AA GAMES - Forgotten? But could they be the FUTURE of the games industry? [AAA vs Indie - Roy McCoy]

AA Games like Subnautica and Plague Tale are games people love - but why don't people talk about AA classification? Why is it always AAA vs Indie - indie games or blockbuster AAA? That's a question I was asked - and I answer this and go on to say why I think AA games could be the future of the gaming industry.
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#indiegames #aagames #indiegaming #indie #aaa #roymccoy #subnautica

[@RoyMcCoy]

Hey guys! I hope you enjoyed this one! I'll be recording some more indie game reviews of games both new and old - which games do you think need sharing and talking about more?

[@Deathwalker666666]

To me its quite simple
1$ - 40$ indie -> independent from publisher or self published
10$ - 45$ AA -> basically a studio is subsidiary of publisher
45$ - 60$ AAA -> basically the price is usual 60$ and with it comes expectations what you get for the price and no No Man's Sky is not an indie title.
60$ and above AAAA -> in basic terms a cash grab.
Existance of AA game per platform.
1) On home consoles it is a tricky topic beacuse during 5th and 6th gen consoles they were quite common thing. But with introduction 7th gen the costs of development grown exponentially and game engines did not reached enough maturity to lower the development costs down also it did not helped that each console had its own architecture that was completely alien to the other. This resulted in AA games in practical terms disappear from consoles space and they did started to resurface with release of 8th gen but become more mainstream after release of PS4 Pro also it helps that Sony and MS consoles are using PC x86-64 architecture that helped streamline the development and also they use hardware from the same manufacturer.
2) On Pc they always existed just like small indie developers regardless of what happened on consoles which i am grateful for that since this is the only reason why some game genres survived to this day. Because if gaming was going be dictated by consoles alone we would have the desolate wasteland of boring and bland open world games with no variety or call of duty clones.

[@valentinov901]

Super massive blockbuster games suck
And indie lacks budget and reach
AA is a good bridge, big enough to try new stuff small enough that artistic freedom isnt as restricted

[@jorixpalorn3738]

I remember a few console generations ago AA games were rather common. Hell From Software used to be an AA developer, a very prolific one at that. Then the inevitable happened and the game industry got more and more corporatized. The huge publishers, the EAs the Activisions gobbled up everything, and they found they could make the maximum proffit on the generic over-monetized AAA garbage we get these days. So for a while AA games almost vanished, but left a hole in the market that was filled by indie developers, as well as some new AA developers, whom probably grew from indie studios. The big publishers will NEVER go back to making AA games, not when they make billions and billions off the generic money sucking tripe they put out.

[@captaincaptain2128]

Very likely. Considering that advancements in technology like Unreal Engine 5 have made making a game so much easier for smaller devs, they can finally start to compete with larger devs. Of course, money is still a major factor, but many publishers have taken to help fund smaller studios so they have the money to make bigger games. Of course, the declining quality in AAA games certainly helps indie devs. Who wants to play a generic broken unfinished soulless cash grab of a game when you could play a well made passionate game that does something unique. For example, I'm not hyped for Starfield at all. There was a time when the idea of a fallout game in space with no man's sky mechanics would have blew my mind. Now, Bethesda has shown their true colors over the years and I'm just not that hyped for it, like many people. I think that's a great indicator of how the AAA game is perceived nowadays.

[@RoyMcCoy]

Yeah - I know what you mean - I would have been hyped for Starfield at one time, the same as I would have been for a new Assassin's Creed - but those times are over. I think, as you said, with the advancement and increased availability of technology - more indie devs will have access to the tech to make AA games! and I can't wait!!!

[@PoleTooke]

What really has Unreal Engine 5 done to make it so much easier? Everyone is talking about it but I'm dumb and confused

[@Joao-rj4rg]

Unreal 5 is a free engine, with many free content (assets, models, tools) to download and put into your game project@@PoleTooke you just need to pay for it if you game surpass $1 million in revenue.

[@Simoss13]

I mostly only buy AA games now, the creativity, polish, heart and complete game in a box from yesteryear is what I always seek. And of course prefer physical if possible

[@CaptalK]

At least AA games are finished 🤷🏿

[@Simoss13]

A have originality, heart and no cashshop

[@jimhutchins4426]

Project wingman

[@Xenowolf8]

This thumbnail is a really good visual representation of how a lot of people in the general gaming community think about the spectrum of games based on size.