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[IonicSnake]

I think we have reached a point where we now have a standard for how TPS plays because that's what works best just like CoD4 set the standard for fps on consoles. When you ask people what they want they say "next-gen gameplay" what's next-gen gameplay?

Sure you can add brutal AI, destructible environments, make it open world, but the game will still play like a tps. You run, you take cover and you shoot.

 

[MrNyarlathotep]

I think we have reached a point where we now have a standard for how TPS plays because that's what works best just like CoD4 set the standard for fps on consoles. When you ask people what they want they say "next-gen gameplay" what's next-gen gameplay?

COD4 actually mixed things up from boring ass halo, the previous template cloned into monotony.
EDIT:
I'm referring tio multiplayer here. CoD singleplayer has been the same forever, and follows the HL1 playbook to a tee.

 

[ramparter]

Because. Fanboys.

This. What last gen and next gen means anyway? New hardware is released constantly, there are no gens anymore.

 

[Sorc3r3r]

It's the story of the videogames.
It's the whole life i'm playing with a car.
The first just went right and left and was barely recognizable as a car.
The second went up, down, left and right, the car had some racing strip on it.
The third was red, a blond was sitting beside me and the road was a sequence of grey and white horizontal strips.
The forth was an ugly as sin polygon on a ugly as sin polygonal track.
The last one was a McLaren F1'94 on Willow Springs without driving assists winning the race after a fast pit stop.

 

[anthonyOA]

"It's just Forza with prettier graphics" was the cry, I believe?

I don't think many here will be happy until they get their (Prefix these with "Dat next gen", and suffix them with the words "gameplay moment");

Mario 64
Jet Grind Radio
Zelda Wind Waker
Metroid Prime
Half Life 2
Mirrors Edge
Bioshock
Gears of War
CoD:MW

I know there's loads more. My point is though that some won't be satisfied until something arrives that is completely accomplished in it's vision and execution, and bearing a fresh look at a previously deceased genre.

I do think it's unfair to castrate games before they've even been revealed properly but I'm not sure what you'd expect when, for instance in Ryse's case, you show a re-skinned hack n' slasher with more canned animation sequences than actual gameplay as your tent-pole title at E3.

 

[Cave Johnson]

This wouldn't be a problem if developers defined the unique gameplay design of the past from SMB to Deus Ex. So far, we're seeing an XP/set-piece structured gameplay in almost EVERY possible genre. Has anybody stopped to consider if these developers tried to make an actual next-gen Tomb Raider? One that focuses on platforming and puzzles? Or Deus Ex, where you have one level to encompass your approach meant everything and can influence the entire level? If not, then why should we stop complaining about "next gen graphics, same gameplay" when there are other games that were more progressive PRIOR to the ps3/360 era. Next you'll tell me that that approach won't sell,p - if that's the case, it's a self-serving argument. You know that there is room for potential but then you will dismiss it because of lolsales.

 

[Nozem]

Is there actually any game on next (current) gen that would be impossible on PS360 for reasons other than graphics? I can't think of any.

 

[Dragon1893]

I think people's expectations for a new gen go beyond prettier graphics which is how it should be imo.
Of course not every game will reinvent the weel but I can understand people's disappointment when an antecipated next gen game ends up playing exactly like dozens of games they played on the old consoles.

 

[KKRT00]

Nothing wrong with past-gen gameplay see Dishonored for example.
Problem is that games in question are very boring and didnt learn from the best of past-gen in terms of design.

 

[IncandescentPrecept]

I haven't gone through the new posts for some time now - has anyone come up with an example of next gen gameplay yet?

 

[KtSlime]

I haven't gone through the new posts for some time now - has anyone come up with an example of next gen gameplay yet?

It's one of those "I'll know it when I see it" things. It's not our jobs to invent next-gen gameplay, if it were we'd be getting paid, and not be the ones paying.

 

[AniHawk]

I haven't gone through the new posts for some time now - has anyone come up with an example of next gen gameplay yet?

earlier i addressed my preference for iteration (in most cases), since it seems to get lost in the search for innovation and discovering something new. that said, new consoles are big investments. you buy one and a game and you're spending nearly half a grand (or less, depending what deals you find). i think there's an expectation that the upgrade in power isn't only being used for iteration and increased production value.

in addition to that, the start of a generation is the time when companies have a bigger chance to cut loose and try new things- to influence the direction the generation will take (it's so much nicer when people are cloning your games instead of cloning others). i suppose for many, it can be disheartening to see that instead of pushing boundaries and taking risks, companies are not doing that. i'm personally not surprised- i remember the ps2 -> ps3 jump and most of those early games didn't seem impossible on older hardware. i don't think it was until valkyria chronicles, burnout paradise, and mirror's edge came out that i was impressed with 'next gen.' valkyria chronicles was eventually done on dreamcast-level hardware (or less? i can't remember where psp landed), so i know that it was also possible on older platforms- and mirror's edge and burnout paradise probably wouldn't have been unlikely on the ps2 or thereabouts either. but those games were doing things i hadn't seen before, and they looked better than anything that came in the previous generation. it was a winning combination.

although the other takeaway from that is that each one of those was apparently not big enough a success to find a sequel on that generation of consoles. maybe they were too different- maybe they just came out too late to catch the wave the same way assassin's creed and gears of war did.

and that's speaking in general terms. i haven't actually seen much of the order, and i know this discussion was spurred on by the reaction to that game. i guess to speak more specifically about it, it kind of reminds me of the super mario 3d world backlash initially after the reveal, and how opinion turned for the better by the time it released. it may be way too early to talk about the order in definitive terms.

 

[ICPEE]

I swear the way some people speak about The Order 1886 is like they have it sat there in their livingrooms, playing the shit out of it.

or its just based on 2 minutes of gameplay. I dunno...

 

[IncandescentPrecept]

earlier i addressed my preference for iteration (in most cases), since it seems to get lost in the search for innovation and discovering something new. that said, new consoles are big investments. you buy one and a game and you're spending nearly half a grand (or less, depending what deals you find). i think there's an expectation that the upgrade in power isn't only being used for iteration and increased production value.

in addition to that, the start of a generation is the time when companies have a bigger chance to cut loose and try new things- to influence the direction the generation will take (it's so much nicer when people are cloning your games instead of cloning others). i suppose for many, it can be disheartening to see that instead of pushing boundaries and taking risks, companies are not doing that. i'm personally not surprised- i remember the ps2 -> ps3 jump and most of those early games didn't seem impossible on older hardware. i don't think it was until valkyria chronicles, burnout paradise, and mirror's edge came out that i was impressed with 'next gen.' valkyria chronicles was eventually done on dreamcast-level hardware (or less? i can't remember where psp landed), so i know that it was also possible on older platforms- and mirror's edge and burnout paradise probably wouldn't have been unlikely on the ps2 or thereabouts either. but those games were doing things i hadn't seen before, and they looked better than anything that came in the previous generation. it was a winning combination.

although the other takeaway from that is that each one of those was apparently not big enough a success to find a sequel on that generation of consoles. maybe they were too different- maybe they just came out too late to catch the wave the same way assassin's creed and gears of war did.

and that's speaking in general terms. i haven't actually seen much of the order, and i know this discussion was spurred on by the reaction to that game. i guess to speak more specifically about it, it kind of reminds me of the super mario 3d world backlash initially after the reveal, and how opinion turned for the better by the time it released. it may be way too early to talk about the order in definitive terms.

Companies are just responding to the market - FPS and TPS are what sells. How many copies did Puppeteer sell? Or Journey? People on this forum want something different but the reality is that that's not what the market wants.

Just as hardware has reached a plateau, similar so have games. It happened with movies too.

Also, your examples - Mirror's Edge and Burnout Paradise both came out 3 years after the 360 were released. You will get your games that do a couple of minor things new. Just be patient.

 

[KageMaru]

While I can appreciate good gameplay, even if the experience could have been reproduced last gen, I still understand the want for "next gen gameplay". Within the first year of the last generation we had titles like Dead Rising, Oblivion, GRAW, CoD2/3, and Resistance. All of these games would have suffered in gameplay if moved back to the PS2/xbox/GC. So it's a bit disappointing to see showcase titles, like Infamous, not expand the gameplay beyond the capabilities of the PS3.

 

[AniHawk]

Companies are just responding to the market - FPS and TPS are what sells. How many copies did Puppeteer sell? Or Journey? People on this forum want something different but the reality is that that's not what the market wants.

this sort of ignores the part about the start of the generation, about risk and getting value out of an investment. late-gen new franchises are hard sells.

Just as hardware has reached a plateau, similar so have games. It happened with movies too.

i have a feeling i would disagree with this because it's so broad, but i don't even know where to begin. what do you mean movies have plateaued? what do you mean games have plateaued?

Also, your examples - Mirror's Edge and Burnout Paradise both came out 3 years after the 360 were released. You will get your games that do a couple of minor things new. Just be patient.

this is sort of what i was trying to get at- last gen felt pretty damn samey for a good long while. i'm not surprised that this gen feels the same way, although something like sunset overdrive does buck the trend in a couple of ways.

 

[JimiNutz]

I think we have reached a point where we now have a standard for how TPS plays because that's what works best just like CoD4 set the standard for fps on consoles. When you ask people what they want they say "next-gen gameplay" what's next-gen gameplay?

Sure you can add brutal AI, destructible environments, make it open world, but the game will still play like a tps. You run, you take cover and you shoot.

Yeah but having smarter AI, destructible environments and bigger levels/firefights does dramatically change gameplay. Sure you are still running, taking cover and shooting but you are still having to play the game in different ways.

The problem with cover shooters is that they've now become boring. We've had a whole 6 years worth of them and they all play pretty similarly.

Players generally have more fun when they have options. Imagine a game where you just run through pretty corridors then enter 'kill rooms' where you sit behind cover and kill enemies that just stand there and return fire. Now and again you have to melee or do a QTE.

That's fine once or twice but it gets boring.

Now imagine the same third person shooter but this time enemies flank you, they aggressively bounce over cover and charge you down, they try and distract you while others climb up walls and attack you from above.
Cover that is constantly chipping away and breaking so you have to stay active and you have choices. Do I stay behind this wall or do I blow up that car and use that for cover then try and punch a whole in that wall with my rocket launcher so that I can create an alternate route and flank the enemy.
Shall I attack from the left or descend underground and try to surprise the enemy from the rear.

That's what I want. Choices, different ways to play the same game. A variety of enemies that I have to fight in different ways and are smart enough and self aware enough to attack me with multiple different strategies and methods so that I'm constantly having to evaluate my plan of attack and make decisions.

It's a natural evolution of the gameplay that should come with better hardware.
Fuck fancy textures, high polygon character models and impressive lighting. That shit doesn't add anything to the gameplay.

I'm not saying dont improve graphics but use the extra power for gameplay features as well!

 

[Ryuuga]

Nothing wrong with past-gen gameplay see Dishonored for example.
Problem is that games in question are very boring and didnt learn from the best of past-gen in terms of design.

Exactly, you'll find that's why Crytek is given such a hard time with anything they've released after the original Crysis.

 

[IncandescentPrecept]

this sort of ignores the part about the start of the generation, about risk and getting value out of an investment. late-gen new franchises are hard sells.

New franchises that people would consider fresh are hard sells no matter at which point of the generation it occurs.

i have a feeling i would disagree with this because it's so broad, but i don't even know where to begin. what do you mean movies have plateaued? what do you mean games have plateaued?

It means that new ways of playing aren't being invented anyway(VR is the only exception but that's yet to be seen). We don't see anything in movies that's new anymore - the same thing is happening with games.

this is sort of what i was trying to get at- last gen felt pretty damn samey for a good long while. i'm not surprised that this gen feels the same way, although something like sunset overdrive does buck the trend in a couple of ways.

Sunset Overdrive, while the look might feel different, it is essentially Ratchet and Clank with free roam.

 

[EmptySpace]

this is sort of what i was trying to get at- last gen felt pretty damn samey for a good long while. i'm not surprised that this gen feels the same way, although something like sunset overdrive does buck the trend in a couple of ways.

sorry to burst your bubble.but sunset overdrive copies a lot from ratchet and resistance. some are basically reskinned weapons and enemies. the monster that pounces in the ground looks and moves like the first resistance 3 boss.

 

[ghst]

the issue is that the current state of the first party content war means that every rusty dud must be cherished like an atom bomb.

voicing your disinterest in lobotomised games is a long held past-time for many around here, it's only in the current climate that it's deemed a problem.

 

[Ushojax]

I don't care at all, which is why I'm happy to wait a couple of years to buy a new console. There is not yet a single title I consider worth paying £350+ to play. I'd rather work through the library for the old machines right now.

 

[Ryuuga]

current state of the first party content war means that every title must be cherished/disparaged.

Though I believe that depends on how invested some are.

 

[AniHawk]

New franchises that people would consider fresh are hard sells no matter at which point of the generation it occurs.

it's actually a lot easier to sell new ips at the start of a generation due to a general lack of competition. the less defined marketplace can guide the generation a certain way depending on what games turn out to be popular early on. 3d platformers, rpgs, and first-person shooters were 'it' during the saturn/psx/n64 era. sandbox games were 'it' during the dc/gc/xbox/ps2 era. motion-controlled activity games and third-person shooters, and first-person shooters were 'it' last generation. and you can point to really specific games for the reason why those genres became trends that other companies wanted to make games in. the action-adventure journey and platformer puppeteer aren't going to appeal to the audience the ps3 built in major ways 2011 and 2013 respectively, and they become riskier ventures by then too.

It means that new ways of playing aren't being invented anyway(VR is the only exception but that's yet to be seen). We don't see anything in movies that's new anymore - the same thing is happening with games.

well this just isn't true. if you ever get the chance to make it out to san francisco in march, and you have the time and money, i highly recommend visiting gdc. there's a lot of invention going on. it's happening less with higher budgets because of increased risk, but to say it doesn't happen is false. the same is true with film. general templates for stories may be pretty similar, but you can't tell me looper was a straight-up retread of back to the future.

Sunset Overdrive, while the look might feel different, it is essentially Ratchet and Clank with free roam.

sorry to burst your bubble.but sunset overdrive copies a lot from ratchet and resistance. some are basically reskinned weapons and enemies. the monster that pounces in the ground looks and moves like the first resistance 3 boss.

it does seemingly a lot to change the way the game is played though. valkyria chronicles is a strategy rpg that borrows a lot from third-person shooters, but that doesn't make it a retread of that genre. they way it blends the two together makes it stand out as doing something new. mirror's edge is a 3d platformer, and we've seen that before, but in first-person? and with a parkour moveset? well now that's something different.

something i think sunset overdrive does that may be appealing is that it does actually look pretty different to the previous generation- which had nice-looking games, but also a lot of realism and grit. it may be a more general free-spiritedness in all of it from the color palette to the character designs and the gameplay that some people are drawn to, where the order more resembles what was popular last generation, and instead of taking the opportunity to shift the direction next-gen will take, it seems that it's going to be more of the same.

i realize the danger in comparing an xbox one exclusive to a ps4 exclusive, but i really have no horse in this race. i personally prefer sunset overdrive, but that's more on the basis that i prefer insomniac over ready at dawn.

 

[jaosobno]

The thing that bothers me the most about is that some people seem to hold last gen (PS3/360) in too high of a regard.

I see people on various comment sections on some articles and on various forums talking how last gen had "totally custom hardware" or "exotic hardware" and how present gen has "laptop CPUs" and how it's nothing more than "low end PC" and for some reason, that's to blame for bland gameplay.

If you look at the facts, the actual gaming performance on last gen sucked compared to what your nostalgic memories might tell you.

Standard for last gen was 720p and yet there were many games that fell short of that standard. When it came to framerate, even many first party games held frame rate of 20-30 FPS and yet not many people gave a fuck. 60 FPS games were almost non-existent.

But the thing that absolutely pisses me off the most is this when people say how last gen was better than PC when it launched and that it took PC a while to catch up (because "exotic hardware"). Now first a disclaimer; I am NOT a PC fanboy, in fact I only use PC to write on this forum, browse the web or write a document or two. For my gaming needs I exclusively use PS4.

High end PC (and I'm not talking about $3000 PC) from that era could easily outperform both consoles. Check out (for example) Oblivion screenshots and compare all 3 platforms. If you don't feel like searching through google images, it's something like this:

PC>>>>>>>>>PS3>X360.

The same applies for most multiplatform titles. And yet many insist that somehow last gen was so much better when it came to hardware side of things than present gen. That is simply not true. Sure, there were some nice things like Cell's SPEs and Xenos' Unified shaders, but Cell was a bitch to work with and unified shaders soon became standard on your normal, everyday PC GPUs. So not everything was as rosy as your might remember.

PS4 and XO get so much crap. "Where is that next gen gameplay" - what in the fuck is "next gen gameplay"? What did you expect? An entire transformation of every single genre out there? If that was your expectation, you were/are delusional my friends.

The thing I expected was a graphical evolution of present standards and some nicer, more detailed physics models, and that's precisely what I got and what I will be getting in the future. Sure, from time to time there will be developers that will manage to shake up things a little. But will they bring you the fabled FPS/TPS 2.0? Of course they won't, because if revolution of gaming was exclusively hardware dependent, then PC gamers would have some out of this world titles that would be (gameplay wise) above and beyond anything you can find on the consoles. But that's not really what is happening, now is it?

 

[ghst]

Though I believe that depends on how invested some are.

well sure, the net result being that conversation inevitably becomes myopically focused on the kinds of games which seem to exist to fill up a sizzle reel.

it's why GAF has become so industry focused. AAA is still king here and frankly, there is very little to say about modern AAA games. they (mostly) look great, play (mostly) competently, are over in a couple of afternoons and leave the audience with very little beyond a $40 gamestop trade in. in comparison, the corporate engineering which steers this industry is like game of thrones.

 

[shouamabane]

Streaks on the china never mattered before, who cares.

 

[SatelliteOfLove]

I love good sequels and reiteration and while I thought Uncharted 2 great that shtick has worn thin for me. I'm essentially done with the 2007-2009 cinematic corridor game boom, barring any unforeseen strains that push more personal buttons.

Sony has a good head for finding an audience with these things though, so I'm sure they'll make something of it. I just can't hack any more, personally, unless we're talking one hell of a crazy gameplay slant that isn't chest high walls and push forward for emotions.

Pretty much. Its crushing ubiquitousness was a strength that is now biting it in it's ass (this way and others). It's even more daming that it was touted as The New during that stretch (which it wasn't Final Fantasy*cough*cough*). Now, as the dawn of Gen 8 evaporates the dew of new console specs, new New things are emerging, or possibly reemerging. And, like many ascendant things, it's not being ran off for being bad per se, just of people being tired of it.

Then you have how fucking expensive those things have become and whammo.

 

[PanicFreak]

If a game doesn't look particularly intereating from last gen standards, then it should be shit on. If The Order or Ryse were released toward the end of last gen, before the new systems were unveiled, they would have received the same criticisms. QTE fest, looks like Gears, etc.

That said, prepare to eat crow if it turns out you were wrong.

 

[Mman235]

This wouldn't be a problem if developers defined the unique gameplay design of the past from SMB to Deus Ex. So far, we're seeing an XP/set-piece structured gameplay in almost EVERY possible genre. Has anybody stopped to consider if these developers tried to make an actual next-gen Tomb Raider? One that focuses on platforming and puzzles? Or Deus Ex, where you have one level to encompass your approach meant everything and can influence the entire level? If not, then why should we stop complaining about "next gen graphics, same gameplay" when there are other games that were more progressive PRIOR to the ps3/360 era. Next you'll tell me that that approach won't sell,p - if that's the case, it's a self-serving argument. You know that there is room for potential but then you will dismiss it because of lolsales.

I think "next-gen gameplay" is kind of a laughable statement but this sums up my biggest issues; the majority of AAA properties are the same standard shooting/slicing braindead waves of Humans/Humanoids in arenas with everything else (that many earlier high-budget games experimented with more) marginalised. During the body drag part of the new Order footage the AI endlessly spawning and running to the spot the last guy got murdered was almost laughable to me, and I mostly lost hope of Watch_Dogs being something fresh when the main character had a gunfight I had seen hundreds of times before with bunch of goons in the middle of a street during the first footage (from what I'm hearing about the final version it sounds like I was mostly correct).

Even just taking last-gen into account I find it almost embarrassing that no one tried to copy and refine what Mirror's Edge was doing.

 

[IncandescentPrecept]

I think "next-gen gameplay" is kind of a laughable statement but this sums up my biggest issues; the majority of AAA properties are the same standard shooting/slicing braindead waves of Humans/Humanoids in arenas with everything else (that many earlier high-budget games experimented with more) marginalised. During the body drag part of the new Order footage the AI endlessly spawning and running to the spot the last guy got murdered was almost laughable to me, and I mostly lost hope of Watch_Dogs being something fresh when the main character had a gunfight I had seen hundreds of times before with bunch of goons in the middle of a street during the first footage (from what I'm hearing about the final version it sounds like I was mostly correct).

Even just taking last-gen into account I find it almost embarrassing that no one tried to copy and refine what Mirror's Edge was doing.

Why would any developer copy Mirror's Edge? The game did not sell very well.

 

[Arc Christelle]

Why would any developer copy Mirror's Edge? The game did not sell very well.

This is the worst kind of thinking.

 

[SillyEskimo]

This. What last gen and next gen means anyway? New hardware is released constantly, there are no gens anymore.

I refuse to believe this is a serious post.

 

[Duster]

One of the attractions of videogames was the constant pushing of boundaries, the feeling that every game could offer something new and unique.

Look at how much games changed between 1988 and 1998 (Metal Gear to Metal Gear Solid, Zelda 2 to OoT), it seems certain that the 10 years between 2008 and 2018 won't have anywhere near the same level of change. Sure it's not fair to expect such rapid evolution these days but it's not a rational feeling, the change of generation is just something to vent such feelings towards.

However although we may never get that speed of change again but it doesn't have to be an issue.
Titles like Sleeping Dogs barely had an original idea in the whole game but still felt fresh largely due to the setting and the way it mixed familiar mechanics, something that could be said about many indie games.

 

[SatelliteOfLove]

Why would any developer copy Mirror's Edge? The game did not sell very well.

The trackrecord of copying CoD/Gears.

Making video game hits that make money is both a science and an art, and when companies science when they should art it and vice versa we get last generation's ubiquitousness and studio closures.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

I know this whole thread is dedicated to feeling the opposite, but I don't understand how you could see anything but creative stagnation right now in the big budget section of the industry. I don't even know what to say.

 

[Mman235]

Why would any developer copy Mirror's Edge? The game did not sell very well.

Very few COD clones did either, and since I'm not invested in the companies stock I'm not too inclined to care about that. I just see massive unexplored territory for platform focused games that no-one is exploring (although I think a few Indie Developers are looking at it). Them not doing it for money reasons still doesn't preclude calling them out for taking the path of least resistance, especially when their current approach seems to be doing pretty questionably financially anyway.

 

[Genki]

To me it's not an issue of innovation, hell, I want the recently announced Unreal Tournament game to be pretty damn tradiitonal. I think a lot of the Kickstarter revival projects like Mighty No. 9 are great. It's that I dislike the direction big console games have taken in very general terms, so games that continue down that road obviously don't appeal to me. Factors such as cinematic ambitions winning out over agency, general streamlining, and Skinner box-like mechanics keep getting more common. And, I fear that with rising production costs for such games it will only get worse.

For The Order in particular, when it was announced the setting instantly appealed to me. A glimmer of diversity in the big budget class. However what they showed yesterday was completely uninteresting to me. But not because of lack of innovation; because it's(going by what they chose to show) sticking to something I dislike.

 

[golem]

I know this whole thread is dedicated to feeling the opposite, but I don't understand how you could see anything but creative stagnation right now in the big budget section of the industry. I don't even know what to say.

Actually this thread seems to be about giving up on creativity and innovation.

Which is even more sad.

 

[MilesTeg]

This happens every generation the first year or two. The games releasing are mostly ports, and were not built for the new consoles ground up. Even stuff like Killzone and Infamous was basically built using PS3 development pipeline.

Being a Dreamcast owner who got a PS2 day one, there was nothing good on PS2 for about a year after launch. Except for Madden since it wasn't on DC. However in time things got a lot better obviously.

This time the generation lasted longer than ever before, so people have a pent up desire for new experiences. Stuff that blows your mind. We haven't had that release yet that says this is next gen, and likely won't this year (maybe Arkham Knight). It's gonna be awhile, just like always.

There are only two consoles I remember that dished out the "next gen" goods day one. N64 and Dreamcast. I don't really remember SNES or Genesis launch.

 

[RedSwirl]

"It's just Forza with prettier graphics" was the cry, I believe?

I don't think many here will be happy until they get their (Prefix these with "Dat next gen", and suffix them with the words "gameplay moment");

Mario 64
Jet Grind Radio
Zelda Wind Waker
Metroid Prime
Half Life 2
Mirrors Edge
Bioshock
Gears of War
CoD:MW

I know there's loads more. My point is though that some won't be satisfied until something arrives that is completely accomplished in it's vision and execution, and bearing a fresh look at a previously deceased genre.

I do think it's unfair to castrate games before they've even been revealed properly but I'm not sure what you'd expect when, for instance in Ryse's case, you show a re-skinned hack n' slasher with more canned animation sequences than actual gameplay as your tent-pole title at E3.

This might have some truth to it. I think we're still at a point with this new console cycle where the first killer app that really defines the new cycle hasn't showed up yet. The original Xbox had Halo right out of the gate, the PS2 had GTA III and a bunch of other games in 2001, the 360 had Gears. I don't think Titanfall is "that game" (especially considering the proportion of copies being sold on Xbox 360). It might be a game that comes out this fall, and it might be a game that comes out next fall.