|
The things we value as players are vastly different. I see that people such as yourself value experiences crafted by scripted games with gripping stories. I grew up playing RPGs and Fighting games, and eventually I came to appreciate more of the raw game aspects. Whether the competition was going to be worth engaging, balance vs. variety, and level design.
|
I've always been curious myself as to why people like what they like. As fate would have it, my first big RPG was Secret of Mana, which is a game that puts gameplay above story. Anyways, I've always been more of a gameplay-oriented kind of guy as well. Maybe it's because I've always been a logical, strategically-minded kind of person. I love Chess and in my youth I ran into what might be considered key titles in the development of my tastes, like Sim City 2000, Lode Runner: TLR, Magic Carpet, Ogre Battle, and Syndicate Wars. I don't know if it's because of that experience that I have a greater tolerance for games that aren't totally focused on cinematic storytelling, but there you go. I think that the journey IS the story. How you interact with a game world yields its own reward. So I don't need a Xenosaga-like approach at all, and if anything, I sometimes get impatient with games that guide me on a linear path and inundate me with force-fed dialog and/or cutscenes.
Of course, Metal Gear Solid was amazing when it came out, and I loved it as much as anyone else. It was something fresh for me the first time and later on it just seems like none of the sequels have been able to achieve the same consistent intrigue and gameplay variety. So there are a few titles which perhaps might be considered to be exceptions to the rule among my favorites, but for the most part I think that my preference for engaging gameplay shows through. I could give a damn about how 'deep' a story is if the gameplay is not up to par.
|
I remember picking up Breath of Fire: Dragon Quarter in a time where I harbored a great deal of resentment toward RPGs. The one thing I remember clearly was that the story and gameplay were so intertwined that you couldn't do one thing without being reminded of either element. You can't waste your time grinding traditionally, the D-Gauge is there to remind you that you have manage your time. I didn't think there was anything RPGs could do differently and the game made me want to start playing them again.
|
BoFV was my favorite PS2 RPG to be sure. I played it because it was recommended by a guy I knew who had greater experience with RPGs past and present than most. It is definitely one of those games that makes a 'safe' game like Final Fantasy X seem uninspired. At this point I find it hard to enjoy even a polished game like Suikoden V. I need to have something unique and engaging within the gameplay and world. Something that makes the game standout from its predacessors if it's part of a series or something that makes it standout out from other RPGs period. The game can't just have a good stand-alone story. The gameplay has to be there.
|
Have you had any moments upon picking up older games that you hadn't played in the past?
|
I felt very impressed by Castlevania III, which I didn't play until maybe 2005 or 2006. The challenge level was high, but not unfair, which gave it an addictive quality. The music was great, the branching levels were great, and being able to swing between one character and another was great too. It's just too bad that the game gets overshadowed by the popularity of SOTN the same as the other Castlevania games do.
Some games just exude a certain quality regardless of
when you play them. The good ones amount to something special when you add everything up regardless of how shiny they may or may not be on the surface.
How ya doing, buddy?
85240
35212
Megavolt