Dear Esther Artist Mulls "S.T.A.L.K.E.R. Without Weapons"

[deathbydeath]

but will it be FUN. Dear Esther was an interesting experience that I'm glad I played, but it was not what I'd call fun.

As games mature as an artistic medium, I don't think all of them have to be "fun" (like Dear Esther, or Dinner Date), but if you're making a survival horror game, I think it needs "funness".

*sigh* See here, please:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=lit0xPh_v5c

 

[Baresark]

I always hated games that don't let you have weapons. I don't mean guns and what not, but even the most basic sense of self defense would make you pick up a stick or a rock or something to defend yourself with. Don't get me wrong, I love the shit out of some good survival horror, and the less like an action title it is, the better. But it's just a limitation that takes me right out of the game.

 

[dyre]

STALKER with the MISERY mod is just fine, thanks much. It gives you weapons, but you still feel completely inadequately armed against the many horrors of the Zone.

I always hated games that don't let you have weapons. I don't mean guns and what not, but even the most basic sense of self defense would make you pick up a stick or a rock or something to defend yourself with. Don't get me wrong, I love the shit out of some good survival horror, and the less like an action title it is, the better. But it's just a limitation that takes me right out of the game.

Yeah, imo good survival horror should make you feel scared because of the danger around you, not scared because the developers programmed you into becoming completely useless. Heck, even irl I'd do a lot better with a sharpened stick or even my fists than with my hands apparently tied behind my back.

 

[Saulkar]

It would not hurt to look up the movie STALKER by Tarkovsky.

Here you go.

Free of charge and legally uploaded for all to see. Actually despite playing two of the STALKER games vehemently I have yet to actually watch the movie based on "A Roadside Picnic".

 

[TheSapphireKnight]

I would love to see more exploration/survival games. I would love to see games with focus put towards art direction, graphics, and world building. Some of my favorite parts of skyrim are simply exploring different aspects of the world without once swinging my sword.

I am hope to see more games where most of the mechanics are simply survival but your are driven to explore because you want to learn more about the world you are playing in rather than out of the need to get better things to kill other things with.

 

[Andy Chalk]

He's not talking about making another STALKER, he's talking about creating a STALKER-like environment to explore. It's more about inspiration than a direct comparison.

 

[Old Father Eternity]

I have yet to actually watch the movie based on "A Roadside Picnic".

But you have read the book?

 

[Saulkar]

I have yet to actually watch the movie based on "A Roadside Picnic".

But you have read the book?

I can safely say I tried to. I asked my library if they had it in circulation and they told me yes. One week later I come to pick it up then hand it right back thirty seconds later.

My total experience reading the book was twenty or so missing pages and the rest taped back in, in random order. Furthermore all of the text happen to look like this: Бьюсь об заклад, вы не говорить на русском тоже. - Ok it looks like the Escapist does not accept Russian text. Well you get the idea, the book was either in Ukranian, Russian, Georgian, or any similar to the uninitiated looking languages.

EDIT: I was told it was free online but have yet to get around to reading it. I found Antonina W. Bouis's translation here: http://lib.ru/STRUGACKIE/engl_picnic.txt

 

[Old Father Eternity]

I have yet to actually watch the movie based on "A Roadside Picnic".

But you have read the book?

I can safely say I tried to. I asked my library if they had it in circulation and they told me yes. One week later I come to pick it up then hand it right back thirty seconds later.

My total experience reading the book was twenty or so missing pages and the rest taped back in, in random order. Furthermore all of the text happen to look like this: Бьюсь об заклад, вы не говорить на русском тоже. - Ok it looks like the Escapist does not accept Russian text. Well you get the idea, the book was either in Ukranian, Russian, Georgian, or any similar to the uninitiated looking languages.

Well that sucks.
But if you are still interested, in one of my posts above there is a link to a pdf of a translated version

 

[Altorin]

Or you could keep guns in the game, but make the ammo so scarce that it acts more like a security blanket.

and then you can throw your gun and cry like a little girl

 

[Saulkar]

I have yet to actually watch the movie based on "A Roadside Picnic".

But you have read the book?

I can safely say I tried to. I asked my library if they had it in circulation and they told me yes. One week later I come to pick it up then hand it right back thirty seconds later.

My total experience reading the book was twenty or so missing pages and the rest taped back in, in random order. Furthermore all of the text happen to look like this: Бьюсь об заклад, вы не говорить на русском тоже. - Ok it looks like the Escapist does not accept Russian text. Well you get the idea, the book was either in Ukranian, Russian, Georgian, or any similar to the uninitiated looking languages.

Well that sucks.
But if you are still interested, in one of my posts above there is a link to a pdf of a translated version

Actually I found it too: http://lib.ru/STRUGACKIE/engl_picnic.txt through the almighty wikipedia (*DERP*), I edited it into my previous quote and interestingly enough the preview was not able to generate Russian text but it appears just fine in the final post. Just in case you were confused by my side note.

Thanks anyway.

 

[Old Father Eternity]

I loved exploration in Stalker, but was not too thrilled about the shooting part. Never saw that gameplay as "conquering and defeating" the Zone.

The ZONE take me, the Bishop and Councilor of War is here in person.
Yeah, while the games are my favourite ones and in the context of its own it works just fine, they did not really portray the ZONE as it actually is ... well, the way I have come to perceive it based on the book and the movie

 

[Fasckira]

Yeah, Dear Esther is a Stalker without guns. Or enemies. Or obstacles. Or open world. Or actual gameplay...

*presents you with your Knee-Jerk-of-the-Month gold trophy* Well done. Now go back and read the article this time.

 

[Loonyyy]

Exploration is fun, but a gameplay mechanic apart from motion would be nice. Boring WASD motion through a STALKER-esque world would be boring. Same with Morrowind, or any other open world. If you want to make exploration your central mechanic, that exploring has to be as engaging as all the stuff you're leaving out.

I don't think they can do it.

 

[Lt._nefarious]

Like it, like it... So it'd be like Amnesia what with no weapons and shit but have a vast open world and horrible monsters S.T.A.L.K.E.R style with a focus on story. FIRST PERSON SILENT HILL WITH NO GUNS!!!

 

[deathbydeath]

That was an entirely useless diatribe on fun that has no bearing on this conversation.

Pardon me for giving my two cents in two sentences rather than going on a 10 minute rant worth of pseudo-academic sounding details on "fun".

So, for you who likes to nit pick and sound smarter than everyone else, let me elaborate in another sentence or two:

For the game which this guy is talking about making, I believe he's going to have to take a slightly different approach to the design. Where Dear Esther and similar games like Dinner Date were interesting, a similar artistic style without other core game mechanics would probably cause a game like the one he's thinking of making to suffer. Simply put, there's a reason why games built purely on exploration, such as Dear Esther, aren't particularly popular. He'll probably have to elaborate on something somehow.

Now if you're done being a nit pickery of an troll (yes, whatever you're about to argue about what I just said, I already know. But again, I made a statement in a couple sentences, not a dissertation for your enjoyment) we can all move on and have a nice day with the quite easy and simple understanding of what both of us are trying to say.

Actually, I was attempting to get you to change your semantics. To quote you:

but will it be FUN. Dear Esther was an interesting experience that I'm glad I played, but it was not what I'd call fun.

As games mature as an artistic medium, I don't think all of them have to be "fun" (like Dear Esther, or Dinner Date), but if you're making a survival horror game, I think it needs "funnies".

You used the word "fun" four times, each one potentially having a different meaning. I was just pulling out that video because a) I wanted an excuse to find and watch that guy again, and b) I was attempting to subtly point out the issues with your word usage.

 

[GnomeChompsky]

I've frankly been dreaming about this exact game for years. Colour me intrigued. And hopeful...