Silicon Knights President: "Gameplay Isn't Everything"

[MK Tha Rebel]

what?!? you know why i still own all my old games? because despite having bad graphics by todays standard, they are fun to play...in my opinion, games are no where near as fun as they used to be and maybe this guy has something to do with it -_-

EDIT: this might get me some hate, but i really don't care how pretty a game is, after the first look at it i get the "oooo pretty" out of my system...but i have to actually play thru the rest of the game and i'd prefer it to be a blast instead of just trying to get points with a pretty picture.

Agreed 100%. This is what games are about: FUN. Cookies to you, my friend.

And as for this Dyack guy thinking that gameplay isn't everything:

 

[boholikeu]

Wrong!! Game play is everything. I couldn't play a game that you did almost nothing but look like real life. This quote is fail.....Maybe even epic?

Dear god man think for yourself rather than just regurgitating the same one line that people have been spewing out for this entire thread. And the fact that you said epic fail immediately disinclines me to consider your argument worth a damn.

Yes, a game in which you can do nothing but looks like real life would be dull. Because nothing happens. There is more to a game than the graphics as well. There's the plot, the characters, the script, the presentation etc.

Using the god old poster boys of "Artsy Games":
Planescape:Torment : Has atrocious gameplay. The combat is repetitive, the interface clunky, strategy is nil. Yet it's a fantastic game. Because of the story, because of the characters, because it's got better writing than any game I've ever seen.
Fahrenheit : Yes, you can debate all you want about how the story shits itself inside out near the end, but the first half is undeniably excellent. Yet how is this, when the gameplay is so simplistic. You should be able to guess by now: The characters, the plot, the quality of the voice acting.
No More Heroes/Killer7 : Again, simple (albeit visceral) combat system. Poor graphics, lack of depth to the world. But good games, thanks to the humour, the characters, the biting satire.
Psychonauts : The platforming is competent at best, falling way below that at certain points. But what gets praised? The art style, the wacky characters.

Moving further away:
Mass Effect/Fallout3 : Combat lacks the depth of either a fullblown shooter or an RPG. Loot systems are simplified compared to traditional RPGs. Yet these games got fantastic reviews. Because of the characters, the world they made, the environment. And the fact that Mass Effect is hard sci-fi on a level that would make Asimov proud.
Bioshock: How many people do you hear praising the "innovative combat" "revolutionary plasmid system"? My guess is none, the game doesn't have them. What is it that people are praising? The art style, the depth to rapture, the mindbending Randian philosophy and dissection of free will.
Morrowind : I fall firmly on the side of Morrowind > Oblivion. Yet the combat is better in Oblivion, graphics too. So why do I prefer Morrowind? Because the world is more interesting, the architecture varied. It's not just a cut and paste generic fantasy.

CoD4: Yes, the gameplay was excellent, but if that's all it had it would just be discarded as a generic (if highly polished) shooter. What makes it so great is the characters and the situations. At the nuke scene (assuming you've played it) how did you feel? Emotional at all? Involved in the situation? Or did you just try and skip it so you could get back to shooting things?

Your argument of gameplay is everything is so wrong it's hilarious. Yes, you can make games entirely built around gameplay (Ninja Gaiden, DMC) entirely without (Planescape) or some mixture of the two (CoD, MGS(although I for one don't care for the gameplay) or Half-Life)

Excellent post. Your "Planescape:Torment" example is especially good because it's considered by many to be one of the best RPGs ever made despite its horrible gameplay.

 

[utopaline]

I know where this AHOLE lives, we should all go over with copies of Too Human and force him to play then he can tell us how important gameplay is. lol

 

[SanguineSymphony]

He's right to a very small degree but I feel he has the balance all wrong. Without strong Gameplay a game will fall flat. The problem right now with Game narratives is most are so poor I have little to no interest in revisiting them. I don't have the same issue with a good book or film. A Great Story (for a VG) will compel me to finish a less than stellar game but it rarely is rewarding enough to see multiple playthroughs.

I am more likely to revisit a Mega Man X or a SMW than I am narrative focused game.

Also when I think of the films I find to be the most artistic I don't know how much you can incorporate into games. Vampyr or Eraserhead the Game? I am just not seeing it.

I get bored of games that don't have engaging gameplay. Its one of the reason I find SH2 fun for short burst but get bored after a while. The Gameplay is so simplistic that I find myself bored until I get to new set-pieces or cut-scenes.

A game can be centered around gameplay and failing in the story department and still be fun and worthwhile. I don't feel the same way about a game centered around story and poor gameplay. I put the controller down and go watch a movie or play something more engaging.

No More Heroes/Killer7 : Again, simple (albeit visceral) combat system. Poor graphics, lack of depth to the world. But good games, thanks to the humour, the characters, the biting satire.

But the visceralness of the Gameplay was strong enough to push you through the story. Also the game was sufficiently difficult that some amount of strategy was needed to advance.

Most of the other games on your list I've played for an hour and put down due to lack of player engagement.

He believes all aspects of a game are equally important.

I don't see what's so bad about that....

Because they're not.

If you can't shoot (point a camera, light a scene film basics) a film competently nothing will save your production. If your writing is uninteresting the book isn't worth the memory you saved it on. Its the same with a Game. The Game is the MOST important part of the process/production.

Oh to everyone that's jumping on the guy for Too Human his company made Blood Omen which did have a great story and good gameplay (not great but certainly not terrible).