Gaming is better without these kind of games
There was a time when ty-ins were everywhere in the gaming world. They’re barely visible these days—and that might be a good thing. Here’s why…
What do we mean by Video Game Ties?
Simply put, tie-in video games refer to games directly connected to or created as part of a larger franchise. These franchises can be TV shows, movies, comics, or books. They are usually released to coincide with or promote related media, and are not limited to any particular game genre.
Over the last few console generations, there have been many titles that fit this description – and they can vary greatly in quality. From Atari’s Superman (1978) (the first video game linked to a film release), to more recent examples such as Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora, the impact of video game tie-ins is undeniable.
Ties have covered just about every kind of intellectual property (IP) you can think of, and you can find the good, the bad, and the plain ugly under this banner. When they’re good, they’re very, very good (eg Batman: Arkham Collection, The Thing, GoldenEye 007), and when they’re bad, they’re awful (eg LOTR: Gollum).
The draws are often seen as cynical cash grabs that build on the popularity of their associated IPs, with subpar graphics, stilted animations, and tired gameplay mechanics. Of course, this isn’t always the case, but ask any player and they’ll probably be able to give several examples of bad connections for every good example you can think of.
How Tie-Ins blew up the gaming industry
In the early 2000s, the gaming industry saw a sharp increase in the number of titles released. Notable releases during this time included Spider-Man 2, Enter the Matrix, and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, along with countless others.
This was the golden age of film and franchise tie-ins. If a major motion picture was released, one would expect a video game version to follow. This trend continued into the late noughties and early 2010s, when a number of movie (and specifically comic book movie) games were released, such as Batman Begins, Iron Man 2, and Captain America: Super Soldier.
However, these titles faced some pretty stiff competition as some of the most popular video game franchises of the moment released some of their most notable entries during that time.
Competing against such big titles as Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Resident Evil 4, and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the movie and franchise tie-ins fell short in terms of gameplay and player level. the immersion they offered. One likely reason for this relative lack of quality is the pressure to release the tie-ins alongside their respective big-screen counterparts.
With titles being developed and released this way, the video game market soon became saturated with lackluster games that often seemed rushed or unfinished. And because of that, they’ve gained a collective notoriety for being underwhelming experiences that lacked any real impact or longevity.
Moving away from titles that have a connection
Although ty-in video games are still being developed today, their numbers have greatly decreased. The reasons for this are debatable, although it seems likely that it is related to several significant factors.
Competition in the video game market is fierce. The rising cost of games means that most players have to choose their games carefully. The truth is that many ties lack a certain uniqueness that makes them stand out from the crowd.
Most players like to feel like they’re getting value for their hard-earned dollars. A pedestrian eight-hour solo campaign just won’t cut it these days, not when dozens of original titles boast 20-plus hour campaigns.
Why gaming is better without this genre
Unless the way video games are developed changes, it’s hard to see how the stigma of poor optimization and lackluster games can be broken. The pressure to ship titles seems to create a vicious cycle where games aren’t given enough time to mature and are then poorly received.
Newer titles like Square Enix’s Marvel’s Avengers should be a blast, given the number of great licensed characters. However, his gameplay was little more than moving from one trash mob to another, albeit with some nice visuals.
While not directly related to any of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film releases, the intention certainly seems to have been to capitalize on the massive success of the franchise. And yet, when we acquired the rights to the MCU and its roster of characters, there seems to have been a relative lack of ideas for the game itself. And therein lies the problem.
The idea of stepping into the shoes of your favorite licensed characters is great, but the reality can often be overwhelming. Marvel’s Avengers is a perfect example of this. You inhabit a lot of characters that have a strong moral compass. This means that your available in-game actions like these characters will be limited in terms of player choice.
When you play as Captain America, there is no moral conundrum. This can make your game feel more restrictive, if anything, unlike, say, the best RPGS where you can act as you please and make your way through the game world.
The nature of tie-in inputs can make playing through them feel like stomping at times, with little or no surprises. For the seasoned player, this can leave little excitement as you can often predict what’s around every corner, making them a frustrating genre. While there are elements of the older games that players miss, I don’t miss the tie-in era because of the quality of many of the titles.
Developing original titles that aren’t tied to any specific IP seems to allow developers more creative depth. Freed from the constraints of what can and can’t be part of a licensed tie-in, we tend to see an influx of innovation and a more cohesive final product, and that’s the kind of game I’d rather part with my money for.