Feel like arguing? Come in

[weasels]

i agree that story is Extreamly important (as i love rpg's) but i have to say that the story might be only part of it. in a game everything intertines to make a great game. its like the circle of video games. the story helps the characters develop, music helps give off emotion, and finally a game can have a good story but its not worth it without good gameplay. graphics in my opinion does not make a game, that doesnt mean i dont think its important. i mean if you dont know what your looking at how can you play? but a game can be still great no matter how old it is (as we all know and if you didn't believe this i dont know why a person would be on this forum lol). last thing im sorry if you have no idea what im saying. im not always good at wording. also this applies to games with stories. as others have said a game can be fun with out a story like tetris for example.

[slowslow325]

Yeah, because the Super Mario Bros. story is so in depth. Oh and don't forget about Tetris... (SARCASM). Graphics aren't important, story isn't important, GAMEPLAY and CONTROLS are.

[fingersmaloy]

I disagree a whole lot with the initial statement of this post. But I will also say that the significance of stories in games largely depends on your own personal opinion. I'm from the faction that believes story is just a secondary perk and that play mechanics are what matter first. Even if a game has a great story, that just makes it a game with a great story. It needs more than that to be a great game. But then some people who play games don't seem to actually want to "play" something.

But then, I'm mostly an action fan. I play games more or less for an instinctive, sensual experience, not for an escape from reality or to immersive myself in fantasy worlds. Also I still don't feel like games have ever done anything with a narrative that books and/or movies couldn't do/haven't already done better. I've never been able to get into RPGs because the gameplay almost always takes a backseat to the narrative, but when I sit thru the narrative I always think to myself "Why aren't I just reading a book?" And it's not like these story-driven games are delivering Hemingway. At the end of the day, they're all just pop.

It's the play factor that allows games to deliver a unique experience to people they can't get from doing something passive like watching TV or reading.

As far as your examples, well, as a matter of fact I DO think Street Fighter would be as popular if it had different characters. How creative are they, really? A sumo wrestler, a humorless Japanese karate guy, a cocky American karate guy with the exact same moves (well, basically), another cocky American guy who's a GI Joe, a mystical Indian yoga guy, an effeminate European snob, a guy who IS Mike Tyson...aren't they all pretty much generic stereotypes to begin with? I guess it's debatable whether green monsters who electrocute you are necessarily a Brazilian thing, but if Blanka is Street Fighter's saving stroke of creativity, there's a lot left to be desired.

About FPSs with similar gameplay--first of all, I wouldn't say their stories make them unique, because their stories aren't that unique. Alien invasion. World War. It's the same stuff over and over. Sure there are differences in the fine print, like this protagonist is bald, this alien species has a giant jaw and small eyes, whatever, but none of that is convincing enough to sell a game to someone looking for a unique story that will "age well". FPSs sell so well because they use tried and tested game mechanics that a lot of people like. It's the same for any popular genre. What about shoot-em-up fans? Do you really think it's the stories in those games that keep people coming back for more? What about sports games? What about anything that's NOT Monkey Island or an RPG with bad gameplay? It sounds like you're only thinking of a certain type of game, man.

I guess I did feel like arguing. Sorry.

[andythebadass]

Games dont need any story at all to be great. Examples, Tetris, Katarmari, sports games, mario games (save the princess doesnt count as a story), and an other shooter, or puzzle games.

[MrPopo]

I would argue, however, that great gameplay covers for a bad story much more easily than a great story covers for bad gameplay.

I'll agree with you there. A story has to be incredibly bad to prevent a game with great gameplay from being playable overall. Odin Sphere had the benefit of not only having a great story, but the fantastic artwork. If it didn't have that gorgeous 2D spritework I would have probably dropped it.

[RemyC]

The idea that graphics and story are the most important part of a game, is the reason why this generation of gaming is so weak, and lacking anything earth shattering. They're all trying to tell some deep story with their 20 minute cinematics.
Go rent: Full Metal Jacket, and Apocalypse Now. Once everyone has seen these 2 movies, we'll be done with all these war games trying to have touchy stories.

1.Gameplay
2.level layout
3.DIFFICULTY (often overlooked)
Once the game is created, you can add some nice graphics, and a story if you think its really necessary (I am being a little extreme...but deep down I am so serious)

If the gameplay idea and mechanics are tight, you then layout levels that keep the player on the their toes, and curious about what is going on. Then to keep them totally immersed you make every single action sequence incredibly epic, so that the player is holding their breath until its over....but its never over, you make the entire game that way. The only way you stay alive in this game is if your ALWAYS on your A-game. THAT is an immersive game.

People have forgotten that difficulty is what immerses them in a game. You're not really going to feel like your storming the enemy base if all the guys just wait for you to shoot them.

Videogame stories at their best should be like a B-Action movie. That is, a movie that was designed with the intention of just blowing shit up, and killing people. Maybe throw in a couple philosophical questions like, "Why must we fight?", or, "What is this all for?" Don't answer them though, just throw them out there.

I play Metal Gear Solid games for good stealth action. Those 20 minute cut scenes just get in my way and piss me off. I'll try and sit through them, but I wanna play a video-game, not watch a movie. Give me the option to watch them later, so that if I really want to, I can.

Most gaming companies today, got into the wrong business, and should open up a film animation company. They are just too confused with what they are trying to do.

[Flashman85]

Are graphics important to a text adventure? Is voice acting important in a game about mimes? Consider what's at the core of a game: if you strip away the plot, make the graphics terrible, or change the level designs to something boring, are you still playing the same game? If the answer is a resounding "no," then that element is truly important.

Super Mario Bros. - Plot = Super Mario Bros.
but Final Fantasy VIII - Plot = Fighting endless random enemies for no reason.

However...

Super Mario Bros. - Responsive Controls = Unplayable
but Final Fantasy VIII - Responsive Controls = Final Fantasy VIII, but clunkier

I prefer to determine what's most important to the game and then judge how well they pulled everything off.

[fast]

What game is about Mimes?

[Ack]

"I came in here for an argument!"

"Oh, I'm sorry. This is abuse."

[lost_within]

Yeah, because the Super Mario Bros. story is so in depth. Oh and don't forget about Tetris... (SARCASM). Graphics aren't important, story isn't important, GAMEPLAY and CONTROLS are.

This is where i was going, controls....without them you have nothing more but a big POS. If i gave you next gen graphics and a multi million dollar story line, then gave you a stick and told you to enjoy it...the only thing you would enjoy was beating me in the face with that same stick.