Tim Schafer: Why We Need More People Like Him

Duncan Kennedy      Source Article: http://kotaku.com/5904887/these-might-be-the-first-screens-of-tim-schafers-new-adventure-game/gallery/1

If you fancy yourself someone who knows gaming, you know Tim Schafer. The creative mind behind such masterpieces as Psychonauts, Grim Fandango, and Monkey Island, Tim Schafer’s work is among the highest quality and most innovative direction games have seen. If we need anyone to keep making games in this time of stagnation, we need someone like Tim.

            It’s been a fact of gaming since the 90’s that Adventure Games are of a dying breed, if they aren’t dead already. It’s not the fault of the Genre, but the consumers. Tim Schafer was one of the last designers to push for grand Adventure titles, and is still trying to revive the genre, like his own Frankenstein’s Monster. The only difference in this case is that the monster will be beautiful and more than likely welcomed by the village people.

            Experiments in reviving the dead aside, Tim has been a major part in some of the most unique game of recent history. A game about a camp for psychic kids. A game in which metal music wages a war against other, lesser musical varieties. Had anyone else pitched or produced these games, they would have flopped. Leave it to Tim Schafer to come up with something crazy and make a fantastic game out of it. Most older gamers will remember him from his work on Monkey Island. It’s games like this that we need more of.

            Most large developers are afraid to innovate. It’s not a guaranteed profit compared to what’s safe, so why bother? This is a mindset that Tim and his studio Double Fine strive to work against. Tim founded Double Fine in 2000 to make the games that would otherwise be rejected as too “out there”. Since then they have made some fascinating and unique titles that have been great contributions to the art form as a whole.

            For his entire career, Tim has made games that challenge what is acceptably fun in this genre, and we’re better for it. If we had more minds like his, maybe Adventure games wouldn’t be dead. Maybe EA wouldn’t get away with its defecation on the games industry. And, hopefully, maybe games as a whole would be acceptable as an art form rather than just games.