
Games just keep getting larger and larger and larger...
Moderator: LW Moderator
- Trey
- Super Member
- Posts: 1671
- Joined: Thu Jul 12, 2007 3:43 am
- Location: U.S.A. - Just like Disneyland! (but with more Porn, Drugs, and Guns)
- Has thanked: 2 times
- Been thanked: 13 times
Games just keep getting larger and larger and larger...
I was thinking as I began to download HL2:Eps.2 (which is an 8+Gb ISO, which will take around 150-160 hours to download
), we're already seeing an average game sizes of 4 or 8Gb (or 2x4Gbs). Where the hell are people going to host things of that size? 4share is just not going to cut it, you'd have files with 200 parts, not to mention it's larger than the 5Gbs 4share alots. Of course it's not a problem right now.

- zobraks
- Super Member
- Posts: 2192
- Joined: Tue May 15, 2007 7:13 pm
- Location: Eurosongland 2008
- Been thanked: 55 times
I don't have that problem. There are (literally) hundreds of great games from the nineties that I haven't played, and they rarely take more than one or two CDs. Moreover, you don't need a beast of a computer to get them going nicely. 
Why do people have to play all the latest games (if they haven't played the great oldies) remains the mystery to me.

Why do people have to play all the latest games (if they haven't played the great oldies) remains the mystery to me.

Yeah, let's hope the evolution of harddisks, backup storage, and bandwith will be able to keep up
The difference is that while formerly, developers tried to get the games as small as possible, they do the exact opposite today. If your game is finished and it only is 1.5 GB, then you blow it up. Maybe store music uncompressed or use a less efficient FMV codec, until the thing uses the DL-DVD's whole 9 gigs, to scare people away from downloading it.
It doesn't really keep anyone from downloading popular huge games I guess, with comfortable Torrenting and all, but it's bad for the underdogs...

The difference is that while formerly, developers tried to get the games as small as possible, they do the exact opposite today. If your game is finished and it only is 1.5 GB, then you blow it up. Maybe store music uncompressed or use a less efficient FMV codec, until the thing uses the DL-DVD's whole 9 gigs, to scare people away from downloading it.
It doesn't really keep anyone from downloading popular huge games I guess, with comfortable Torrenting and all, but it's bad for the underdogs...
- Mister_Headcrab
- Super Member
- Posts: 328
- Joined: Thu May 03, 2007 5:30 pm
- Location: Somewhere, I guess.
- Has thanked: 3 times
- Been thanked: 10 times
Their secret is nontexture tiled corridoors with no real game content. Thats why their game is so small. Its almost like those demoscene apps. Just a flythrough - no wav sounds, no physics, no textures just formulas. Also Krieger also has high hardware requirements.Mister_Headcrab wrote:The folks that developed "kkrieger" should share their "secret" with other game developers.![]()
LOL, I'm new here and first of course checked out the games list.
Found that the full ISO of Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes (1992) upped by Hfric was only 16 MB and thought that this couldn't be right.
I've got the original in a whopping great cardboard box with CD+manual+whatnot. And guess what, the CD is indeed only 16 MB....and kept me very pleasantly occupied for at least a week.
Unheard of these days!
Found that the full ISO of Lost Files of Sherlock Holmes (1992) upped by Hfric was only 16 MB and thought that this couldn't be right.
I've got the original in a whopping great cardboard box with CD+manual+whatnot. And guess what, the CD is indeed only 16 MB....and kept me very pleasantly occupied for at least a week.
Unheard of these days!
- Scaryfun
- 3DSL Admin
- Posts: 11290
- Joined: Wed Jun 02, 2004 9:27 pm
- Location: Toronto, Canada.
- Has thanked: 1665 times
- Been thanked: 886 times
- Contact:
- zobraks
- Super Member
- Posts: 2192
- Joined: Tue May 15, 2007 7:13 pm
- Location: Eurosongland 2008
- Been thanked: 55 times
And why would they, when the consumers (gamers) are ready to swallow any piece of empty cr(beep!)p if it's over-hyped enough?Trey wrote:They won't.Scaryfun wrote:Gameplay over graphics... developers need to remember this.
In the eighties or nineties the computer games public was much more technically (and intelectually) savvy, and you had to think of something original and clever to make a good game that sells. Nowadays, all you have to do is to make a decent game and start the endless line of sequels (which are the same thing, in a more colorful package), the gigantic marketing machines - mainly by persuading the (uncritical) majority of gamers that that's exactly what they need - do the rest.
My (poor) English doesn't allow me to explain the whole scam better but I hope you got the picture.
Last edited by zobraks on Sat Aug 09, 2008 12:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
- Doomed_Space_Marine
- Super Member
- Posts: 136
- Joined: Tue May 27, 2008 10:11 am
- Has thanked: 1 time
- Been thanked: 2 times
The old graphics over game-play debacles have been going on forever. Nothing has changed.
Most developers are afraid to take risks, as the bottom-line will always be the sale figures, not how awesomely innovative & original the game is. There is a chance the public won’t warm to what you are putting out. A good example is the contrast of System Shock sales against that of Doom 2.
Developers seem content to churn out completely average run-of-the-mill shooters, as long as it is utilizing the latest pixel shading tech and gigs of high res’ textures. Obviously some people are buying these things, as the software companies keep putting more of it out. I don’t see things changing in the foreseeable future.
Most developers are afraid to take risks, as the bottom-line will always be the sale figures, not how awesomely innovative & original the game is. There is a chance the public won’t warm to what you are putting out. A good example is the contrast of System Shock sales against that of Doom 2.
Developers seem content to churn out completely average run-of-the-mill shooters, as long as it is utilizing the latest pixel shading tech and gigs of high res’ textures. Obviously some people are buying these things, as the software companies keep putting more of it out. I don’t see things changing in the foreseeable future.