Bunch of hypocrites, story games only sell decently if they look good and even then they're accused of being walking simulators. Rarely have I seen a game promoted on here for its story alone.

So how many of you played Thirty flights of loving and To the moon. All 46? 95%?

I have, and it is by far the best storytelling and emotionally driven game I have played in awhile. It is also the worse gameplay I have ever played ever. 

The question however is what is more important between the two, not one which one does not matter. They both matter, but I feel storytelling is a lost art in gaming now a days, same with proper gameplay. 

Gameplay will always be first, reason why destiny is so awesome to me, is that in terms of gameplay, I feel it is amazing. Storytelling is the weakest in that game, and it would be complete package if it was better. Graphics is fine, not something to write home about but not something that is bad either. 

Hear, hear. 

@OP: both are relatively unimportant to me. A lot of the best games of the last two generations have looked pretty crummy compared to high-profile "AAA" titles, and have had relatively uncomplicated stories that serve mostly to get players from point A to point B. I've been playing a lot of old Atari and Intellivision games lately, and I'm struck by how a set of interesting mechanics and basic gameplay scenarios can make an ugly game with zero plot really sing.

Typically, story is much more important, but if the game is a multiplayer focused game, such as Mario Kart or Street Fighter, I will take graphics over story.

Well depends on what you mean by graphics if it just means mindless pushing more realistic graphics then no graphics of that short isn't that important and it can be said that games like this don't age well.

Games are a complex piece of multi-media, we you can have the best story in the world and if there is something mechanical wrong it can ruin the entire experience. (FPS stutter, unresponsive controls, bad sound choices).

But it can also be said it does depend on the genre if story even factors in on the game, you can ruin a game by forcing story elements into a genre that do not need one.

Looking at a game you can divide it into these pieces which I order in how important they are or in other words I order them in if some thing breaks does it have an affect on the lower ones if not the items goes down in importance. Also the items in each piece are about as import as the others in that level. So I consider a game with strong story elements in that the story has just as much importance as the art direction.


Here they are:
Background Mechanics: FPS, Control, Sound Mechanic (think the low health beeping and if sound works)
Game Mechanics: How the game interacts with the person, UI elements
Art Direction: Story, Sound Direction, Art Style

So If something is wrong in the back ground it affects how the game plays. If the UI is cluttered and the play mechanics are little wonky if things work smoothly and consitantly the game is still playable.

If there is something "wrong" with the art it doesn't have an impact on how the game plays. And usually down the road the games that were panned because of the art are all of a sudden great games or have a big cult following. You can think of Wind Waker. The outrage because of the graphics was something to experience.

So there is my two cents.

Depends on the genre. Graphics are better for a FPS focused on multiplayer, story is far more important in an RPG or VN.

Gameplay is key
Story is definitely second but not always necessary in some games.
Graphics I care about but what I really care about most in the graphics department is clarity. A Sega Genesis hooked up with coax looks like a dirty dick=nasty. A s video modded genesis with a much clearer screen makes it wonderful so then graphics dont matter. That's one thing I hate about the ps2 because you can't really mod it to get a clearer picture. The dreamcast hooked up to vga is a beautiful sight.

Story.

Of course, good graphics help too. Alan Wake is by far my favorite game last gen, and I remember I was very impressed by the visuals. However, the plot is the main reason I remember this game.

Usually cinematic focused games have great visuals like Uncharted 4, The last of us and anything made by quantic dream. I still enjoy the first 3 Uncharted and the last of us, for a big part because of their stories and characters.

Can i vote for gameplay?