We might be living through the golden age of gaming. With more than 10,000 games released each year, gamers have never had more choice than they do today. Throw in the sheer number of gaming platforms — mobile, browser, console — that are available, and it’s clear to see that we’re living through a vibrant period for the gaming world.
With thousands of titles released each year, casual gamers may wonder where the creators of games get all of their ideas. But it turns out that there are plenty of sources of inspiration for developers. We’ll run through some of the main influencers below.
Pop Culture
It should come as no surprise that game developers turn to pop culture when they’re coming up with ideas for a new game. After all, pop culture has a massive influence on our experience of the world and on our creative juices. It’s easy to see how someone who has seen Blade Runner could use the imagery of that movie to create an engaging game, which is what happened with Cyberpunk 2077, Planet Alpha, and Immortal: Unchained.
Successful Games
Game developers don’t just create games, they also play them! In many cases, the genesis for a new game is, in large part, an earlier, successful game. If you really look closely at a game, you’ll be able to identify traces of other games that predate it.
That’s especially the case in mobile and online slot games, which are heavily influenced by earlier successful games. Candy Crush, for example, has influenced games such as Bejeweled Blitz and Sweet Bonanza. Bejeweled Blitz utilized the game’s three-match concept, while Sweet Bonanza adopted the candy imagery of the game and packaged it on a modern online slot game. If you’re going to make a game, then it helps to draw upon some of the elements that have made earlier games so successful — and so, that’s just what developers often do.
The Days of Old
We think the modern world is interesting. But really, it pales in comparison to the wildness of days gone by. Take a look through history, and you’ll find plenty of awesome tales that would provide plenty of inspiration for a new game! Just think of the Assassin’s Creed series, which expertly incorporates historical times — such as Renaissance Italy and Ancient Egypt — into the plot. Whether it’s specific historic events or folklore mythology, there’s a lot that game developers can do with stories of the past.
New Technology
In many ways, you can think of game developers in much the same way that you would think of artists. When a new instrument or other method of creating is developed, artists typically experience a wave of inspiration. Game developers have benefited from a lot of technological progress in the past few years, and it’s helped to influence their creations. It’s not hard to see how a game developer would be eager to create something brilliant once they had discovered the potential of virtual reality, for instance.
The smartphone has been particularly beneficial to the gaming world. That technology has progressed significantly in recent years, and today not only is it possible for a game developer to create a mobile game, but they can create a great mobile game. And if it’s good enough, then it’ll rise to the top. Since most mobile games use the free-to-play business model, even independently produced games can become successful.
Daydreaming
Finally, game developers also get inspiration from simply letting their creative thoughts flow freely. A creative person can come up with an imaginative, vivid world simply by daydreaming, and what’s magnificent is that video games provide a tangible way to bring their creative thoughts to life. If they can dream it, then they can do it — after all, in the video game world, there are no limitations. Witcher 3, Ocarina of Time, and Oblivion are all pretty out there. Things can be as fantastical as the developer wants them to be.
