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“Action RPGs kind of outsell classic RPGs”: Fallout OG Tim Cain says AAA RPGs default to violence because it sells, so support non-violent options when you get ’em

Violent video games don’t create neck spasms and murderers the way so many people seem to assume, but they are undeniably prevalent in the gaming industry. According to Fallout creator Tim Cain, there’s an obvious reason for that.

“If you look at, like, the Steam top 50 or top 100 [most played games],” Cain says in a new YouTube video dissecting the topic of violent RPGs, “you see an awful lot of action, violent-oriented games. The companies don’t make them because they feel like it. They make them because they sell.”

Violence As The Default In AAA RPGs – YouTube

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At the moment, Steam’s 11th most played game – lodged between Call of Duty (guns) and War Thunder (tanks) – is the free-to-play clicker game Banana, in which players click on a banana. But Cain emphasizes that pacifist games, whether they involve peelable fruit, flourishing gardens, or making Sims WooHoo in a coffin, are the exception, not the rule.

“This is why I always tell people, ‘vote with your dollars,'” Cain says. “If you think you’re just a drop in the bucket – if enough people do this, those drops become a storm, and companies will listen.”

“It’s just one of those things that, you have to draw the line somewhere, and everybody draws it in a different spot, and I get it,” Cain continues. “You have a different financial situation, or you have a different situation about where you actually live and what is available to you. I get it. But to not draw a line because you think it won’t matter is a way to guarantee it won’t matter.”

Violent video games might be thriving, but at least cozy farming sim Stardew Valley has sold over 41 million copies as of right now, with over half on PC and almost 8 million on the Switch.

In a recent interview with Tim Cain, one of the original creators of the Fallout series, he expressed his thoughts on the current state of RPGs in the gaming industry. According to Cain, action RPGs tend to outsell classic RPGs because the default option for AAA games is violence, which tends to attract a larger audience.

Cain suggested that game developers should start incorporating more non-violent options in RPGs to cater to a wider range of players. By providing alternatives to combat, such as dialogue-based solutions or puzzle-solving mechanics, developers can create more diverse and inclusive gaming experiences.

So, the next time you come across a non-violent option in an RPG, be sure to support it. By showing your appreciation for these alternatives, you can help encourage more game developers to think outside the box and create more diverse and engaging RPGs for players of all preferences.

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Fallout co-creator Tim Cain says violence will be the default in AAA RPGs as long as we keep buying it: ‘Companies don’t make them because they feel like it. They make them because they sell’

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After thousands of hours spent in combat with orcs, androids, and enemy militants, I’ll admit that it’s gotten harder to find novelty in videogame violence. While Steam overflows with trucks, farms, and city builders for when I’ve grown battle-weary, violence overwhelmingly remains the basic mode of interaction, even in AAA RPGs that tout player freedom. No matter how fantastic a world big-budget RPGs might imagine, they rarely imagine one where it’s not just a matter of time before the swords are pulled back out—and Fallout co-creator Tim Cain says that’s not going to change as long as we all keep buying it.

In a YouTube video that went public on New Year’s Day, Cain responded to a viewer who asked whether he thinks we’ll ever see AAA RPGs move beyond violence as the default way for players to interact with the world. Cain’s answer was simple: Big budget RPGs will center combat as long as combat sells best, and nothing’s ever sold as well as combat has.

Violence As The Default In AAA RPGs – YouTube

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“Companies make games—and in general, products—that people will buy,” Cain said. “That’s it. It means games that sell the most, and I’m not even talking about review the best, just sell the most, will dictate future games.”

Cain was conscious to limit the scope of his response to AAA RPGs, particularly because the production demands of mainstream game releases have grown exponentially. “If you have a company and it’s trying to make money and there’s one game type that sells millions of copies and another one that sells 100,000,” Cain said, “which one are you going to do if they both take just as much time and money to develop?”

In RPGs, Cain said, action RPGs like Diablo, broadly speaking, tend to outsell CRPGs that might feature more dialogue or pauseable combat, in part because combat is simpler to market. “When you watch a trailer and you see people actually doing things—jumping, climbing, shooting, punching—it looks like, ‘Whoa! Look at all the things you can do in that game,'” Cain said.

As a point of comparison, Cain explained that during his time as game director on The Outer Worlds, Obsidian ran into difficulties finding a marketing strategy that would highlight its non-combat elements in preview trailers.

“How do we show that this game has a really good story? How do we show that it has fantastic dialogue? How do you do that in a trailer that may only be 15 or 30 seconds long?” Cain said. “You have to reduce this wonderful narrative that’s super creative and nuanced that has a huge arc down to a soundbite.”

Cain underlined that he wasn’t saying noncombat games don’t sell, noting classics like Myst and more recent games like Life is Strange and the explosion of farm sims clearly “sell well enough to keep making them.” Action games just tend to sell better.

“If you look at the Steam top 50 or top 100, you see an awful lot of action, violent-oriented games,” Cain said. “The companies don’t make them because they feel like it. They make them because they sell.”

In an earlier section of the video, however, Cain urged viewers not to feel like voting with their wallets is useless.

“There are products and stores and entire companies that I will not buy from. I don’t think they care or even notice, but I do,” Cain said. “It’s just one of those things that you have to draw the line somewhere and everyone draws it in a different spot.”

I think we’d all have to draw a pretty thick line to make a noticeable mark on the market share when those multimillion dollar marketing budgets are in play. Cain seems more optimistic, however, that “companies will listen” if enough players decide they’d like a bit less combat, please.

“To not draw a line because you think it won’t matter is a way to guarantee it won’t matter,” Cain said. “It’s like when people say, ‘I don’t vote because my one vote won’t matter.’ Once enough people think that way, it matters.”

In a recent interview, Tim Cain, one of the co-creators of the Fallout series, made a bold statement about violence in AAA RPGs. Cain stated that violence will continue to be the default in these games as long as consumers continue to buy them.

“Companies don’t make violent RPGs because they feel like it,” Cain explained. “They make them because they sell. As long as players are purchasing games that prioritize violence, developers will continue to cater to that demand.”

Cain’s comments shed light on a controversial topic within the gaming industry. Many critics argue that the prevalence of violence in video games can have a negative impact on players, desensitizing them to real-world violence and promoting harmful behaviors.

However, Cain’s perspective offers a different angle, suggesting that the responsibility ultimately lies with consumers. If players want to see a shift away from violence in AAA RPGs, they need to support games that offer alternative gameplay experiences.

As gamers, it’s important to consider the impact of our purchasing decisions and advocate for the kind of content we want to see in the industry. Only by voting with our wallets can we truly influence the direction of game development.

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Fallout creator Tim Cain reveals two playthroughs key to the RPG’s history: his low-Int hero named Potato, and a mass-murderer who made them check “the entire game” again

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I’ve always thought that the most rewarding role-playing games are the ones that account for a range of playstyles – everything from your standard claymore stuff to a pebble-only run, if the mood strikes – and Fallout creator Tim Cain agrees. Accommodating diverse player builds is part of what makes the original Fallout game so divinely satisfying.

But trying to predict behavior from a class as wild as the deviant gamer is a difficult task, Cain suggests in a recent YouTube video discussing the topic.

“When we were developing Fallout, there was someone who was playing through it, just shooting every NPC they encountered before they could even talk,” Cain says in the video. “I kind of knew there were people who were going to do this, but it turns out, he broke the game. He broke it with Gizmo in Junktown. He walked into that room, and just shot Gizmo right in the head before he could say a word.

“It literally broke the main story progression,” Cain continues. “Then I had the designers comb through the entire game looking for things like that.”

Their avenging Gizmo was worth it in the end. By having his developers diligently double-check Fallout, Cain could be assured that it ultimately “was not possible to break the main storyline with violence, dialogue, or stealth because I wanted every character build to be able to make it through to the end.”

Including his build for his own character, Potato.

“I played the first low-Int, full playthrough in Fallout,” Cain says. “The character’s name was Potato, and I finished the game with Potato and proved that a one Intelligence character could finish that game. It was hard, because he didn’t get very many skill points – skill points in Fallout depended on your Intelligence.” It’s an inspiring story for me to share with my Elden Ring character Bingie, who might be more intelligent if I hadn’t named her Bingie.

“Action RPGs kind of outsell classic RPGs”: Fallout OG Tim Cain says AAA RPGs default to violence because it sells, so support non-violent options when you get ’em.

In a recent interview, Fallout creator Tim Cain shared some key playthroughs that have had a lasting impact on the development and legacy of the iconic RPG.

One of these playthroughs involved a character named Potato, a low-Intelligence hero who stumbled his way through the post-apocalyptic wasteland with hilarious and often disastrous results. Despite his limited mental capacity, Potato managed to complete the game in his own unique way, showcasing the game’s flexibility and allowing players to experience the world of Fallout in a completely different light.

Another memorable playthrough Cain mentioned was that of a mass-murderer who made the development team check “the entire game” again. This player’s ruthless and violent actions forced the team to reconsider the consequences of player choices and the impact they could have on the game world. It also highlighted the importance of player agency and the freedom to approach the game in whatever manner they saw fit.

These two playthroughs not only showcase the depth and complexity of Fallout’s gameplay but also highlight the creativity and ingenuity of players in shaping their own unique experiences within the game. As Cain continues to work on new projects and push the boundaries of RPG design, it’s clear that the lessons learned from these memorable playthroughs will continue to influence and inspire the future of the genre.

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Fallout, Tim Cain, RPG history, low-Int hero, Potato, mass-murderer, playthroughs, game development, RPG design, game design, Fallout franchise, character development, game completion, game challenges, game replayability.

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Tag Archives: RPGs

“Action RPGs kind of outsell classic RPGs”: Fallout OG Tim Cain says AAA RPGs default to violence because it sells, so support non-violent options when you get ’em

Fallout co-creator Tim Cain says violence will be the default in AAA RPGs as long as we keep buying it: ‘Companies don’t make them because they feel like it. They make them because they sell’

Fallout creator Tim Cain reveals two playthroughs key to the RPG’s history: his low-Int hero named Potato, and a mass-murderer who made them check “the entire game” again