Giant Bomb Presents: Assassin's Creed's Developers Want to Go "Beyond Fun"

Can't wait for all the extra GDC coverage this week.

Can we not? I'd like Assassin's Creed to stay just about fun.

If games are built around satisfying feedback loops, isn't there always going to be something disingenuous clinging to whatever thematic elements they want to incorporate, unless those are specifically tied to the mechanics, like in Papers Please or Brothers? Interesting territory nonetheless.

I started playing it today, I think it's great they are trying to tackle different settings and experiences but I feel obligated to stop and free any slave I come across, making SLOW progress in the story because I stop so much.

I find having slaves basically be currency for unlocks distasteful however.

This should be interesting!

I don't entirely disagree or disapprove or anything like that, but whenever someone talks about games going "beyond fun," I get this uncontrollable desire to start punching stomachs as hard and swiftly as I can.

@melodiousj: Why?

As much as I respect the idea, this notion will simply not succeed on the AAA level as well as it can on smaller levels. I've enjoyed many smaller games for doing this (Hate Plus, Gone Home, ANYTHING from Tale of Tales,) these games usually end up reviled in a lot of circles. Many people don't want to deal with this when gaming, and many people simply don't see the point.

As a result, when trying to apply this to a fanbase as bloated as Assassin's Creed, well, I can't really see anything good coming of it. I've moved on from most bigger titles, to the current soup du jour: indie gaming. Trying to apply what I like about indie gaming to what made AAA franchises so big just feels like it will end horribly.

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@mancopter: AAA are in the spot of having to please everyone because they have to be able to sell millions of copies. The more controversial the topic the more people you'll push away. So what you're saying is true, AAA games tend to be focus grouped to hell.

That said, I think AAA games can also be more than just "a joy ride" or whatever. But you're probably right, the games that approach more serious subjects, and the more experimental games, will be smaller projects just because they don't have to appeal to everyone and can be the result of a more singular vision.

They managed to make murdering hundreds and hundreds of people as a pretend slave feel pretty fun and awesome so you have nothing to fear about them making a Twelve Years a Slave game I think.

(PS: Press A to hide under the pile of bodies.)

Assassin's Creed: 12 years of stale.

Stuff like "Micro Transactions"

@soapy86: I love this.

Someone throw Ubisoft a rope! They are so far up their own ass they may never make it back out! And about Assasses Creed of all things. What a hard left turn from the whole "We're Ubisoft and we're making AC4 for Abstergo and you're all testing it!" meta-comedy nonsense.

Sorry, but I couldn't get past the name Jill Murray. Just brings an image to my mind of a female version of my favorite comedic actor, baldness intact.

Cool, but will they overhaul the gameplay & mission design that has barely changed since 2 and make the combat more than "counter everyone for one hit kills while his friends watch each other die"?

Probably not. Maybe we'll get some more boring side activities and clunky mini-games though.

Some people would argue the franchise has gone "beyond fun" for a few games now.

If the focus of your videogame is not fun, engaging gameplay I literally could not care less about it. That's not to say I don't want stories, but if they come at the cost of gameplay then y'all can get the fuck out of my face with that street trash.

Is that what all of the meaningless collectibles and bar-filling busywork are supposed to be?

@melodiousj: perhaps you should reflect on your aggressive reaction to attempts to perhaps broaden the idea of what this medium could be used for beyong "fun". It's not like if they get their way there won't be "fun" games anymore.

Look at film you have stuff like The Act of Killing and Identity Theif(I heard that was funny) and than bombast like Non-Stop and Need for Speed. and all of those are what we could still call film.

I haven't listened yet, but I wanted to respond to some of the comments.

One of my favorite movies is A Clockwork Orange. It's definitely not an enjoyable movie, but it's still great.

Movies took a while to grow into the non-entertainment phase, and it seems that games are starting too as well. This certainly doesn't mean that movies and games shouldn't be entertaining, or that there will be any shortage of the purely enjoyable variety. I also don't think Ubisoft is up to the task. But I would appreciate a game that hits me as hard as--and is as unenjoyable as--say, Funny Games.

Gotta achieve fun first before you can go beyond...

Perhaps they should start with "fun" first, then they can venture into "beyond fun" territory.

Assassin's Creed's story is already very pretentious. If it gets anymore than that I'm worried I won't find a word in the English language for it.

Yo, love me some Tale of Tales games! Fucking flowers, getting Red Riding Hood on with the wolves, and letting old grandma wrecking her shit at the cemetery.

The both have their merits, but personally I prefer MustardDragon's rendition of the joke. HerbieBug has the quick kick to it, but it lacks the emphasis that I quite enjoy in a joke. The comma also adds a pause, so astute readers can think of the punchline before they finish the sentences.

As long as "beyond fun" means "adding new elements which give the player a different feeling" (Fallout: New Vegas' DLC, Papers Please, Dark Souls) as opposed to "stripping away elements so that the player isn't entertained" (Gone Home, Dear Esther), i'm all on board.

If you ask me, there are already too many parts of Assasin's Creed that are WAYYYY beyond fun.

boss

This not showing up in anyone else's RSS feed?

"Fun" is a very superficial way of describing an experience, and often means "is slightly pleasing to a large number of people, but relevant to none"

The two people in this podcast are reaching pretty far to prove their point about diversity issues in society and women's role in the workplace. Is anyone learning anything new about slavery from this game or podcast? I don't think this game or their view points really do anything to move the conversation about whatever Patrick is trying to do with this. Does he have white regret? It seems like all he and this game are doing is trying to fan the flames of something that happened so many years ago.

i might as well just stop playing video games at this point

Once I finish up the main campaign of AC IV I'll definitely give Freedom Cry a go. Given the historical backdrop of the series it's ripe for glimpses at unsavory subject matter we don't often confront in an interactive way. It's a fine line to walk, creating a compelling and fun experience without being too heavy handed or preachy, but I'm glad people are attempting it specifically in a mass market product.

ZING!

Dog will hunt!!!! It will just be killing a bunch of evil f**ks in most deserving ninja ways, while expanding one's awareness of the human condition and perception of societal ills..Works every time.

Honestly I like the direction also. For example, there was several times in MGS4 I thought there was reaching for this ideal, with Snake at one point explaining the motivations of his actions. It was almost poignant, especially in the context there was little practical chance of winning. And after all (if I understand Metal Gear), most of (but not all) everyone had started out it would seem wanting to achieve an ideal good, and reacting to perceived evil. But for many again, their efforts became subverted. A lesson perhaps.

I kind of like the fun part, myself.

I'm all for games trying to do something a bit more interesting than just making it fun to shoot/stab dudes.