This week, I’m going to describe how game developers make me hate them. I’m going to focus on one example, but I think the point, if I manage to make one amidst the ranting, applies to the industry in general. At least, the point I have in mind right now does; as I said, I’m going to start ranting, so you’ll have to forgive me if I stray off topic.
My damning evidence comes from a preview of the space sim Freelancer, scheduled to be released next year. Forget the story; stories in space sims are just a framework to support missions. Look, the Wing Commander series was all about fighting big, grumpy cats, and ramped up in silliness as the sequel numbers increased. I thought the story behind Descent: Freespace and Freespace 2 was just fine, but, again, it boiled down to "Big, mean, alien/the Empire/enemy faction threatens the Earth/oppresses you/wants your stuff. Stop them. Oh, and get better equipment every so often" In most cases, it all rides on your shoulders. Freespace was better about that, in that in many missions there were other friendly squadrons out there doing more than just taking shots for you. Despite that, if you fell down on the job and were less than heroic, the AI wasn’t capable of saving the Earth on its own.
So, if not the story, what? Well, graphics are good, of course. If all the ships are flat, gray boxes, flying through an empty black void, your interest will wane pretty quickly. Control models for different ships should feel different; sure, it’s not a historical flight sim, where being too generous with thrust-to-weight ratios will earn you angry mail from frothing would-be aviators, but if you’re going to call something a Bomber, then it had better be big, sluggish, and easy prey for a group of nimble little Interceptors.
A good UI is vital, with a HUD that provides useful information without being obtrusive.
So, why do I already hate Freelancer? This, and this alone:
"The controls are relatively simple. In order to make the game as accessible to as broad an audience as possible, the team has decided to focus strictly on a mouse-driven interface and eliminate joystick support altogether. While this may seem a bit odd to players of traditional space sims, it works really well in practice. The game defaults to a third-person camera just behind your ship...and you can use the WASD keys to accelerate, brake and strafe. TAB activates an engine boost that ups your speed considerably. Although the physics are bent somewhat, you'll still retain some momentum even after your engines stop, so you can even drift backwards firing upon chasing enemies."
Excuse me? A bit odd? Let me state this very clearly: Once you eliminate joystick support, you can’t call your game a simulator. Maybe they’ll be using some sort of force-measurement-feedback-monitoring field thing in which they place their hands, maybe they’ll be using wires running directly into their brains, but a pilot in the far future won’t be using a mouse and keyboard to fly a fighter. The entire point of a good joystick and throttle setup is called HOTAS: Hands-On Throttle And Stick. You have your hands on two controllers, and with them you can control just about every aspect of the aircraft, and definitely be able to access everything you’d need in combat. Eliminating joystick support from a sim says, right there, that you’re not making a sim; you’re making an arcade game.
The lack of joystick support just makes the game more difficult to play for people who have, and are using to using, HOTAS setups. Typical space sims present you with shield management, energy management, multiple targeting options, multiple weapons or weapon settings (guns and missiles, and/or linkable guns), communication commands, multiple viewing options, and variable thrust options. That’s only the major areas that I can think of offhand.
Let’s assume that Freelancer eliminates communication options (no wingmen), energy management, and shield management. And maybe you don’t have targeting options, instead just firing at whatever is in front of you and not needing to lock missiles. Thrust seems limited to full/none, with what is, essentially, an afterburner. So let’s play a game of pretend: You’re playing Freelancer, and you’re in combat. If you use the WASD keys for first-person shooters (personally, I find that ESDF gives you access to more keys), think about hitting TAB in the middle of a dogfight. Ok, now switch weapons while you’re maneuvering. Don’t let the ship slow down! Speed is life in a dogfight.
Now, I’ll admit that I enjoy Battlefield: 1942, even though the flight models in the game are on the arcade end of the spectrum. But that game is not trying to be a flight sim; it’s a FPS game that also lets you drive tanks and fly planes. Even despite that, it does provide support for joysticks, throttles, and rudder pedals. Freelancer is focusing on one area: space fighter combat. Hell, it doesn’t even support as many players in multiplayer games as Battlefield does (16 as opposed to 1942’s 32).
So what’s their excuse? They want to make the game “accessible.” In other words, they’re dumbing it down. Now, certainly, they’re not required to make a complex flight simulator. I’ve had my share of console systems, and I love a good top-down, side-scrolling, or third-person-view arcade game. But calling your game a simulator and delivering an arcade game is only going to scare off people who like arcade games and infuriate people who are expecting a space sim. Probably not the most intelligent marketing strategy to persue. I hereby submit this lump of bile as proof.