The prehistoric 1990s was a different time for video games. Mascot platformer roamed the untamed jungles, with Mario and Sonic fighting forever, while Crash Bandicoot, Spyro, Croc, Rayman and countless copycats were strewn underfoot. Fast forward to today, and “mascot platformer” is hardly a genre anymore. There are still a handful of big names left, but most developers stopped making the next Mario a long time ago. In this week Split screen, let’s dig into what happened.
To kick off the episode, Mike Fahey asks Ash Parrish and me about the history of video game mascots, touching ubiquitous characters (Pac-Man), legends that have been lost over time (Capcom used to have a mascot called Captain Commando) and characters Fahey has tattooed himself on his body (Jazz Jackrabbit). Then we come to a discussion of the latest installment in one of the few remaining popular mascot platformer series. Ratchet & clink. Fahey, who beat the game, tells us how good it is, but also that it definitely plays the hits of its own story and does it that way less than it could have been.
For our final section, we’re bringing a very special guest, former Rare programmer and Playtonic Games co-founder Chris Sutherland, to talk about what it was like to be two of the most consistent Video game mascots of all time, Banjo and Kazooie, along with newer creations like Fallback platformer Yooka-Laylee. Then we discuss why the mascot platformer boom ended after the 90s and how modern games can pay homage without falling so deeply into nostalgia that there is no going back.
Get the MP3 Here and view an excerpt below.
Chris: It’s interesting, isn’t it, how those games just seemed to go away after the 90s. My theory is that maybe it’s because when you go back to the PS1, PS2, PS3, etc, with each generation of consoles the boost seemed to be more – what I remember back then was they were showing demos and of course there were rubber ducks too, but often the focus was more on realistic faces. And it was like, “Whoa, look how great the details are.”
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It was about realism because you assume machines that could make realism like Gold eye, but you can only use a limited number of igamesnewss. It’s much easier to create stylized content that is more cartoonish. But as the performance increases, these machines will be able to do more realistic things. And so these things get teased by gamers and game makers think, “This is what upsets people,” so they start making their games older.
So you have games that probably still have some elements like collecting and all kinds of interaction and adventure. You know, the things Naughty Dog does to Nathan Drake. So the gameplay is still in there, but it’s attracted to a slightly older audience. I suppose that the people who have gotten older want something that feels a little bit older. I think that could be one of the reasons people turned away from these mascot games. That’s a theory anyway.
Fahey: It can also be said that mascot games have changed. When I was looking at mascot characters for this podcast, people said, “An Xbox mascot is Marcus Fenix.” Not what you traditionally call mascots, but Nathan Drake and Marcus Fenix somehow got into the game and took the place of some of those mascots. I mean, good for the video game industry to get advanced enough to have a character that looks like a real person and goes down with people like a real guy, but still, I’m always a kid of the 80s and 90s, and i love my cartoon characters more than anything.
Chris: Yes. I mean, if you have a mascot character that appeals to everyone I think from the platform owner’s point of view, you have more flexibility, I would assume. If you can have a Mario style character, you can show it off to anyone of all ages. On the other hand, if you only have Master Chief or Marcus Fenix, you are kind of restricted. I suppose you can always make a Lego version.
Fahey: You could do it War gears Tennis.
Nathan: That would be great. I would like War gears Tennis – still with Waluigi. Nobody knows why he’s there, but he’s there.
Fahey: Take cover behind the net!
Nathan: But I think another thing, fair or not, is that at this point it looks like the mascot platformer out there are pretty nostalgic. I think that is very true in your case with Yooka-Laylee, because you consciously listened back Banjo Kazooie. But do you think that modern mascot platformer can still break new ground? Or are they more nostalgic trips at this point? Have they just been stamped like that?
Chris: I think they really have to break new ground. I think you see some of these things in the way Nintendo like this with games. makes Mario Odyssey– the way they pushed this forward. If you look back on previous titles in this series, they have made progress every time. Even with Bowser’s anger, They have even more advanced. You are generally rushing, but this is Nintendo for you.
For everyone else, I hope that there is a way to move things forward and that we can see new things in this genre. Otherwise, it’s just the same people looking at it nostalgically, and I think it’s not great in terms of the audience. They are getting smaller. You need new things and exciting things to keep people interested in.
Nathan: What does this mean for you and your next game, which I assume will be called Two-Ka-Laylee? When you look at something like Mario Odysseywhat do you think you can take away from it?
Chris: So we’re looking at a lot of the new games Nintendo is bringing out, mostly because they’re the pinnacle of what’s out there. We take inspiration from the things they do. But if you go back too Mario on Nintendo 64 – and that was something that was in banjo also – they have [since] Done things that make you go into worlds and you stay in the world instead of being knocked out of it and having to go through and do all these things all over again before going to the next star or in Odyssey‘s fall, moon. By having the moons in the world for them to be there, you collect a moon and then continue your journey, which is a nod to the fact that it is on Switch. You pick it up and put it down and you want it to be a snack-sized challenge so you can say, “I’m trying to get this far or this far now,” and there is enough content in this game to be in that they do I don’t have to throw you back to make you go over it all again. You can always see new content – unless you play for many, many hours.
So that kind of idea is pretty interesting – the idea that you don’t have to backtrack that much. Up to the very last stages of Odysseywhere they have things that you’ve seen all your playthrough but then there are these weird cubes and you say, “I thought I had completed the game, but there are these cubes.” And so it opens again. This is a great example where someone can play through and feel like they’ve finished the game and put it away, but for someone who really wants more it’s like a sponge and they can just keep pushing it. The group of people who appeals is large, because it is not an insurmountable challenge for everyone. It’s like, “I defeated the enemy, I saved who I had to save, and I finished the game. There are the credits. “
We see now that there are people who are really focused and interested in a game and they are going to play it to death. You want to give something to these people as well as to the people who will only play it once. You want to give something to everyone who will be playing, so you want to find out how to do that and how it aligns with your development time.
Ash: One last question: since Kazooie can walk with a bear on her back, how much can she push on her legs?
Chris: I’ve never been asked this question! At least the weight of a bear and a backpack, I guess. She’s pretty strong there, but she was also able to stretch her legs in the Bubblegloop Swamp with her waders. She could have very long legs and still carry a bear, so it was probably still a show of strength. Exactly what weight the banjo is, I don’t know if this has ever been documented, and I don’t know if I know the answer to that. If you can figure out a bear’s weight, this is a good place to start.
For all of that and more, check out the episode. New episodes appear every Friday, so don’t forget to like and subscribe Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or stapler. If you feel like doing so, leave a review too, and you can always send us a message at [email protected] if you have any questions or suggest a topic. If you want to yell at us directly, you can reach us on Twitter: Ash is @adashtra, Fahey is @OnkelFahey, and Nathan is @ Vahn16. We meet next week!
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