You can imagine how jaw-dropping it was when a new breakthrough let developers implement entire minigames onto the loading screen. By today’s standards, that’s nothing, but even getting pictures – and later colored pictures – would prove groundbreaking. It was a breakthrough when they managed to get music to play.
Back in the ‘80s, the Commodore 64 had ten-minute loading screens. The lengthier load times of the olden days naturally forced developers to get more creative. It was an eerie in-between moment that reminded me that I was actually playing as Desmond living through Altair’s memories while kidnapped by some Templar goons – Ubisoft’s own rendition of Inception. My memories of roaming about the Animus’ void in Assassin’s Creed are fond ones. We’re getting into the action quicker than ever, which is great, but we’re also losing something that made gaming stand out from other mediums loading screens add personality and give us room to breathe – The Last of Us added loading screens deliberately to give players a moment of respite – and offer a break from the horrors of that world. We still have platforms like the Nintendo Switch and not everybody has managed to get next-gen hardware, so loading screens aren’t quite done and dusted, although they are on their way out. Still, play the game on a PS5, with new-fangled technology that includes an SSD that makes loading take just a split second, and Spidey’s subway ride is often just nanoseconds long. It was such a refreshing breather from the typical action-packed beat ‘em up but it was only made possible by the need to spruce up a loading screen. Honestly, it’s a loading screen: it drops Spidey onto a train, still awkwardly wearing his costume, while bystanders are visibly boggled as to whether he’s a cosplayer or the real deal.
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