Yes, and all movies should not have narroration! Infact, no dialouge either as they are a visual medium!... see how much sense it makes to claim ab artform should cease something just because you don't like it?ProggleRock said:
Poll: Cutscenes
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I like them. Even if they are poorly done, I still like my games to be story driven, and cutscenes can serve as useful tools to move the story forwards.
Having said that, there are still games that do awfully well without them, for example the Half-Life series.
Having said that, there are still games that do awfully well without them, for example the Half-Life series.
I can't say it about games I don't like, but one common trend among games that I do like are the cutscenes. They always have good quality cutscenes, such as games like Bioshock.
To me Half-Life 1 was the only game in the series that really held true to the whole no real cutscenes in game. HL2 didnt veer too far off but there were plenty of times where you would just sit back and the game went on autopilot. My arguments with the latest HL are too numerous to really bring up here. HL was a genious game though and it shortcomings became its biggest selling point. You were just a scientist going to work. Granted an extremely well trained apparently ex-marine/special forces scientist but none the less you had no idea what the fuck was going on except there were people trying to kill you lets kill them first.Fragamoo said:
What I mean by having shortcomings is that you had no idea what was going on. It took me a few years to truly appreciate the game because when I first played it. I thought it was a great game but you didnt know what the hell you were doing. It was so simplistic that you tend to overthink it which leads not enjoying it as much. When you take it for what it is the game really shines and that turns something undesirable into something you want more of.
Halo to me is the counterpoint to HL. You have a story that tries to hard to be compelling. Where a more simplistic minimalist approach would do so much better. They make you try to care about the characters when in the end why should you? They are just another gun and a nice fleshy shield for to protect you from the enemy.
If they're well done, and have the option to skip them (just in case something ridiculously hard is wating beyond it) then I'm all for them.
Otherwise, they can get pretty annoying, especially if they're completely abitrary.
Otherwise, they can get pretty annoying, especially if they're completely abitrary.
I went for yes, but only when they are done well. And actually relevant/required! If there's a major plot point ahappenin' then sure, I want a cutscene. But I do not need an unskippable clip before every fucking boss. Especially when the boss is really hard. And my character is particularly squishy.
Some good, some great, some terrible! I always liked the way it was done in Half-Life as you never cut to seeing your character from a 3rd person. Not sure if you would count those as traditional cutscenes though?
Unskippables when doing a replay sucks a bit though, as I recall Assassins Creed had some quite long ones.
Unskippables when doing a replay sucks a bit though, as I recall Assassins Creed had some quite long ones.
We never really think how cutscenes impact the bosses in games, they go to the trouble of spending sleepless nights and countless hours writting a 30min monologue the explains their plan in miniscule detail. Be polite will you? Listen to their carefully crafted monologue on how the world is evil and they are the only ones who can fix it.
They just want to be understood.
They just want to be understood.
I feel a bit ambivalent about them, personally. Usually, if they use the game engine, they look godawful.
Scripted events are nicer, I think.
Or very stylized pre-rendered cutscenes.
Scripted events are nicer, I think.
Or very stylized pre-rendered cutscenes.
I love the MGS series. True MGS4 kinda gave a huge middle finger to anyone new to the series but sometimes you just gotta give the loyal fans an entire game of fan service. We sat down and played the thing from about 12 in the afternoon until 6 the next morning. If anyone wants a good idea of an average playtime. All movies and briefings included.ForgottenPr0digy said:
On a cutscene basis though the game is practically a movie. Which I like. I wouldnt like it if all games went this route but MGS built a franchise around it. I find it funny so many people complain about the cutscenes in MGS. It hasnt changed since MGS came out and I think even the original MG games had lengthy codec conversations.
As long as you can skip them, like when you're playing through a game again and already know what's happening or what's being said, they're fine.
I like cut-scenes on these premises:
Skippable. If a cut-scene is necessary game mechanic, ie necessary to see to be able to overcome tasks later on, make them unskippable the first watching and skippable after that.
Short. A good cut-scene does not interrupt game-play for more than 30 seconds. Absolute maximum is 2 minutes, after that, it all goes stale. (Intro movies that set the mood for certain settings are excused, if barely.)
Serves a purpose. A cut-scene without a point should be avoided.
Use in-game engine graphics. Pre-rendered works for intro's and outro's, but when in game, I want to see my character interact with the world the way I set him up in regards to weapon, armour, clothing,hairstyles and what not.
That is all I think.
Skippable. If a cut-scene is necessary game mechanic, ie necessary to see to be able to overcome tasks later on, make them unskippable the first watching and skippable after that.
Short. A good cut-scene does not interrupt game-play for more than 30 seconds. Absolute maximum is 2 minutes, after that, it all goes stale. (Intro movies that set the mood for certain settings are excused, if barely.)
Serves a purpose. A cut-scene without a point should be avoided.
Use in-game engine graphics. Pre-rendered works for intro's and outro's, but when in game, I want to see my character interact with the world the way I set him up in regards to weapon, armour, clothing,hairstyles and what not.
That is all I think.