GDC: Emotion in Games a Distant Dream?

Joe Keiser of Next-Gen.Biz writes: Braid Developer Jonathan Blow thinks that games have a long, long way to go before they can elicit emotion from their storytelling, and goes off on games that aren't a good enough job.

"Half-Life 2: Episode 2 is just as robotic and lifeless a game as any first person shooter that came out in 1998. It just looks better," says Blow, as he discusses his excitement and subsequent disappointment at how Valve used its character technology. In his session, Inverting the Design Perspective, Blow states plainly that he thinks we're far away from solving the issue of emotional storytelling in games, that the problem is extremely hard to solve, and that a lot of current attempts at solving the issue are way off base.

[Anything but Cute]

This idiot obviously has never played a Final Fantasy.

[riqued]

Shadow of the Colossus...

The Wander and the girl
your only companion, Agro
big world and only you and your horse
killing "innocent" colossus
the ending!

Emotion in games is reality and games are art!
Thanks Team ICO!

[mindedone]

The ending of SotC was the first thing that popped into my mind when I started to read this.

[Bill Gates]

My PS3 has the "Emotion" Engine built in. So eat that you bald headed BABOON.....AHAHHAHHAHAHHA

[Anything but Cute]

In comparison to some of the Final Fantasy games.

Final Fantasy 7 was beloved because of how the story and characters made people feel. That was a PS1 game from over 10 years ago.

Final Fantasy X is also very good and emotional.

So this guy couldn't be anymore wrong.

[NO_PUDding]

FF is good, but I think it is a silly comparison, they are evry different

Shadow of the Colossus will be special to me, in the way FF will be special to you. But I have to say, artistic direction in SotC is head and shoulders above FF. Thats alwasy been about technical art direction, where as thats where SotC deviated massively for me.

Eitehr way, we know this guy is wrogn,a nd both agmes are emotional.

[Stubacca]

Shut it ya bald geeky git.

GTA: Vice City!!!

Metal gear Solid 2!

[Harry190]

this man can be taken so seriously.
obviously he was not on earth to witness the brillance
of ff7((in fact every ff should be included),the enigmatic shadow of the colossus,mgs3(ending)
,bioshock and so much more or he could be a genius and under
this bald head of his,he actually knows a definition of the
word emotion which humanity ignores.

[NO_PUDding]

Why in the open zone, you are completely right!

Shadow fo the Colossus and Ico.

Beauitful beauitful games.

[Harry190]

according to him,the word emotion has a different definiton from what we've been taught at school.maybe he should show us how it's done by making his own game.then we'll all know what pain and disgust really mean.

[Perkel]

this guy is a jerk ;) (*cought* Heavenly Sword *cought*)

hmm incoming Havy Rain anyone ?

[Statix]

Um, Final Fantasy? Ico and SotC? MGS to a lesser degree? And many other Japanese titles? Japanese games have been emotionally evocative for DECADES. The Chrono Trigger, Lunar, and FF games still stick in my memory to this day.

I do agree that the vast majority of Western-developed titles are still severely lacking in terms of narrative and emotional substance, but I think this would change if more developers started to take games as a serious and legitimate art form in the same vein as cinema and literature. Right now, too many developers are focusing on the arcade shooting and action, rather than trying to craft a deep and intriguing story.

[LastDance]

Statix i definatly agree with your 2nd paragraph. well said.

Everyone seems to be talking about the sadness emotion on this subject. But what about all the other emotions.
I mean the ending of COD4 made me feel sick in my stomach and i was deeply sad. and thats a lightly narrated storyline.

MGS had made me feel so many different emotions since i started playing the games. The meryl scene in mgs1, the 1st time i watched it i was welling up and it still does it.

majority of the games i play have the ability to make the player feel emotions.

I dont play any single player game that cant. for me that is an F right away.

What games does this guy play?? He must be hollow inside.

[darkshiz]

I bet he never played the MGS saga and Final fantasys
Especially MGS.

[Big Jim]

A lot of japanese games can elicit emotion, but, then again, most japanese games have plots that are almost totally non-sensical and incomprehensible. Just like most anime. I haven't seen a video game yet that packs an emotional punch, and also has a logical plot.

[NO_PUDding]

Shadow of the Colossus is that game for me.

It was the horse Agro, and protagonist Wander, battling land virtually. And land based of art by certain artists. And using technical effects, to distort landcsapes, but in an artistic, way, rather than tryign to create realistism.

It created it's own COMPLETELY unique innovative art style, and the evocative emotions came tyhroguh that, and beauitfully placed emotional moments, that were few and far between. Takign the monsters down was just epic, but losing Agro, that was emotional.

And you enevr really ever thank this horse for follwoing you roudn, and yet, hsi trust in you is infinite. Beauitful game with such subtlety actually gave me tears. And I don't cry in films, this was just epic.

And this guy is wrong on another account. He is thinkign of games in comparison to films, did he ever stop to think that games may become emotionally evocative throguh different means? Like for exmaple in SotC.

The horse has no words, and no facial expressions, which is what amkes it. Beautiful.

Sorry for my awful typing.