Poll: Do you think From Software is a one trick pony?

[DementedSheep]

4 game with similar style is not exactly uncommon for a studio and DS2 is expected to be similar to DS1 since it is a sequel. I haven't played many of their games since they are console developer but I have played Tenchu and a bit of Armoured Core (I didn't know that was them until just now) as well as DS1 and 2. In case it needs to be said, they are nothing like the souls series.

Who cares?

There are plenty of ponies to go around. And one trick performed every two or three years can be amusing enough. So a pony that can consistently perform an excellent trick is certainly worthwhile.

Innovation is not a quality in itself. Innovation is something that, in somewhat uncommon instances, improves upon quality. And is consequently kept. I for one prefer good games, rather than games that assign all controls to how hard I press the ESC key, because innovation!

Also that^

 

[Pyrian]

I thought Croteam was a one-trick pony and then they came out with The Talos Principle, so what do I know?

 

[Scars Unseen]

As far as I know them from (the Souls games), it certainly seems like it. Going through these other comments, it appears that they are not, but in my book and from my experience, they are. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I think they do this trick very well.
If they came out with a different style of game now, I think I may give it a shot. It would have to be a type that I like, but if they apply the skills they do to the Souls series' stories to a new game, I think I'd be on board in a second.

So what you're saying is that they have plenty of ponies, but you only ride the pretty pink one(that eats people).

 

[Fox12]

No, of course not. The director falls into a certain style, and there's nothing wrong with that. In fact, it's normal. Nobody calls Kojima a one trick pony. Besides, if you research the company and the director then you'll see that they worked on other titles before Demon Souls, and that those games were quite different from the Souls titles. And, even if they were a one trick pony, which theit not, then there's no reason why they would lose success. This industry is built on franchises and one trick ponies. Dark Souls wasn't a success because it was novel. That's a demeaning term that implies that it has low artistic value, or that it's just a gimmick. The Virtual Boy was novel. Dark Souls was a well crafted piece of art that innovated the genre. You can see other games incorporating design concepts from Darl Souls, it's literally shaping the medium. That's not novel, that's genre defining. Dark Souls isn't going anywhere, and neither is From Soft.

EDIT: Also, a pony may only know one trick, but if that trick hovering ten feet in the air, shooting lasers out of its eyes, and kicking Hitler in the groin, they that's one pretty impressive trick, and I'll gladly pay to see it again. From Soft is the Hitler kicking laser horse of video games. And you can put that on the cover.

 

[TristanBelmont]

Considering they made the successful transition from high-speed mech combat to Western Fantasy as done by Japan......

No, I don't think they're one-trick ponies.

 

[FPLOON]

One trick pony's only got one Game
And that one Game plays it all the same
One trick pony never make a new Goal
One trick pony could be Blood or could be Soul

OT: Nah, son... Besides, if the game's still fun to even those that have played others, let alone to newcomers, then I guess the "one trick pony" part is making games worth playing... *bloody soul mic drop*

 

[BathorysGraveland2]

Perhaps, but there's nothing wrong with being a one trick pony if said pony does the trick very, very well. While I won't have the pleasure of ever playing Bloodbourne, I can imagine its quality will be on-par with Dark Souls. And should they change? I don't think so. People flock to them because they enjoy the games they make, not because they want to see them do something drastically different. It can work, mind, but stray too far away from what initially interested people and you may lose them. Take music for example. If you enjoy a band's output, it's generally because you like their specific sound or style. So if they release an album that is quite far removed from that sound, a lot of people may not be interested.

So I'd say in many cases it'd be better to be a pony that specialises in one trick than a pony who ends up doing a severely failed experiment, or branches out into mediocrity.

 

[beastro]

Someone's forgetting Armored Core.


Skip forward to 19:00 to get to the non tutorial gameplay.

I dont see how you can call From Soft a one trick pony when you look at AC and how much THAT'S changed over time.
Do you see any similarities to the Souls series there?

Someone and someone else also forgot Tenchu, damnit!!!

I recently got into watching Let's Plays of Shadow Tower (another good game form theirs, one I sadly never got to try back in the day), and being someone who hasn't yet played Dark Souls, upon realizing that they made Tenchu and AC suddenly exclaimed "No wonder everyone loves them today!".

Even with it's clunky controls, had I seen Shadow Tower in a retail place or in a magazine I'd have instantly thought "FPS Diablo on PSX!" and gobbled that shit up:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7541FD4F7D9B5133

 

[Sniper Team 4]

As far as I know them from (the Souls games), it certainly seems like it. Going through these other comments, it appears that they are not, but in my book and from my experience, they are. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I think they do this trick very well.
If they came out with a different style of game now, I think I may give it a shot. It would have to be a type that I like, but if they apply the skills they do to the Souls series' stories to a new game, I think I'd be on board in a second.

So what you're saying is that they have plenty of ponies, but you only ride the pretty pink one(that eats people).

That...is a very good analogy actually. I approve. But does it have to be pink? I prefer blue, or maybe white with a purple mane and tail.

 

[Iwata]

Not at all.

ChromeHounds was an amazing game that made me fall in love with the studio, long before I played any Souls game.

 

[Scars Unseen]

As far as I know them from (the Souls games), it certainly seems like it. Going through these other comments, it appears that they are not, but in my book and from my experience, they are. Not that there's anything wrong with that. I think they do this trick very well.
If they came out with a different style of game now, I think I may give it a shot. It would have to be a type that I like, but if they apply the skills they do to the Souls series' stories to a new game, I think I'd be on board in a second.

So what you're saying is that they have plenty of ponies, but you only ride the pretty pink one(that eats people).

That...is a very good analogy actually. I approve. But does it have to be pink? I prefer blue, or maybe white with a purple mane and tail.

Hey, I don't make the ponies; you'll have to take it up with From. Well, if you're on PC, you can download PonyFix and get a horse of a different color, but I can't guarantee that it'll play nice with Valve's anti-cheat system.

 

[RawSteelUT]

Most studios are, and if you got the tools/skills to do one type of game really well you stick to that shit until it's run out of steam.

But in this case you never checked out the other game. Their actual development list goes:
- King's Field
- Armored Core
- Tenchu
- Lost Kingdoms
- Otogi
- Chromehounds
- Metal Wolf Chaos
- Ninja Blade
- Demon's Souls
- Dark Souls
- Bloodborne

Apparently people liked Phantom Dust on the old Xbox as well.

And I still can't believe no one brought Metal Wolf Chaos out in the West...

 

[Maximum Bert]

No they have proven pretty diverse the Kings Field and Armoured Core franchises in particular have done pretty well for them.

The reason you are seeing Souls type games from them atm again and again is because its making them a lot of money and people want more of the same only slightly different it seems. They are almost certainly capable of making a completely different type of game still but that doesnt make good business sense and may not even make creative sense if they still enjoy and feel they have more to give on the current type of games they are bringing out even if I would call Dark Souls 2 more of a cash in rather than a game that needed to be made.

 

[Zannah]

The word "Trick" implies some sort of cleverness or competence. So now, they are not.

 

[CannibalCorpses]

I chose other because apart from Tenchu their games are pretty much boring shit.

"I know what you want, you want the stone..."

 

[MrBaskerville]

Considering that they have a history of exploring a very wide variety of genres and styles, i find it hard to see how they could be called a one trick pony. Whether one likes the results or not, they are a lot more diverse and experimental than most popular big-name studios out there. But it is very easy to ignore most of their stuff, since it´s fairly niche and Souls is the only series that gets a lot of attention.

Personally i love them for stuff like Armored Core and some of their older rpgs, puzzle and horror games.

 

[Lufia Erim]

Yes but I really like that pony so I don't mind for now but gameplay wise this is pretty much demon/dark souls,

I can see how people may not like the accusation because the idea of being a one trick pony is seen as a negative. As long as they update or alter things enough so it feels fresh I don't mind.

A more positive spin would be that they specialize, if you changed it to that more people would vote yes.

Eh, if you can tell the difference i don't see why other wouldn't . That being said while i personally wouldn't count those older ps1 and ps2 games when talking about From software simply because they are 10+ year old games, i have learned a lot about from softwares obscure and niche games, so all in all i consider this thread a success. It is a discussion forum after all. It's not like i was fishing for " yes" responses on the poll.

 

[RJ 17]

Still, I would really like to see them make a new Tenchu or Otogi.

Ditto, especially for Tenchu. When the local Block Buster Video was going out of business in my town, they were selling off all their inventory. On the last day of the liquidation sale when they were practically giving stuff away, I found Tenchu Z in a super-ultra bargain-bin. Ended up picking it up for $2 and it turned out to be one of my favorite games on the 360.

I'd absolutely love for them to make another Tenchu!

 

[joest01]

Enchanted Arms, dammit!

I think your question is, is the souls series a one trick pony. And the answer is yes. It kicks arse. That's its trick.

p.s. DkS2 was the step up. DkS1 will be erased from the history books.

 

[soren7550]

Technically, no, but considering that the Souls games are the only ones getting attention, and since Demon Souls release, only three non Souls games were released by them outside of Japan (only one of which people really seem to know about, and even then only because of how bad it is), it certainly seems that way.

And on top of that, the Souls games all share pretty much the exact same gameplay, narrative, design, HUD, shit even font.

Spoiler: Have fun telling these apart