Things evolve. I’m fine with that. In the beginning, we (the human race) started out with simple word of mouth for communication. Quite a while later, we moved into print publications (newspapers, magazines, etc.), radio, television, and finally, here we are with the internet, as we know it. It’s natural that we evolve, but with this progression, this evolution, we’ve lost something that I used to treasure. We’ve largely lost surprises. When we do get them, they’re a hollow shell of the surprises of the past. Read on, I’ll explain…

We’ve all known that print media (especially with relatively high-tech fields like video and computer games) was going to go the way of the dodo, but what wasn’t so clear was the extra baggage it would take with it, on its way out. I can’t remember the last honest-to-God surprise that I didn’t know in advance.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m not talking about spoilers, or endings. (although they’re out there too.) I’m talking about never seeing top notch games hit the shelves without already knowing a ton about them. I’ve grown tired of seeing new features rolled out along with press releases singing its praises before the game is even out.

I’m also weary of the rumors, previews, and impressions that always seem to preface the reviews. By the time reviews are written, I almost feel as though I’ve already played the game because of the avalanche of pre-release press. Lately, I’ve made a conscious effort to not read a lot of things prior to a game’s release, but the problem is the truly great surprises are unavoidably spoiled, unless you’re willing to completely shield yourself from all media.

If you ask someone if they like “good” surprises, I’m sure they would say that they do. If you asked that same person if they’d rather be intentionally shielded from good/interesting news in their areas of interest, just so the related products would have time to be released before they heard about it, they’d almost certainly say “No. Why wait?” I can hear it now. I’m not sure I have a compelling answer for this problem either.

What’s the solution other than intentionally shielding yourself from the media?

Could you imagine how differently you would feel if the next big game announcement that genuinely excited you came a day, or two after you learned about them? Could you imagine the announcement of a complete Gears of War 2, or a complete God of War 3 that went Gold days before the announcement and would be in stores by the next Friday?

Could you imagine how having all that excitement condensed into such a shorter time frame would feel, compared to having the game announced next month and getting a lot of screenshots and videos shown in between?

We’re already getting tentative release dates for games now (in January) that are nine months away. LittleBigPlanet, for instance, is scheduled to be released in September, if you believe the latest reports. May I remind you that it was originally unveiled in March of 2007 at GDC.  That’s eighteen months of LBP being dangled in front of us. I’m sure a lot of people like it, but would the hype be more “special” or “enjoyable” if you heard about it, saw a video of it, then could go and buy it? Eighteen months seems extremely excessive, although it’s not unusual. Look at Spore, look at Duke Nukem’ Forever. (okay, I’m just playing with you there on that one.)

I realize I’m bitching about something that’s not going to change, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a valid discussion topic. So happens in the time between the planning and the implementing of a new release, that a significant portion of the game doesn’t end up the way it was described originally. That’s one reason I don’t tend to get excited about stuff so far away. It’s also why I question the practice of showing things and making announcements so early. It intentionally makes me give it less attention. Doesn’t that seem to contradict it’s intended purpose?

I’m not even sure if this is a complaint against the industry’s “hype machine” or the readily available sources of info on the internet. Hell, even when print magazines do get scoops, they’re scanned in and posted to the internet long before the issue hits the subscribers’ mailbox. Look at Game Informer’s Resistance 2 coverage. Nobody had any news on that, yet they got scooped. How you might ask? Internet news sites are actually crediting readers with an early copy of the magazine as a source of information. How screwed up is that?!

“Print media is dead,” “The gaming industry excessively breeds and feeds on hype”, or “Why are there no more surprises?” Take your pick. They could all describe how I feel now… sprinkled with a little touch of irritation as well. Do you share any of these feelings? Better yet, do you think you have a solution for this mess? I’d love to hear what you guys think.

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