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Ketch .
Joined: 17 Sep 2005 Posts: 420
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Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:22 pm Post subject: pwot: Games are novel? |
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http://www.pointlesswasteoftime.com/games/crash.html
I don't agree that there will be a 'crash', but I'd like to discuss the assertion that fun in games is of two types, hand-eye coordination and imaginative immersion. I've become quite tired of the first one, and find that the imaginitive immersion of games is quite limited due to a) the type of stories we tell b) how we interact with them.
Quote: | PWOT
Let's look at this supposed "fun" thing for a moment. As far as I can see, there are two kinds of video game enjoyment:
A. Soothing Hand-eye coordination - you get this from fast-twitch jumping games like Mario and puzzlers like Tetris. See the block, tap a button, repeat. These quick repetition tasks provide the same kind of Zen stress relief that you can get from knitting or making pornographic doodles on a scrap of paper.
B. Imaginative Immersion - this is from games that let you pretend you are somewhere else and living as someone else, preferably someone who doesn't spend all day in a cubicle. These are your role playing games, adventure games, the same escapist pleasure that we get from movies and page-turner novels and schizophrenia.
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So basically I'm looking for games with a story (and clever puzzles), but where there is a human element to it. I can't be bothered with most platformers, fps or combat-rpgs. OK this is a bit of an exaggeration. I do still enjoy some of these games, but I'd like to see more games set in a modern setting, with clever twists.* Yes, I know the more scripted a game becomes, the less of a game it is. |
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Harveyjames the meteor kid
Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636
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Posted: Tue Aug 22, 2006 5:49 pm Post subject: |
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I wonder which of these categories games like chess fall under. Or Brain Training.
You can pretty much disregard everything David Wong says that's not jokes about poop, dick and Fred Durst. Once he wrote a 2000-word article about 'why you shouldn't commit suicide' and it amounted to 'because you'll go to hell'.
For all his half-baked punditry and naive pop philosophy, he is sometimes on the money. I liked his 'monkeysphere' idea. Most of the time, though, he's far wide of the mark.
edit: in answer to your question maybe try Monkey Island?? :-0 |
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Shapermc Hot Sake!
Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279
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Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2006 10:04 am Post subject: |
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I like both styles a lot still. I don't really think that they cross realms too frequently. I don't want to make a list thread, but I will give you some that I really enjoy for imaginative immersion.
Silent Hill 2 is the game that really made me realise that games can do so much more with their medium than just pressing buttons. The story makes you think, the enviroment is immersive, yet the controls are a bit clunky (mainly in combat). Tip: If you play the game switch the control setting to 2D in the option menu.
Killer 7 is a good example of one that doesn't cross into the first catagory at all. The game is mainly about immersing you in the style of it, and then making your brain piece together this scattered plot that seems like it may be the most confusing thing ever conceived.
Shadow of the Collosus touches on both catagories and shows a lot of potention. There is a large amount of emotion, the combat is well implemented and the world is immersive. The story/emotion/immersion is there but not as stong as some games that only focus on that aspect, and vice versa with the combat.
Obligitory Half Life 2 mention. It gets combat down very good, and the immersion is there, but I don't really have a connection with the game beyond high entertainment value. The story is good and I feel like a part of it, but I don't really have the empathy level that I do with some of the others mentioned. It is a good example of the state of the medium in what it can do, there is just a low emotional connection involved.
So there are some things you might want to explore. _________________ “The average man has a secret desire to be a swaggering, drunken, fighting, raping swashbuckler.”
-Robert E. Howard in a letter to a friend circa Decmber 1932
"There is no place in this enterprise for a rogue physicist!" |
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Lackey .
Joined: 11 Jul 2005 Posts: 1107 Location: Canada
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Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2006 10:33 am Post subject: |
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I guess he's just talking about games that you fall in love with for the feeling of playing it and those that you fall in love with because of what the play represents? I still think it's sort of a false dichotomy since a great game would use both.
Er, this has already been said. Well, here's to reinforcing a point! _________________ | Little bird fighting against a bat sect game | |
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