“A Step in The Right Direction”
The trending phrase in modern game criticism that is the equivalent of shooting oneself in the foot.
When Pokémon Scarlet and Violet was in the review stage, IGN Nordic called it “a step in the right direction.” This sentiment continued after the embargo was lifted. The Washington Post labeled the game “a step forward for the franchise” in their assessment. Destructoid claims the most recent Pokémon games are “moving the series in a direction” that their critic, Zoey Handley, has been hoping for. But prepare yourselves, because according to Giovanni Colantonio of DigitalTrends, “Pokémon Violet and Scarlet are an even bigger leap forward than they seem.”
I don’t point at this repeated phrase to call out “unoriginal” journalism. Not by any means. Instead, I argue that the repetition of this sentiment is in actuality representative of the current gaming landscape; the entertainment space that is truly void of the creativity that would theoretically make a multi-million dollar project helmed by the biggest media organization in the world more than, well, “a step.”
“But this is progress!” Yells Nintendo. “Don’t you see? New mechanics! An open-world! New Pokémon ! We’re pushing the series forward!” This is true, taking a step will, in fact, move one further towards their goal than standing idle, completely still. But a step is still miniscule compared to a leap, a mile, “a bound” if you will, especially when those steps come in increments of years.
Prior to Scarlet and Violet, Pokémon Sword and Shield released to less than favorable reviews. Simply put, when looking back at the games release it seemed as though Nintendo knowingly put little to no effort into their end product for the sake of immediate profit. Knowing anything with Pikachu plastered on it is a guaranteed profit, Game Freak and Nintendo had all the time and money to create an innovative game for a dormant franchise, and all the incentive to apply pressure to its production. One doesn’t need to guess how the game was described upon release.
“A step in the right direction.”
Bleacherreport. DenOfGeek. NewsGeek. Nintendo Times. Of course. It is not at all difficult to find examples of this wet band-aid of a critique in recent games criticism. IGN pinned NBA 2K22, another franchise that refuses to take a year off, with that familiar trodding sense of progress. Sonic Frontiers received similar sentiments from a handful of outlets, again, another iconic franchise fully capable of making more than a single pace of progress in an entire game.
I point out this word-vomit of a trend for the sheer frustration it ignites. For whatever reason, review outlets, no matter how critical, can and will still pardon some of the most guilty parties in the gaming industry for delivering content that consistently fails to meet already low expectations. Call me crazy, but I actually expect my games to run properly, or be delivered with all of its content, or match graphically capable equivalents in terms of visuals, and the list goes on. Corners have been cut to dull curves in the modern gaming landscape that has resulted in the “good enough” mentality by fans and critics alike. Again, I must ask, for how long can we excuse the wealthiest media companies in the world for producing lackluster media?
It seems like this bare minimum of progress has become the new normal in today’s game development culture. Don’t expect too much, you will inevitably be disappointed if you were hoping for your newest triple A title to be properly optimized for your system. Instead, remnants of developer pressure taint modern games that only leads to the deterioration of entire franchises.
A personal anecdote: I have always been confused as to why and how Sonic has persisted in the mainstream as a video game icon. Admittedly, I have played few sonic games, never grew up with the blue blur, and generally have found the gameplay style of his franchise to largely not be for me. But I don’t hate the guy, I don’t hope for Sonic’s games to disappoint, and yet, despite the seemingly universal law that his journey’s have to either be 2D classics or 3D nightmares of game design, he is still on the cover of the latest AAA “step in the right direction.” It is only until Sonic Frontiers released where I made the realization that this sentiment, the passive acceptance of mediocrity, the concession by fans and critics alike, is not a tactic of corporate appeasement (unless your games journalism outlet is coerced by publishers, a practice tainting the industry), but hungry desperation. Pokémon fans have been asking for a 3D open world since the fifth generation, Sonic fans have wanted just any good game for decades, and other top franchises have left their fanbases similarly void of quality content to the point where they will accept anything edible, or rather, anything that resembles what they’ve been clamoring for for years.
The true evil of this phenomenon is how it reflects that these companies, having starved fans for years of an expected level of quality, have made the consumer complacent in their own sabotage. “A step in the right direction” equates to a dismissal, an excuse for the elite that have brainwashed audiences into accepting annoyances. By acknowledging the positive developments in a game like Sword and Shield, where so much more could have been done to innovate upon a tired formula that fans have been craving to depart from, critics and fans hand the whip to their master. Gamers are so desperate for something, anything of quality or nutritional value that they will, no matter how inexcusable the rest of the game is, half-heartedly accept their oxymoronic rushed leftovers. Companies take advantage of the very pessimism they’ve instilled into their fanbase, and thus, are celebrated for even the most minimal of developments. However, we have to recognize the reality of these production companies: they aren’t doing it for the gamers, they’re doing it for the money.
Why else would Nintendo hold back fan favorite Pokémon just to repackage them in DLC? Why else would EA make the same sports game for the twentieth year in a row and flaunt “graphical improvements” as the most notable improvement? For artistic merit? For the fans? Based on their reaction, I wouldn’t be surprised if one was duped into the same thinking that leaves that very fanbase complacent.
Which is why the phrase “a step in the right direction” so perfectly encapsulates the modern gaming landscape. Luckily, with releases such as Baulder’s Gate 3, Spider-Man 2, and other notable 2023 AAA products, passion over profit proves to remain the golden rule of art. Many of the inexcusable efforts that are then excused by critics are a result of profit driven creative processes. Do I genuinely believe that every developer on the Pokémon team wants to disappoint fans? Want less Pokémon in their game? Want to deliver a knowingly worse product? Not at all. Developers are passionate about their craft, about their art, that would be like blaming the DP on an MCU film for not shooting with enough creativity. The money hungry suits overseeing the artistry within their products is what drives quality out of a game. In its place? Blocky trees. Pop ins. Micro-transactions. Infinite examples of rushed production and cut corners. And yet, because developers gave fans a morsel of what they asked for, it’s good enough, and as a result, they can use those profits to pump out another micro-step of progress.
The cycle continues unless interrupted. Rather than patting a company on the back for giving it their best shot, or lambasting them past the point of necessity, developers and fans should be in a direct exchange of dialogue. Fans ask, the company delivers, everybody wins. It’s that simple. Yet, somehow, developers are afraid of a better game somehow leading to lost profit. This hyperfixation on production at the cost of efficiency and quality reflects the era of late stage gaming capitalism we now find ourselves in. Systematized development where creativity is cut wherever it can be in the hopes of profit reflects a deep corruption in the gaming industry. As if capitalism wasn’t ruining the world already.
And so, I implore you, do not fall for the developer’s promises or tricks. Don’t pre-order your game until the review embargo is lifted. Don’t be fooled by a half hearted attempt at giving players what they’ve been asking for for years. The companies at fault are not a single, passionate developer, but a privatized machine built for the accumulation of profit, one that maintains an infinite flow of income by making its biggest critics its simultaneous, biggest, weary supporters.
I didn’t like Scarlet and Violet, I didn’t even finish the thing, but hey, “at least it’s open world Pokémon .” Maybe they’ll get it next time. All it will cost is an extra sixty bucks, a year of waiting, and hunger pains to convince me they’ve finally fed me what I’ve been craving.