Game storylines "still in the black & white era"

[Shrygue]

via Computer and Video Games

Videogame script writer Tom Jubert has drawn a parallel between the state of videogame storylines and cinema and reckons game plot is still in the black and white era.

"It seems contradictory to suggest film is capable of doing just that, but that gaming is somehow different - there's not a leg to stand on", Jubert told CVG when asked if he views videogames as a palatable medium through which to offer commentary on topical issues.

"Gaming's an unfortunate term we've been saddled with", Jubert, who has worked on the Penbumra horror adventures and Black & White 2, added.

He says that a lot of games, especially those of a few years ago, are intellectually akin to a game of tennis, or Snakes & Ladders, but these days that's not really a fair appraisal as interactive entertainment is better.

"Of course," Jubert continued, "topical relevance being palatable and it actually occurring is a different story.

"Blacksite gets a lot of flak for its botched political message - but at least they gave it a shot. Bioshock was altogether less ambitious. But it's early days - in cinematic history we'd still be in black and white".

[Broadus]

Black and white? As in, really crappy, or not a lot of depth, or what? Video games are all about goodguys and badguys, and the player always plays as the goodguys (and in some cases the badguys) as a part of the storyline, but in the storyline it's rare to see the player playing as the badguys. People always spout crap like "WORLD WAR 2 IS OVERDONE", but there's yet to be a single player World War 2 shooter where the player can be the Axis. Don't even think of a modern-based shooter where you get to play as the crazy terrorists or evil Soviets!

[Mister Klownes]

You know, you don't have to take a stance on some big issue to tell a good story. Tolkien swore to his grave that the Lord of the Rings had no deep meaning, and that it was just a good story.

I think this guy's got a bit of a skewed perspective having worked on a game actually called Black and White. Seems to me people read too much into things as it is. You can still have a great story without having a political/philosophical agenda.

[SoulReaver911]

I agree with Mister Klownes and I don't think games have to have such an embellished story that it tries to crunch a four and a half hour game into two hours. However, I believe that the story should stay true to the game, at least take some overtone idea from it and let the story play out on the director's, and actors actions, and not try to make a die hard adaption at a game that is more fun played than simply watched with cheesy special effects.

However, the special effects aren't that important. What is important is to make a movie that stands on its own, but is loosely based off a game title. Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is a good example, while not one of my favorite movies, still has in its own right to be called an entirely new story.

I do enjoy seeing sequels to games, even if they are a movie adaption, like FF7: Advent Children, but I'd rather have a fleshed out game that qualifies to be part of the FF7 story rather than a huge money making production that is expected to stick for fans. A movie like that didn't have much story because there is not enough time to give one to the viewer while also trying to please gaming sense one wants to feel to try and emulate in a movie. The bottom line is that movies make people lazy and less inclined to actually play the original game. It sort of takes away from the feeling one really wants out of such an experience.

So in the end I suppose the only philosophy that should be applied to game movies is in fact that game movies are not games at all and should not be seen as an alternative to actually playing games.

[limming]

Is he saying video games have crappy story lines?
If so, he has never played FFVII...
and that was over 10 years ago and it has a story line equivalent to a 72" wide screen HDTV with a Bose surround sound speaker system.

[Accordion]

When was colour necessary for story?

Most games are at the same level of most hollywood movies