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Have you ever wondered why some game genres actually exist on consoles and computers? What went through their mind which lit up that light bulb and gave them inspiration to make games in the many different ways available today? Now I don't really know what happened inside that noggin of theirs, but I reckon that my ideas of how a game genre began are quite close to what they really thought up to start it all in the first place.
Action:-
I think that action games were inspired by films that were showing at the time, with lots of fight scenes, a few bullets fired here and there, a small dosage of romance, and a hint of ambition. Whoever thought it up must've seen something like this and made the Action games what they are today.
I reckon the best example for this is Red Faction. Although it isn't necessarily old, and so wasn't the first idea that sparked off the large majority of action games. Parker's ambition to escape from the mines of Mars and return home, away from the plague and hard work, with lots of fight scenes, lots of action, making it an action game.
Adventure:-
Fairly similar to the Action genre but with a little less fighting and more travelling around vast worlds with things to collect and people to talk to. It is quite easy to notice that Nintendo produce the most of this type of game. Usually involving horse-riding, saving a girlfriend or princess, with small-looking characters with a "computer-generated" feel to the game, where characters look morphed between two environments. They don't look completely realistic, but you could argue that they don't look completely cartoony, either.
The idea for adventure games must've evolved from the idea of someone going through a dungeon to find a holy treasure, and fighting off beasts and undead monsters to achieve their goal, before coming back home, having a cuppa and then slipping out the door once more to save the princess from the claws of the creature from which they took the treasure.
Beat 'em up:-
Fairly popular with Sony's developers for the PlayStation and the PS2. Obviously, the best example of a beat 'em up is Tekken. Most of the time you'll find that charatcers never stand the way you would normally in a real fight. They always have their legs wide apart and are held high. Not the most realistic games of the lot, but very often a laugh if you play against your mates at a one-on-one battle to poke your enemy to death. And saying that, just think about it. The health in most of these games is completely thought out wrongly. If some geezer came out of a night club one night and hit you with some sort of electric ball, flying through the air from their hand, saying something weird like, "Adoordkin!" You'd probably think, "What a loser" and then be dead three seconds later, whereas the characters in these types of game can survive about six before finally biting the dust. Even then, they die from just a little poke in the eye after being beaten up enough, where a poke in the eye wouldn't kill a person in real life. Most probably the blow before or after the poke would be the finale.
The idea which sparked the engine for this is obvious. Just a fight. That's it. A few punches, kicks, flying and cracked jaws inserted this little gem into somebody's mind and produced the Tekken, Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat which we've grown to know and love today.
3D beat-'em up:-
A fairly new addition to the art of gaming. Very similar to the classic beat 'em up, but with the extra twist of being able to go behind the opponent and off into the distance instead of having to jump the opponent like you do in the ordinary, 2D beat 'em up. There's another point which makes a 2D beat 'em up unrealistic. In a real fight, you'd have to be damn tall with bloody powerful legs to be able to jump over your opponent without them crouching down.
The 3D beat 'em up has now become one of the most popular genres of our time with games like WWF Smackdown constantly being updated with a new version. The 3D beat 'em up evolved from just that idea. Wrestling, on the TV, was what brought out the first of it's kind. These developers love their telly, don't they?! ;-)
Board game simulations/party games:-
This must've been one of the first genres of game to ever originate. Board games have been around for generations providing entertainment for our great great great great great great *takes a deep breath* great great great great grandparents, preventing boredom during the not-so-good times during our worlds lifetime.
The Mario Party series on the N64 has to be the best example of a game like this. Featuring a dice and a path of little "spaces" where your token or character goes, just like in a real board game. The only real extra thing which features in this game but not in a real board game is the 3D games or challenges which you have to play when you reach certain spaces.
Racing games:-
Mostly featured on the PSone and PS2, it's hard to not find a racing game somewhere. Every time a new one is brought out, it always has a little bit of more realism in it, with better shaped cars, which have circular wheels instead of the old octagonal ones like on the N64 and PSone. Blimey, it must been uncomfy driving a car with wheels like that! It'd be like driving across the moon after the intergalactic wars.
Isn't it obvious where developers got the idea for this from, though? Seeing cross-country racing, or along dirt or tarmac tracks, there's a taste for all racers. Even some futuristic racing games have been introduced to the light of video games. *cough* F-Zero *cough* *achoo* Wipeout *splutter*
RPGs:-
In a way, every game available on all formats is an RPG. There is always a film sequence in there somewhere, even if it's just a short one at the very start, showing a nice colourful display, before the credits or title screen appears. And obviously, there are games which show more cut scenes than others. Conkers Bad Fur Day on the N64 is a good example for this. If you are fast at playing through it, it's quite likely that you'll see a cut scene every five minutes. Whereas, there are others with only the one at the start, introducing the game. Games like Street Fighter on the SNES and now recently released on GBA, but then, games that you find on those consoles don't have many cut scenes anyway due to the power required being too great for the console, or not enough colours available and stuff like that.
RPGs aren't the oldest genre of game by far, as computers, when they were first invented, didn't have a clue about running them, let alone the required amount of memory. Whoever invented the first RPG game was probably thinking, "Why not introduce more of the plot of the game without the player having to do every single thing," and thus the RPG was born, and now, it's not too difficult to find a game with at least one FMV sequence in it somewhere, even if it is just a short display while the credits or title screen loads.
Shoot 'em up:-
This is, by a long shot (heh heh) the most popular genre of game to date. It's become so popular that developers are producing more and more of these all the time, in an attempt to beat the reigning champion. Pretty soon, originality will be a thing of the past if games keep churning out as quickly as these do. Some shoot 'em ups have even had hardware designed just for that particular game so that they can be played properly *cough* Time Crisis *choke*.
Inspired by the invention of weaponry, shoot 'em ups have taking films by storm as well, and some films like this have been made into games. The first 3D video game was a shoot 'em up, y'know, but I don't know what it was called. These games were devised under the influence of films and at least one can be found in every household that has possession of a console or a P.C.
Simulations:-
Simulations haven't been the most popular genre in the bunch and it's all down to the fact that, with games like this, developers are more concerned about making the game look realisticly like the landmark where their set to represent, and they also concentrate more on getting the vehicle(s) to react the way they do in real life, so there is less room left and less thought put in to making the game enjoyable. Take MS Train Simulator, for instance. What a piece of *slap* YEEOOWW!
I'm not quite sure about how they got the idea for this one. Probably from those simulators that you get on RAF bases and NASA, which are used to simulate the effects of G-Force and that sort of malarky.
Sports games:-
Well, we can all guess where this idea fluttered from, can't we? Unless you're one of those people who can't see the obvious. Someone saw a football game, or Basketball or stuff like that. You know, a sport, and thought, "Wouldn't that be great on a console." That's all there is to it for sports games.
How do you think game genres first came about? What are your views on this? If you could invent a new genre, what would it be and how would it work? Discuss here.
Thanks for reading
Twain
Action:-
I think that action games were inspired by films that were showing at the time, with lots of fight scenes, a few bullets fired here and there, a small dosage of romance, and a hint of ambition. Whoever thought it up must've seen something like this and made the Action games what they are today.
I reckon the best example for this is Red Faction. Although it isn't necessarily old, and so wasn't the first idea that sparked off the large majority of action games. Parker's ambition to escape from the mines of Mars and return home, away from the plague and hard work, with lots of fight scenes, lots of action, making it an action game.
Adventure:-
Fairly similar to the Action genre but with a little less fighting and more travelling around vast worlds with things to collect and people to talk to. It is quite easy to notice that Nintendo produce the most of this type of game. Usually involving horse-riding, saving a girlfriend or princess, with small-looking characters with a "computer-generated" feel to the game, where characters look morphed between two environments. They don't look completely realistic, but you could argue that they don't look completely cartoony, either.
The idea for adventure games must've evolved from the idea of someone going through a dungeon to find a holy treasure, and fighting off beasts and undead monsters to achieve their goal, before coming back home, having a cuppa and then slipping out the door once more to save the princess from the claws of the creature from which they took the treasure.
Beat 'em up:-
Fairly popular with Sony's developers for the PlayStation and the PS2. Obviously, the best example of a beat 'em up is Tekken. Most of the time you'll find that charatcers never stand the way you would normally in a real fight. They always have their legs wide apart and are held high. Not the most realistic games of the lot, but very often a laugh if you play against your mates at a one-on-one battle to poke your enemy to death. And saying that, just think about it. The health in most of these games is completely thought out wrongly. If some geezer came out of a night club one night and hit you with some sort of electric ball, flying through the air from their hand, saying something weird like, "Adoordkin!" You'd probably think, "What a loser" and then be dead three seconds later, whereas the characters in these types of game can survive about six before finally biting the dust. Even then, they die from just a little poke in the eye after being beaten up enough, where a poke in the eye wouldn't kill a person in real life. Most probably the blow before or after the poke would be the finale.
The idea which sparked the engine for this is obvious. Just a fight. That's it. A few punches, kicks, flying and cracked jaws inserted this little gem into somebody's mind and produced the Tekken, Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat which we've grown to know and love today.
3D beat-'em up:-
A fairly new addition to the art of gaming. Very similar to the classic beat 'em up, but with the extra twist of being able to go behind the opponent and off into the distance instead of having to jump the opponent like you do in the ordinary, 2D beat 'em up. There's another point which makes a 2D beat 'em up unrealistic. In a real fight, you'd have to be damn tall with bloody powerful legs to be able to jump over your opponent without them crouching down.
The 3D beat 'em up has now become one of the most popular genres of our time with games like WWF Smackdown constantly being updated with a new version. The 3D beat 'em up evolved from just that idea. Wrestling, on the TV, was what brought out the first of it's kind. These developers love their telly, don't they?! ;-)
Board game simulations/party games:-
This must've been one of the first genres of game to ever originate. Board games have been around for generations providing entertainment for our great great great great great great *takes a deep breath* great great great great grandparents, preventing boredom during the not-so-good times during our worlds lifetime.
The Mario Party series on the N64 has to be the best example of a game like this. Featuring a dice and a path of little "spaces" where your token or character goes, just like in a real board game. The only real extra thing which features in this game but not in a real board game is the 3D games or challenges which you have to play when you reach certain spaces.
Racing games:-
Mostly featured on the PSone and PS2, it's hard to not find a racing game somewhere. Every time a new one is brought out, it always has a little bit of more realism in it, with better shaped cars, which have circular wheels instead of the old octagonal ones like on the N64 and PSone. Blimey, it must been uncomfy driving a car with wheels like that! It'd be like driving across the moon after the intergalactic wars.
Isn't it obvious where developers got the idea for this from, though? Seeing cross-country racing, or along dirt or tarmac tracks, there's a taste for all racers. Even some futuristic racing games have been introduced to the light of video games. *cough* F-Zero *cough* *achoo* Wipeout *splutter*
RPGs:-
In a way, every game available on all formats is an RPG. There is always a film sequence in there somewhere, even if it's just a short one at the very start, showing a nice colourful display, before the credits or title screen appears. And obviously, there are games which show more cut scenes than others. Conkers Bad Fur Day on the N64 is a good example for this. If you are fast at playing through it, it's quite likely that you'll see a cut scene every five minutes. Whereas, there are others with only the one at the start, introducing the game. Games like Street Fighter on the SNES and now recently released on GBA, but then, games that you find on those consoles don't have many cut scenes anyway due to the power required being too great for the console, or not enough colours available and stuff like that.
RPGs aren't the oldest genre of game by far, as computers, when they were first invented, didn't have a clue about running them, let alone the required amount of memory. Whoever invented the first RPG game was probably thinking, "Why not introduce more of the plot of the game without the player having to do every single thing," and thus the RPG was born, and now, it's not too difficult to find a game with at least one FMV sequence in it somewhere, even if it is just a short display while the credits or title screen loads.
Shoot 'em up:-
This is, by a long shot (heh heh) the most popular genre of game to date. It's become so popular that developers are producing more and more of these all the time, in an attempt to beat the reigning champion. Pretty soon, originality will be a thing of the past if games keep churning out as quickly as these do. Some shoot 'em ups have even had hardware designed just for that particular game so that they can be played properly *cough* Time Crisis *choke*.
Inspired by the invention of weaponry, shoot 'em ups have taking films by storm as well, and some films like this have been made into games. The first 3D video game was a shoot 'em up, y'know, but I don't know what it was called. These games were devised under the influence of films and at least one can be found in every household that has possession of a console or a P.C.
Simulations:-
Simulations haven't been the most popular genre in the bunch and it's all down to the fact that, with games like this, developers are more concerned about making the game look realisticly like the landmark where their set to represent, and they also concentrate more on getting the vehicle(s) to react the way they do in real life, so there is less room left and less thought put in to making the game enjoyable. Take MS Train Simulator, for instance. What a piece of *slap* YEEOOWW!
I'm not quite sure about how they got the idea for this one. Probably from those simulators that you get on RAF bases and NASA, which are used to simulate the effects of G-Force and that sort of malarky.
Sports games:-
Well, we can all guess where this idea fluttered from, can't we? Unless you're one of those people who can't see the obvious. Someone saw a football game, or Basketball or stuff like that. You know, a sport, and thought, "Wouldn't that be great on a console." That's all there is to it for sports games.
How do you think game genres first came about? What are your views on this? If you could invent a new genre, what would it be and how would it work? Discuss here.
Thanks for reading
Twain
I meant graphically realistic.
Almost every platformer made is cartoony and cutesy.
I didn't mean the gameplay was realistic - nobody wants that do they? -
Almost every platformer made is cartoony and cutesy.
I didn't mean the gameplay was realistic - nobody wants that do they? -
Yes... it's so realistic... in order to save the world you have to follow a quest and solve puzzles on the way...
A genre which has been neglected is the "realistic platformer" - i.e. an puzzle-based adventure with realistic graphics and minimal enemies.
With ICO on the PS2 we can see just how engrossing, playable and enchanting games of this nature can be.
With ICO on the PS2 we can see just how engrossing, playable and enchanting games of this nature can be.
Have you ever wondered why some game genres actually exist on consoles and computers? What went through their mind which lit up that light bulb and gave them inspiration to make games in the many different ways available today? Now I don't really know what happened inside that noggin of theirs, but I reckon that my ideas of how a game genre began are quite close to what they really thought up to start it all in the first place.
Action:-
I think that action games were inspired by films that were showing at the time, with lots of fight scenes, a few bullets fired here and there, a small dosage of romance, and a hint of ambition. Whoever thought it up must've seen something like this and made the Action games what they are today.
I reckon the best example for this is Red Faction. Although it isn't necessarily old, and so wasn't the first idea that sparked off the large majority of action games. Parker's ambition to escape from the mines of Mars and return home, away from the plague and hard work, with lots of fight scenes, lots of action, making it an action game.
Adventure:-
Fairly similar to the Action genre but with a little less fighting and more travelling around vast worlds with things to collect and people to talk to. It is quite easy to notice that Nintendo produce the most of this type of game. Usually involving horse-riding, saving a girlfriend or princess, with small-looking characters with a "computer-generated" feel to the game, where characters look morphed between two environments. They don't look completely realistic, but you could argue that they don't look completely cartoony, either.
The idea for adventure games must've evolved from the idea of someone going through a dungeon to find a holy treasure, and fighting off beasts and undead monsters to achieve their goal, before coming back home, having a cuppa and then slipping out the door once more to save the princess from the claws of the creature from which they took the treasure.
Beat 'em up:-
Fairly popular with Sony's developers for the PlayStation and the PS2. Obviously, the best example of a beat 'em up is Tekken. Most of the time you'll find that charatcers never stand the way you would normally in a real fight. They always have their legs wide apart and are held high. Not the most realistic games of the lot, but very often a laugh if you play against your mates at a one-on-one battle to poke your enemy to death. And saying that, just think about it. The health in most of these games is completely thought out wrongly. If some geezer came out of a night club one night and hit you with some sort of electric ball, flying through the air from their hand, saying something weird like, "Adoordkin!" You'd probably think, "What a loser" and then be dead three seconds later, whereas the characters in these types of game can survive about six before finally biting the dust. Even then, they die from just a little poke in the eye after being beaten up enough, where a poke in the eye wouldn't kill a person in real life. Most probably the blow before or after the poke would be the finale.
The idea which sparked the engine for this is obvious. Just a fight. That's it. A few punches, kicks, flying and cracked jaws inserted this little gem into somebody's mind and produced the Tekken, Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat which we've grown to know and love today.
3D beat-'em up:-
A fairly new addition to the art of gaming. Very similar to the classic beat 'em up, but with the extra twist of being able to go behind the opponent and off into the distance instead of having to jump the opponent like you do in the ordinary, 2D beat 'em up. There's another point which makes a 2D beat 'em up unrealistic. In a real fight, you'd have to be damn tall with bloody powerful legs to be able to jump over your opponent without them crouching down.
The 3D beat 'em up has now become one of the most popular genres of our time with games like WWF Smackdown constantly being updated with a new version. The 3D beat 'em up evolved from just that idea. Wrestling, on the TV, was what brought out the first of it's kind. These developers love their telly, don't they?! ;-)
Board game simulations/party games:-
This must've been one of the first genres of game to ever originate. Board games have been around for generations providing entertainment for our great great great great great great *takes a deep breath* great great great great grandparents, preventing boredom during the not-so-good times during our worlds lifetime.
The Mario Party series on the N64 has to be the best example of a game like this. Featuring a dice and a path of little "spaces" where your token or character goes, just like in a real board game. The only real extra thing which features in this game but not in a real board game is the 3D games or challenges which you have to play when you reach certain spaces.
Racing games:-
Mostly featured on the PSone and PS2, it's hard to not find a racing game somewhere. Every time a new one is brought out, it always has a little bit of more realism in it, with better shaped cars, which have circular wheels instead of the old octagonal ones like on the N64 and PSone. Blimey, it must been uncomfy driving a car with wheels like that! It'd be like driving across the moon after the intergalactic wars.
Isn't it obvious where developers got the idea for this from, though? Seeing cross-country racing, or along dirt or tarmac tracks, there's a taste for all racers. Even some futuristic racing games have been introduced to the light of video games. *cough* F-Zero *cough* *achoo* Wipeout *splutter*
RPGs:-
In a way, every game available on all formats is an RPG. There is always a film sequence in there somewhere, even if it's just a short one at the very start, showing a nice colourful display, before the credits or title screen appears. And obviously, there are games which show more cut scenes than others. Conkers Bad Fur Day on the N64 is a good example for this. If you are fast at playing through it, it's quite likely that you'll see a cut scene every five minutes. Whereas, there are others with only the one at the start, introducing the game. Games like Street Fighter on the SNES and now recently released on GBA, but then, games that you find on those consoles don't have many cut scenes anyway due to the power required being too great for the console, or not enough colours available and stuff like that.
RPGs aren't the oldest genre of game by far, as computers, when they were first invented, didn't have a clue about running them, let alone the required amount of memory. Whoever invented the first RPG game was probably thinking, "Why not introduce more of the plot of the game without the player having to do every single thing," and thus the RPG was born, and now, it's not too difficult to find a game with at least one FMV sequence in it somewhere, even if it is just a short display while the credits or title screen loads.
Shoot 'em up:-
This is, by a long shot (heh heh) the most popular genre of game to date. It's become so popular that developers are producing more and more of these all the time, in an attempt to beat the reigning champion. Pretty soon, originality will be a thing of the past if games keep churning out as quickly as these do. Some shoot 'em ups have even had hardware designed just for that particular game so that they can be played properly *cough* Time Crisis *choke*.
Inspired by the invention of weaponry, shoot 'em ups have taking films by storm as well, and some films like this have been made into games. The first 3D video game was a shoot 'em up, y'know, but I don't know what it was called. These games were devised under the influence of films and at least one can be found in every household that has possession of a console or a P.C.
Simulations:-
Simulations haven't been the most popular genre in the bunch and it's all down to the fact that, with games like this, developers are more concerned about making the game look realisticly like the landmark where their set to represent, and they also concentrate more on getting the vehicle(s) to react the way they do in real life, so there is less room left and less thought put in to making the game enjoyable. Take MS Train Simulator, for instance. What a piece of *slap* YEEOOWW!
I'm not quite sure about how they got the idea for this one. Probably from those simulators that you get on RAF bases and NASA, which are used to simulate the effects of G-Force and that sort of malarky.
Sports games:-
Well, we can all guess where this idea fluttered from, can't we? Unless you're one of those people who can't see the obvious. Someone saw a football game, or Basketball or stuff like that. You know, a sport, and thought, "Wouldn't that be great on a console." That's all there is to it for sports games.
How do you think game genres first came about? What are your views on this? If you could invent a new genre, what would it be and how would it work? Discuss here.
Thanks for reading
Twain
Action:-
I think that action games were inspired by films that were showing at the time, with lots of fight scenes, a few bullets fired here and there, a small dosage of romance, and a hint of ambition. Whoever thought it up must've seen something like this and made the Action games what they are today.
I reckon the best example for this is Red Faction. Although it isn't necessarily old, and so wasn't the first idea that sparked off the large majority of action games. Parker's ambition to escape from the mines of Mars and return home, away from the plague and hard work, with lots of fight scenes, lots of action, making it an action game.
Adventure:-
Fairly similar to the Action genre but with a little less fighting and more travelling around vast worlds with things to collect and people to talk to. It is quite easy to notice that Nintendo produce the most of this type of game. Usually involving horse-riding, saving a girlfriend or princess, with small-looking characters with a "computer-generated" feel to the game, where characters look morphed between two environments. They don't look completely realistic, but you could argue that they don't look completely cartoony, either.
The idea for adventure games must've evolved from the idea of someone going through a dungeon to find a holy treasure, and fighting off beasts and undead monsters to achieve their goal, before coming back home, having a cuppa and then slipping out the door once more to save the princess from the claws of the creature from which they took the treasure.
Beat 'em up:-
Fairly popular with Sony's developers for the PlayStation and the PS2. Obviously, the best example of a beat 'em up is Tekken. Most of the time you'll find that charatcers never stand the way you would normally in a real fight. They always have their legs wide apart and are held high. Not the most realistic games of the lot, but very often a laugh if you play against your mates at a one-on-one battle to poke your enemy to death. And saying that, just think about it. The health in most of these games is completely thought out wrongly. If some geezer came out of a night club one night and hit you with some sort of electric ball, flying through the air from their hand, saying something weird like, "Adoordkin!" You'd probably think, "What a loser" and then be dead three seconds later, whereas the characters in these types of game can survive about six before finally biting the dust. Even then, they die from just a little poke in the eye after being beaten up enough, where a poke in the eye wouldn't kill a person in real life. Most probably the blow before or after the poke would be the finale.
The idea which sparked the engine for this is obvious. Just a fight. That's it. A few punches, kicks, flying and cracked jaws inserted this little gem into somebody's mind and produced the Tekken, Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat which we've grown to know and love today.
3D beat-'em up:-
A fairly new addition to the art of gaming. Very similar to the classic beat 'em up, but with the extra twist of being able to go behind the opponent and off into the distance instead of having to jump the opponent like you do in the ordinary, 2D beat 'em up. There's another point which makes a 2D beat 'em up unrealistic. In a real fight, you'd have to be damn tall with bloody powerful legs to be able to jump over your opponent without them crouching down.
The 3D beat 'em up has now become one of the most popular genres of our time with games like WWF Smackdown constantly being updated with a new version. The 3D beat 'em up evolved from just that idea. Wrestling, on the TV, was what brought out the first of it's kind. These developers love their telly, don't they?! ;-)
Board game simulations/party games:-
This must've been one of the first genres of game to ever originate. Board games have been around for generations providing entertainment for our great great great great great great *takes a deep breath* great great great great grandparents, preventing boredom during the not-so-good times during our worlds lifetime.
The Mario Party series on the N64 has to be the best example of a game like this. Featuring a dice and a path of little "spaces" where your token or character goes, just like in a real board game. The only real extra thing which features in this game but not in a real board game is the 3D games or challenges which you have to play when you reach certain spaces.
Racing games:-
Mostly featured on the PSone and PS2, it's hard to not find a racing game somewhere. Every time a new one is brought out, it always has a little bit of more realism in it, with better shaped cars, which have circular wheels instead of the old octagonal ones like on the N64 and PSone. Blimey, it must been uncomfy driving a car with wheels like that! It'd be like driving across the moon after the intergalactic wars.
Isn't it obvious where developers got the idea for this from, though? Seeing cross-country racing, or along dirt or tarmac tracks, there's a taste for all racers. Even some futuristic racing games have been introduced to the light of video games. *cough* F-Zero *cough* *achoo* Wipeout *splutter*
RPGs:-
In a way, every game available on all formats is an RPG. There is always a film sequence in there somewhere, even if it's just a short one at the very start, showing a nice colourful display, before the credits or title screen appears. And obviously, there are games which show more cut scenes than others. Conkers Bad Fur Day on the N64 is a good example for this. If you are fast at playing through it, it's quite likely that you'll see a cut scene every five minutes. Whereas, there are others with only the one at the start, introducing the game. Games like Street Fighter on the SNES and now recently released on GBA, but then, games that you find on those consoles don't have many cut scenes anyway due to the power required being too great for the console, or not enough colours available and stuff like that.
RPGs aren't the oldest genre of game by far, as computers, when they were first invented, didn't have a clue about running them, let alone the required amount of memory. Whoever invented the first RPG game was probably thinking, "Why not introduce more of the plot of the game without the player having to do every single thing," and thus the RPG was born, and now, it's not too difficult to find a game with at least one FMV sequence in it somewhere, even if it is just a short display while the credits or title screen loads.
Shoot 'em up:-
This is, by a long shot (heh heh) the most popular genre of game to date. It's become so popular that developers are producing more and more of these all the time, in an attempt to beat the reigning champion. Pretty soon, originality will be a thing of the past if games keep churning out as quickly as these do. Some shoot 'em ups have even had hardware designed just for that particular game so that they can be played properly *cough* Time Crisis *choke*.
Inspired by the invention of weaponry, shoot 'em ups have taking films by storm as well, and some films like this have been made into games. The first 3D video game was a shoot 'em up, y'know, but I don't know what it was called. These games were devised under the influence of films and at least one can be found in every household that has possession of a console or a P.C.
Simulations:-
Simulations haven't been the most popular genre in the bunch and it's all down to the fact that, with games like this, developers are more concerned about making the game look realisticly like the landmark where their set to represent, and they also concentrate more on getting the vehicle(s) to react the way they do in real life, so there is less room left and less thought put in to making the game enjoyable. Take MS Train Simulator, for instance. What a piece of *slap* YEEOOWW!
I'm not quite sure about how they got the idea for this one. Probably from those simulators that you get on RAF bases and NASA, which are used to simulate the effects of G-Force and that sort of malarky.
Sports games:-
Well, we can all guess where this idea fluttered from, can't we? Unless you're one of those people who can't see the obvious. Someone saw a football game, or Basketball or stuff like that. You know, a sport, and thought, "Wouldn't that be great on a console." That's all there is to it for sports games.
How do you think game genres first came about? What are your views on this? If you could invent a new genre, what would it be and how would it work? Discuss here.
Thanks for reading
Twain