In the wake of the critically acclaimed narrative adventure 1000xResist, developer Remy Siu and his studio Sunset Visitor are deep in the ambitious development of their next project, Prove You’re Human. This full-motion video (FMV) game, to be published by Black Tabby Games’ new label, grapples with profound themes of artificial intelligence and human identity. Yet, beyond these high-concept designs, Siu is contending with a pervasive and frustrating technical hurdle that he believes stifles the potential of FMV games across the industry: the fractured landscape of video codec support. His solution is a direct plea to the powers that be in gaming: form a consortium and agree on a single, universal video codec for games.
The Ambitious Vision Behind Prove You’re Human
Prove You’re Human is positioned as a significant follow-up to the Peabody Award-winning 1000xResist. Siu describes it as a game about an AI who dreams she is human, with the player tasked to “put her in her place.” The core interactive mechanic is built around the “vocabulary of CAPTCHAs,” challenging players to interpret ambiguous prompts like selecting images containing “arms,” which could mean both limbs and weapons. This creates what Siu calls “Semiotic Panic,” a sensation of grappling with multiple meanings. To realize this vision, the game blends real-time 3D environments with full-motion video footage of scanned actors, a technique also seen in titles like Alan Wake 2, aiming to create a seamless yet dichotomous world.
The Universal Codec Conundrum
However, this FMV approach has led Siu into a technical quagmire. Video codecs—the software that compresses and decompresses digital video—are essential for managing massive video file sizes. The problem, Siu explains, is that every major gaming platform—PC (via stores like Steam), Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and PlayStation—has different requirements and support for specific codecs. To ensure compatibility, developers are forced to include multiple encoded versions of the same video file within a single game build. This drastically inflates the final game size and forces difficult compromises between video quality and universal functionality.
Ballooning File Sizes and Compromised Quality
“We have to use some nasty codecs to make sure all platforms are supported,” Siu stated. The alternative of using higher-quality, more efficient codecs is often impossible because they may not be hardware-decoded on older systems or specific consoles. This was an issue even with 1000xResist, where players with powerful but older CPUs from 2011 lacked the hardware to decode newer codecs efficiently, leading to poor performance. Developers are thus caught in a bind: choose a superior codec that only works well on some platforms, or settle for a lower-quality, less efficient one that works everywhere, ultimately degrading the artistic vision.
A Plea for Industry-Wide Collaboration
Siu’s frustration has crystallized into a clear call to action. He is urging the major game engine companies like Unity and Epic Games (Unreal Engine), alongside platform holders Valve, Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony, to convene and standardize. “There badly needs to be a consortium where all the platforms get together…and just decide the codec that is best used in this scenario, and then have that integrated from a hardware and software perspective,” he argued. Such a standard would eliminate redundant work, reduce final build sizes, ensure consistent visual quality, and unlock greater creative potential for all developers working with video.
The Ripple Effect Beyond FMV Games
While the issue is acute for FMV titles, the benefits of a universal codec would ripple across the entire industry. Modern games increasingly rely on high-fidelity video for cinematics, in-game television screens, holographic displays, and texture streaming. A standardized, efficient codec with reliable hardware decoding across all consumer devices would streamline development pipelines, reduce storage demands for end-users, and provide a more consistent player experience. It represents a fundamental infrastructure improvement that could lower barriers for innovative projects that heavily integrate live-action footage.
The Human Cost of Technical Debt
Siu’s public airing of this grievance highlights a rarely-seen axis of game development: the intense technical challenges that underpin artistic expression. The mental bandwidth spent navigating codec compatibility documents, testing video playback on a dozen different hardware configurations, and managing bloated asset libraries is energy diverted from refining narrative, gameplay, and artistic nuance. For small studios like Sunset Visitor, these hurdles are disproportionately taxing. Siu’s plea is, at its core, a request for the industry’s gatekeepers to alleviate an unnecessary burden, to clear a technical roadblock so that creators can focus on what they do best: making compelling games.
As the gaming landscape grows more visually complex and narratively ambitious, the tools and standards that underpin it must evolve in tandem. Remy Siu’s call for a universal video codec is not merely a technical fix for FMV games; it is a push for foundational progress that respects both developer resources and artistic intent. By solving this shared problem, the industry can empower creators to more freely blend mediums and explore new forms of interactive storytelling, ensuring that technical limitations do not stifle the next generation of groundbreaking titles like 1000xResist and Prove You’re Human.
