Why Developers Are Still Making PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 Games

The new Cars 3: Driven To Win video game comes out today, June 13, for the Nintendo Switch, Wii U, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, Xbox One, and Xbox 360. A cross-generational console release would not have been unusual in 2014 or 2015, when PlayStation 4 and Xbox One were fairly new, and consoles like the PlayStation 3 still had their peak user bases. But these days, Cars 3: Driven To Win is an outlier; it is one of only three video games to be released for the PS3 over the past three months. Sony ended PS3 shipments to the United States in October 2016. It ended shipments to Japan in May 2017. Why would Disney license its creative properties to a dying console? It comes down to the game's target casual audience: people who might play the occasional game, but don't follow the latest industry developments, and young parents, who pick-up-and-play almost exclusively with their children and family members. Many gamers focus narrowly on the here and now; what technological developments are new? What industry developments will there be in the future? But there are millions of console owners who do not think this way, and may use their consoles rarely, like when an event film like Cars 3, begins its marketing push. To this casual audience, the framerates and high-end graphics matter less, if at all.

"I think Disney recognizes that many families have older consoles, so a wide release makes some sense," said Michael Pachter, Managing Director for Equity Research, in an interview with Motherboard. "Keep in mind that Disney looks at games as a way to promote their brands. They want broad exposure wherever possible." There was a time, in the mid-aughts, when Disney viewed its games with a little more seriousness than brand promotion. Avalanche Software, the developer behind Cars 3: Driven To Win, was once an in-house Disney studio, acquired by the Mouse in 2005. Avalanche is responsible for the Cars 2 video game in 2011. More famously, it's responsible for Disney Infinity, the open sandbox / toy-driven game intended to compete with Skylanders. But due to decreasing sales, as well as Disney's own skittishness and discomfort with gaming, Disney shut down its entire in-house gaming division in May 2016. In an earnings call soon afterwards, Disney CEO Bob Iger defended the decision—that the gaming industry changed too quickly and carried too much "risk" for the company to continue its investment. Instead, Disney went back to the licensing model it used in the past. And Avalanche Software, as part of the closed gaming division, was shuttered as well.

Fortunately, Warner Bros. acquired the studio and revived it in January 2017. And now, Avalanche is in an interesting, if awkward position—designing a game for the very company that nearly put it out of business. Troy Johnson, the lead designer for Cars 3: Driven To Win, speaks highly of Avalanche's new owners. "We were really happy and lucky to retain the same culture and style of our studio," said Johnson. "Warner Bros. didn't send any upper management to change things or shake things up. They trusted us to be who we are." Johnson is adamant that the team created the game it wanted to. But has the cross-generational development compromised the graphics or next-gen potential of the game? A side-by-side comparison, of the trailer for the Cars 2 (2011) video game:

And the trailer for the upcoming Cars 3 video game, invites speculation:

"There are certain [obstacles] that come along with supporting older platforms along with the new," admitted Johnson. "But we were largely able to diverge where necessary, like with the graphic fidelity, to keep the framerates up. The higher-end platforms did not suffer for supporting the low-end platforms." The only other difference between game versions is that the PS3 and Wii U editions of the game do not allow for four-player—only two-player—on their local multiplayers and co-op modes. But all other content has remained, intact, across platforms. The game has 20+ different racers and 21 tracks. Sixteen of those tracks were inspired by the new film (June 16), and the remaining five tracks were studio favorites from the previous Cars 2 game. Cars 3: Driven to Win also has a time attack mode and a battle mode, along with a freestyle "stunt mode" where the player performs tricks to gain turbo and score points. Johnson continually emphasizes the quality and attention to detail, movie tie-in be damned. There's pride at work here; Avalanche, perhaps due to its long history with Disney, has greater ambitions than being mere brand promotion.

"We absolutely understand the perception [of movie tie-ins]," said Johnson. "But the directors of our studio are gamers. They know what good gameplay is—they know what has polish and what feels interesting." "While this is a movie tie-in and we have to honor that, our goal is to make a game that people will truly enjoy," said Johnson. "And having that mentality going into the process is one of the key ways you focus on making a good game, regardless of the stigma and regardless of the perception of what a movie game is going to be."

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