We’ve all seen the news on Midway this past week.  If you didn’t, check it out here by Yaris.

Basically, Midway has mutually agreed to get out of a number of licensing agreements.  Is this a good thing?  In my humble opinion, hell yes.  I’m tired of seeing franchises churn out the same game just with a +1 on the end.

Sure I love to force throw Wookies, kill stormtroopers, and wouldn’t mind at all to pick up Princess Leia in her slave outfit.  But you know what? I know how this story ends.  I’ve seen it before, many times.  While it is great fun to take on the role for a while, it doesn’t really do much for me past some mild entertainment.  I can play this game for a little while but then I’ve been there and done that.

Licensing can make publishers happy, they get to secure a cash flow based upon a formula.  In their eyes, each new version should be quicker and cheaper to make than the last and they don’t have to worry about things like story because someone else takes care of that, along with the characters, and more.  Some franchises, such as our beloved Star Wars, have branched out separate storylines under the same universe, and those games have been great to play, I will concede that.  However, every Star Wars game has not really thrilled me, Star Wars Battlefront was essentially Team Fortress with a new dressing on it (see also Enemy Territory: Quake Wars), and they managed to produce a Star Wars Battlefront II.  Aside from a bit of polish, some new characters, maps, weapons, what changed?  Not much, it was the same gameplay, same game mechanics, nothing to really write home about unless you think Battlefront was the best thing since sliced bread, I’m sure Battlefront II rocked your world then.  This formula must have netted the publishers a nice couple bucks that quarter.

But did I get the best game possible for my money?  Have many of these formula games, sequels, and quick-to-markets really given me my gamer satisfaction?  I’m sure they could have done some Downloadable Content to patch up Battlefront to look like Team Fortress or vice versa.  Battlefront did leave me hanging on storyline, player immersion, and new features.  Games have become a medium to convey stories, emotions, provide interaction and more.  As technology has advanced, gaming become more mainstream and new doors have been opened, why not explore them?  The Wii has brought video gaming out of the basement, back into the living room and put motion controls as a new gameplay mechanic to work with.  Touchscreens on the DS and accelerometer on the iPhone have put other new weapons in developers hands.  Why not use them?

As a gamer, if I want to play COD4 in WWII they should just have some new player skins, maps, and weapons (note the MP44 is already there for you in COD4 so you can get it out of your system with that) as DLC and poof!  You now have something that may look amazingly like COD5!  I know it’s not just that simple but you get my idea.  No new mechanics have been added to the game and honestly, we know you will be the hero and win the game in the end (although COD4 did have some nice twists to it, I’m not confident COD5 will).
As a gamer, when I play any of the Metal Gears I have been wowed at the progression from the last version, new mechanics and features, storyline, and a few moral lessons/soapbox rants along the way.  Bioshock simply blew me away.  Amazing storytelling through a variety of mechanics from NPC interaction, to listening to the journal entries, to the changing characters and environment.  Everyone knows the atmosphere of that game was legen…. wait for it…. dary.  It created an experience I would like to return to, but maybe only once, if they can do it right, which means better and different than last time.  If I wanted the same game mechanics but a new experience I would play the original but in a different way.
To me, the player, gamer, consumer, and heart-breaker extraordinaire, I am seeking out new interesting story-lines, new game mechanics or applications of those mechanics, creativity, engaging entertainment and interaction.  It seems a tall request, but if you can successfully put together one or two of the above you may get my kudos, hard earned dollars/pounds, and my thanks.  I feel licensed games don’t seem to bring out this qualities at all.  What was the last licensed game that you thought rocked and brought something new to the table?

To show you how its not that large of an ask lets look at a couple games that have done well in this area.
Braid: Great new take on the 2D side-scroller of Mario defined genre.  Time travel instead of dying, puzzles instead of horrifically challenging jumps, and a bit of storyline told in an interesting manner to keep you going.  Well done.

Fracture: New twist to 3rd person shooters, manipulating your environment instead of blowing it all to hell.  Nice, and the storyline around the environmental impacts was well placed in today’s world.
Kudos developers.

And where it is poorly done check out Turning Point: Fall of Liberty.  Great concept and storyline idea, engaging soundtrack, and a neat hand to hand (grapple) feature but controls are slow and clunky, environment doesn’t look all that great, it feels like one of the old Medal of Honors.  No kudos to you.
You can DL all the demos for these on the Xbox360 to check out what I am talking about.

I’m not saying every title should be a groundbreaking, high caliber, proprietary IP, but I think it wouldn’t be too bad if more resources were put that way.  I would be really upset to see a full price COD13 come out and after someone gets 7 kills have a bunch of helicopter-dogs come after you.  I hope you would be as disheartened as me after saying “WTF Helicopter-Dogs? in COD13: WW2.5 – The Return of the Nazi? That crazy Hitler!”

Does anyone else remember playing the first Metal Gear Solid and going “WOW! More games should be this cool! I’ve never seen something like this.”?  I just hope they aren’t making Quantum of Solace and hoping to get a hit like Goldeneye 007.  Making another Bond game doesn’t do that for you, its making another great game that does.  It’s not the license, its the content.

What games have made you say you’ve never seen something like this? What licenses do you think would make a good game? And most importantly, what are you, as a gamer, looking for in your game purchases?