Insomniac Really Loves Red Dead Redemption

[John Funk]

Insomniac Really Loves Red Dead Redemption

The developers of Ratchet & Clank and Resistance really dig gunslinging in the Old West.

For all we think of game developers as the people who just sit around all day making games, it's easy to forget that many of them - if not all of them - are gamers themselves, too. Senior community manager James Stevenson at Insomniac Games polled the staff at the studio to find out what games the developers had enjoyed most over the past year.

One game showed up in responses more than any other: Rockstar's Red Dead Redemption. Insomniac's developers praised the immersive setting and engaging plotline, and said that they'd grown connected to protagonist John Marston - one even calling him "one of the absolute best characters in video games" - and even his horse. Resistance 3 creative director Marcus Smith joked that the Undead Nightmare DLC "kind of ruined DLC for the rest of us."

While RDR was the most commonly praised game, the Insomniac crew also loved a very wide variety of other titles this year. It's a very eclectic mix with a bunch of games from as wide a variety as you could possibly imagine, whether you're talking genres or even platforms - despite Insomniac's close relationship with Sony, it's clear there's respect there for those on the other sides of the fence.

All in all, the top ten games mentioned were:

[blockquote]* ModNation Racers
* Rock Band 3
* MineCraft
* Super Meat Boy
* StarCraft II
* Bejeweled Blitz
* Bayonetta
* Heavy Rain
* Alan Wake
* Red Dead Redemption
[/blockquote]

Honorable mentions include Dragon Age: Origins and Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, which came out in 2009 - but some of the Insomniac team didn't get around to playing them until this year. In the comments, Stevenson also explained one of the notable absences - while much of the Insomniac office adored Mass Effect 2, he said, none of them had picked it as their #1 favorite of the year.

I don't know about you guys, but I love this kind of thing. It always makes me feel warm and fuzzy reading other developers praise the games of their competitors - not as fellow game designers, but as people who simply love to play games. It's just cool.

I wish we'd see more of it.

(PlayStation Blog [http://blog.us.playstation.com/2010/12/29/insomniacs-favorite-games-of-2010/])

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[JourneyThroughHell]

Even though I disagree, especially with that Marston comment, it's always nice when one good developer compliments the work of another.

 

[Jumplion]

It's good to see developers keeping up with the times but also, as you said, praising their competitions as gamers not as game designers.

 

[kouriichi]

Bayonetta?

Your kidding me....... right?

That game isnt in my top 50. QWOP had a more Innovative story! And atleast it was challanging.

So everyone like Mass Effect 2, but none of them liked it more then Bayonetta?

I think they might have fibbed a little on theyer list because of theyer, "close relationship with Sony".

 

[Irridium]

Reminds me of the time those Bioware guys dressed up as TF2 classes. I love it when developers do stuff like this.

 

[Cursed Frogurt]

*Recalls feeling all warm and fuzzy when watching a Bungie docementary when they had JUST finished Halo 2 and a few employees were still in the office, one of which was playing Fable.*

What's really great is when an executive or first-party developer from one of the big three gives praise to a competitor's game. Wasn't it Major Nelson that said he loved Uncharted 2?It's like a showcase of "grow the fuck up" to all the fanboys that somehow still exist.

 

[Onyx Oblivion]

They like Bayonetta?

*is in shock*

Also, Bejeweled Blitz? Bejeweled 3 is infinitely superior!

Thought it has only been out a few weeks...

*goes back to Diamond Mine mode*

 

[Rewold]

It is a fine list indeed.

 

[voetballeeuw]

Nice to see Alan Wake make the list. Damn, I still have to finish Undead Nightmare.

 

[Dr. wonderful]

I like Bayonetta. I reallly thought it was a good game.

 

[repeating integers]

I think every developer should do this. It would be interesting and very nice, and we might get a consensus on who the "best developer among other developers" is. Though IIRC, Bioware's CEOs already did a "best games ever" list of their own.

And I would laugh so hard if Valve's favourite turned out to be the Call of Duty series, just to see the reactions of some of the fans.

 

[adam5396]

And I would laugh so hard if Valve's favourite turned out to be the Call of Duty series, just to see the reactions of some of the fans.

Valve are just a bunch of trolls. So they probably will put those games in. And then say the multiplayer was horrible just to get the fanboy hate going stronger. "Was laughing instead of raging when it came to the TF2 festive key."

OT: I agree, it is nice to see this kind of thing. And as has been said above, it is kind of a take that to those Fanboy wars.

 

[Crazie_Guy]

It's not surprising really. The console wars these days are regulated to the stupider corners of the internet (and gamespot) while more and more reasonable gamers gamers are happy to play any and every good game that comes along.

Also, the people who indulge console wars are either physically or mentally children, and thus are incapable of holding a job at a development studio. So of course such studios would be made up of the good kind of gamer.

 

[BehattedWanderer]

Now that's a nice read. You really have to love it when you see companies praising each other, just makes it seem less of a fight, more of a competition.

 

[SovietX]

Its nice to see game developers be gamers. Kinda brings them down to our level. It really connects the developers with the audience.

 

[ZippyDSMlee]

A shame they don't love Resistance...god that game sucks...

 

[KuwaSanjuro]

Its always good to hear how much game developers are big gamers because it sometimes sort of gets lost in translation and people forget that. And Red Dead was simply amazing in my opinion.

 

[katsumoto03]

[...]QWOP had a more Innovative story! And atleast it was challanging.

It's only 10:30am here and you've already gone and made my day.

OT: While I disagree with many of their picks, it's still cool to see that they actually play games in the business.