Why does that need a translation? That was a pretty simple metaphor if you ask me, or a ten year old, or a coma victim.

Veloc

"Translation, please. Anyone? Anyone?" :

Peter Molyneux is a fucking goon that is slowly developing dementia and possibly alzheimers.

prodld50

Me: *shakes Molly* "MAKE SENSE, MAKE SENSE, MAKE SENSE!"

Molly: "The entity's comprised are entirely unequivocal if put into the stew over 50 degrees."

Me: "GOD DAMN IT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?"

Molly: "You're all going to die down here."

Me: "What?"

In summary, Resident Evil.

Dexyn

I think this is his way of saying, "Fable 2 didn't turn out like I wanted it to, and I'm sorry. I'm going over to the DS to do casual games with puppies now."

tex1ntux

good?

betterthansome

It better be on the Playstation 3 while his lazy ass is at it.

RTW

Alright I just have to say this: Does anyone else think of Hebert from Family Guy when they look at this picture?

Littlefields

Maybe Molyneux will finally realize his potential and make a truly great game, rather than a game that falls just short of great due to shoving as much as possible into said metaphorical pot.

MR. FAP♥FAP!

translation: I think someone finally found a fresh take on minesweeper.

wanion

Dimitri? The game where he said we can redo OUR LIFE and try different choices? I am really curious about what he meant by that.

Azriel77

cooking game.

Coxswain

He's saying it's terrifying for him because he's not going to be able to hide behind a bullet pointed list of assorted features and gameplay mechanics. Instead he's leaving himself vulnerable by concentrating on one, and one alone.

frostcircus

Sounds like me at work.

Boss: "WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?!?!?"
Me: "I dunno, I just shoved every visual effect into the ad, and crossed my fingers."
Boss: ;_;

TheLAG

Molyneux should have been a poet. I wonder what a conversation between him and Kojima would sound like...

FP_slomo788

And now I exclaim, it's not the number of features you've got in the game, it's how many of them survive to the finished product.

ChairmanRAPEAPE

It's amazing how relevant that picture is. I mean, I'm terrified just looking at it. =p

smartboydan hates college

@LeftyRighty: Shitcanned, wasn't being made by Molyneux anyway, was being made by one of Lionhead's "satellite" companies which no longer exist (case in point, Fable was actually developed by Big Blue Box, which was a Lionhead satellite). Lionhead got bought out didn't they?

notBowen

"Being Peter Molyneux"

Tarv

"I'm not totally satisfied with Fable II, though it's great, it's not what I hoped it would be. Shedding all my past shit, I'm going some other direction and it's gonna be a simple addicting game. Probably tetris with balverines... I mean, well I can't say much but I've coined a word for what I've thought up. Just, grabbed this word out of thin air, jotted it down, and here I'm saying it. I call it: 'Innovation'."

Honestly, I think Peter Molyneux is great. Love the Fable games. Seems like he's going simple (maybe casual?)

Thugmunk

Dungeon keeper 3 please!

Spenze

What ever happened to BC?

LeftyRighty

*sigh*

I miss the days when developers would just talk about flying cars.....

Tom Clancy's Samuraidino

Could it be Dimitri at last? we've been hearing about this, his most ambitious project, for years. Some AI experiment or something like that...

kennyd1

Sounds like he's making ICO.

dowingba

"I'm making a Tetris clone."

notBowen

I'd like to see a game based on talking. People entertain themselves for years talking about nothing. If you could translate that into a single/multiplayer experience that's meaningful for people of all ages, I think you'd really have something. Of course, Pete may be talking about a game where you shoot stuff/drive stuff/jump on stuff.
Pete makes good games; he just imagines better games. That itself isn't a problem. The problem arises when the imagined game is marketed instead of the actual game.
For those needing a translation of his metaphor: It's not that a game should have a bunch of features for every possible user. Rather, each feature should contribute specifically to the intent of the game. (Intent of game is what the game strives to capture, i.e. sword fighting, running and jumping, riding a horse, etc. Intent isn't merely to sell copies of a game; it's the thesis of features.) Good game design only includes features that support the thesis of game design. Example being Metal Gear Solid 2. No one is still praising the skateboarding mini-game. It didn't really add to the game, aside from a quick laugh. The game would have been better off without it.
Call of Duty would not benefit from having licensed cars featured in-game. Even though it would increase the appeal to car fans, it plainly does not mesh with the games design. Seeing this in extremes helps one recognize this in subtleties too. Metroid games do not benefit from multiplayer deathmatch. If you were to create a Metroid multiplayer experience, you would want to incorporate the exploring, finding new items experience of single player Metroid, via some kind of co-op mode. Not all games need multiplayer; the features a game needs depends on the type of game.

AllegraStreit

Going by the image and the 'far mor terrifying'...

Molyneux in the near future: EEEET'S ALIIIIIIIIIVE! KWEHEHEHEHEHEHE!

Helkaurain

so is he saying fable 2 is gonna "taste a bit weird"?

FlapDangerous

Guys come on. All he is saying is having one fantastic feature is better than having a bunch of so-so features. Think about how great Portal is. Did that game need a bunch of crap to make it great? No, they just had one cool thing.

ina300

So basically, "Don't put a whole lot of crap together and hope it flies,"

You'd kind of hope that wasn't so much an epiphany as lesson one at video game design school...

KatiePewPew

There's an interview on Giantbomb that may go a little into explaining this as he touches on the whole feature topic yet again. I think I became pregnant again after hearing him talk... and I'm a guy. He's just THAT good.

...my ass hurts :(

okenny :) ...building bridges (to hide under)

@Veloc: Simile, not metaphor, but yeah. Seemed pretty straightforward from here.

frostcircus

I heard from someone that knows a sister of a friend that was once a roommate of someone that lived in the same town as him that he recorded a list of all the moves he made as a god in his first game Populous. In this new one you play as one of those little followers taking on quests and such. All in game events are directly related to the game that Peter played...

betterthansome

Er, okay, how about he's going to stuff fewer concepts in a game and make something simpler where all the component parts work together better than his previous games? Exploit a simple idea (ala Mario Galaxy, or Portal) well?

I'm not sure why translation is needed, but there you go.

Next week on inpenetratable comments: "I like cake. I'm going to make a cake and eat it."

Wha? What's going on? What does he mean??????

Do I need a smiley?

ego531

"Cocaine is a hell of a drug."

thespyderboy

Sounds like he's actually going to focus on making a great game instead of inflating the feature list.

I'm already liking this mysterious new project.

Xenigma

It's not complicated, why would you need a translator?

He's going to try to make a game that is simplistic yet elegant in design. Use less elements than he has in the past but try to make them work better together.

Molyneux remains one of my favourite designers. He shows passion and a drive to further the art more than almost anyone else.

Tulkamir

I wish this guy would stop talking sometimes.

phinehas

@AllegraStreit: You've got it. Experience-driven design is the way to go as opposed to feature-driven design. A lot of people seem to think that what makes a game is its features. More is better, right? Wrong. In reality, it's the cohesion of the features; the dynamics. How the features work together to create the game feel-- a.k.a. aesthetics.

If you want to know more, look up the MDA Framework.

Aesthetics aren't all of what make up a game (or any kind of media), but seeing as to how most modern games are about sensations (mostly cheap thrills; the entertainment factor) instead of engaging ideas about the human condition, they're the gist of it (not that I have anything against aesthetics-- on the contrary, I love them). Themes are something games actually need to strive towards more, in the way that literary fiction does. Unlike literature, we don't have many "fine-art" games (arguments of games-as-art aside...). Game development is just too confined to the genres and concepts of "hardcore" and "casual".

Fable II, though innovative in some of its features, is not particularly striking as far as gameplay aesthetics and themes go... though I'm sure it's still fun enough.

I can't believe Molyneux is just learning this, though. Isn't it like Game Design 101?

SykoSilver

Wait, so he's making as cooking game? Or is he the just the chef on Itagaki's fighter plane?

Frologic

What would be terrifying is if the game actually arrived with everything Baby Pete is going to hype up about it for the next 4 years.

Less talk Peter, more coding.

Holy fuck this guy has a big mouth. Damn.

NintendoFanBoy64

Is it The Movies 2?

No?

Then GTFO

sadbad

Lets just hope that it means something really good is on the way and that he's not admitting to Fable 2's failure in advance. Seriously... I preorded the collectors edition... I want this thing to be teh awesome!

IcerDragoon

If its to my detriment or not I don't care. I'll let Molyneux have the benefit of the doubt.

Nexus6

Syndicate HD to wipe the floor of all who came before it. Actually if anyone is interested in creating a homage to Syndicate using XNA or the Phyre Engine, get in contact with me.

CartBlanche2

Sounds like he's been playing a lot of Disgaea 3. BOOM!

Mongoosekun

So... What he's saying is that...

He's like a shark.
He just has to keep making bad analogies.

blueshoals

Hrm, so we wants all of his idea to work than adding in more ideas into the soup. Sounds like a tasty blend. Hopefully it is that AI game thing I heard long ago. Possibly a new game all together? Man, I'm terrified just thinking about it!

Mike's Stalker

I admire this man! Every game I've played that has come out of Lionhead studios has been nothing short of fantastic!
So whatever his new project might be, I'll certainly be interested in it!

henri1kk

And he's telling us this right before Fable 2 comes out? Not a good sign for the game.

DukeOfPwn

Humm. Maybe Peter M. has discovered what the gamers knew all along. It's not about a pretty face--it's about how the game plays, dammit!

Chilly Hollow

"I think a lot of my... ...work together." - Was this referencing Fable 2 as well? 'Cause that's hardly encouraging.

CukyDoh

Iron Chef game, obviously.

DONAR

"Translation, please. Anyone? Anyone?"

It's the same line he (and a lot of developers use). Basically, I know my last game was shitty but my next one will be the best thing evah! Honest! Please buy it.

And the circle continues as he'll be saying just about the same thing once the next one comes out.

Mire

At last, some game designers are waking up to.
im a game designer myself and work on smaller independent titles. this is a thing i keep seeing in games, they throw every type of feature into it to make it appeal to the most people.

i mean if the game is a action packed FPS dont do a stealh bit or throw in a driving bit just for the heck it of.

if your game has strong sound gameplay and the core idea is solid that should be enough for your game to be good.

firudesu

In line with Molyneuxs typical self-promotional style, he has declared the game to be "life-altering" and will "literally scare you to death."

He later remarked the characters will act similar to that young girl from the Ring, and will actually come through your TV screen and into your living room. Where they will then kill you.

TRT-X

I think many are oversimplifying Molyneux's quote. He's not just saying, "gameplay > more features." He's saying that many times designers think, "wouldn't it be awesome if you could get married, have kids, buy a house, get livestock, get a cart, start a farm, sell your crop at the market..." Whilst all of these features may be fun and may add to scope of the game, the features add little to the core fundamentals of the game and feel more like mini-games than a real cohesive experience. They serve more to distract the player in an attempt to add a few more hours of playability, but they rarely feel like a natural or logical extension within the game's play mechanic.

A good example of bad features is the upcoming MK vs DC game. It seems to me that the Klose Kombat "feature" actually draws you out of the visceral 1 on 1 fighting experience by making you engage in this idiotic button call-response game.

stupid_mcgee

Is he telling us now that Fable II has too many features and that it will be a chore to play the game? Do I need to cancel my pre-order? What the hell does he mean it will taste weird... Last time I checked plastic always has and always will taste weird.

CapnSpank

In other words, Peter doesn't play his own games

SavidDaunders

no one can still beat the final fantasy series...

rbee90

Lol, Molyneux is awesome

Taheen

I think it says features don't make a game fun by themselves alone. The game's concept needs to be fun first and foremost.

velvet396

Translation: This time, it won't just sound cool, it will be fun.

I'll believe it when I see it.

Populous was the bomb. The Movies was fun though it taxed my machine & playing the simulation fairly made making machima quite difficult.

The rest of his games. Blech.

I hope Fable 2 is good--but I'm not holding my breath.

Emmanuel Goldstein

terrifying with stripped down features?

It's a "stuck in a room with a bear" simulator.

mronoc

Thanks, Molyneux, you just made me finally give up on all your games, now to buy real good games from people who aren´t pricks...

Daisuash

Being tired of gamers who don't play his games right, Peter Molyneux will create a game in which the only input required is simply starting the game.

Parkington

For Satan's sake let it be Dungeon Keeper 3!
Whippin' mistresses, please!!

Major_Higgins

I get what he is saying. Look at each sequel he's worked on. They've added more and more features, and they end up feeling a little bloated. He's hoping to go simple, with a few features that are very thought out and work well, instead of 500 different things you can do.

Think TF2, instead of going mega-complex, they went simpler, and it ended up being a major success. Fable 2 looks pretty complicated, although less then the first. One button combat and all that, but even then, you've then got spells, dodging, blocking, combos, all in the mix.

Talleh

@thespyderboy: You complete me.

SLoth_112

"F*** yo Couch"

SLoth_112

he looks like Smeagol in that pic. ROFL.

rainofwalrus

Based on past experience, do we know what Molyneux?

Cultmember

i dont see the mystery in his comment, in the past he tried shoving a fuck-ton of features in his game a la fable, but at the end of the day, they didnt mean much. hes new game might be in the same school of design as flOw or whatever, just simpler.

pandafresh

"And now what I've realized is it's not the number of features you've got in the game, it's the way those features work together."

Holy cow, I wish more designers would realize this.

Petezah

I think he's explaining that a simply well-done holistic vision to developing is much better than a busy multi-layered game that does everything. Maybe that's why Spore took as long as it did to be released.

Cagny

So...quality, not quantity.

Surprise!

pg13

ok so weve done....
running a hospital...
being a legend...
and playing god...
so.....surely simple in his eyes would be....
running a country?
=/

JackValentine