The Xbox360 is not a Casual Games platform
May 16th, 2006, By Duncan Gough
Earlier this year, at the European casualities conference, Jason Kapalka gave a great talk providing 10 rules outlining how not to build a casual game. It was a light-hearted attempt at illustrating the pitfalls that can trap many game designers, even PopCap themselves. To prove this, Jason was happy to discuss how their own games had broken some of these rules.
Heavy Weapon was one of those games deemed to difficult, with little in the way of positive feedback for the player and all in all, a bit gloomy for the casual games audience. It’s not surprising, then, to read an annoucement that Heavy Weapon is being released for Xbox Live Arcade. It’s the perfect Live Arcade game, a retro-classic that’s more of a come-down style of game for anyone who’s been playing a couple of hours worth of see-them-sweat style Xbox 360 games. Which really does prove that the Xbox360 is not a Casual Games platform.
One comment
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Beep, beep, beep, beeeep at Suttree - Real Artists Ship replied:
[...] It’s no real surprise that this is happening. I’ve mentioned before that the Xbox360 is not a Casual Games platform. What is interesting is that Microsoft don’t seem to realise that the Casual Game industry is pretty much driven by Windows PCs. Be it games that use IE specific, in-browser ActiveX controls, or the DirectX driven downloadable try-before-you-buy sector, Casual Games are a 90% plus Windows adventure. Quite clearly, Live Arcade was a side project for the Xbox360 that has grown beyond their expectations. There’s nothing wrong with being caught out with success like that, though. I just find it strange that, despite the sustained Casual Games buzz that has been ongoing for the best part of two years now, Microsoft have made more headway with LiveArcade than any of their traditional Casaul Games products in that time. A lot of that has to be down to the fact that I am fascinated by how a company as big as Microsoft operates, on a day-by-day basis as well as a five-year basis. The current Ray Ozzie situation really only heightens that sense of wonder, at the moment. [...]
July 3rd, 2006 at 11:21 pm. Permalink.
