If our games had no graphics, would they still be fun?

[Anayo]

Last night a good friend of mine and I were playing Metal Slug together on my Sega Saturn. In the course of our explosive adventures, my 4-MB RAM cart exhibited some sort of glitch and started rendering the on-screen characters as distorted blobs of color. We were discouraged, but thought maybe it would clear up if we finished the level. It didn't. I had to reset the system and by then we lost interest so we watched Napoleon Dynamite on DVD instead.

This made me think about something. When Metal Slug's gorgeous hand drawn graphics were reduced to blobs, the underlying gameplay really wasn't all that amazing. It was really sort of boring. I wonder - is this a problem? Does this make Metal Slug somehow "less" of a game, since it relies on flashy pictures to make you "feel cool" while playing, instead of clever gameplay mechanics that'd be good no matter what the graphics were?

What would all our games be like if they were reduced to blobs and blocks? Which ones would we still play and which would just not be worth it anymore?

For instance I think multiplayer Halo would still be fun, since the dynamics of the game still force you to make decisions regardless of the graphics. I'm not a Halo fan and I don't even own an X-Box so don't throw things at me, but I'd still enjoy choosing assault rifle vs. plasma rifle, sniping people from afar, driving warthogs and other stuff if it was all abstract shapes. Advance Wars would probably still be just as strategic and fun if it was just blocks and squares, too, with all the choices you have to make with your armies and resources.

On the other hand, a game like Mortal Kombat would probably flop like a beached fish, since the only real reason to play it is to see grisly deaths and stuff. Elite Beat Agents would be pointless without the funny pictures you get to see as you tap stuff.

Interestingly enough, many of my favorite games are already reduced to abstraction, like Geometry Wars, Tetris, Missile Command and a ton of other old Atari games.

Then again, can imaginative art direction breathe life into a computer program that wouldn't be fun as an abstract game? Is this a legitimate thing to do? For instance, my Metal Slug playing friend said, "Half the fun of the game (Metal Slug) is watching stuff like the animation where your guy almost falls off the edge and snot drips out his nose." For instance I'm inclined to think of the Genesis game "Biohazard Battle", which had lame gameplay but really creepy art direction that held my interest.

What do you guys think about this?

[raztat]

never thought of it that way before. I think Mr. Driller and Diablo will still be fun, but games like Doom and Bioshock wouldnt be as fun.

[Doctor Fugue]

I agree with a lot of what you say; I hate it when people say graphics don't matter because they almost always do matter.

One thing I don't agree with you is about Elite Beat Agents (or Ouendan, since I've never played the US version)...I think it would work perfectly well with just the music and tapping the circles. The graphics add a bit of personality, but the extremely tight game mechanics would still be perfect.

[GSZX1337]

Text adventure games were fun.

[racketboy]

Text adventure games were fun.

My thoughts exactly.

Oregon Trail and McMurphy's Mansion FTW

[Ack]

I don't know. I don't think it's necessarily wrong to admire the art or graphics of something per se. I was wondering about this with Mega Man 9, since they're going back to NES quality everything. Will people be able to make the transition back?

Also, you might debate whether the game is harder because of how it looks. Anybody ever play a game where they just flat out couldn't see anything? Or what you did see hurt your eyes?

[AwesomeMonstar]

It really depends on the type of game. Games that pine for the more cinematic approach like hl2, bioshock, mgs4 would be nothing without their visuals and art direction. Most single player campaigns these days pine for immersion and the best way to do this is with impressive visuals. Then we have our fun one sitting games like geometry wars, metal slug, and street fighter, and anyone whose played robotron, contra, and sf2 can say that graphics don't mean squat, though in most cases they do either help or hamper the game.

I don't think that graphics can ever make a game flat out not enjoyable, it just adds another layer of depth to the overall experience, and some games are more reliant on that factor than others.

[Haoie]

If you like text adventures, you simply must play Zork.

It's a trilogy.

[PharmaceuticalCowboy]

If you like text adventures, you simply must play Zork.

It's a trilogy.

Ahh, you beat me too it. It's a seminal game (and series) I understand and from a genre I am far to young to be familiar with (as are many on this site).

[ZenLogikos]

What would all our games be like if they were reduced to blobs and blocks?

I wear glasses.

If I take them off, the world turns into blobs and blocks.

It sucks.

The end.