Guides
- Braid
- Echochrome
- Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved 2
- Ikaruga
- My Life As a King (FF CC)
- N+
- Penny Arcade
- Pixel Junk Eden
- Pixel Junk Monsters
- Rez HD
- Strong Bad's Cool Game for Attractive People
...and these are only some of the games released this calendar year.
It's clear that now more than ever that Downloadable games have finally solidified themselves as profitable to developers and enjoyable to gamers. When XBLA first started their Live Arcade series of games, outside of Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved, there weren't too many titles that really got people's attention. Yes, we slowly started getting titles like Castlevania, Puzzle Quest and a few others, the problem was that these were not original titles but ported versions of established games. We were also 'gifted' or had to 'settle' with Java based games that you could play over the internet for free.
2008 has changed. Taking a look at the list at the beginning, most are orginal titles and each very different. Regardless if you're playing on Microsoft's Xbox Live Arcade, Sony's PlayStation Network or Nintendo's Wii Virtual Console, you have plenty of options for great games. Costs for these games are relatively low; anywhere from 5 dollars to 15 and in a time when you have to be cautious with your spending, dropping 10 dollars for game that will last you longer than a 2 hour movie is well worth the price. These downloadable games also allow for developers to take creative risks. As I mentioned before, a good chunk of the featured title above are not your regular games. There isn't anything available on the market quite like Echochrome, the Pixel Junk games or even Braid, and this option allows developers to make the risky title and release it. If it's good, it may lead to bigger and better things and if it fails or is unsucessful, while they won't make money, the small group of people behind the game don't end up losing too much and they learn from their mistakes.
Downloadable games are also quite small and thanks to the HDD in both the Xbox (optional) and the Playstation (standard), you can buy every possible game and still have space for other things. If you're a casual gamer, Downloaded games are easy to pick up and a lot of them are fun for all ages.
While Downloadable games are great for consumers, there are risks but they have decreased slowly over time. If there isn't a lot of quality titles available, then gamers will be hesitant to purchase games. As I mentioned before, in the beginning we didn't have a large amount of quality games worth spending money on. You had your flavor of the month, but they usually didn't last. Also, while we do have a few good games, there are plenty of stinkers out there. You can't deny that if you've sampled some of the titles available out there, some of them you would prefer they paid you to play them rather than you paying them.
Thankfully, all XBLA games offer demos and most PSN titles do as well, so we do have the option to 'try before we buy', but if there isn't a demo offered, it becomes extremely difficult to get sales. This has slowly disapeared and gamers do not have to worry about buying a game and regretting it. Developers are also trying to give gamers added content to these titles by offering expansion packs (like in PixelJunk Monsters, Carsacone, Super Stardust HD, etc...). By adding content to titles, we are still getting a lot for a small fee considering that some of these expansions also only cost a few dollars.
Depending on the region of the World you live in, the cost of games might also be a problem. People have complained that the cost of Braid at 1200 points is too high for a game that technically takes you about 2 hours (that is if you complete it bare-bones). 1200 points is technically 15 USD (US Dollars), but for me, a Canadian, the cost is actually 17 CAD (Canadian Dollars). I purchased Braid and I must say that even at the 17 dollar equivalent price it is worth that price to play and considering that it is still cheaper than 100% of all Nintendo DS and Sony PSP games, to complain about the price of any game is not valid. Sony has improved the price for Canadian gamers by selling games at a 1:1 ratio with the US cost, but Microsoft has no plans on changing the cost of MS Points. Also, from what I've heard, the prices in other parts of the world still are not at a proper ratio to the American price. This will be something that Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo need to improve if they want to continue to make money with these games.
If you haven't decided to pick up or even try some XBLA, PSN or Virtual Console titles, now is best time to start. At anywhere from 5-15 dollars, you're not breaking the bank; there are so many more titles coming up (Bionic Commando Rearmed, Portal: Still Alive) and with more than a dozen titles already available, you are certain to find something you will enjoy.
