Why does Valve hate stories so much?

[AMCization]

I felt that Left 4 Dead had a story. It was in the wall's graffiti and I was intrigued by all the writing.

I want to meet Chicago Ted.

Chicago Ted is my role model.

 

[Lord Beautiful]

I doubt that Valve hates it. I think it's more likely that they just don't care that much about it.

 

[balimuzz]

Portal and Half-Life have amazing stories! Also, apparently the new L4D is going to have connected campaigns, with an overarching story. I'm not sure if that means that you'll just be playing as the same people, or if there will be any kind of story to speak of.

 

[Heegu]

Portal and Half-Life have amazing stories! Also, apparently the new L4D is going to have connected campaigns, with an overarching story. I'm not sure if that means that you'll just be playing as the same people, or if there will be any kind of story to speak of.

My quess is that the different areas of the campaigns will be more connected. In the first L4D you can only imagine how they ended up at the next campaign.

 

[Carnagath]

I think that it's just that some of their titles don't really warrant special attention to their stories, because they are very differently oriented. They certainly don't hate stories. HL2 was the first FPS I ever played that actually provoked me to talk about its story with friends after I finished it. Portal also had a very special presentation, it felt like a 3 hour long make-out with some cute nerdy chick, I was totally enchanted by it. Now, what kind of story do you want for TF2, seriously... I don't know, Valve is the only studio that I believe can actually positively surprise me with an unexpected story twist or idea, like, I expect solid well-written fiction from Blizzard and Bioware, but I only expect the unexpected from Valve. From then on, it's all chaos unfortunately.

 

[Carnagath]

Edit: Jesus Christ, sorry about the multipost, delete the above please.

 

[ohgodalex]

I felt that Left 4 Dead had a story. It was in the wall's graffiti and I was intrigued by all the writing.

I want to meet Chicago Ted.

This.
My first couple runs through L4D, I would stop and read the writing on the walls in every single room, much to the chagrin of my team mates.

 

[Anarchemitis]

To get stories, go get Narrative games. Half Life 2 if you don't think the story is particularly well done, you can't help but admit in many places it is submersive and exemplifies it's genre (Dystopian Science-Fiction). You can't hie how many little details and hidden things in it.

To get a multiplayer experience that's saturated and uninterruptive by itself, you get a Multiplayer game that has no story.

 

[Taerdin]

There are more examples of how Left 4 Dead has a story, but again, to appreciate them, you have to go through single player, and take it slow.

Or perhaps even go through the developers commentary. They like to explain what they were trying to convey with different objects and environments and such. Its pretty interesting as a gamer to understand why developers place that little pop can there or have the street light flashing instead of solidly lit or other seemingly random things which are not as random as you thought! :O

 

[Harlemura]

I think the TF2 website had a little bit of story to it. Pretty much two sides control the entire planet, and they both hire mercenaries (that's where the classes come in) to take out their opponent. Or something like that.
But I think the big online games don't need a story as long as it's fun. If it's a game that you'll be able to play for 5 hours straight, you'll probably remove the story from your brain to make space for remembering the useful nooks and crannies in the maps.
And I don't mind Half-Life's story. Sure, it's not necessary, but it's both interesting and makes sense... kinda.

 

[The_State]

Left 4 Dead did have a story, but in order to appreciate it, you have to play it in single player. Otherwise, the other players pushing you to keep going will keep you distracted. There was the graffiti which basically showed how the other survivors communicate with each other, and tells you something about them. The cars tell a story of abandonment and desperation, and the corpses with blankets over them deliver a tale of loss and determination. There are more examples of how Left 4 Dead has a story, but again, to appreciate them, you have to go through single player, and take it slow.

I find it an utter shame that nobody seemed to latch onto the concept you put forth in this post, because this is the essence of Valve's storytelling style. It's not the overt, in your face narrative that most people are used to in video games. It's a subtle, atmospheric story that requires the players to connect a few dots. It's much more like poetry, with nuance and artistry than it is a novel, with direct narrative flow that tells the story outright.

I first noticed this with HL2, when I was playing the second time and started to notice things like newspaper clippings on bulletin boards and graffiti which told as much of the backstory of the world as needed to be told. It was one of my favorite parts of the game, because it required me to really think of the world I was in as something more than my immediate experience. Too often in games the story is resolved completely around the main character(s), leaving the rest of the world feeling completely useless and pedestrian. With HL/HL2, much of the story revolved around your perspective, but you still got the feeling that there was more going on here than you alone could possibly have sway over. It's too bad the ending of HL2 seemed to muddy that up a bit.

Your mentioning the use of this style in L4D makes me want to play that game now.

 

[KingPiccolOwned]

Well while stories are great and can enhance a game exponentially, they don't necessarily make a game. Case in point is the visual novel. How exactly are these games? You don't even move your own charatcter from place to place all you do is make dialouge selections and hope for the best, it is like reading a choose your own adventure book except on your computer. See you have to have gameplay in a game to make it good.

 

[hannarr]

I thought mindless zombie killing violence was enough of a story

 

[The Bandit]

facepalm.jpg at this whole thread

Valve might hate traditional story-telling. I would agree with that. But the idea that Valve hates stories is ludicrous. Half-Life has one of the most compelling stories in any FPS. Just because you didn't take your Ritalin when you were playing and were too busy throwing books at Alyx's face with the gravity gun doesn't change that fact. And Portal? Dear Lord. Do I need to even explain that?

 

[Bohner239]

They still make wicked awesome games, though mang.

I think they have a story, as in the plot and point are original. Portal was very interesting and refreshing, although the first couple levels get old. I think they rely more on a backstory rather than let it get in the way of gameplay. Like the clips for TF2; they provide us with the characters' story and allow us to connect without interfering with what we're trying to accomplish in-game. However, that game is a really bad example... I'm probably just confusing plot with story. Valve really let's you handle story, which is why I enjoy their games.

 

[Yokai]

I have to disagree slightly. The HL2 story is, in my opinion, quite interesting and deep. Valve has some excellent writers, but they don't seem to be working to their full potential anymore. My theory is that the devs seem to be really good at coming up with interesting settings for their games, but stop there and focus more on gameplay than the storyline. This is a shame, because the Half-Life series plays great and has an awesome story. Considering Valve's talent, there's no reason why we should have to settle for one or the other.

 

[Same River New Water]

Valve make tight, focused games. They obviously saw that most online shooters were attached to games with a strong single-player story that was irrelevant to the online play, which left the online games lacking in character. So L4D and TF2 have a lot of character, but less story, and are better games for it. Portal had a great story, but not too "deep", because that would have distracted from the puzzle-platform gaming. Half-Life 2 Ep 3, if they ever get around to finishing it, will have a strong story and not be hampered by the need to work in multiplayer game elements to what is primarily a single-player game. Tight, focused games, see?

Valve didn't invent Counter-Strike.

 

[Vrex360]

No matter how many great narratives games have given us, it seems that most people still precieve the idea of games having stories the same way they would percieve the notion that pornos have stories. It's unfortunate but the truth nonetheless. But I see your point, Portal, Half Life 2, Team Fortress, Left 4 Dead all these games seem pretty light on story.

 

[Wazaki]

Personally, I think Valve games are done well enough so they don't need a story, or you make one up yourself (Portal with the abandoned Aperture offices, L4D anything you can think of).

 

[Judgedread]

I remember hearing something about L4D actually having cut scenes and a story but beta testers got sick of watching them every time they started a campaign.

Don't quote me on that though because I can't exactly remember where I heard that.