The "General Games Chat" forum, which includes Retro Game Reviews, has been archived and is now read-only. You cannot post here or create a new thread or review on this forum.
By which I don't meant the future OF gaming, rather the future IN gaming. The future is always a really dark and depressing place ravaged by war/disease/other horsemen of the appocalypse. Take, for example, Deus Ex, Unreal Tournament, the Fallout series, Freespace 2, and indeed pretty much any game set in the future. In fact, I can't really think of any games set in a cheerful future.
Why is that, do you suppose? Well, for a start it's probably easier to set a violence-filled game in the future if it is not a happy, contented place where everyone lives in harmony with one another and lives forever through technology. Clearly, there will be much more opportunity for killing if everyone is at each others' throats and society is on the brink of collapse, as law enforcement won't stop you. Violence is probably also more acceptable in a grim future, as per Unreal Tournament, or necessary, as per Fallout.
This is not a phenomenon exclusive to Games, however, since a lot of films set in the future are fascinatingly grim places, like Blade Runner, or a very extreme example being the Terminator future, where once the whole nuclear war thing is out of the way, everyone has to keep fighting the Robots.
Anyone think of a game set in a happy future, coz I can't...?
Why is that, do you suppose? Well, for a start it's probably easier to set a violence-filled game in the future if it is not a happy, contented place where everyone lives in harmony with one another and lives forever through technology. Clearly, there will be much more opportunity for killing if everyone is at each others' throats and society is on the brink of collapse, as law enforcement won't stop you. Violence is probably also more acceptable in a grim future, as per Unreal Tournament, or necessary, as per Fallout.
This is not a phenomenon exclusive to Games, however, since a lot of films set in the future are fascinatingly grim places, like Blade Runner, or a very extreme example being the Terminator future, where once the whole nuclear war thing is out of the way, everyone has to keep fighting the Robots.
Anyone think of a game set in a happy future, coz I can't...?
I don't know if Spyro is set in the future...but I guess WipeOut is cool, the tracks bring lots of money for the host countries thanks to all the sponsorship deals, TV contracts etc.
But the thing is, most 'future' games are shoot-em-ups, and nobody wants tp play in a place where everybody is happy, do they? If everyone was ok, they wouldn't go around shooting people.
But the thing is, most 'future' games are shoot-em-ups, and nobody wants tp play in a place where everybody is happy, do they? If everyone was ok, they wouldn't go around shooting people.
By which I don't meant the future OF gaming, rather the future IN gaming. The future is always a really dark and depressing place ravaged by war/disease/other horsemen of the appocalypse. Take, for example, Deus Ex, Unreal Tournament, the Fallout series, Freespace 2, and indeed pretty much any game set in the future. In fact, I can't really think of any games set in a cheerful future.
Why is that, do you suppose? Well, for a start it's probably easier to set a violence-filled game in the future if it is not a happy, contented place where everyone lives in harmony with one another and lives forever through technology. Clearly, there will be much more opportunity for killing if everyone is at each others' throats and society is on the brink of collapse, as law enforcement won't stop you. Violence is probably also more acceptable in a grim future, as per Unreal Tournament, or necessary, as per Fallout.
This is not a phenomenon exclusive to Games, however, since a lot of films set in the future are fascinatingly grim places, like Blade Runner, or a very extreme example being the Terminator future, where once the whole nuclear war thing is out of the way, everyone has to keep fighting the Robots.
Anyone think of a game set in a happy future, coz I can't...?
Why is that, do you suppose? Well, for a start it's probably easier to set a violence-filled game in the future if it is not a happy, contented place where everyone lives in harmony with one another and lives forever through technology. Clearly, there will be much more opportunity for killing if everyone is at each others' throats and society is on the brink of collapse, as law enforcement won't stop you. Violence is probably also more acceptable in a grim future, as per Unreal Tournament, or necessary, as per Fallout.
This is not a phenomenon exclusive to Games, however, since a lot of films set in the future are fascinatingly grim places, like Blade Runner, or a very extreme example being the Terminator future, where once the whole nuclear war thing is out of the way, everyone has to keep fighting the Robots.
Anyone think of a game set in a happy future, coz I can't...?