I think most video games have a difficult time emotionally resonating. Either the writing is trite or it really isn't long enough to work the way a show or book is.
What resonates emotionally...
Shadow of the Colossus with its themes of holding on vs letting go?
and I wonder about my neighbors even though I don't have them
but they're listening to every word I say
I think I will make an EffortPost about FFXIV later. I do not joke when I say that the game and its characters helped me come to terms with my grief after losing my mom last year.
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21stCenturyCall me Pixel, or Pix for short![They/Them]Registered Userregular
i never really get emotionally attached to game characters or stories
i just don't feel the same way towards a bunch of pixels that i do real people on a screen in a tv show or movie
Not to be rude, Tav but i'm glad i can connect with non live-action media emotionally. Ever since i got on meds and started being able to actually feel emotions completely, i've been finding video games are a really good emotion delivery medium.
I think I will make an EffortPost about FFXIV later. I do not joke when I say that the game and its characters helped me come to terms with my grief after losing my mom last year.
Yeah, FFXIV sounds like a masterpiece, from what my friends say.
I think most video games have a difficult time emotionally resonating. Either the writing is trite or it really isn't long enough to work the way a show or book is.
What resonates emotionally...
Shadow of the Colossus with its themes of holding on vs letting go?
May i recommend shorter-form indie games? It's easier sometimes to pack big emotions in a small piece of media.
I don't know what resonates with you but i'm sure you can find something good on Steam or Itch.io if you don't mind looking at Visual Novels and Interactive Fiction.
I'd say in the artistic arena video games are pretty hard to make emotionally resonant in terms of the resolution of plot and characters, but they tend to be extremely emotionally resonant in terms of building vibes and atmosphere, which I would say is that primary artistic strength of video games.
I will say one of the most emotionally impactful things that I've experienced in a video game was the very end of Brothers A Tale of Two Sons, and that's because of how it uses fundamental game mechanics to spell out the entire theme of the entire story.
Yeah, FFXIV sounds like a masterpiece, from what my friends say.
I would play it if it weren't so massive.
Yeah, the downside is that the truly great content is three expansions in... and at the same time you also kind of need all of it to really establish the scope of it all.
The writers are pretty great at bringing back what looked like small throwaway stuff from several expansions ago, fleshing it out and making it have actual depth, while doing more than just going "Aha! This trivial-looking thing was actually an Epic McGuffin!"
AtomikaLive fast and get fucked or whateverRegistered Userregular
🦕
My DAI ending made me emotional in that I felt gutted in how I tried to be political and bring everyone together and that ended up being the worst possible choice
“Let’s see if we can’t get the Nazi Wizards and the murdercops and demon-summoning zealots and RenFest Klingons to sit down and find a compromise that doesn’t— oh. Oh no. Everyone is dead.”
I'd say in the artistic arena video games are pretty hard to make emotionally resonant in terms of the resolution of plot and characters, but they tend to be extremely emotionally resonant in terms of building vibes and atmosphere, which I would say is that primary artistic strength of video games.
I will say one of the most emotionally impactful things that I've experienced in a video game was the very end of Brothers A Tale of Two Sons, and that's because of how it uses fundamental game mechanics to spell out the entire theme of the entire story.
I would largely agree with this. I think the needs of the gameplay getting in the way and the frequently mediocre at best writing of a lot of video games makes it difficult for them to really be emotionally resonant. At least imo. I think a lot of it is still the writing though. And I think the way video games are developed really makes it harder on the people doing the writing too.
But in the same way that gameplay can get in the way, storytelling that can be done via gameplay ends up being very effective in video games.
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thatassemblyguyJanitor of Technical Debt.Registered Userregular
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dino
saur
ous
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OrcaAlso known as EspressosaurusWrexRegistered Userregular
edited April 2022
Yeah, Outer Wilds is the latest game to nail my heart to a door and declare its triumph over my emotions. HZD and HFW manage it as well, but not as a centerpiece to the entire game (and HZD is a lot more raw in comparison).
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels.
In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
Orca on
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SummaryJudgmentGrab the hottest iron you can find, stride in the Tower’s front doorRegistered Userregular
Yeah, Outer Wilds is the latest game to nail my heart to a door and declare its triumph over my emotions. HZD and HFW manage it as well, but not as a centerpiece to the entire game (and HZD is a lot more raw in comparison).
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels. In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
Yeah, Outer Wilds is the latest game to nail my heart to a door and declare its triumph over my emotions. HZD and HFW manage it as well, but not as a centerpiece to the entire game (and HZD is a lot more raw in comparison).
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels. In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
"I learned a lot, by the end of everything. The past is past, now, but that's... you know, that's okay! It's never really gone completely. The future is always built on the past, even if we won't get to see it. Still, it's time for something new, now."
-Riebeck
"You cut it a little close, don't you think? Well, it worked out all right in the end, I suppose. Ahh, I hope there are beasties in the next one."
-Feldspar
"I tell you what, this has been really fun. And I got to help make something pretty cool, so I've got no complaints. I mean, not me, exactly, but close enough. It's the kind of thing that makes you glad you stopped and smelled the pine trees along the way, you know?"
-Gabbro
"Even if it's over now, I had a good time learning. But I think the rules are about to change."
-Chert
"Wow... How long has it been since I got to make music with everyone around a campfire? I'm really happy we're all here."
-Esker
"I believe we've reached the end of our journey. All that remains is to collapse all the innumerable possibilities before us. Are you ready to learn what comes next? I admire your curiosity, friend. Let's find out together."
-Solanum
"...How beautiful. It's different than I'd envisioned. Whatever happens next, I do not think it is to be feared."
-The Prisoner
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OrcaAlso known as EspressosaurusWrexRegistered Userregular
Yeah, Outer Wilds is the latest game to nail my heart to a door and declare its triumph over my emotions. HZD and HFW manage it as well, but not as a centerpiece to the entire game (and HZD is a lot more raw in comparison).
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels. In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
Yeah, Outer Wilds is the latest game to nail my heart to a door and declare its triumph over my emotions. HZD and HFW manage it as well, but not as a centerpiece to the entire game (and HZD is a lot more raw in comparison).
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels. In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
OrcaAlso known as EspressosaurusWrexRegistered Userregular
For whatever reason though, I couldn't get into the Outer Wilds DLC. I think I bounced too hard off the controls of the ship you're supposed to use and didn't manage to get into it before getting the hang of it.
Yeah, Outer Wilds is the latest game to nail my heart to a door and declare its triumph over my emotions. HZD and HFW manage it as well, but not as a centerpiece to the entire game (and HZD is a lot more raw in comparison).
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels. In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
It's good for some tears every time I put it on. It's a remarkable thing, especially with how stripped-down it is. I don't know that anyone can pick a best game of all time, but if someone put it forward you'd have to at least consider it.
Some days Blue wonders why anyone ever bothered making numbers so small; other days she supposes even infinity needs to start somewhere.
For whatever reason though, I couldn't get into the Outer Wilds DLC. I think I bounced too hard off the controls of the ship you're supposed to use and didn't manage to get into it before getting the hang of it.
I should probably give it another go sometime.
I absolutely adore the DLC and think it really completes the game, and has a pretty great emotional pay-off for completing it, but there are definitely some gameplay aspects that really frustrated people.
Yeah, Outer Wilds is the latest game to nail my heart to a door and declare its triumph over my emotions. HZD and HFW manage it as well, but not as a centerpiece to the entire game (and HZD is a lot more raw in comparison).
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels. In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
It's good for some tears every time I put it on. It's a remarkable thing, especially with how stripped-down it is. I don't know that anyone can pick a best game of all time, but if someone put it forward you'd have to at least consider it.
It is, IMO, the best game I've ever played.
It doesn't have the best characters, it doesn't have the best writing, it doesn't have the best gameplay, it doesn't have the best score. The controls are janky, the graphics are janky, and there's not even any voice acting.
But it's doing something unique in 30+ years of playing videogames, and in combination the experience is breathtaking and impossible to mimic in any other media.
It is, to me, a pinnacle of the art form.
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OrcaAlso known as EspressosaurusWrexRegistered Userregular
Why do people REFUSE to use their phone like a phone and think they are ment to be used on speakerphone
not to old man yells at cloud too much but i've noticed a lot of younger people just straight up full volume tiktok and reels in public places and it's awful
my ex used to do it while i was asleep in bed and then get mad at me when i'd complain after it woke me up
Also, running my mothership campaign last night was incredibly fun. I love survival horror so much, and the system really worked as a base for building a survival horror game.
My players are all extremely genre saavy, but that ended up working out well to make it pretty fun because I was able to build a sense of dread with all the traps they didn't walk into and because they've managed to make all the right decisions in regard to, like, studying what it is they're walking into instead of blindly falling into the traps they've managed to uncover a lot more of the information that I'm layering on to flesh out the mystery. They've avoided combat completely so far, which honestly works out well in the favor of the horror because they have no idea how strong these enemies they're running from actually are and they don't want to find out. I've still managed to have some good drama with the two red-shirts I added, one of which the players convinced to allow himself to get infected, and the other got trapped in the car the rest of them leapt out of and sent driving off as a decoy to get the 20-foot human torso crawling on the ground with its arms to chase after it instead of them.
They got into a big in-character argument over whether they should try to go back and save him and it really fit the vibe of a horror movie.
The car scene in general worked out great because the driver kept on failing checks to get out of the parking lot, so he was slamming into cars and setting off car alarms just trying to back out while this massive thing was rapidly crawling at them out of the mist.
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zepherinRussian warship, go fuck yourselfRegistered Userregular
🐕
I just ate food, my wife was chilling, and the house phone rings, and I’ve never hoped for spam more in my life because I won’t have to get up.
Posts
What resonates emotionally...
Shadow of the Colossus with its themes of holding on vs letting go?
but they're listening to every word I say
Not to be rude, Tav but i'm glad i can connect with non live-action media emotionally. Ever since i got on meds and started being able to actually feel emotions completely, i've been finding video games are a really good emotion delivery medium.
Check out my site, the Bismuth Heart | My Twitter
Yeah, FFXIV sounds like a masterpiece, from what my friends say.
I would play it if it weren't so massive.
Check out my site, the Bismuth Heart | My Twitter
May i recommend shorter-form indie games? It's easier sometimes to pack big emotions in a small piece of media.
I don't know what resonates with you but i'm sure you can find something good on Steam or Itch.io if you don't mind looking at Visual Novels and Interactive Fiction.
Check out my site, the Bismuth Heart | My Twitter
I will say one of the most emotionally impactful things that I've experienced in a video game was the very end of Brothers A Tale of Two Sons, and that's because of how it uses fundamental game mechanics to spell out the entire theme of the entire story.
TV/Movies > Music Videos > Video Games > Music > Books
Yeah, the downside is that the truly great content is three expansions in... and at the same time you also kind of need all of it to really establish the scope of it all.
The writers are pretty great at bringing back what looked like small throwaway stuff from several expansions ago, fleshing it out and making it have actual depth, while doing more than just going "Aha! This trivial-looking thing was actually an Epic McGuffin!"
That Take on Me music video really gets you?
but they're listening to every word I say
Video Games > Everything else > Nothing > Those dumb shirts with slogans that you buy at Wal*mart
Check out my site, the Bismuth Heart | My Twitter
“Let’s see if we can’t get the Nazi Wizards and the murdercops and demon-summoning zealots and RenFest Klingons to sit down and find a compromise that doesn’t— oh. Oh no. Everyone is dead.”
What happens when you start combining?
I would largely agree with this. I think the needs of the gameplay getting in the way and the frequently mediocre at best writing of a lot of video games makes it difficult for them to really be emotionally resonant. At least imo. I think a lot of it is still the writing though. And I think the way video games are developed really makes it harder on the people doing the writing too.
But in the same way that gameplay can get in the way, storytelling that can be done via gameplay ends up being very effective in video games.
saur
ous
I went through the full list of games in my Steam account and very few of them manage to do truly effective storytelling; fewer manage to tug on the emotions; and only a bare handful or two manage real sadness and not simply triumph.
Most of the games in my collection have just enough story to motivate the gameplay. It's junk food as far as stories go. And even the ones where it is good writing and characterization and tug on the heartstrings the writing frequently doesn't compare to particularly good novels.
In combination with the rest of the game however, they soar. A novel pulls me in, but I'm a passenger. In a game I feel like I'm in the driver's seat, and that has the potential to make for more impact.
-Riebeck
"You cut it a little close, don't you think? Well, it worked out all right in the end, I suppose. Ahh, I hope there are beasties in the next one."
-Feldspar
"I tell you what, this has been really fun. And I got to help make something pretty cool, so I've got no complaints. I mean, not me, exactly, but close enough. It's the kind of thing that makes you glad you stopped and smelled the pine trees along the way, you know?"
-Gabbro
"Even if it's over now, I had a good time learning. But I think the rules are about to change."
-Chert
"Wow... How long has it been since I got to make music with everyone around a campfire? I'm really happy we're all here."
-Esker
"I believe we've reached the end of our journey. All that remains is to collapse all the innumerable possibilities before us. Are you ready to learn what comes next? I admire your curiosity, friend. Let's find out together."
-Solanum
"...How beautiful. It's different than I'd envisioned. Whatever happens next, I do not think it is to be feared."
-The Prisoner
Still get frission listening to that piece.
God, what a great game.
ml dinosaur-ass
it's only frisson if it comes from French media. This is just sparkling emotion-chills.
Check out my site, the Bismuth Heart | My Twitter
I should probably give it another go sometime.
It's good for some tears every time I put it on. It's a remarkable thing, especially with how stripped-down it is. I don't know that anyone can pick a best game of all time, but if someone put it forward you'd have to at least consider it.
I absolutely adore the DLC and think it really completes the game, and has a pretty great emotional pay-off for completing it, but there are definitely some gameplay aspects that really frustrated people.
It is, IMO, the best game I've ever played.
It doesn't have the best characters, it doesn't have the best writing, it doesn't have the best gameplay, it doesn't have the best score. The controls are janky, the graphics are janky, and there's not even any voice acting.
But it's doing something unique in 30+ years of playing videogames, and in combination the experience is breathtaking and impossible to mimic in any other media.
It is, to me, a pinnacle of the art form.
posted from bloodyroarxx's iphone
not to old man yells at cloud too much but i've noticed a lot of younger people just straight up full volume tiktok and reels in public places and it's awful
my ex used to do it while i was asleep in bed and then get mad at me when i'd complain after it woke me up
young people, just terrible
…..so? I’m not talking on speakerphone
Bolded for emphasis you hypocrite!
Wish I'd experienced Psycho Mantis as a kid
My players are all extremely genre saavy, but that ended up working out well to make it pretty fun because I was able to build a sense of dread with all the traps they didn't walk into and because they've managed to make all the right decisions in regard to, like, studying what it is they're walking into instead of blindly falling into the traps they've managed to uncover a lot more of the information that I'm layering on to flesh out the mystery. They've avoided combat completely so far, which honestly works out well in the favor of the horror because they have no idea how strong these enemies they're running from actually are and they don't want to find out. I've still managed to have some good drama with the two red-shirts I added, one of which the players convinced to allow himself to get infected, and the other got trapped in the car the rest of them leapt out of and sent driving off as a decoy to get the 20-foot human torso crawling on the ground with its arms to chase after it instead of them.
They got into a big in-character argument over whether they should try to go back and save him and it really fit the vibe of a horror movie.
The car scene in general worked out great because the driver kept on failing checks to get out of the parking lot, so he was slamming into cars and setting off car alarms just trying to back out while this massive thing was rapidly crawling at them out of the mist.
if they weren't meant to be used on speakerphone, why do they come with a speakerphone option?
checkmate, atheists
she made me feel a lot of different things