Realism VS Escapism

[IceStar100]

I was playing GTA IV when it dawn on me. This is depressing. I mean it?s as close to real as you can get. As a crook you?re most likely not going to rule the world like ?The Boss? In Saint?s Row. Most likely you?ll get screwed over and over and end up dead or alone. In all three stories it ends with them wondering what next. Think about it for a second. From all the famous Criminals try to think of one who came out ahead. From Billy the kid to Al Capone it?s a world of hurt.
Now since both games have been out awhile I?m not going to hold back on spoilers. Anyway take Niko story. He gets messed over by just about anyone he trusts. Some Like Michelle/Karen never see his vengeance. Then it ends on a note of he has every vice a man could want, yet lives this hollow existence.
Then you have ?The Boss? (Saint?s Row) who you don?t cross. Heck you better not even get in his way. Bad stuff happens to him to. He gets betrayed, his best friend?s girl gets killed, and people he cares for die. Yet he always makes sure they get theirs. From burying one guy alive to kill the people you care about back. Yeah he comes off as a prick a lot of the time but at the end of the day both games want you to care about their protagonist. Yet Niko what will happen ?The Boss? Is what you wish would happen.
Think of it like this had ?The Boss? Been in GTA IV Karen would of gotten beat with a lead pipe. Her boss would have gotten thrown out a window with only the hard embrace of concrete to look forward to. He would have gotten the money and revenge, for some reason that makes me smile.
I?m beginning to wonder why anyone would want real. I have real it sucks. Real is going to a job, Worrying about bills, health, and family. It makes me as again why are we trying for realism again?

 

[Kaboose the Moose]

Wow, the grammar and punctuations are all over the shop!.

Um, anyway: "Why are we trying to face realism? is that what you asked?.

If so then the answer is simple, it's in fact in the definition of realism.

It's real, it exists, it's what matters. Despite the hardships its what matters when you look back in your old age and reflect on your existence. Did you live a meaningful life or a lie?.

It's like Thomas Wayne said: "Why do we fall Bruce?. So we can learn to pick ourselves back up."

Without realism you just have denial, and with denial you won't get anywhere.

 

[SnootyEnglishman]

Because game developers think that with the available graphics engines of today a "realistic" looking game will sell well but they haven't grasped the concept that games are used to escape the real world

 

[Slayer_2]

Realistic gameplay can help make a game intense and visceral. As for a realistic story, it makes you care more about the characters. If they live in a magical land of unicorns, it's hard to relate with them. I didn't like GTA4 as much as Saints Row 2 because of it's boring half Gears, half CoD approach to the gameplay.

 

[Raven's Nest]

I enjoy suffering.
Suffering is real.
Real is suffering.

MaxTheReaper... Loving the darkside since 199?

Some people play games for different reasons. It's not always escapism. Some games exist purely to try and evolve into the most realistic experience possible, Guitar Hero or Gran Turismo for example. That doesn't mean anyone who wants to drive fast cars is a delusional escapist. They just want to experience something they would have limited access to in real life.

 

[IceStar100]

I enjoy suffering.
Suffering is real.
Real is suffering.

MaxTherReaper... Loving the darkside since 199?

Max got to love him. Makes me wonder at times if he's just a Cyber Goth.

 

[Dragonearl]

Wow, the grammar and punctuations are all over the shop!.

Um, anyway: "Why are we trying to face realism? is that what you asked?.

If so then the answer is simple, it's in fact in the definition of realism.

It's real, it exists, it's what matters. Despite the hardships its what matters when you look back in your old age and reflect on your existence. Did you live a meaningful life or a lie?.

It's like Thomas Wayne said: "Why do we fall Bruce?. So we can learn to pick ourselves back up."

Without realism you just have denial, and with denial you won't get anywhere.

/thread. Kudos for the Batman reference. I don't fully understand why people get lost in games at times. I do understand if their is psychological issues or depression people need their escapes and media, especially gaming is a good way to relieve stress and negativity. Still it was never intended to replace your entire life. This is why I don't understand those people that play WOW obsessively. How can people be drawn into a false reality is beyond me, even if it is trying to escape from reality. It doesn't solve anything but give a momentary respite.

I enjoy suffering.
Suffering is real.
Real is suffering.

MaxTherReaper... Loving the darkside since 199?

Max got to love him. Makes me wonder at times if he's just a Cyber Goth.

Max is teh uber goth. Or hardened emo. Or a gimp with manic hatred.

 

[badgersprite]

Gritty realism has its place in games, but if people try to throw it into games where it doesn't belong, or it's done by a not particularly adept writing team, it just makes for a bad game. It's like a variant of the Uncanny Valley effect; the closer a game gets to gritty realism, the more likely a game is to eject you out of the experience.

I think they're trying to mimic TV, or else it's a case of bad fanfiction gone awry. I personally love grit and realism, but I don't want it shoved into a game for its own sake; if you had an entire game that was gritty and realistic and never broke from it, it would work, but when you try to, say, make Bionic Commando nothing but angst, anger and edginess, it makes you incredibly aware of how stupid the plot is.

 

[Mozared]

Real is suffering.

To jump on the 'lets quote Max'-bandwagon, I have to add that that really sounds like the name for a J-emo band.

Anyway - realism vs escapism is all about seeking a careful balance between the two. Some good things can only come in realism and having them in escapism will kill you with longing. And as for the other way around, if you put to much emphasis on realism you're going to live a sincerely grim existance. We fiction to let us experience the feelings we cannot experience in realism.

That is, if your aim is to feel happy for as much as time possible for as long as you're alive.

 

[Guitarmasterx7]

I guess Niko's story was "better" but I enjoyed the boss's way more. I mean come on! He puts a guy's girlfriend in the trunk of a car that he runs over in a monster truck rally! How much more fucking awesome can you get? Plus I made him look almost exactly like me so that added to the experience as well. I dunno, I like realism in the world AROUND you, but as far as the actual character goes, that's a different story.

 

[IceStar100]

I belivie that all

Real is suffering.

To jump on the 'lets quote Max'-bandwagon, I have to add that that really sounds like the name for a J-emo band.

Anyway - realism vs escapism is all about seeking a careful balance between the two. Some good things can only come in realism and having them in escapism will kill you with longing. And as for the other way around, if you put to much emphasis on realism you're going to live a sincerely grim existance. We fiction to let us experience the feelings we cannot experience in realism.

That is, if your aim is to feel happy for as much as time possible for as long as you're alive.

I can go with that. I think just about anyone can. What is life if not the The Pursuit of Happyness (with Will Smith.) No one can be happy %100 of the time but we can try.

 

[teisjm]

I want stuff in games i can't do IRL.

 

[JemJar]

The biggest question with GTA IV is if we're playing the realism card: why doesn't Niko just decide to call it quits and move somewhere less dangerous once he's amassed a few hundred thousand dollars?

I mean, seriously. Life in Liberty City is dangerous and there are people there who seem to want him dead. I'm thinking I'd consider moving to some quiet village in New Hampshire and taking it easy.

 

[Adanos]

I want stuff in games i can't do IRL.

Looks like 8-bits.

 

[Nickolai77]

Max got to love him. Makes me wonder at times if he's just a Cyber Goth.

It say's on "his" profile that "he's" a woman o.0

Anyway, on topic. I do often say that "reality sucks", because it's not like you can drive a pimped up-Challenger 2 through a hoard of zombies on an ordinary day out... Or that when you die you will respawn at at a checkpoint 10 minutes ago, when your dead your dead in this world, it limits your options. Reality you can not escape, but reality is not all that bad, you can still get some pretty awesome experiences. After all, all our fantasy is rooted in some form of reality anyway. The challenge is to make this reality as much as a fantasy as possible
(within reason of course, i'm not advocating z-day)

 

[SomethingUnrelated]

That was the most incoherent post I've read all day.

Realism in games is terrible. Why would you want to play as what could happen in "real life" anyway? Unrealistic games are always more fun.