Storyline or Gameplay?

[Kur]

I am just curious to see what other people thought. I personally found myself putting on god mode on HL2:EP2 just for the storyline, all the game play was nice and I will go back later and do the game without god mode but I wanted to see what happened, who did what and when, how this was falling into place.

So should Gameplay > Story, Story > Gameplay, or a mix of both?

 

[cmdrdredd]

A novel-like storyline with repetitive gameplay won't make me finish it. The same can be said for a game that is amazing gameplay wise but has an airhead of a story.

 

[fierydemise]

If the gameplay is good I can deal with a poor story to an extent however its somewhat genre defendant, I'd be far more forgiving of a FPS game with a poor story and good gameplay then I would of a RPG. While I'd love to have both gameplay and a good story I can forgive poor story more then I can poor gameplay so I guess gameplay is more important.

 

[Noema]

Gameplay is more important, though a nice carrot-on-a-stick story can also motivate me to actually finish the game.

A good example is BioShock. It has great gameplay but the story also lures you into wanting to play more.

I guess they can go hand in hand, as games like Bioshock, Portal and HL2 demonstrate, in which the story is very well integrated into the gameplay, since everything is shown as the game unfolds, instead of relying on long, overdrawn cutscenes like many other games these days.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

I love a good story but I play games for gameplay. If I cared primarily about story I'd read a book.

 

[ShawnD1]

Gameplay is way more important. Quake had literally no story, but it stayed alive for a good 7 years.

 

[Dethfrumbelo]

Dreamfall is probably the best example of absolutely shitty gameplay combined with a great story.

Many shooters have the gameplay, but no story.

Gameplay keeps you coming back to play many times over. Story is usually one and done.

That said, PS:T was mostly story, and I went back to that a few times.

 

[Schadenfroh]

I care mainly about plot, dialog, character development and interactivity.

Dreamfall is probably the best example of absolutely shitty gameplay combined with a great story.

Should I play The Longest Journey before I play Dreamfall?

 

[Dethfrumbelo]

Originally posted by: Schadenfroh
I care mainly about plot, dialog, character development and interactivity.

Dreamfall is probably the best example of absolutely shitty gameplay combined with a great story.

Should I play The Longest Journey before I play Dreamfall?

It would be a good idea to play TLJ first, yes. Several of the original characters appear in Dreamfall, and past events are referenced. Without TLJ, you'll be having quite a few 'Huh?' moments in Dreamfall. TLJ is the better game overall.

 

[Wolfstan]

It really depends on the genre. I'm not looking for much backstory when I'm blasting the crap out of players in TF2.

 

[CP5670]

Gameplay, easily. I think among my list of top 10 games, four or five have hardly any story to speak of. Although I can think of a handful of adventure games where the story is exceptionally good and makes up for pedestrian gameplay.

 

[flashbacck]

I think it's much easier for good gameplay to overcome a bad story, than a good story overcoming bad gameplay. I know I'll get flamed for this, but two examples of this are Metal Gear Solid and Final Fantasy. Their stories make absolutely no sense, but their gameplay is solid enough to make you want to finish it.

That said, I think a good story is more likely to make you have fond memories of a game.

 

[IEC]

Why can't we have the best of both worlds? Like Baldur's Gate II - that had PLOT as well as GAMEPLAY.

 

[Zenoth]

Gameplay, definitely.

But having both, while being a very rare thing, is the best you can ask for.

 

[Om51]

I just finished KoTOR-1
One of the best games I had ever playend , great story with a good gameplay and graphics .

 

[Skacer]

Quake 1 is an example of gameplay over story
Planescape is an example of story over gameplay

Quake 1 is smart because no story is actually better than a really bad story. This train of thought goes in line with "If you can't do voice acting well, don't do it at all". While Planescape is a solid example of story over gameplay, it does not necessarily have bad gameplay. That is to say, it is never jarring enough to make you say this really sucks.

Of course, keeping with these 2 examples, I did not play Planescape for 10 years straight, but Quake1 got a decent bulk of play time for as long as I've had it. Good gameplay usually means replayability, while a good story is akin to a movie.

 

[Mem]

Originally posted by: Noema
Gameplay is more important, though a nice carrot-on-a-stick story can also motivate me to actually finish the game.

A good example is BioShock. It has great gameplay but the story also lures you into wanting to play more.

I guess they can go hand in hand, as games like Bioshock, Portal and HL2 demonstrate, in which the story is very well integrated into the gameplay, since everything is shown as the game unfolds, instead of relying on long, overdrawn cutscenes like many other games these days.

I disagree about Bioshock,I can only rate it average at best ,so boring etc..classics for storyline probably are games like Planescape Torment,gameplay wise BG2,KOTOR,Undying etc are good examples of games that keep you hooked.

 

[pontifex]

ideally, it would be both, but if i can't stand to play the game, i really don't care about the story.

 

[Lamont Burns]

Originally posted by: pontifex
ideally, it would be both, but if i can't stand to play the game, i really don't care about the story.

yep

 

[pontifex]

Originally posted by: Mem

Originally posted by: Noema
Gameplay is more important, though a nice carrot-on-a-stick story can also motivate me to actually finish the game.

A good example is BioShock. It has great gameplay but the story also lures you into wanting to play more.

I guess they can go hand in hand, as games like Bioshock, Portal and HL2 demonstrate, in which the story is very well integrated into the gameplay, since everything is shown as the game unfolds, instead of relying on long, overdrawn cutscenes like many other games these days.

I disagree about Bioshock,I can only rate it average at best ,so boring etc..classics for storyline probably are games like Planescape Torment,gameplay wise BG2,KOTOR,Undying etc are good examples of games that keep you hooked.

man, BioShock was one of the best games I've played recently. The story was really good It really drew me in and i wanted to keep playing to continue it. The gameplay was pretty much standard fare for FPS games, but it wasn't horrible.

 

[TecHNooB]

For me, it's all story. 90% story, 10% gameplay. If the story sucks, the game sucks. I do appreciate good gameplay but the game does not become memorable without a great storyline.

 

[Kur]

My next question would be what kind of "gameplay" is great? (If you list a game list the reason that gameplay is good)

 

[ChaoZ]

Story. I played FF12 which had great gameplay and battle system. But the story sucked so that pretty much ruined it for me.

 

[shortylickens]

Overall: Gameplay.
Video games are exactly that, games.
If story was the most important thing we wouldnt be playing games, we'd be watching movies (which happen to suck these days).

However, a good story helps keep the game engaging and interesting. Some of the better RPG's are perfect examples of this. (Deus Ex, KOTOR, and the Baldurs Gate series.)
And a half-assed story cant totally destroy a really good game, it just makes finishing it seem really hollow (KOTOR 2).

But.......
A a game with a good story yet poorly executed game play will suck balls and make you quit halfway through (Oblivion, Neverwinter 2).

 

[Dethfrumbelo]

Originally posted by: shortylickens
Overall: Gameplay.
Video games are exactly that, games.
If story was the most important thing we wouldnt be playing games, we'd be watching movies (which happen to suck these days).

However, a good story helps keep the game engaging and interesting. Some of the better RPG's are perfect examples of this. (Deus Ex, KOTOR, and the Baldurs Gate series.)
And a half-assed story cant totally destroy a really good game, it just makes finishing it seem really hollow (KOTOR 2).

But.......
A a game with a good story yet poorly executed game play will suck balls and make you quit halfway through (Oblivion, Neverwinter 2).

Oblivion had a good story?