Fallout Co-Creator Tim Cain Urges Gamers Not to Argue About Games, But to Buy Them
Cover: Official Fallout Art
In a new video, Tim Cain, one of the creators of the original Fallout, urged gamers to "vote with their wallets" for their favorite games, genres, and settings, rather than engage in online arguments. He is frustrated by the endless disputes in comments.
The game designer sees the root of the problem in people's unwillingness to understand a simple truth: we are all different, with varying needs, preferences, and levels of sensitivity to certain topics. Some love open-world role-playing adventures with complex lore, others can’t imagine immersion without realistic graphics, while others desperately need a good frame rate. Even within a single genre and specific game, there can be debates about features, mechanics, the prominence of the story, visuals, or gameplay. Cain recalled dealing with persistent requests to add romantic elements to his work, but he never liked this aspect and didn't want to include it.
Arguments negatively affect the community and solve nothing. Pressure and a tense atmosphere force people to leave. Players and developers transition to related fields and seek new hobbies because they can't withstand other gamers' attitudes towards them, their creations, or favorite games.
"You can argue, ignore each other, and name-call. But you'll get much more out of games if you spend your time and money on what you like, rather than shouting about what you don't like," Cain explained. "This is the only way forward that I see."
He also added that sequels and support come not to the projects that are liked, but to those that sell well. So in today's reality, money is the ultimate means to express your stance and truly make an impact.