Linear games.

[omega 616]

This is something I have been wondering for quite sometime now.

I am pretty sure most gamers will hate linear games, being told were to go and what to do, which is why I can understand games like GTA series, prototype and infamous are so popular.

So why are guitar hero and rock band (and all there other spin offs, such as DJ hero ... no pun intended) so popular? Surely there is nothing more linear than an incredibly long quick time event with your favorite songs playing in the background, with some plastic gimmicks?

(Sorry for any grammar mistakes.)

Edit: Most are commenting they like linear games, which is fine (kind of off topic though) but why do you think that free roaming games can't deliver the same quality of story telling that a linear game can have?

 

[rockytheboxer]

I really like linear games because there more like a movie. (I don't like guitar hero and rock band though because your not really playing, your just pressing buttons.)

Stop! Grammar time. You're*.

OT: I like linear games like Splinter Cell. Where you have a clearly defined mission structure, but options on how you can get to the goal.

 

[DazZ.]

Because you have a plastic guitar in your hand and the "quick time events" are relevant and not "press X to roll out the way!" mid cut scene.

Also you can't really stray off a path when playing a song, unless you count the "freestyle" bits which you get, so you don't feel like you are strapped to a path.

If you do though you can make your own song using the editor, which is defiantly not linear.

 

[GodsAndFishes]

Linearity fits certain types of games better than sandbox.

But I personally like a bit of linear gameplay in my games, even in the elder scrolls games I'd prefer doing the guild quests over random quests that you find through accident. I think thats one reason that I didn't like Fallout 3 as much as I expected.

 

[The Austin]

Well, if its linear like a shooter, than than thats OK, but if its linear like......... The second Fable, than no, its not.

 

[TheGreatCoolEnergy]

Well I used to dislike linear games, but Half Life 2 completely changed the way I feel about them. So they arn't always bad.

 

[omega 616]

Because you have a plastic guitar in your hand and the "quick time events" are relevant and not "press X to roll out the way!" mid cut scene.

Also you can't really stray off a path when playing a song, unless you count the "freestyle" bits which you get, so you don't feel like you are strapped to a path.

If you do though you can make your own song using the editor, which is defiantly not linear.

It's not relevant though, I can't play guitar and I have never played guitar hero but I am pretty certain that it's alot harder to play a chord/note than "press the blue button now, press the yellow button now".

Your second paragraph is the whole point, sonic is less linear than these games. The main reason I can see to buy these games is to play your favorite song which prompts the question, why don't you get a real guitar? The editor was probably an after thought.

 

[Casual Shinji]

Linearity is the only way to tell a good story in a game.

 

[ProfessorLayton]

I like linear games because I like the stories. I am actually part of the minority that likes being told exactly what to do in games. In sandbox games I'm often overwhelmed by the amount of quests and choices. It's more fun in my opinion to follow the story of a game. Like Borderlands could probably have used more of a story element.

 

[omega 616]

Linearity is the only way to tell a good story in a game.

Why do you think that? Take Prototype for example, I can go off murder 10,000 infected, do a few events, do the next mission, few more events, murder a few more thousand infected, raid a few bases then do another mission. I am still getting the story but I have freedom to go and do other things in between.

Rather than killzone 2, for example, were there is nothing else to do but the mission 3 or 4 times, maybe interrupted with a few online games.

 

[Heathrow]

I'm a fan of story driven gameplay so linearity is the best way to go in my book.

 

[omega 616]

I'd still like to know why guitar hero and rock band are so popular? Is it all down to the "casual gamers"?

 

[Et3rnalLegend64]

I'd still like to know why guitar hero and rock band are so popular? Is it all down to the "casual gamers"?

It probably shouldn't boil down to an argument between "casual" and "hardcore." Games like Guitar Hero don't exactly lean very far towards either camp. It's more of a personal preference if you like rhythm games or not. Here, some kids play Guitar Hero because they like the genre, music, or both. Somewhere else in the world, there are tournaments for Dance Dance Revolution with money on the line. I don't think rhythm games fit into a "linear vs free" type debate at all. It's just a thing of its own.

 

[DazZ.]

Because you have a plastic guitar in your hand and the "quick time events" are relevant and not "press X to roll out the way!" mid cut scene.

Also you can't really stray off a path when playing a song, unless you count the "freestyle" bits which you get, so you don't feel like you are strapped to a path.

If you do though you can make your own song using the editor, which is defiantly not linear.

It's not relevant though, I can't play guitar and I have never played guitar hero but I am pretty certain that it's alot harder to play a chord/note than "press the blue button now, press the yellow button now".

For some songs it is easier to play a real guitar, well for me at least but that's subjective. It is relevant though because my hatred for quicktime events is the fact I pressed X in time during a cut scene completely takes away from the experience I was engrossed in watching, whereas it does the complete opposite in Guitar Hero.

Your second paragraph is the whole point, sonic is less linear than these games. The main reason I can see to buy these games is to play your favorite song which prompts the question, why don't you get a real guitar? The editor was probably an after thought.

Because you can't just pick up a real guitar and start playing songs with your friends, because at parties when people come round you can't just have a jam because people can't play those instruments or learn all the songs you all want to play beforehand, and most importantly because it is fun.

The fact they are fun is the main reason to get these games, not because you want to learn to play a song.

 

[Durxom]

Because you can't just pick up a real guitar and start playing songs with your friends, because at parties when people come round you can't just have a jam because people can't play those instruments or learn all the songs you all want to play beforehand, and most importantly because it is fun.

The fact they are fun is the main reason to get these games, not because you want to learn to play a song.

Exactly this, I know I can't play any instruments, and don't really want to make a full time hobby of it. So, the Guitar Hero games simulate the sensation, allowing you to play your favorite songs cause you like them, and give you the rock star experience. The same can be said about the Call of Duty games. I'm pretty sure not everyone wants to join the army and live out real combat situations, but these games allow you to do that and put you in the spotlight of it all.

The same can be said with the latest installment of the Hero franchise, DJ Hero, it simulates the party/rave aspect and lets you try and simulate the beats, without actually learning how to scratch and all that...plus it has Daft Punk, and everything could use a little more Daft Punk.

 

[Thaius]

...why do you think that free roaming games can't deliver the same quality of story telling that a linear game can have?

Because non-linearity, by principle, hands story control over to the player. It's incredibly difficult to create a story that will be good regardless of what choices the player makes: it's possible, but incredibly difficult.

In a linear game, on the other hand, the creator can tell a story that will be good regardless of the actions of the player.

Really though, non-linearity is simply an illusion. No matter how much control we think we have over the events of a game's story, we are simply choosing which pre-set, designed path to follow. We are not doing anything new, simply choosing what to do out of the options given to us by the developer. There is nothing wrong with that, but it usually does not allow for good storytelling in the same way that a more linear game would, because the story is split across many different paths.

Is it possible to tell a good non-linear interactive story? Yes, it is. But it takes a lot of work and is incredibly difficult. So until that happens, linearity will be better at telling stories.

 

[omega 616]

Because you have a plastic guitar in your hand and the "quick time events" are relevant and not "press X to roll out the way!" mid cut scene.

Also you can't really stray off a path when playing a song, unless you count the "freestyle" bits which you get, so you don't feel like you are strapped to a path.

If you do though you can make your own song using the editor, which is defiantly not linear.

It's not relevant though, I can't play guitar and I have never played guitar hero but I am pretty certain that it's alot harder to play a chord/note than "press the blue button now, press the yellow button now".

For some songs it is easier to play a real guitar, well for me at least but that's subjective. It is relevant though because my hatred for quicktime events is the fact I pressed X in time during a cut scene completely takes away from the experience I was engrossed in watching, whereas it does the complete opposite in Guitar Hero.

Your second paragraph is the whole point, sonic is less linear than these games. The main reason I can see to buy these games is to play your favorite song which prompts the question, why don't you get a real guitar? The editor was probably an after thought.

Because you can't just pick up a real guitar and start playing songs with your friends, because at parties when people come round you can't just have a jam because people can't play those instruments or learn all the songs you all want to play beforehand, and most importantly because it is fun.

The fact they are fun is the main reason to get these games, not because you want to learn to play a song.

There is still a difference between playing a game and an instrument.

ok, I have never been to a party were they break out the console and the plastic guitar and drum set, maybe if you have 5 or 6 friends over and none of you can play any instrument then you could play rock band. Personally, a football tournament on fifa or something sounds more appealing (I don't even like football, let alone football games).

The point of the thread is for me to find out why these games are so popular and or fun, wen all they are is the definition of linear.

I just find the thought of being ordered to press buttons in a certain order at a certain time or be told I suck, to be depressing rather than fun.

 

[Kuchinawa212]

Oh I like liner games, doesn't mean I have to burn time backtracking all the time. Just keep going and everything is going to be all right!

 

[omega 616]

...why do you think that free roaming games can't deliver the same quality of story telling that a linear game can have?

Because non-linearity, by principle, hands story control over to the player. It's incredibly difficult to create a story that will be good regardless of what choices the player makes: it's possible, but incredibly difficult.

In a linear game, on the other hand, the creator can tell a story that will be good regardless of the actions of the player.

Really though, non-linearity is simply an illusion. No matter how much control we think we have over the events of a game's story, we are simply choosing which pre-set, designed path to follow. We are not doing anything new, simply choosing what to do out of the options given to us by the developer. There is nothing wrong with that, but it usually does not allow for good storytelling in the same way that a more linear game would, because the story is split across many different paths.

Is it possible to tell a good non-linear interactive story? Yes, it is. But it takes a lot of work and is incredibly difficult. So until that happens, linearity will be better at telling stories.

Linear come from the Latin word ... well I am not sure what word but it means straight lines so a linear story would be one that goes in a totally straight line, so it isn't an illusion. What about games that have a good ending or a bad ending such as fallout 3, just off the top of my head, the last scene "do you send the girl in to die or do you die".