Is NSMB Wii worthy of the title Game Of The Year?

[Avinash_Tyagi]

pearljammer said:

Avinash_Tyagi said:
^Problem with that as I pointed out, is no one has played every game ever, but people can tell that some games aren't going to be fun or good, I don't need to play Uncharted to know that I won't find it fun or engaging, seeing someone else playing it was enough for me to decide.

Secondly, I don't view gaming as art, I view it as entertainment pure and simple, trying to turn it into art is a pretension I don't care for.

A game can have other factors, but they shouldn't detract from the game, this is what happens in most cinematic games these features just pull one away, why do you think most people get bored with cutscenes and excessive dialogue in games.

Movies are a different medium than games, people try to compare and converge them, but I think that's a bad idea, the whole way a person relates to a movie vs a game is completely different, you don't control things in a movie like you do in games.

• If you think it is an unfounded claim, explain. I mean, the act of entertaining in itself, can be considered an artform, much like cinema, music and theatre. What makes it different to the arts? I don't think that's pretentious at all.
• Well, as I mentioned in my previous post, even if I were to accept the above as true, what detracts you from the game may engage the gamer next to you. And most people get bored with cutscenes? Perhaps you're right. However, do you have any empirical evidence saying that it does in 'most' cases? Otherwise, why even mention it?
• They are a different medium, obviously. And I agree, they shouldn't be compared, at least in terms of how we participate in the experience and its respective quality. However, I wasn't comparing the two. I was simply noting what your expectations were for gaming and drawing the logical conclusion from that to cinema. Because a game is what it is, it should play to its strengths and rarely borrow any other elements as to avoid detraction of its strength... correct? Surely if you think a medium should play to its own strengths as to avoid detractions, shouldn't cinema solely focus on the visual as to avoid detractions from its strength? I would say that's foolishness. As I'm sure you would, as it greatly benefits from borrowing from several artforms like: music, storytelling, photography, writing, drawing (for a lack of a better term), etc. Gaming is actually much similar with the added benefit of interaction. I think all of those different artforms are assets to gaming and why I consider it my favourite artform.
• To put it more simply: just because a game is interactive and can potentially allow you full control, doesn't mean that it can't benefit from atmosphere, mood or direction. How else can you explain how people think games like Monkey Island are great?

"A game can have other factors, but they shouldn't detract from the game" Which is fairly obvious, I mean you wouldn't have a film that's so obnoxiously filled with loud music throughout the entire runtime. So I realize that you're not going so far as to say that they don't belong at all, but surely you must realize that there are, at least, a sizable population that prefer dialogue heavy (Monkey Island, Hotel Dusk, Final Fantasy, Fire Emblem) which, in some cases, may not contain much gameplay at all. Then there are some who prefer games with a more balanced blend (Uncharted, Grand Theft Auto) and those who like games based almost solely on gameplay (Mario, Sonic, Guitar Hero - then again, music arguably plays a larger role here). Who are any of us to say that those who belong in any/some/all of the groups are wrong?

Edit: Ugh... I'm far too slow to respond. Some things have since been discussed and I'm far too long winded and slow at typing to keep up. I'll have to come back tomorrow.

  Gaming is active, movies and music are passive, you don't control Bach and tell him how to play, nor do you tell Arnold how to kill the bad guy, gaming is a different medium, you can't just compare them.

Because people skip over cutscenes, that's how you know people are not engaged by them, they want to get back to the gaming not watch a mini-movie

Cinema isn't just visual, it is also auditory, you don;t distract from the movie to listen to the dailogue, but movies are not games, cutscenes do not enhance the experience, as they take you away from the control that is inherent in gaming .

Monkey island is great, but you don't lose control, you are in control for pretty much the entire game, you don't just watch the characters, you control where they go and what they do.

Actually those games do have gameplay, you continue to control the characters, the dialogue doesn't take you away from control, you get to choose the dailgues, you control what guybrush says

Gaming is about control, moives and music are not