Braben on Modern Warfare 2’s Achilles Heel

David Braben has kick-started his new column in Develop by exploring the current state of game narrative.
The Develop Legend Award winner opened his account by opining that narrative could turn out to define the current generation of software, and is therefore “a foolhardy thing to ignore.”
Briefly fixing the discussion on Infinity Ward’s Modern Warfare 2, Braben revealed high praise for the game in all aspects save for one, wittily observing: “There might as well have been a lava level, for all that the story mattered to me”.
Said Braben: “My point is when we look back at it from the future – when the combat is no longer best in class – it will feel dull, like those almost storyless cowboy films of the '50s (not featuring John Wayne), shown endlessly on TV in the early ‘70s, but that have thankfully now been forgotten.”
He added that talented storytelling is coming ever more to the fore in the game sector, citing Fallout 3, Mass Effect and Dragon Age: Origins as great examples of non-linear storytelling.

http://www.develop-online.net/news/3...-Achilles-Heel