just don’t expect those “new things” to come from the cloud. Despite Sony’s $380 million dollar acquisition of cloud-gaming service Gaikai, and OnLive’s all-encompassing approach (even OUYA will support it), Hartmann remains adamant that dedicated gaming consoles are here to stay.
“Until games are photorealistic, it’ll be very hard to open up to new genres. We can really only focus on action and shooter titles; those are suitable for consoles now.”
“Every new platform changes video gaming because it is able to do certain things. When you look at how many open-world games are out there, that was not doable for most people 20 years ago. Other huge games like Skyrim simply weren’t able to be done. Every time the technology advances, new things will open up and be created. "
For the full interview, head over to GamesIndustry International.
“You’re never going to be able to compete with it because it’s about quality and it’s built to do one thing best. And, by the way, the whole streaming and cloud thing is just nice words until the [internet infrastructure improves]. I don’t believe in cloud gaming until a cable provider stops breaking my internet connection every morning, when everyone logs in at the same time. I don’t see this being fixed for a long, long time.”
Hartmann makes a strong case for his opinions, and as President of one of the most respected publishers in the business, his insights are not to be dismissed lightly. But is he right? Are photorealisitc graphics really necessary for game design innovation? Is the viability of cloud gaming really as far off as Hartmann believes? Time, as always, will tell, but these questions are worth asking.
For that matter, given Hartmann’s clear enthusiasm for ever-more-powerful hardware, and his apparent faith in Wii U, why isn’t 2K Games doing more to demonstrate “the beauty of the console” – like, for instance, developing an all new, original title for the system?
Ranters, what’s your take on all this? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
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Source: GamesIndustry International, Boston.com
