Now, let it be known that I have absolutely nothing against video game consoles. Last generation I owned a PC, a PS2, and an XBOX, and loved all of those. The term comes from the fact that, originally, the dumbing down of games came from hardware limitations. However, now the streamlining comes from publishers attempting to please a wider array of people. Consoles are just another victim of the phenomena today.

Chaos Theory is my third favorite game of all time. It’s just too damn good. One thing I especially liked was how the most hardcore players could attempt to get past the levels without even touching guards. Less hardcore players could resort to interrogating a few people and then knocking them unconscious. If you like immersion in your games, Chaos Theory was pretty realistic. Sure, you could pull out your silenced pistol and kill every guard, but it wasn’t what you would normally do. When listening to guards in the other room you could hear them chat about many things. You could hear them chat about their family, you could hear them chat about life, about their stories, a whole lot of things. They didn’t even hate you – they were just guys who didn’t want to necessarily kill anybody, people who wanted to get through with their day alive. Guards you felt sorry for murdering. That wasn’t the only appeal of the game, of course – the difficulty in the game was scaled just right. But it wasn’t easy, especially if you wanted to avoid firearms. You had to carefully think about each situation you were in to survive the mission. It was a game by the hardcore for the hardcore.

Then, Conviction came along.

Destructoid discusses the dumbing down of games, to meet both technical specs, and to reach the “Mass Market”.

Take a look here, at Technical Difficulties: Consolitis