Pacing and Padding: Decreasing Value to Increase Price

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We've all played games that seem to drag on far longer than it should, or played those tacked on sections that are completely irrelevant to the rest of the game. As expectations rise for grand, expansive games so does the tendency to add more features and content into games beyond the initial vision. Budgets and scopes of games are becoming so grandiose that play times can stretch well over 100 hours before you come close to seeing everything the game has to offer.

But when does additional content shift from being an added bonus to annoying filler?

Narrative in Games Part 2: Mixing Oil and Water

Not every game is consistent between the cutscene and gameplay narratives.

Last week we took a look at narrative in games, splitting it into two concepts: explicit and emergent narrative. Explicit narrative referring to the type of story generally told in books, film, and other traditional media, and emergent narrative referring to the story that emerges due to the choices and actions taken by the player within the game's mechanics. We looked at the strengths and drawbacks of each and touched both on why these are often very isolated from one another and how they can still reinforce each other even when disconnected.

This week we'll take a look at a couple ways that developers are already trying to integrate the two together more directly, as well as a few example games that demonstrate these methods.

Narrative in Games Part 1: Cutscenes vs Gameplay

Don't worry, in another 10 minutes you'll remember this is a game.

Video games have had a rather mixed history when it comes to storytelling. While many games certainly make attempts at telling grand, meaningful stories most of them tend to exist primarily or entirely inside either cutscenes or dialogue dumps. Despite the fundamentally interactive nature of games their actual narrative tends to be strictly non-interactive - or at best with only slight variance along a small number of discrete paths. As a result many in the gaming community heavily criticize cutscenes in games, claiming that they instead try to mimic films rather than utilizing the inherent strengths of the medium.

So, are cutscenes a crutch that less innovative or skilled developers rely on, or do they have merits within video games?

Simplification of Games: Dumbing Down vs Focused Design

The "dumbing down" of games tends to be a pretty polarizing topic for many gamers, and it's easy to understand why. In order to be interesting or fun games have to engage with the player on some level, and one of the most common and effective ways of doing that is a challenge - and a game being too simplistic or easy can fall flatter than the disk it ships on.

With all the ire and venom the gaming community throws at dumbed down titles I think that gamers have lost sight over what they're trying to fight for. A lot of people will cite specific game elements or tropes as crutches for dumbed down titles rather than trying to understand what makes a game engaging or not.

Rather than argue whether specific games are or aren't dumbed down, I'd like to take a look at what does (and doesn't) cause a game to feel dumbed down.

Bastion: Choice, Morality, and Metaphysics

When I first played Bastion I was expecting a fairly competent hack and slash game with an artistic aesthetic - what more could you reasonably expect from an indie title for $15? Once I got into the game however I began to realize that Bastion was far more than that; it engaged me in a way that I haven't been in years. Every facet of the game feels deliberate and necessary, culminating in one of the most powerful moments in gaming I've ever encountered.

But before I get too far ahead of myself...

Spoiler Warning

I'll be talking extensively about a lot of the major events in the game as well as all of the relevant context. If you haven't played this game yet I cannot overstate the need to stop reading and go play the game for yourself - the game is a work of art and worth every penny of the cost and every minute of your time.

Xenogears Retrospective Part 3: Fei and Freud

In part 3 of this retrospective I'll be examining the character of Fei a bit more closely and his relation to the part unification theme in Xenogears. I will of course be talking about elements that occur late in the game, so if you haven't played the game you might want to skip this one.

Spoiler Warning

Inventories and Trash Mechanics

Check out my new 20 slot bag!

Inventory systems have been around almost as long as video games themselves. It's pretty much given that if your game has items or equipment that you'll need some way for the player to manage them, and there have been several minor mechanics that were created to either improve the inventory concept or to allow for more varied or interesting ways for the player to interact with their inventory. Unfortunately not all of them have been positive. With that in mind let's take a look at one of the worst offenders - trash items.

Final Fantasy VII and the Kübler-Ross Model

For many gamers Final Fantasy VII marked an introduction into the JRPG genre, and it is widely stated to be one of the best (if not the best) JRPG of all time. While it wasn’t my first JRPG nor did it turn out to be my #1 favorite this game holds a very special place in my heart for one very specific reason.

Spoiler Warning