Why do people care so much about storylines?

[Eponet]

I prefer the virtual stats

And other people don't. You asked why people like story. Well, there's your answer.

I know they don't, I just don't understand why... I don't know how you would go about quantifying a value that isnt represented in numberical terms. At leats not to the same accuracy

I know numbers cannot be calculated exactly 1:1 but at leats there's some maths there to work with

do you know what I mean?

They prefer it for the same reason gorillas haven't built cities. You have a special brain, and it lacks the ability to take any value in a good story.

Look at it this way. Each person's mind is set to cause a release a certain level of dopemine
in responce to certain stimuli. These shall henceforth be tracked in the hypothetical unit Utils. For you, being subjected to a good story produces 0 Utils, whereas for most people, it produces more than 0 utils.

They gain enjoyment out of it, but you don't because your mind is special. Can a fish teach a bird to swim and all that.

 

[oMonarca]

I like it when the world has a background and the universe is rich in lore, but the narrative/plot doesn't get in the way of my gameplay, like Bioshock, Farcry 2, Dawn of War 2 or Portal. If it's there when I want it, and it's well put, then I'll consider it a nice little extra. After all there's a limit to how many variations you can make out of "hero saves world/loved one". If anything, most games have only 1 storyline.

In no way shall I play a game just because of the story. I prefer other mediums for that: cinema and books.

 

[Hallow'sEve]

Because having a storyline makes you cool

 

[Velocity Eleven]

I prefer the virtual stats

And other people don't. You asked why people like story. Well, there's your answer.

I know they don't, I just don't understand why... I don't know how you would go about quantifying a value that isnt represented in numberical terms. At leats not to the same accuracy

I know numbers cannot be calculated exactly 1:1 but at leats there's some maths there to work with

do you know what I mean?

They prefer it for the same reason gorillas haven't built cities. You have a special brain, and it lacks the ability to take any value in a good story.

Look at it this way. Each person's mind is set to cause a release a certain level of dopemine
in responce to certain stimuli. These shall henceforth be tracked in the hypothetical unit Utils. For you, being subjected to a good story produces 0 Utils, whereas for most people, it produces more than 0 utils.

They gain enjoyment out of it, but you don't because your mind is special. Can a fish teach a bird to swim and all that.

it would be more than 0, though I couldnt give an exact number, even if I was to understand the equations that calculate a utility in this instance my error rate would be rather large

 

[KnowYourOnion]

I play games for the gameplay in the same way I watch films for the cinematography....it's not the only thing that's important.

 

[Josdeb]

*Snippity Snip Snip*

I have a question, and please don' take this the wrong way or anything. I don't mean this to be insulting to you or anyone.
Do you have autism or Asperger syndrome?

Again, I will repeat, this is no way meant to be insulting. It's just that you want everything expressed mathematically, including story, character development and the amount of enjoyment a person derives from it. It's like wanting to translate Shakespeare into binary: Sure, it's maths now, but there went the actual purpose that came with it inherently. You also don't seem to have any emotional attachment to any games you play or the characters you play as.

Again, no offense!

 

[ThePerfectionist]

YOU play games for the gameplay.

For me, a game has to have DAMN good gameplay to have a crappy story. Bayonetta is a good example, and even with its STELLAR gameplay the story and cheesyness is enough to make me want to shoot myself in the face instead of playing.

Tetris doesnt have much of a story, but its gameplay is probably one of the most famous things in the world.

It is possible to make games to cater to a lot of different audiences. If I'm gonna play a single player game it better tell a good story or I'll lose interest pretty fast.

Seconded.

Not all games need to have a story, but pretty much all the ones that involve actual characters should. If you are limiting yourself to Tetris and Pong, then no, you don't need a story, but if you want something more complex, you damn well better explain to me why you want me to make Johnny carve someone into hamburger with a chainsaw.

As gaming has evolved, our demands for better gameplay and better graphics have increased as well. Why wouldn't our demands for a better story rise along with them? A good story can carry a game. Just look at Heavy Rain. It's one of the most immersive games I've ever played, and while that is partly due to the annoying-but-realistic method of making you actually walk around and do stuff, it is mostly due to the compelling and dramatic story that carries the ENTIRE GAME.

 

[boholikeu]

its not just the numbers getting bigger though, its their purposes and how they mix with the game. Stories do not provide such values and so I just don't really understand the methods people use to calculate their value as much

Well, this is how the other side feels:

its not just the stories though, its their purposes and how they mix with the game. Numbers getting bigger do not provide such emotional resonance and so I just don't really understand how they can hold so much value

Anyway at this point it's clear that you're either a troll or a total "left brain" person who is incapable of finding the meaning in anything you can't set a concrete value to (it'd also explain why you have so much trouble empathizing with other points of view). As I have no intention of continuing to talk around in circles, this will have to be my last post. Good talking to you though!

 

[Velocity Eleven]

*Snippity Snip Snip*

I have a question, and please don' take this the wrong way or anything. I don't mean this to be insulting to you or anyone.
Do you have autism or Asperger syndrome?

Again, I will repeat, this is no way meant to be insulting. It's just that you want everything expressed mathematically, including story, character development and the amount of enjoyment a person derives from it. It's like wanting to translate Shakespeare into binary: Sure, it's maths now, but there went the actual purpose that came with it inherently. You also don't seem to have any emotional attachment to any games you play or the characters you play as.

Again, no offense!

yes I do, though usually people get that the impression that people with aspergers just want to justify their nastiness or something... I do try to be civil as much as I can but people always seem to think I'm being an ass over something, which I never try to be, but it always seems to appear that way

 

[jultub]

I started playing games when I ran out of good books to read, thus games mainly fill a storytelling function for me. I can still play a game for gameplay, but I can't sit with it and nothing besides it for a weeked (as I can with books or games with a good story).

 

[Josdeb]

*Snippity Snip Snip*

I have a question, and please don' take this the wrong way or anything. I don't mean this to be insulting to you or anyone.
Do you have autism or Asperger syndrome?

Again, I will repeat, this is no way meant to be insulting. It's just that you want everything expressed mathematically, including story, character development and the amount of enjoyment a person derives from it. It's like wanting to translate Shakespeare into binary: Sure, it's maths now, but there went the actual purpose that came with it inherently. You also don't seem to have any emotional attachment to any games you play or the characters you play as.

Again, no offense!

yes I do, though usually people get that the impression that people with aspergers just want to justify their nastiness or something... I do try to be civil as much as I can but people always seem to think I'm being an ass over something, which I never try to be, but it always seems to appear that way

Ah, thought so.
I have 2 close friends with aspergers, so I got where you were coming from. It's funny actually, one of my friends is the same as you, but one is the opposite; she and I were playing a co-op JRPG (Tales of Vesperia) and she only cared about the story and struggled with understanding the gameplay.

Anyways, back on topic, the reason why other people like story is the reason some people can smell colours (Synthesia, google it). Their brain is just different from yours.
To them the difference between gameplay-based game and a good story-based game is equivilent to watching a 2 hour clip show of karate moves, versus watching a 2 hour movie about a ninja seeking revenge for his murdered family.

 

[Velocity Eleven]

*Snippity Snip Snip*

I have a question, and please don' take this the wrong way or anything. I don't mean this to be insulting to you or anyone.
Do you have autism or Asperger syndrome?

Again, I will repeat, this is no way meant to be insulting. It's just that you want everything expressed mathematically, including story, character development and the amount of enjoyment a person derives from it. It's like wanting to translate Shakespeare into binary: Sure, it's maths now, but there went the actual purpose that came with it inherently. You also don't seem to have any emotional attachment to any games you play or the characters you play as.

Again, no offense!

yes I do, though usually people get that the impression that people with aspergers just want to justify their nastiness or something... I do try to be civil as much as I can but people always seem to think I'm being an ass over something, which I never try to be, but it always seems to appear that way

Ah, thought so.
I have 2 close friends with aspergers, so I got where you were coming from. It's funny actually, one of my friends is the same as you, but one is the opposite; she and I were playing a co-op JRPG (Tales of Vesperia) and she only cared about the story and struggled with understanding the gameplay.

Anyways, back on topic, the reason why other people like story is the reason some people can smell colours (Synthesia, google it). Their brain is just different from yours.
To them the difference between gameplay-based game and a good story-based game is equivilent to watching a 2 hour clip show of karate moves, versus watching a 2 hour movie about a ninja seeking revenge for his murdered family.

I have synesthesia, I have colours for the different days and months, and also songs

regarding those two movies, I would probably find the murdered family one better. I would struggle to assign an accurate value to its quality but my guess is that its storytelling would be better than the karate moves

 

[Eponet]

*Snippity Snip Snip*

I have a question, and please don' take this the wrong way or anything. I don't mean this to be insulting to you or anyone.
Do you have autism or Asperger syndrome?

Again, I will repeat, this is no way meant to be insulting. It's just that you want everything expressed mathematically, including story, character development and the amount of enjoyment a person derives from it. It's like wanting to translate Shakespeare into binary: Sure, it's maths now, but there went the actual purpose that came with it inherently. You also don't seem to have any emotional attachment to any games you play or the characters you play as.

Again, no offense!

yes I do, though usually people get that the impression that people with aspergers just want to justify their nastiness or something... I do try to be civil as much as I can but people always seem to think I'm being an ass over something, which I never try to be, but it always seems to appear that way

If that's the case, and the symptoms are as obvious as they appear, then this might not be the best place for you to ask. Talk to a psychologist, or take a biology course.

Pretty much all the people responding are going to assume that you can think the same way. For an interesting excercise, try describing the colour green to someone with total colour blindness and having them understand it.

 

[Cid Silverwing]

Good story + good gameplay = kickass game.

If one sucks and the other rules, that tells me the developers didn't know wtf they were doing when they were making the game.

 

[Thaius]

Because video games have evolved a lot since they were categorized simply as "games." I mean think about it: movies, for instance, were first called "motion pictures." Even the word "movie" is kind of a stupid reference to that. So one could argue: if a movie is about moving pictures, why do we care about the story, soundtrack, and action? After all, it's a motion picture: priority should obviously go to making sure there are good moving pictures, right? Everything else is secondary, right?

Absolutely freaking wrong. Film has changed a lot since its inception, has evolved to be a more complete and evocative storytelling art. I would argue that video games have done the same thing. Of course there are still movies, and games, made for reasons other than story, but even the most basic of these tend to be tied by some sort of narrative; even the original Donkey Kong had a basic story to give context to its actions.

Video games are so much more than games now: refusal to accept that is holding the medium back.

 

[Sgt Doom]

Main reason i'll complain about voice acting is for immersion reasons. STALKER, for instance. Half tempted to use the Russian localisation just so they don't sound so silly, but then I wouldn't be able to find my way out of the main menu.

 

[Josdeb]

regarding those two movies, I would probably find the murdered family one better. I would struggle to assign an accurate value to its quality but my guess is that its storytelling would be better than the karate moves

As would most regular moviegoers. The storytelling value for the karate movie would be 0.
If you want a rough equation for how people rate games, here you go:

Rating= (Characters+ Character Development+ Character immersion) * (Plot+ Setting+ General Immersion) * (Controls+ Ease of play+ Challenge factor+ Replayability) * (Multiplayer) * (Specific Genre Features)

(If multiplayer equals 0, then assign it 1: Otherwise single-player games get an overall game rating of 0)
(For Specific Genre Features, this would be weapon customisation, etc for FPSes and maybe RPGs, the ability to level up or quest for MMORPGS and RPGS in general, and the like)

 

[Eponet]

regarding those two movies, I would probably find the murdered family one better. I would struggle to assign an accurate value to its quality but my guess is that its storytelling would be better than the karate moves

As would most regular moviegoers. The storytelling value for the karate movie would be 0.
If you want a rough equation for how people rate games, here you go:

Rating= (Characters+ Character Development+ Character immersion) * (Plot+ Setting+ General Immersion) * (Controls+ Ease of play+ Challenge factor+ Replayability) * (Multiplayer) * (Specific Genre Features)

(If multiplayer equals 0, then assign it 1: Otherwise single-player games get an overall game rating of 0)
(For Specific Genre Features, this would be weapon customisation, etc for FPSes and maybe RPGs, the ability to level up or quest for MMORPGS and RPGS in general, and the like)

Don't forget personal preference multipliers

 

[DrMuerto]

Gameplay is most important for non-rpgs. Back in the day all you really had WAS gameplay (ie Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, etc)

Not true at all, or at least not true in the examples you give. Donkey Kong most definitely had a storyline, albeit a very simple one. In DK it was: Monkey kidnaps girl and her plumber boy-friend ahs to rescue her. Pac-Man had less of a set story, but there were animations between levels that wove out a very basic narrative of ghosts chasing Pac-Man. Moreover, many arcade machines told a part of the story both through what was painted on the side of the cabinet and through a short text that accompanied the game play instructions next to the controllers. You'd have to go to like Pong to find a game without a narrative to it. By the time that the Atari 2600 came out game manuals and boxes laid out basic story lines even for fairly context-free genres of games like racing ones.

 

[dont_blink]

Some people can't read a book if they think the prose is too awful. Conversely, a lot of books are just verbiage with no narrative cohesion or clear message. It's generally accepted that good literature gets the balance right. It's just that crap writing in games is really crap, so it stands out more. Less budget and priority on the more 'intellectual' aspects. Resident Evil?