draythefingerless said:
BioWare realizes sth most story tellers dont. You can have the most amusing and captivating story in the world at your disposal, but it means NOTHING if you cannot connect or understand the personas involved in it. There are only TWO devs, of the bigger ones that come to my mind, that actually understand that a story is about its characters. BioWare and Atlus. Mass Effect series is one of the best RPGs ive played since im addicted to games, because it focuses and creates sooooo well rounded characters. Williams, Tali, Garrus, Joker, Mordin, Grunt, Thane, Legion, Shepard. And for Atlus, prety much everyone in Shin Megami Tensei. They make you connect to characters, and thats why, even if its a standard go kill baddie story, you like it. Cause you connect emotionally.
It's honestly a double edged argument you make. I will completely agree with you on Bioware making interesting characters in there games. Mordin, Tali, etc. gave me a real sense of being in ME2. They didn't feel like plot devices (re: most other video game characters, and most Hollywood ones too honestly) they felt likepeople, with their own motives and desires. Even outwardly cliched ones were developed into something more (Jack). The main plot... more holes than swiss cheese at points.
DA:O had some interesting characters, and some bland ones. Overall character quality is lower. The setting though is interesting. Sure it is a generic fantasy trope fest. Diminishing elves, drunk dwarves, bland humans, blah blah blah. The main plot - kill the darkspawn, beat the big bad, save the world - also generic. Backstory is good, with a good amount of detail in the world. Hints of a deep history are nice touches.
What DA:O excelled at though was setting up the factions to be believable and unique. Things like the Anvil of the Void, there are two distinct sides that each have BELIEVABLE motives. The werewolves and elves, Harroment and Bhelen, and on. Their success was that they made two or more sides that I could see why they acted the way they do. It would have been easy to make the game have the factions be objectively 'good' or 'evil', but it painted shades of grey wonderfully. Few games succeed there, Bioware has risen to this recently, and I applaud it. I will gladly play through a lackluster main story if the game is sprinkled with little delightful tidbits that make me stop in my tracks and really think. Mordin's mission with the research, I sat and stared at my choices, and actually was challenged by the choice. Same with the Anvil of the Void.
The best works of fiction will challenge you to think about your own preconceived notions, and beliefs. They make you look at the world through a different lens. Asimov, Ender's Game, Planet of the Apes, Blade Runner, Minority Report, Lord of the Rings, and now Bioware they all have moments that transcend the story to communicate with the reader. Now we haven't hit the point yet (that I've seen) where a game is able to convey that tone cohesively throughout the entire game. For now we have little snippets, gems that come up from time to time. I have great hope that this is a trend that will grow, and someday soon we will have a game where the story as a whole will stand up and demand we take note. These glimpses of brilliance from Bioware make me believe that day could be soon.
Edit: I forgot my original point. Their style is double edged because characters have been great, and I appreciate the focus, c'mon guys is a better than generic main plot too much to ask. Character focus- good, character focus at expense of stupid main plot - less good.
