Gaiff
SBI’s Resident Gaslighter
A couple of years ago, there was an episode of Extra Credits that raised an interesting question about games not needing to be fun but engaging. For instance, horror games like Outlast or PT aren't necessarily fun but still manage to keep the player interested with the world, atmosphere, writing, and story.
I noticed that while I may find a game engaging, it can only be for so long before I get bored and ditch it if the gameplay isn't up to snuff. A Plague Tale: Requiem is a gorgeous game with fantastic graphics, an interesting premise, and great music but I found myself bored to tears after a few hours because the gameplay loop just isn't good. That's when I realized that I don't care one bit about "engaging" games if the fun part is absent. Whenever a game bombards me with dialogue, exposition, and tries to connect with me on an emotional level, all I think is "can I get back to killing things now?". That's also one of the reasons why I just didn't care for GOWR. The game is definitely fun but there are just too many sections where it comes to a screeching halt to allow character interactions and story development that just don't interest me anymore.
Now I understand that I might be in the minority and that these two facets aren't mutually exclusive. Games can be both fun and engaging but I don't give a damn about a game no matter how good the story and themes are if it isn't fun (Hellblade, looking at you).
What's your take Gaf?
I noticed that while I may find a game engaging, it can only be for so long before I get bored and ditch it if the gameplay isn't up to snuff. A Plague Tale: Requiem is a gorgeous game with fantastic graphics, an interesting premise, and great music but I found myself bored to tears after a few hours because the gameplay loop just isn't good. That's when I realized that I don't care one bit about "engaging" games if the fun part is absent. Whenever a game bombards me with dialogue, exposition, and tries to connect with me on an emotional level, all I think is "can I get back to killing things now?". That's also one of the reasons why I just didn't care for GOWR. The game is definitely fun but there are just too many sections where it comes to a screeching halt to allow character interactions and story development that just don't interest me anymore.
Now I understand that I might be in the minority and that these two facets aren't mutually exclusive. Games can be both fun and engaging but I don't give a damn about a game no matter how good the story and themes are if it isn't fun (Hellblade, looking at you).
What's your take Gaf?
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