[Simo Sakari Aaltonen]

"A computer game still hasn't made you cry. I think we'll crack that problem in the next five years and it'll be a watershed event for our business."

-Neil Young, Vice President and Executive in Charge of Production, Electronic Arts

The above quote comes from the Conference Guide to the Game Developers' Conference 2004 (to be held March 22-26 in San Jose, California). It instantly prompted memories of two moments in two different adventure games that still have the power to move me to tears:

1. A certain moment of profound tenderness in Gabriel Knight 3. So as not to spoil anyone, I won't go into details on this one - but if you've played it, you'll know what I'm referring to.

2. King Graham is lying on his deathbed, struck down by a heart attack. Princess Rosella, overcome by grief, buries her face in her hands and rushes from the room. This scene from the introduction to King's Quest IV was shown prior to the game's release in the late 1980s at an industry event, where it did indeed bring tears to the eyes of many people - as reiterated in several KQ manuals thereafter. (Don't these people count to Mr. Young? Or did he actually mean to say that no computer game has so far moved him to tears?)

So my answer to the question presented in the title is, "Oh, yes. It can and it has." What about the rest of you?

[Jake]

I don't think an EA game made in the last 5 or so years has made anyone cry. I wouldn't expect his frame of reference or knowledge to stretch any broader than that.

[eriq]

I cried when Julanar the tree was brought back to life in Quest for Glory 2. I love how all the Quest for Glory games have tree-themed stories in them.

[Zygomaticus]

When I obtained Call of Duty this January, I was so happy I cried. Oh, that doesn't count?

I sort of shed a tear or two during much of the unfolding of WarCraft III's story. It has, IMHO, the best game story (for a non-Adventure game) of all time. (of course, I haven't played enough games to make that judgement, but you know what I mean.)

[Moron Lite]

Originally Posted by Kode

I sort of shed a tear or two during much of the unfolding of WarCraft III's story. It has, IMHO, the best game story (for a non-Adventure game) of all time.

...

I could seriously cry.



(Seriously.)

Offhand, I can't remember if a game has made me cry, or rather, made my eyes watery. Then again, I can't really remember what movies have made my eyes watery, but I know it's happened.

Anyway, I'd agree with Jake: just about anything that EA's executives say is crap. Complete and utter crap.

Originally Posted by Jake

I don't think an EA game made in the last 5 or so years has made anyone cry. I wouldn't expect his frame of reference or knowledge to stretch any broader than that.

thats not true, i cryed when i got my ass kicked by a pujo in need for speed underground. i had a celica and i still cant beat the damn thing. i think i'm guna start over

GRIM FANDANGO! i did'nt cry but i was tearing at the end.

[Threepwood]

Originally Posted by Simo Sakari Aaltonen

So my answer to the question presented in the title is, "Oh, yes. It can and it has." What about the rest of you?

Yep. The ending of Grim Fandango.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

OMG, I started a thread with the exact same title a long time ago! I actually even thought it was my thread that someone somehow dug up from the AG archives. LOL

[LeisureSuitedLooney]

Off the top o' my head, I can think of several moments in games that gave me an emotional reaction:

-The way Glottis and Manny said their goodbyes in GF

-The final scene in The Longest Journey

-Watching Gina fall down that mineshaft in Runaway ...that really shocked me...

-Talking to the ghost of the dead child in Blackstone Chronicles . Listening to that story, then reading the (graphic) details of it disturbed me for quite some time afterwards.

-Staring at all those "The Sims" titles I bought, and thinking about how much money I could've saved....heck, I'm still sobbing!

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

OMG, I started a thread with the exact same title a long time ago! I actually even thought it was my thread that someone somehow dug up from the AG archives. LOL

thats what i thought, i was wondering who would be looking at threads that were used 3 months ago

[Intrepid Homoludens]

Oh no, it was much longer than 3 months ago. More like at least a year and half :eek: ! Yeah, I remember posting it in the Adventure forum, and many of us replying with particular games that made us weep or very emotional.

While we're at it:

Gabriel Knight 3 - I got really teary eyed over Grace in the end, her decision, and how Gabe felt when he burst into her room and.....
The Longest Journey - April dealing with her dad in one of three final puzzles, and of course the very end of her journey.
Syberia - when Kate finally meets Hans, then her last minute decision.
Silent Hill - Lisa Garland discovers the truth about herself. I literally had to shut the game off, stare into space, and take a break from it for 2 days.
Silent Hill 2 - the water ending. My tears were in rivulets . One of the saddest moments in any game I've ever experienced. I thought, I would never want anyone I love to have to go through that.

[fov]

Yes. Final Fantasy 8 most recently (and every time I replay the ending!) but there have been many others. GK2, King's Quest 6... even Syberia, and for the most part I didn't like that game.

A little presumptious of EA...

-emily

[Kingzjester]

Grim Fandango, but those were tears born of catharsis at the very end of the thing, during the credits and Peter Mc's violin.

Isn't violin a cool word? Vio-linn. Vio-lah. Though I prefer the sound of the viola, there is something in that violinesque brilliance that makes me cry if executed well and wince otherwise.

[Renegade]

One particular scene in Final Fantasy VII made me cry, if you've played it you'll know what it is... if you haven't you've probably heard it talked about before. The atmosphere, the music and the events conspire to make one hell of a scene.

Also, one scene in Silent Hill, which has one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've heard in a game.

[remixor]

This guy is completely full of shit. It's pretty shameful that an Executive in Charge of Production at the world's biggest game publisher is this blind to the gems of the industry.

[VoodooFX]

Originally Posted by Renegade

One particular scene in Final Fantasy VII made me cry

Would that be....

Spoiler:

Death of Aeris? 'Coz that's one of my all-time favorite scenes in any game. I still like listening to orchestrated version of her theme, beautiful piece of work. I always kindda hoped she would somehow show up again by the end of the game, she never did though

I liked the way Heather explained the story of her father in car scene in Silent Hill 3, very emotional, very moving.

[Risingson]

Photopia

(period)

[Marek]

Yeah, I saw that quote too, and I was like "pffftttttt, speak for yourself". But to be completely honest, there haven't been many games that made a huge emotional impact on me in that kind of way. A couple of moments in Grim Fandango come to mind, but other than that, I dunno. 99,8% of computer games don't make you cry. I guess there are only like a dozen or-so that are that emotionally powerful.

I think the reason is really simple: crappy writing. Most games don't really need a story. Something like ... "you're a soldier in WW2 and you're in the thick of the action now GO GO GO!" can be quite sufficient for many types of games. The experience itself can be entertaining enough. But when I lose a man in Call of Duty I don't give a shit. It has about as much emotional impact as a change of scenery. That's because I never interacted with this character. Not through gameplay (as in: giving him orders) and not in dialog.

I'm not saying Call of Duty should necessarily do things differently. But it would make sense for more games to try and get better writing, and try to establish actual bonds between the player and the different characters. Just to stick with Call of Duty as an example, it has a ton of powerful moments -- like when you're storming a city and it feels like a hundred different things happen around you. That's quite arousing. But it doesn't go any deeper. There's no real attachement because you didn't experience what preceded the battle, and you don't know anyone on the battlefield.

What Neil Young says sort of implies that games that make you cry need to be 'invented', and I don't agree with that. It's a matter of design, direction, and so on. It's been done before and it's certainly possible to do it more. (I hope so!) Of course, there's also the whole other spectrum of human emotion, and not every game should have to try and have a huge dramatic impact on the player.

[simpson_yellow]

does crying about snm2 count ?

no, seriously, grim is about the closest i've come, but my eyes remained dry (just).

oh, finally coming 1st in every race on the insane difficulty level of Powerslide using only a keyboard (and winning cherries for my trouble) also almost brought a tear to my eye.

[mycroft]

I was initially going to say that no game has yet come close to making an emotive connection with me, let alone make me cry. However, I just finished replaying an IF game called Rameses. I have to say that despite its less than stellar writing and plot, this 'game' is perhaps the only one to have a strong emotional impact on me. Perhaps it was because I could very easily identify with the protagonist, his environment and his motivations.

Originally Posted by Duncan Stevens

You're an unhappy teenager in an unpleasant Irish boarding school, remembering your happier younger days and putting up with the present as best you can. It's not very interactive, but it's an noninteractivity that serves the purposes of the story--the central character doesn't have the courage to speak honestly with others, so he hardly speaks at all, and the frustration the player feels mirrors the PC's frustrations. There are no puzzles, and the game essentially progresses whatever you do, but as a story and a characterization, it works extremely well.