Top 5 developers that should be seeing other people

Be it that they feel unsafe doing anything but the stuff that has proven to be working, that they are strong-armed into doing that by owners, publishers or shareholders, or that they simply like what they are doing too much to try other fields - some developers are stuck doing stuff that, if it was for the better of the gaming in general, they should not be doing.

5. Polyphony Digital Too much Gran Turismo for their own good Polyphony Digital's name is synonimous with racing games. Stuck in gargantuan development cycles of Gran Turismo games, they haven't had much time to do other stuff. Many gamers think that their meticulous approach to details can not be applied outside of a very refined genre they have helped define, but those of us who do probably remember Omega Boost for PS1. Everything about this PS1 game was great Gran Turismo was a driving sim that used to put everyone else out of the competition and helped Sony define Playstation as a  superior platform for gaming. The approach to details that PD had meant huge development cycles that forged the game that was worth every dollar and every day spent on its development. Today, that is not the case - competition has caught up with Poliphony Digital and, while not delivering games nearly as huge as Gran Turismo, they learned to make up for it by making game more approachable to user, action more flashy (damage model in Shift/Forza vs. GT) and their games better in segments that PD never really cared about.  It is time for PD to take a short break and try themselves in something else. Even if they fail at it, their careful approach is sure to bring something that other games will start ripping straight away.

4. DICE 
Chasing the Call of Duty dragon

Yeah, DICE did shooters back in the last millennium, but back then they were known for great pinball games and, even more, for awesome racers. For people who still remember software rendering, they were also the best of the best in making software rendering engines that made their games almost as pretty for those without those high-tech "3D cards".

For a 1998 title, Motorhead sure looks great, and Rallisport Challenge 2 for the first Xbox looks as good as many of today's games

And then they made Battlefield - a fresh, multiplayer-oriented shooter that offered a different, more tactical approach than Quakes and UTs of the time. In the days when they still had a complete creative control they decided to place Battlefield2 in modern setting, rather than WW2, being one of the first blockbuster developers to tap into the modern warfare. And then, they were bought by EA. 

When EA started their obsessive quest of taking down Call of Duty, DICE were the first to give it a shot, with Battlefield: Bad Company. Along with that, they developed Mirror's Edge, showing that, given the creative freedom, they can still make something good, original and fresh. The commercial failure of Mirror's Edge was, unfortunately, a signal to EA that creativity doesn't pay, and that the DICE developers are best making stuff that makes money.

With every new iteration of Battlefield (BF:BC2 and its Vietnam expansion and now Battlefield3, with Medal of Honor multiplayer sandwitched in there) their games were forced to be less Battlefield and more Call of Duty, and it seems that it is going to stay that way for a long, long time. Let's hope that the modern war FPS market will come to over-saturated crush like the rhythm/music genre, so they can make something fresh again. But not before Battlefield3 comes out - That shit looks stunning!

3. Lionhead
Paying for broken promises

Lionhead is stuck in a cycle - Peter Molyneux promises something, developers deliver less than that, and then spend another Fable development cycle in order to catch up with his promises, only to have him promise something else that will not be delivered until the next iteration. It has to stop.

Fable is big for Microsoft, but not really that big of a title. Sure, it establishes quality family-friendly gaming, but it's something they do not need people behind Populous, Dungeon Keeper and Black&White behind - it can be outsourced to another good studio, and Lionhead should lead creation of new IPs for Big Boss. And Microsoft desperately needs new IPs.

And, let's not even get started with Milo&Kate! There will be more talk about Microsoft giving the dullest tasks to its elite first-party teams, but let's say it here: there is nothing wrong in the idea of giving your best guys help you out with the under-the-hood jobs, until the point where it drags them away from creating games.

Lionhead's creativity has been proven countless times. They should be creating new IPs and not polishing the old ones. Playing the safe card by making them develop another Fable game would be playing a stupid card. Populous, Syndicate, Theme Park, Magic Carpet, Dungeon Keeper, Black&White and The Movies are also PM's creations. Let the guy add something new to that list, Microsoft, so you can exploit it.

2. RARE
Not making games

Developers in RARE must feel like the most deceived  people in the world. They have a job in one of the most respected developers in console gaming history, with gaming portfolio as impressive as anyone but Nintendo, and they are stuck doing dull tasks and making shovelware for Microsoft.

Instead of making, for example, a new Killer Instinct, the creators of  Donkey Kong Country ended up making Xbox360 avatars; instead of doing another Banjo/Kazooie or Conker, they were told to do Kinect Sports. In the age of total console FPS mania, the creators of the best console FPS of all times are stuck doing dull, uninspiring jobs.

The truth is that many great people have left RARE, and Microsoft probably doesn't feel comfortable enough to finance a new IP or a reboot of a generations-old one with guys who have not really proven themselves in charge.

Here's an idea: let RARE make the next Fable! The ground is pretty clear, there is not too much space to fuck it up (can you fuck it up more than Fable3 did?) and it will sell well even if they do. It will serve both as a proving ground and a test of talent for RARE, and MS will surely profit from it. The way things stand, one of the biggest names in their first-party game-makers list isn't making games - and that is not good.

1. Crystal Dynamics
Raiding Tombs

Crystal Dynamics are going to make nothing else but Tomb Raider stuff for a long time - and the only reason for that is because they are guilty of making good games. 

Yeah, they have made Gex and Pandemonium, but Legacy of Kain is the reason it is so sad to look at what CD is working on these days. The story of Raziel and Kain took us to one of the most iconic journeys in gaming history - setting an epic, complex and stunningly real tale into a unique, magical world with an atmosphere so palpable we can still smell it. And creators of that world are now telling us tales about an Indiana Jones with titties.

Even if it seems that Crystal Dynamics are not in as bad of a position as RARE (not only they are making games - they are making good games that sell really well), the helplessness of the situation is what puts them on the number one place on this list. There seems to be no escape for them: as long as they make good Tomb Raider games, they will be strong-armed to make more; and if they start making bad ones, they will probably be closed, along with what remains of Eidos.

The only hope of us seing a new LoK game (preferably a re-boot) is Square Enix starting to treat Tomb Raider like Call of Duty, assigning another developer (IO interactive seems like a good pick) to take turns with CD in developing Lara Croft games, ultimately making room for them to backdoor-escape from Hell.