An original idea is not enough: Layden and Molyneux on the industry's problems

Two veterans of the games industry have recently spoken about why original projects are so hard to turn into successes, and both conversations show well the problem facing smaller teams. The reports come from GRYOnline.pl.

Shawn Layden, former head of PlayStation in America, told The Expansion Pass that many creators try to predict what will become a hit instead of working on ideas they are truly passionate about. Rising budgets make publishers and developers afraid of risk, so unusual concepts give way to projects with better commercial prospects. Layden does not argue for complete creative freedom, though: in his view, an artistic vision still needs guidance so that the end result makes sense.

Peter Molyneux, in an interview with PCGamesN, focused on visibility on Steam. He pointed to two problems: there are too many titles for players to get through, and a large group of people sticks to one favorite game and never explores the platform. As an example of a good game that got lost in the crowd, he cited Shroom and Gloom. He admitted he does not know how to solve this, and felt that a game would have to be exceptional to break through.

What caught my attention? Both are really talking about two sides of the same phenomenon: on one side, risky ideas are rejected; on the other, even the ones that do get made disappear in a flood of releases. For indie developers this is an uncomfortable conclusion, because it means a good idea alone is not enough, and promotion and visibility have to be planned from the start of the work.

Source: GRYOnline.pl