A well-crafted story is one of the top things I look for when I am looking to buy a new video game. Why is that? Without a decent story, a game has nothing to keep me playing for the long haul. Sure, a title may have incredible graphics, or some awesome new mechanic, but if there is no story capable of keeping that controller in my hand, it doesn’t matter. You may be attracted to a game because it’s really pretty, but ultimately, it’s the story that will hook you in and keep you engrossed. It’s the story that grabs you and shows you that a game is worth playing.
It’s really disheartening when you get a game to play that you’re really excited over, and then you play it and it sucks. We’ve all been there. You sit down to play through it and the story feels like it was tacked on as an afterthought. MindJack is a great example of this. It looked amazing. The trailers were all incredible too.
I mean, that looks exciting, right? Who wouldn’t want to play that after watching that trailer? Unfortunately, I think the developers put forth too much effort into making a pretty title and not enough into a story that made sense long enough to hook you in not let you go. The result was a completely forgettable title that was pretty much universally panned by critics.
This is why a solid story should always take precedent over top-flight graphics. Take Ken Levine for example, creative director and co-founder of Irrational Games. He’s one of my all time favorite game writers. He’s able to write a game that sucks you in and engages you in every sense of the term. I remember when I played the first BioShock game I would stay up for hours. I couldn’t put it down. I constantly wanted to see what was going to happen next in the story.
This is what makes a great game. Obviously I don’t know Ken Levine or his process, but it wouldn’t surprise me to learn that he puts a solid story first and foremost before even beginning to work out things like graphics in his games.
However, Ken Levine is a blockbuster video game maker with access to a huge studio. If you want to truly see how and why amazing stories should always come before top-flight graphics, you need look no further than your average indie game.
Why is this? Well, a lot of indie developers out there don’t have access (funds) to make use of grade A style graphics. So, what can they do to make sure their games get noticed? They make sure their story is the best it can possible be! In my opinion, this is why the indie genre is exploding like it is right now. Developers can’t really rely on pretty graphics to get their name out there. They have to rely on their writing ability. Thankfully, we have some very good writer/developers out there.
For instance, did you ever get a chance to play Cave Story? If not, you’re missing out.
In Cave Story, you play as a boy that awakens in a cave with no memory of how he got there. As you explore to figure out what’s going on, you begin to discover a plot by a power-hungry tyrant that wishes to brainwash a race of peaceful villagers to help him conquer the world. It’s a great storyline that gets very personal as you play through it. It’s obvious that Pixel, the developer, placed story development first and foremost.
Another perfect example of this, in much the same vein as Cave Story (though way more brutal and b*****) is Hotline Miami.
Hotline Miami’s story is one of best I’ve ever seen in an indie game. It hooks you in deep too, and the ending is something very satisfying to get to. Its greatness didn’t go unnoticed either. At present, the game’s website lists 65 perfect or near perfect review scores from various gaming websites.
I sincerely hope that more developers continue to put renewed focus on stories. Ideally, the story should have just as much, or more focus than graphics, never the other way around. However, if the great quality of recent indie games is any indication, gamers everywhere have a bright future of awesome video game writing in store.