I posted this blog on Gamespot. But I thought I'd post it here too since Gamespot, as far as I'm concerned, is irrelevant.

This generation has been great so far. All the different technical aspects of each console has given us many interesting ways to play. Though there are a lot of great games out for this generation, too often it feels like I'm playing a last-gen game with HD graphics. I've put together a few ideas that I believe could re-invigorate each genre to make them feel truly "next-gen."

First up: action games. This goes under any kind of shooter (1st, 3r, top down etc), beat-em-up and anything else where you kill something.

1st idea: Take better advantage of physics. Most action games consider physics as "ragdolls" and nothing else. Crysis really is my main example of this.On the surface Crysis is little more than a Far Cry-esque tactical shooter, but its creative use of physics allow you to tackle your objective in far more inventive ways than your typical action game. I'm suggesting to make that the norm for action games now. Or at least use as a standard now.

2nd idea: Don't spoon-feed the players. This was my ONLY gripe with Bioshock and I've been seeing more of a trend in this in recent years, in an attempt to appeal to the "casual" crowd. But there IS a difference between streamlining and spoon-feeding. Streamlining is when a games mechanics are made easier for beginners to grasp. But a streamlined game can still be just as appealing as any other one. But when [Bioshock] literally tells you where to go with an arrow that's pixel perfect and tells you to flip a switch by covering it in shiny gold paint, that level of spoon-feeding assistance just insults the player's intelligence.If you want to give clues on where you should go, leave subtle clues in the environment. If there is a switch next to a bridge that a player has to lower, there's no need to point an arrow to it. An action game that requires a player to think on his/her feet every now and again tends to be far more interesting than one that doesn't.

Next up: RPGs

One word: Setting. about 99.9% of all RPGs use either a fantasy or a sci-fi theme, especially the former. Every now and again you'll see one that branches out a little bit, twisting the typical fantasy or sci-fi universe. My thought is why not branch out further than that. Make an RPG set in the present. A crime drama RPG (GTARPG anyone?). Tom Clancey's RPG game. A WWII RPG. There are so many different themes to use and fantasy and sci-fi are continued being run to the ground. Tell me you wouldn't be interested in any of these.

Now: Sports

One thing and one thing only: Euphoria. Have all sports games implement Euphoria technology. Madden has been around for a good 20 years now, and since 2002, Madden games have played exactly the same way. Only the ball has any sort of physics engine behind it, so why not use a physics engine for the whole game. Anyone who has seen Backbreaker will tell you that it blows Madden out of the water in terms of realism. I'm saying if EA, 2K, Activision, Ubisoft all use a physics engine in their sports games it would really game them play SOO much better, since a big factor would be real-time physical contact, and not so much Player 1's tackle rating vs. Player 2's tacklebreak rating. Every sports game would benefit form having a physics engine.

And last: Strategy

Tom Clancy's Endwar had something going for them with Theatre of War. For those who don't now Theatre of War is the game Persistent online multiplayer mode. Well, why not expand on it. Make an MMORTS. Make a game world massive, and have small scale battle throughout the map. An army would essentially be a guild, and the player instead of being commanders of an entire army, make them a sergeant for a battalion.

These are only a few idea for a few genres. comment on what you would think would be a genre revitalizer.