Tue, Jul 07, 2009 | 00:40 BST

BioWare’s Zeschuk: Videogames quickly growing out of dependence on violent gameplay

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Many of today’s best-selling videogames — from Gears of War to the latest hop ‘n’ bop based on a kids’ movie — are rooted in some form of violence. It’s the most tangible way of interacting with a videogame world, after all. BioWare’s Greg Zeschuk, however, believes the gaming industry’s at a decidedly nonviolent turning point, one at which story will take the throne violence once held.

“We talk a certain amount internally about whether you need to have combat as part of the experience. Are there possibilities to actually start separating pieces of the game and actually tailor it to the audience?” said Zeschuk, creative officer of BioWare, speaking with GI.biz.

“Certainly the core gaming experience, folks that are used to playing games over the last ten years, they want to have those battle moments, and the fighting. But there are different audiences that would maybe just enjoy the story.”

“I think it’s actually possible. I think the interesting thing about it too is I don’t know if it’s even necessarily a technology thing. I think once we’ve got the breadth of audience available to us, there could be really good opportunities created by different people coming to games that are story-driven.”

3 comments

Aimless
07/07/09, 2:25 am

This just in: BioWare retroactively invents the point’n'click genre.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice to hear someone on the development side suggesting that gaming doesn’t have to be a pastime centred on violence, but I think he’s focusing too much on ‘different audiences’. I’ve been playing games for ages and I like a spot of the old ultra-violence as much as the next man, but that doesn’t preclude me from enjoying non-violent, story-driven games.

wz
07/07/09, 4:01 am

I think a major problem is that storytelling is bound to be non-interactive. Except for two cases: either having to find out how a given situation is to be resolved, so that storytelling amounts to the construction of said situation. Or presenting a multitude of possible continuations of a story, in which case storytelling amounts to giving an overview of how the story might unfold in each direction.

(I would like to see a game of the latter form, but deliberately disappointing you. You think you make all the right choices, only to find yourself further away from your goals.)

blackdreamhunk
07/07/09, 12:30 pm

I agree with him there are games with out fighting out there. SIMs or ceasor 4 any way one