06-03-2009, 12:59 AM
He clearly has not played Final Fantasy VI (III), nor Secret of Mana.
Both of those games affected me in great emotional waves, both high and low. I'm not ashamed to admit, I almost (ALMOST!*) could not kill the Mana Beast in Secret of Mana, and I replayed the great rending in Final Fantasy III (VI) until I managed to rescue Shadow.
In some ways, I have found fewer and fewer truly "epic" games - games that drag you through great emotional upheavals as part and parcel to the playing. Part of that, IMHO, is a lack of quality storytelling in even the best games. Part of it is also due to the sandbox movement. Part of it is just a lack of quality games. Admittedly, part of it is just my stalling of game-playing over the last decade, and my seeming inability to truly become engrossed with a game, no matter how good it may be. I fear I may have moved beyond the realm of games being a storytelling medium that sucks you in wholly, and into the realm of games are a way to pass the time, no matter how good (or bad) they may be. But, that's just me.:P
* - I literally sat for a few minutes trying to decide if I could bring myself to finish the game. I weeped (on the inside) at the thought, and throughout the whole fight. To this day, it still haunts me, and I get a little wistful thinking about it. I think a part of my innocence (I didn't even know I had any left back then) died during that fight. I had a very similar emotional episode while reading Stephen King's Bag of Bones. At a certain point in the story, I was so shocked at what had transpired I had to stop reading. I didn't pick that book up again for several years, but I managed to read through it in one go the second time around.
Both of those games affected me in great emotional waves, both high and low. I'm not ashamed to admit, I almost (ALMOST!*) could not kill the Mana Beast in Secret of Mana, and I replayed the great rending in Final Fantasy III (VI) until I managed to rescue Shadow.
In some ways, I have found fewer and fewer truly "epic" games - games that drag you through great emotional upheavals as part and parcel to the playing. Part of that, IMHO, is a lack of quality storytelling in even the best games. Part of it is also due to the sandbox movement. Part of it is just a lack of quality games. Admittedly, part of it is just my stalling of game-playing over the last decade, and my seeming inability to truly become engrossed with a game, no matter how good it may be. I fear I may have moved beyond the realm of games being a storytelling medium that sucks you in wholly, and into the realm of games are a way to pass the time, no matter how good (or bad) they may be. But, that's just me.:P
* - I literally sat for a few minutes trying to decide if I could bring myself to finish the game. I weeped (on the inside) at the thought, and throughout the whole fight. To this day, it still haunts me, and I get a little wistful thinking about it. I think a part of my innocence (I didn't even know I had any left back then) died during that fight. I had a very similar emotional episode while reading Stephen King's Bag of Bones. At a certain point in the story, I was so shocked at what had transpired I had to stop reading. I didn't pick that book up again for several years, but I managed to read through it in one go the second time around.
Roland *The Gunslinger*