| Paul_Warren said: "Narrative, character development, and good writing do not need a bad-ass system backing them, is all I am saying." If The Dark Knight with the same writing, etc. had been made 30 years ago with Adam West and Ceaser (sp) Romero as the main characters would it have been as good? |
Naturally not! But your analogy is inapt. Your example uses acting as a substitute for technology; Khuutra is using technology to mean technology. Essentially, Khuutra is pointing out that a great story doesn't necessarily need bells and whistles to sell itself.
Look at it this way; the movies that most rely on special effects nowadays can do well at the box office, and we all sit down and enjoy them once in a while. But how many of those flicks have narrative, character, and great writing? How many of them do you reckon will achieve immortality on the level of a Casablanca, or Vertigo? The latter two are classic examples of how great stories can tell themselves, without needing extra garnishments...
That said, I'll meet with you halfway. It's not inherently bad to give storytellers more tools. But a truly great storyteller can make do without them (see: Shakespeare, Stoppard, many Greek tragedies, etc.), and the extra tools can be harmful if they lead the storyteller astray (see: most action movies, summer blockbusters, etc.).
I'm not against new technologies at all. But I realize that it's rarely necessary, and that the temptation to put lipstick on a pig (...) has overwhelmed far too many storytellers, game developers included.
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