Quote:
Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens
However, a lot has changed since then in other types of games in terms of how narrative is presented to the player. First person shooters, RPGs, and action adventures have since progressed a lot since 2000.
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Still, we can't deny that FPS are still
mainly about combat (and, with this, I intend that they heavily rely on combat-related, dexterity-based skill to resolve the conflicts of the story) and that RPG are still
mainly about building your own character, rather than delve into a pre-created character. It's true that there have been developments, but the focus of those genres has not shifted. The same can be said for adventure games, which are still
mainly about the story and the intellectual reasoning (as opposed to dexterity skill and abilities' management) involved in the process of reach the emotional Spannung and the ending.
Now, the vast majority of nowadays adventures is often dull and poses little to none intellectual challenge. But, when an adventure does pose it, the difference between it and the other genre is that - when confronting a challenge - I have nothing but my brain to help me, without the aid of dexterity (≠ FPS). Furthermore, the immersion within the game world granted by an adventure is
different (not better, not worse: different) by the one offered by RPG, because - even in
Myst-like games, where the avatar is the player - the lack of skills to build allows the player to concentrate more on the story, rather than the benefits that can come from a certain action, like happens, for example, in
Fallout 3 or in the old
Betrayal at Krondor.
So, if I have not to worry about dexterity-related challenge, and if I don't have to carefully plan my actions in order to obtain experience points with which build up my strengths, I can simply delve into the story, relate with a character, explore the environment with an investigative leisure and let the plot flow without hindrances.
Alas, there's little experimentation within the genre, because much can be done with this basic framework. And if FPS and RPG have discovered story, AG should delve in the story even more, challenging the player's mind and his moral alike. I'm not sure which is the path to follow, but - for what it's worth - I don't think this path involves Simon-like quick time events. At least, this is how I see it.
