We Need Less Talent…
…in the game industry. We need more creativity, more skill, and less talent. We’ll get better games without it. For those of you who don’t follow yet, or don’t understand the subtle difference I’m implying I’ll lay it out for you. Talent is a natural ability. Skill is an acquired ability. My point is this, one is given to us, the other we work for. If we are skilled in some craft it is because we have worked hard at it, if we are talented that isn’t necessarily the case. The problem is no one seems to be looking for skill and creativity in people, they just want the talented ones. If they had skilled people perhaps they would find out why it is better to go with them in the first place.
Okay, so this is basically just semantics that I’m crying about here but too bad. People need to learn to ask for what they want properly. If you wanted talented people, those who have a natural ability (and may very well coast by on that ability) then go ahead, I’ll take someone skilled who is going to work every day to show they can do things as well, if not better, than those with a natural aptitude.
What prompts this? I read five articles today covering several different games all of them mentioned how “talented” a certain designer/director/producer, etc. is in making the game. Unfortunately that talent seems to make them lose touch with reality. The skilled person always works to stay at the top of his game, to be the absolute best he can be, the talented get by with what they already have. I don’t need or want the most talented people, I want the most skilled with the most creativity working on the games I play. Maybe then we wouldn’t have products that reek of great ideas gone awry and instead end up with great products, based on great ideas, built by those with a great amount of skill.
skill, talent, mmog, mmo gaming, aptitude, game design
September 27th, 2007 at 6:15 am
Poor Richard Garriot. I actually pity the man now what with his creative genius or more correctly complete lack of game designing ability.
October 2nd, 2007 at 10:22 pm
I find this pretty interesting Brandon. You are really making me look at myself here though I know you are pointing this directly to a certain audience.
You can have people who are both I imagine, though they are probably already taken and hidden deep underground with ample supplies of hot pockets and mountain dew.