Warning: There are some very, very minor spoilers to the endings of Portal 2 and Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood. They are absolutely tiny really, but you have been warned.
There are, it seems to me, two reasons to want more of a game; the gameplay or the story. It can, in the rare case of an absolute treasure of a game, be both at the same time. There are some who would argue that Portal 2 falls into the category, but by the end of it I was only really left wanting more of the gameplay rather than the story. That’s not to say that the story wasn’t absolutely brilliant (it really was), rather that Valve just seemed to tie everything up neatly. I don’t want to spoil the ending for anyone who’s not got to it yet, but it did seem to tie everything off. Then again I suppose you could say that about the end of Portal.
[drop]For me, the storyline leaving you wanting more is a much more powerful feeling than simply wanting more of the gameplay. If I want more of the gameplay I can just go back to the start and play through a game again. I can try new things, look at puzzles in a new light or even just shoot the sniper faster than I did on my last play through. There’s nothing wrong with this but the fact that it’s so easily accessible makes it seem less powerful to me. If I can just start a new playthrough when I want to experience some interesting or fun element of a game then there’s no real anticipation, no desire.However, with a story it’s over when a game’s finished. I can go back through it and experience it again but that’s not getting any more of it. I mean it’s more of what I liked but it doesn’t expand on things, it doesn’t let me know what’s coming next, doesn’t build on the characters or setting. Just look at the end of Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood, that absolutely huge cliffhanger left me dying for more. Playing through the game again wouldn’t satisfy me, I need to know what’s coming next. As a consequence of that I’ll probably be picking that game up on day one. I might even, horror of horrors, pre-order it. I don’t think I’ve pre-ordered a game ever. I came close to it with Halo: Reach but I managed to nab myself a copy at midnight opening without one.
Brotherhood is one of those rare perfect storms for me though. I loved Assassin’s Creed, and the sequel but Ubisoft really nailed Brotherhood’s gameplay. I may have been left in shock at the story’s conclusion but that wasn’t what made me invest another five or so hours trying to own the whole of Rome and get all of the Brotherhood members up to the rank of Assassin. That said, I’d still put the story ahead of the gameplay.
I don’t know what it is with game’s stories, with fiction in general really. They’ve always driven me more than any other element of all media. I love comics and the art is a pretty huge part for me. There are artists and styles that I know I absolutely love and those I know I can’t really enjoy all that much. However, a good story somehow overrides these preferences, driving its hooks into me and dragging me back, issue after issue. Sometimes it’ll leave me feeling a little bemused to be honest, I know there’s stuff I dislike about the way a book is drawn but I’ll still hand over money for it, issue after issue.
[drop2]The same is true for games, although I think less so. I love a great story but poor gameplay in a story is much more off putting than bad art in a comic. Bad gameplay genuinely frustrates, it can stop you getting through the game, stop you from pushing further into the story. Take a game with bad camera controls. If I can’t see where I’m going and what I’m meant to be doing how can I move any further in the story?At the end of the day, it’s about enjoyment above all. Story and gameplay both contribute to this, and if one’s bad it can spoil the enjoyment of the other. However for me, story will always win out.
tonycawley
It’s all about the story for me in a single player game, and the gameplay in a multiplayer game. Once I’ve finished a story (sp) I very rarely go back to it, and if I do its only for the platinum. I just don’t play through games more than once. Multiplayer games are a different matter altogether though, I only play them for the gameplay as there is no story. I truly appreciate a good story, I really do and a good story will get me to buy a sequel, but never return to an old game.
Guyers94
I was thinking about this recently when I went back to play through Uncharted 2 again. I very rarely play sinle player games twice but I’ve played that 3 times now. But gameplay wise it’s brilliant but not particularly mind boggling. So I suppose it must be the story and te characters that keep drawing me back.
I don’t think I’ve ever played through a single player game twice because the gameplay was particularly fun, maybe the old GTA games but even then I loved the characters and the progression from nobody to top boss, particularly in Vice City. I guess a single player game needs to have a great story to make me want to play it twice.
Starman
A interesting, compelling story can make an average game one that stays in the console until its finished, rather than going to the back of the pile for months.
ron_mcphatty
Excellent article I’m totally with you about the story, I agree it’s often the most important part of the gaming experience for me.
What I would say about stories that end and leave you wanting more is don’t just hang your hopes on the next game. Maybe explore different games by the same writers or studio, or even better track down a book by the writer(s). I can whole heartfelt recommend The Beach by Alex Garland, the writer behind Enslaved, no doubt you’ll have heard of the film but the book is a whole lot crazier :)
R1MJAW
It’s all about gameplay for me, if the game happens to have a good/compelling story then that’s a bonus. I can quite happily play games with terrible/non existent stories if the game plays well, however I can’t play a game just because it has a great story if it doesn’t play well.
DrNate86
Story is the biggest selling point for me. I can overlook flaws in the gameplay as long as I am hooked on finding out what comes next. It’s why I rarely replay games once completed, as even if the gameplay is fun, there is no story to keep me interested.
Oddly though, I love online multiplayer, which is all gameplay and no story. It is always better playing against real people though, so that probably offsets my need for narrative, taking me back to my Goldeneye days!
DrNate86
And just to disagree with a point in the article, I was bored of the gameplay by the end of Portal 2. I couldn’t have endured all those rooms of puzzles if it wasn’t for the snappy writing.
ron_mcphatty
I know what you mean, just finished the single player bit myself. But maybe it wasn’t boredome, maybe we thought the pace of the final puzzles didn’t suit the pace of the narrative?
The Lone Steven
For me, an excellent story is what makes a game. Unless the gameplay is extremely shoddy, i will get the game if i hear it has an excellent story. All of the games i own all have excellent stories. I think LA Noire’s story has saved it from being a failure as i have heard it is repetivie after a while. Heavy Rain’s story was excellent and even though the gameplay was a bit fiddly at times, i still enjoyed it due to how the story got me interested into what will happen next.
If a game has the best gameplay in the world but the world’s crappiest story, i would flat out ignore it as i love an excellent story and i think a few of my fellow TSAers will agree with me. But sometimes a game dev can forget about the gameplay and focus on the story a bit too much and do a rush job on the gameplay. Ideally a dev should focus on both evenly. what i’m trying to say is a great story needs to be supported by excellent gameplay and excellent gameplay needs to be supported by an excellent story.
TSBonyman
I agree that story is important – give me Half Life over CoD any day – but at the same time i love anything in the Brickout genre and will happily zone into that type of game for hours too.
Sympozium Pawa
A few games I have featured bad stories and I simply just don’t care, the gameplay is what makes me play them. If a game had a great story it would move me on to the end… I’m still waiting for Prince of Persia 2 by the way, the one with Elika? Yet another Ubisoft game ends in a cliffhanger and I want more.
kill_zide
story over gameplay? you serious? I mean dude look at games like mario, sonic(the original), demon’s souls, GT5, Counter Strike, Battlefield, etc. these games have little to no stories whatsoever but guess what these games are INSANE!
I’ll take fooling around in inFamous over completing the story in Assassins Creed ANY DAY