Addendum to previous.
I don't know why I didn't mention the whole story/gameplay segregation/integration issues that keep coming up in games.
Half-Life 2 is praised for its tight storytelling, when it's in actuality no different than games like Marathon or Metal Gear Solid in which all action comes to a complete grinding halt while you read or listen to the exposition. Hell, one of the scientists in HL2: Episode 2 even lantern-hangs this by stating outright that he's spewing an expository monologue! How is this honestly any different than earlier games which give you background data as plaintext during a between-levels loading screen.
Certain games that are very story-heavy end up becoming interactive novels, to the point where the game seems like an afterthought to both the creator and the player (again, Marathon, MGS and HL2), the player though is so compelled by the story that he's compelled to continue through it, to slog though muddy, repetitive, boring gameplay (MGS3) just to finish the story.
Metal Slug didn't have much of an established story, forcing the player to imagine in the holes. Dictator on the rampage, Vest Dudes and Cutie Girls gotta fight him. Dictator sides with Mars People. In a move nobody saw coming, Mars People turn on Dictator. BLOW UP RADLY-RENDERED STUFF! That's basically all there is to it. Each character onscreen has a unique appearance and mannerism. This is what advertising copy-writers refer to as "story appeal."
Is this entirely "better" than the rigidly-defined characters from the "deeper" interactive novels? That's entirely up to the viewer. I will say this: Fio is still way-cuter than Alyx.
- Also -
Stealthoff!
Hitman vs MGS vs Splinter Cell. Also featuring Wolfenstein and 005 (A Game in Three Acts)
Half-Life 2 is praised for its tight storytelling, when it's in actuality no different than games like Marathon or Metal Gear Solid in which all action comes to a complete grinding halt while you read or listen to the exposition. Hell, one of the scientists in HL2: Episode 2 even lantern-hangs this by stating outright that he's spewing an expository monologue! How is this honestly any different than earlier games which give you background data as plaintext during a between-levels loading screen.
Certain games that are very story-heavy end up becoming interactive novels, to the point where the game seems like an afterthought to both the creator and the player (again, Marathon, MGS and HL2), the player though is so compelled by the story that he's compelled to continue through it, to slog though muddy, repetitive, boring gameplay (MGS3) just to finish the story.
Metal Slug didn't have much of an established story, forcing the player to imagine in the holes. Dictator on the rampage, Vest Dudes and Cutie Girls gotta fight him. Dictator sides with Mars People. In a move nobody saw coming, Mars People turn on Dictator. BLOW UP RADLY-RENDERED STUFF! That's basically all there is to it. Each character onscreen has a unique appearance and mannerism. This is what advertising copy-writers refer to as "story appeal."
Is this entirely "better" than the rigidly-defined characters from the "deeper" interactive novels? That's entirely up to the viewer. I will say this: Fio is still way-cuter than Alyx.
- Also -
Stealthoff!
Hitman vs MGS vs Splinter Cell. Also featuring Wolfenstein and 005 (A Game in Three Acts)