Favourite developer this generation?

[Andy Shandy]

What with the next generation fully kicking off at the end of the year, and The Last Of Us being one of the last few big games to be released solely on one of this gen's consoles (Beyond and GTAV are the only ones I can immediately think of), I feel now is as good a time as any to ask.

Who was your favourite dev this generation, and - so that you won't get penalised for low content either - why?

Plenty of possible choices too.

My personal favourite has to be Platinum Games. Made two of my absolute favourite games to play this generation, in Vanquish and Bayonetta (with Bayonetta being one of my favourite games of all time). MadWorld was a good amount of fun too. While I've not had the opportunity yet to try Metal Gear Rising, I've heard that it's another pretty stellar game from them as well.

Plus, while I obviously can't confirm this yet, it looks like they're going to be equally as amazing in the 8th gen too, with both The Wonderful 101 and Bayonetta 2 looking like they are going to be as excellent as I expect from Platinum.

Well that's mine, who are yours?

 

[shrekfan246]

Well, I've got a few different ones for a few different reasons, I suppose.

CD Projekt RED mostly for their business practices, because they seem to actually treat their customers like people.

Irrational, Bioware, and Kojima for stories/characters/writing.

Blizzard for gameplay and continued support of their games.

Rocksteady and High Moon for making licensed games that weren't absolutely terrible.

From Software for bringing their game to the PC, even if the port was below average and they admitted that it would be. Also just because Demon's Souls and Dark Souls.

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

I was going to say DICE, for picking up Star Wars Battlefront and Mirror's Edge, but then I saw they are being forced to work with Anita fucking Sarkeesian for Mirror's Edge.

I'm going with Volition, for promising to release modding tools for Saints Row 4 and the previous Saints Row games.

 

[MCHG]

Gearbox.

Only kidding. I'd probably go with Platinum since most developers just embarrassed themselves this generation (Konami, Capcom, Square Enix)

 

[Arslan Aladeen]

I was going to say DICE, for picking up Star Wars Battlefront and Mirror's Edge, but then I saw they are being forced to work with Anita fucking Sarkeesian for Mirror's Edge.

Oh.. your.. god.. You have got to be kidding. Well, I guess maybe see what her idea of a good female character might be.

As for Dev's, I'm going to go with Platinum and From Software.

 

[Miss G.]

ATLUS for Shin Megami Tensei - especially for the Persona and Devil Summoner Raidou Kuzunoha entries. For close second this (and every other gen), there's GameFreak for Pokemon, the game that started this hobby for me, Square-Enix for Kingdom Hearts, TWEWY and FF12, NIS for Disgaea, and special thanks to Clover for Okami and whoever took over to make Okamiden.

 

[Phrozenflame500]

Valve

Because TF2, I've spent more hours with TF2 then I have with women.

Oh, also Obsidian. Fallout: NV was probably my favourite RPG of this generation.

 

[Rebel_Raven]

That is a good question that does make me think.

Koei/Tecmo Koei comes to mind. The "warriors" series like Dynasty Warriors, Samurai warriors, Gundam warriors, One Piece: Pirate warriors, and Warriors Orochi are always welcome with me. Especially the Empires editions of those games which aren't just a bit cheaper than the norm, but allow a pretty decent character creation.
Tecmo aquiring Koei wasn't necessarily a bad thing as it allowed Ayame, and Ryu Hayabusa to cross over into the Koei World.

I like Bioware for the Mass Effect series, and dragon age, even though I don't like the Dragon Age series personally.

Acquire has a warm spot in my heart for the Way of the Samurai series.

I have fond memories of "From Software" thanks to Armored Core.

Huh, I can't really decide.

 

[Easton Dark]

Bethesda got me with Oblivion and Fallout 3, two of my all time favorites. Skyrim was excellent as well, just not as praise-worthy.

Their only fault so far has been being unable to tame the worst game engine of the generation. Let's hope they get a new one.

 

[socialmenace42]

Based purely on devs who made games that sucked me in, moved, inspired and entertained me the most and for the longest time I'm going to have to give it to Bethesda and Bioware.

Bethesda for both entries into the Elder scrolls series this generation, including associated expansion packs (yes yes I know; horse armor, calm down) and to a lesser extent Fall out 3 which was great in scope and atmosphere but try as I might, I couldn't get absorbed in the post apocalyptic dystopia.

Bioware for the Mass Effect series which I often worry i might love just a little bit too much and both dragon age games, which I managed to thoroughly enjoy despite some unfortunate flaws and design oversights.

Hounourable mentions go to:

Ubisoft montral, managing to have us murder countless englishmen, arabs, frenchmen, italians, turks and americans while still holding a valid message about racial balance and harmony and a strong moral imperative. Good job there.

Rocksteady, getting me even more interested in batman than christopher nolan did

Lionhead, Fable 2. Not so much Fable 3, though I enjoyed that as well.

Volition, proving you can out-silly yourself successfully

Relic, for some valiant attempts to bring the warhammer 40K Universe to life, even if they did come up with mixed results

Team Bondi, for struggling through the harsh strictures of an unforgiving buisiness model and recieving no reward at the end. Certainly not the only such story this generation, but it stands out in my mind as one of the most severe, especially since LA Noir was a real result in innovation, if again somewhat flawed.

And finally 38 Studios, for a brazen and interesting new IP which sadly may never again see the light of day despite showing a lot of potential.

 

[ShinyCharizard]

PLatinum games, Epic studios, From Software and DICE are my favourite devs this gen.

Platinum for Vanquish, Bayonetta and Metal Gear Rising.

Epic for the Gears of War series

From Software for the Souls series

and DICE for Battlefield Bad Company 1 and 2

 

[The_Echo]

I was going to say DICE, for picking up Star Wars Battlefront and Mirror's Edge, but then I saw they are being forced to work with Anita fucking Sarkeesian for Mirror's Edge.

Wait a minute, what? Forced?

Well fuck that. They shouldn't have to be forced to work with anyone. Five bucks says the main antagonist makes a point to claim Faith's inferiority based on gender.

OT: This is a hard one.

But... I'm going to say thatgamecompany. The people working there are some of the brightest and most creative in the industry.

Also, Square Enix. Because I'm a Kingdom Hearts fanboy and they've been treating that franchise very well.

 

[FootloosePhoenix]

Geez...I've been disappointed by all my favourite developers to some degree or another this generation. At the forefront is Square Enix, for generally dicking around with mobile games and largely unwarranted sequels to Final Fantasy XIII instead of delivering on several long-awaited promises. BioShock Infinite was also a pretty big disappointment from Irrational due to my expectations. While not a bad game, they squandered so much potential there it makes me wanna cry. I guess that came, at least in part, from it being in development for so long and obviously undergoing a lot of changes during that time. Mostly it didn't feel like a BioShock title at all and that sucked. Then there's Bethesda, who I love for making Oblivion and now hate for putting out Skyrim. Insomniac is...I dunno what the fuck is up with them lately, but all I see are a couple sub-par Ratchet and Clank games (which has happened before, to be fair) and Fuse, which doesn't impress me one bit. And now they're developing an Xbox One exclusive, undoubtedly because Microsoft is dangling cash in front of them like a farmer does a mule.

But to be less depressing and actually answer the question, Sucker Punch remains near the top of my list despite inFamous 2 not being great in my opinion and I'm looking forward to seeing what they accomplish with Second Son, even though I would have preferred to see a new IP from them. Hopefully it will make a lot of improvements on i2's formula (plus Delsin promises to be a much more interesting character than Cole). Square Enix has also regained some of my confidence by having two goddamn amazing announcements during E3 that made me insanely happy. Admittedly I tend to be more willing to forgive their mishaps due to Final Fantasy being one of my all-time favourite series. I want to believe they still have the capacity to make great games.

Atlus is also worthy of a mention. I've only played Persona 3 and am currently in the process of completing 4, as well as a handful of titles they've published, but those two games are more than enough to garner my respect.

 

[sadx12]

Platinum Games, hands down. Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance is one the the most surprisingly good games of this year.

 

[BathorysGraveland2]

Well, I guess it'd have to go to CD Projekt RED. Piranha Bytes was originally my favourite game developer, but with Risen, that has kind of dropped a little. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoy both Risen games, but the quality cannot be compared to the Gothic trilogy. And, to be quite honest with you, I'm still very disappointed for the whole shitty-DLC practices of Risen 2. I honestly thought Piranha Bytes was above that.

CD Projekt RED, however, have recently released one of my all-time favourite video games (Witcher 2) and released a very solid first installment as well back in '07. I'm also looking forward to The Witcher 3 quite immensely, and they are the only game developer who I have full trust in. To add onto all of this, they seem like genuine dudes who will not stoop to the levels of other companies to rip people off for that extra buck. Instead, they work even after the game is out and reward their customers by releasing things such as Enhanced Editions for free. To me, they are a great example of a company who is out to make money, but balance the finance with legitimate passion and respect their fanbase.

So yeah, I suppose that is why CD Projekt RED is my favourite game developer.

 

[themyrmidon]

Stardock, for their consumer-focused approach and SoaSE.
CD Projekt RED, for all the reasons previous posters have said.
Bathesda, for giving a second birth to Fallout.
Bioware, for creating the greatest story to be told yet in games via the Mass Effect series (I went there, it's my opinion, please don't let this thread devolve).

 

[Xdeser2]

Quite a few actually...

In no Particular order...

Bioware: Their Writing and characters are among the best in the business, and their world building skills are (At least at the moment) Rivaled by only a few and bested only by one (In my opinion). Dragon Age: Origins and Mass Effect are both on my list of favorite games of this generation

Bethesda: Simple; No one makes a world like Bethesda does. Sure, I can admit that they dont stick as strictly to RPG mechanics as some people believe they should, but the amount of content and systems that they put into their games and the strict attention they pay to the lore of their respective franchises shows a real commitment to making a convincing world.

Rockstar: Only one game need suffice for this list: Red Dead Redemption.

Creative Assembly: I think I've put more time into Medieval 2: Total War than any other game I've played (Barring Age of Empires 2)

Obsidian: Fallout New Vegas, Man. Improved upon nearly everything In Fallout 3. Okay, maybe not in the atmosphere department, but The characters were better, the writing just as witty, the combat was greatly expanded and the main story had some legitimately meaningful choices.

Irrational: Bioshock and Bioshock Infinite, simply the best in single player shooters.

CD Projekt RED: Though I didnt find the Witcher 2 quite as amazing as others, its still a great RPG with a real sense of how choice should work in a game.

Theres alot more I could put down, as honestly as much shit as it gets, I think this generation is one of the best in gaming, but its not like every Dev who makes games I like could be my favorite lol.

 

[Nazulu]

I don't know, none of them really sticks out to me. Maybe Nintendo or Valve when they pull their finger out and release something worth mentioning.

 

[gmaverick019_v1legacy]

Mirror's Edge, but then I saw they are being forced to work with Anita fucking Sarkeesian for Mirror's Edge.

wow, that just killed all interest i had in that sequel. fuckin christ.

OT: CD projekt red, for many reasons already stated, on top of loving their games anyways.

used to have bioware up there, for dragon age Origins and the first mass effect, but after those two games it went completely sideways into shit city between them and EA trying to dick over every thing with a wallet.

Obsidian is also one of my favorites, I thoroughly enjoyed just about everything they put out

Spoiler: Dungeon siege 3

DS3 wasn't half bad in my opinion, nothing extraordinary but considering i played through the entire thing compared to some games that can barely hold my interest for a half hour, I'd consider that damn good

also, Alpha protocol, thought it was fucking amazing (obviously if you went the pistol route)

last but not least, Fallout New Vegas was a fucking masterpiece considering how much i fell asleep on the 3rd one, it was quite amazing how they used the same engine and post apocalyptic atmosphere and made me crave it like a fat kid on cake.