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I think Introversion Software's "Subversion"[0] is an excellent case study for the kind of problem Niantic's games always had: all tech demo, no game. Ingress
by hnbad 4y ago
I think Introversion Software's "Subversion"[0] is an excellent case study for the kind of problem Niantic's games always had: all tech demo, no game.
Ingress was an incredibly exciting technical innovation at the time. The idea of playing an area control game using your real world GPS coordinates was novel and the game encouraged genuine discovery in its initial phase by allowing you to record local points of interest: even in your hometown the game might lead you to walk down a road you were unfamiliar with and discover an interesting monument, fountain or building.
But they never really considered where to take it from there. Once the novelty wore off, it was mostly grind. Advanced players quickly developed strategies to optimize their play and "casuals" quickly fell behind with no way to catch up. The game remained fun for a small core group but effectively lacked an on-ramp for new players. Pokemon Go repeated this problem. They had created new exciting systems but not figured out how to make the game sustainably "fun" for most players.
I can only recommend watching the entire Failure Masterclass series from Introversion Software but at least the final video addressing their most anticipated game that never was, Subversion (a spiritual successor to Uplink). Without spoiling too much, the game was becoming increasingly complex and interesting but ultimately failed because there was no "game" there that would survive contact with players.
[0]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1giu6sMnAxY&list=PLbv7YX5V1ccWqZDhUtUQdUIpMg--o-U6l&index=9 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1giu6sMnAxY&list=PLbv7YX5V1c...
- mavhc 4y agoThere's no problem with catching up in Ingress, once you get to level 8 you're as powerful as anyone else. The game is you go outside and discover interesting places, then if you want, make friends with other players and organise stuff together
- praptak 4y agoHigh level play is not about levels, it's about having multiple hours per day to drive around, gather resources and create links. Access to portals in closed areas is a bonus. A group of determined players can keep a town permanently covered by a field, preventing everybody else from playing, especially if the anchor portals are in military bases or gated communities.
- RicoElectrico 4y agoIn theory unreachable portals can be eligible for deletion by reporting them on Niantic Wayfarer forum. But that forum is a cesspool, both users and moderators are such assholes.
- praptak 4y agoThere was this idiotic rule that a portal is considered reachable if more than one family can reach it. So gated communities were officially fair game.
- Cayde-6 4y agoDefinitely "in theory". A friend and I reported several portals that were completely unreachable by the public, deep into private property, and/or clearly physically unsafe. "Nah, portal's fine" was always the response form Niantic, if we even got one at all.
- mavhc 4y agoYou can create links up to 500m under fields now. Maybe you need to play the game of being friendly with the people who permafield you and convincing them not to. Or being friendly with people who can stop them Not really high level play, just high don't-care-about-anyone-else play
- RicoElectrico 4y agoWell, the emergent feature of PoGO pre-pandemic was meeting new people. It's kind of like smoking is not really about smoking, if you know what I mean. So are all the optimizations, really. There's enough surface area in the game they do provide some depth and give new people incentive to network with the pros. Whenever Niantic introduces a new Pokemon, mechanic or bonus there's something new to learn in terms of the meta-game. I started playing in 2016 before the official release, but hasn't done so since some time in the pandemic - remote raids took out the fun out of it for me.