Mnementh said:
JinxRake said:
3. The story of the Uncharted games...
What's there to say. Just found a book in the bookshop completely copying the main outline of Uncharted 3 and the cover was exactly the plane crash scene from the game. So even writers seem to have taken notice. Not that I believe that book would have been worth the money to get it, but I'm just saying.
Also, I've read quite a few books a lot worse than the Uncharted stories, both in terms of pacing, as in characters or plot devices instituted. Need an example? Hugh Laurie's The Gun Seller. Read better one. Seen better films. Seen worse films. You can't really say that it's a whole lot worse than some medium or another because honestly all mediums of entertainment are mostly comprised of crap.
Give the story props for what it does and what it wishes to be. It tries at least, which is a bit more than other games do.
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I agree with the last sentence. And you compare Uncharted with bad books - sure, there is bad stuff out there. But Uncharted has one of the best stories in gaming. So you really should compare it to the best books and movies regarding story. Think yourself: you take a video of a playthrough. Not edited, because it is the experience of the story as you will have it while playing. Now showing this video in a cinema and then a showing of say the first Indiana Jones (similar genre, action and so on, so it could be comparable). Would anyone claim the Uncharted-video has a better story? That's what I mean: games - even the best ones in this regard - are far behind movies and even more behind books in terms of the story. And yes, it is a good thing that Naughty Dog tries to become better at that.
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I'm afraid I disagree on that bit, quite severely even.
I mentioned Morrowind in my previous post. That game has a great story. It is a fantasy adventure set against the backdrop of one of the most beautiful fantasy worlds ever conceived, with some of the best world building available in almost any format. Its story is absolutely fantastic and it invites to exploration and discovery. It won't force feed you anything, but it does rival some of the best works out there. I am as ready to believe in the island of Morrowind as I am to believe in the Discworld, the Malazan Empire, Westeros or even in New Crobuzon.
Same would go for Final Fantasy IX for example, for Dragon Age, Mass Effect, Legacy of Kain...heck, even Ace Combat 5 I'd log in there without shame.
I don't believe games are behind books or films in regards to telling a compelling story, but rather that games have a completely different way of getting the story across to the people playing. The scale of events is generally different between mediums. While Starcraft can have a great story about the three races as they try to survive and overcome their difficulties, the Starcraft books can concentrate on grounded characters and the horrors of the Zerg and their invasion, giving a ground level eye witness view of the whole thing.
Which is superior? Neither, as they both get a message across, each in its way or form.
As I said and I repeat: most of our entertainment is made up of pure crap that needs to be explored for the gems that may hide.
There will be games with great stories and some people will not even know they have been told a great story because the cues are not as clear as some would require.
There will be books with great action and great worlds presented, and some will not know that either because there will be no pictures.
Such is the way of entertainment. You can't please everyone.
