The return of the C64 days

[Razgon]

So, I've played Flower, I've played flOw, I've played Dwarf fortress, Dyson, and I've heard of countless others (Braid and so on) that all have one thing in common.

They are *not* made by a big developer house, but by either a small team, or one man only!

The reason this is doable now, is digital distribution's legality and widespreadness these days, and the fact that people hunger after something that hasnt been done to death already. And to me personally, this is a return to the old days, the days of the commodore 64, where there was countless games ,new directions explored, and so many fun, small games, that wasnt sold to me based on its graphics, but based on one single fact...was it FUN!!

Anyone else welcoming these new times where we dont HAVE to buy our games from EA or Coca-Cola?

[Hyperion]

I agree, the focus started shifting from game play to  fluff when the CD ROM drive started becoming mainstream.  They had all this space, and decided to take a que from Hollywood. 

Deep Gameplay = niche.  Thinking = work.  Mass appeal = dumb.

Console games are the ultimate expression of that philosophy.  With a few exceptions (Rock Band  )

Don't get me wrong, there have been some really awesome computer games since the mid 90's.  But the focus of most games did shift from "innovative game play", to "refine whats been done, with better graphics."