We all know that the Internet can be an exhausting place to exist. There are opinions everywhere you turn, and it can be difficult to determine your own views as a result. What, then, do you do when you’re a developer and forums are aflame with complaints and criticisms about your latest game? In an interesting interview with Games Industry.biz, Insomniac Games’ chief brand officer Ryan Schneider shared some candid anecdotes about the controversial transition from Resistance: Fall of Man to Resistance 2.
“We were relatively inexperienced when it came to interacting with our community at that point in time,” he admitted. “Social media and community were still in their relatively early days, and we over-indexed on how much we listened to our fanbase versus trusting ourselves.” In other words, it listened to the vocal minority, and it ended up changing things that most people liked about the PlayStation 3 launch title.
He continued: “What happens is we deal with this thing called the doubt monster, or what other people call the lizard brain, and we start to enter this phase of defensiveness or self-doubt. And we don't believe in ourselves and the choices we're making, and that causes us to cave in and compromise. When we do that, we stray from our vision and values.”
Insomniac has learned to deal with this better in the decade or so since Resistance 2’s release. For example, it recently changed its logo, ditching the “iconic” moon symbol that’s been a part of its heritage since the very first Ratchet & Clank title. “We blew up the moon, our beloved icon that millions of people around the world had grown to love, but we knew it didn't tell the story we wanted to tell, and we had the courage to take an entirely different approach and direction with the rebrand,” Schneider concluded. “And we feel great about it.”
[source gamesindustry.biz]
Comments 31
Good stuff. If man say him a ting - den him a ting!
You blew up the moon and went generic. Good job being individuals guys.
@Broosh the very fact people like you say stuff like that but they are still happy with the decision tells them they made the right call
@Broosh Generic? I know Sony gamers missed out on Sunset Overdrive but that certainly isn't generic. I actually liked the Resistance trilogy - it was still 'unique' - even 2! I was disappointed to hear they were not making another Resistance but still looking forward to Spider-Man.
@kyleforrester87 @Broosh Yeah, your comment (and, to be fair, my original article about the logo change) basically prove his point.
@BAMozzy He's talking about the new logo, I think.
Honestly doesnt bother me they changed the logo. So long as blowing up the moon and the change in direction doesn't leave ratchet and clank in the past. Insomniac are extremely talented and I'm still sad resistance has been left behind. The trilogy was great and i still have the 3rd somewhere. I would love there to be a brand new ratchet title in development for ps4 once spidey is released (so excited for that); and can't wait to see what they do next
@KingdomHeartsFan Meanwhile over at Bungie...
https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2018/01/destiny_2_game_director_promises_to_disclose_games_future_on_thursday
Cant win em all I guess :')
Not going to happen but assuming they make another Ratchet and Clank I'd prefer the old logo.
That logo is part of booting up Ratchet and Clank to me.
I did always think it looked out of place on other games though.
Interesting read. Anyway, I would love Resistance on PS4, it's one of my favorite single-player campaign FPS ever.
After Spider-Man, I wonder if Insomniac will make a sequel of Ratchet & Clank on PS4, I really hope so.
It’s a fine line these guys tread. I agree that they need to embrace their own artistic vision and not over react to a vocal minority, but at times there is good constructive criticism that comes from the fandom. I think I read an article on here Sammy wrote a few months ago about the subject — that sometimes the fans don’t even know what they want and they ask for changes to games that they think they want but actually regret because it makes the game worse. I think it was in reference to Battlefront II.
I still never played Resistance 3 I think it had come out along a lot of other really solid games, so it was always just a game I said I buy later and never did... I really enjoyed 2 and the Vita one though
Thats wht i wasnt a fan of Resistance 2 then. It all makes sense now! 1&3 are great though, and Retribution. And im gona say it dammit, i enjoyed Burning Skies!!
I dont like the new logo but it is not my company anyway. Fuse showed us what happens when you buckle to the pressure and why no special/great studio should work with EA. 😉
I'm glad that they take that approach because if they listened to the minority they would be ditching a few of the Spiderman mechanics, putting the game back several months. I mean the Spiderman gameplay trailer you had people saying "too many QTEs, take them out" what they conveniently don't do is tell them of an alternative way of playing that's better then what professional developers can do.
So you all think that producing products without listening to what anyone thinks is a good idea? This is market research guys, all businesses do it.
As a gamer I don't know how difficult it is to get a game and all its bits just right. So... My trust is in the experts. Hope Insomniac just produce the best spiderman that they believe in. Too many cooks spoil the broth... Also I'm beginning to realise some 'gamers' might hate a franchise and just say things to mess things up or they're bias to a certain console. The average gamer ie. 90% just wants a good time. I'd love a resistance openworld - cross between fallout, walking 'chimera' and horizon set in where it all began Mother Russia! Please bring back resistance Sony
Sometimes it's best to go with your original idea for gameplay and plotlines instead of listening to people that want something a specific way.
@BAMozzy don't get me wrong I love their games! Sunset overdrive included. Purely talking about the logo!
@kyleforrester87 yeah its just a logo lol it just seemed silly to me that's what they feel great about. But as long as they keep pumping out great ganes who cares
@XurAgentofthe9 Problem is can get focus tested too much, that's what happened to Fuse, was focus tested within an inch of it's life and became one of the blandest, most forgettable games of last gen.
@Broosh it's better considered a statement of intent, I suppose.
@adf86 I was thinking about this half an hour ago playing Xenoblade Chronicles 2, there is so much strange, annoying stuff in it and odd design choices that make you wonder how it made it through testing. But then it does so many weird and wonderful things that only exist because some of the worse elements exist, too.
So far Spiderman looks very boring. I liked resistance a lot, much much more fun than killzone tripe.
@AnimeGamerFan feedback and whining can be the same thing, being dismissive of legitimate community concerns and labelling feedback as whining because those being criticised can't be professional enough to accept and try to understand those concerns, well then good luck if that's your attitude.
I don't understand resistance 2 had 2 million less in sales and averaged the same reviews as resistance 1, shouldn't they have listened?
I would love it if they would remake Resistance on the ps4, not everyone would say it's their favorite game, but would at least say it was good. Even to this day it's still my favorite game, and I miss the story in all of them and miss the co-op in Resistance 2. I wish they would at least consider it!
@Bad-MuthaAdebisi dude 90 percent of your fabled "criticism" on the internet is whining and fanboying. It's very rare to see well thought out criticism that makes sense and isn't just some manchild raging anonymously through the keyboard
@Bad-MuthaAdebisi This is the prime example of vocal minority
I'm sure if spiderman reviews good it will be the best selling insomniac game ever, and maybe the best selling ps4 exclusives since spiderman is a huge ip.
@Bad-MuthaAdebisi if only there was a down vote then you could maybe understand you are always the vocal minority. Then maybe you could understand how the majority don’t want your opinion affecting game development
I'm not a QTE fan but I give them the benefit of the doubt to make the best decisions for their game.
As long as you're not doing what EA has done recently who basically spat on their customers and told them they'd like it.. as long as they steer clear of that mindset, and I'm sure they will, they should be fine.
@Broosh Whilst I do agree that the logo lacks the character it once had, it also seems more 'mature' too...
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