It's likely that you have came across one of these 'gameplay vs graphics' articles before. You have seen different people writing different ideas/opinions to emphasize content is more important than the outlook of a game.
But what does that mean?
The gaming trend had changed.
From pixel graphics to 1920x1080, game developers slowly shifted their focus on specs instead of providing the best gaming experiences. Of course, gamers can't immerse into a game well with 8x8 resolution, but that doesn't mean graphic is everything.
At the time when big companies dominated the market and no one cared about startup companies, a small-budget game had proved them wrong - Minecraft.
Recently its PC sales had reached 20 millions, and this doesn't include its Xbox + mobile + illegal copies. Minecraft's total recorded sales is about 50 millions, which is an insane number for a 50-people company. Obviously, the production of Minecraft is much simpler than GTA V, not to mention the development cost, Mojang only pay for the basic softwares while Rockstar used $265M.
Even though Minecraft is an exceptional case, it tells all of us indie games that concentrate on its content can become popular. Gameplay is vital for a game to succeed.
Undoubtedly, having good graphics is always nice. However, putting more effort into creating game content will attract more players, as we are all fed up with beautiful but soulless products. Graphics is decoration of the game core, it's not the core. It's tragic for developers to neglect gameplay quality, like Watch Dogs.
Any user of Steam will notice that Steam Greenlight games and early access games are gaining more attention than ever, many of them don't have astonishing graphics due to limited budget. The same had happened on sandbox games, which is not a major game category for top developers.
Why? Because the trend had changed. Players no longer cares only about the outer part of products after years of 'graphics race'. People had started to appreciate the content of games again. Taking the Greenlight platform as an example, it expanded from a testing section in Steam to a category with nearly 100 games in merely a few years.
People's taste will change over time. Before smartphones turn into world-famous gadgets, people would like to have smaller mobile phones. But now, companies release smartphones with bigger and bigger screen size. Gaming trend is no different, it will change, vigorously. For this time, people care gameplay more than graphics.
Apparently, gamers prefers gameplay over graphics nowadays. However, one must ask what high quality 'gameplay' is? Is that gun blazing? Is that car chasing? What on earth is a good gameplay?
From my observation and game sales records, the most suitable answer is 'freedom'. In-game freedom.
Players demand more in-game freedom. As most games in the past are storyline-based, their game endings are scripted, there's no more surprise once the game is finished, that gave players little motivation to replay it. Developers tried to solve this problem by adding more endings, which created another annoying loop. (E.g. This game had 3 endings while this game had 4. Look at that game, it had 5 endings plus a secret one!)
And then sandbox games arise. Theoretically they have unlimited possibilities, players can get their own ending according to their play style. One great (and old) sandbox game is Mount and Blade : Warband, it stands out at that time with its huge amount of content, players can take almost all actions in medieval age they can think of. One can be a bandit, mercenary, vassal or even the king.
That's why every gamer will have the feeling of sandbox games taking over the market in recent years, especially those with survival themes. Because post-apocalypse world settings are easier to give players more choices in different situations. For instance, if you met a beggar in normal life, you have limited options on what to do with him. It's illogical to kill or loot a beggar in a civilized society. On the other hand, in a zombie-infested world, it makes sense for one to rob, to enslave or to murder a panhandler. That explained the popularity of sandbox games about survival. Nevertheless, I absolutely don't want to see Steam or game stores flooded with sandbox games.
To sum up what I've said, gamers prefer content quality over the graphics/outlook of a game at this moment. Also we demand more freedom and replay value of games. To me this is certainly great to every person involved in gaming, be it gamers or developers. Small companies that lacks budget can develop excellent indie games, which leads to more game choices.
Do you agree with our opinions? Let us know in the comments below. Share this post with your friends and discuss together. Every support from you means a lot to us!
