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[nemiroff]

why would you have played games you are not personally interested in anyway?

Exactly. Gatekeeping cinematic games just because op personally don't find then engaging is a stupid premise. Obviously there's enough people out there enjoying these titles to make a legit market. And history is abundant with successful linear games. So this is as per usual a matter of subjective interest and taste, and OP should move on rather than being so concerned on other people's behalf.

 

[Astral Dog]

Its always been like this

gameplay>'cinematic experience'

Even the games that are Hollywood like that everybody raves about like the Uncharteds,Last of Us or Metal Gear Solid include well crafted gameplay sections, (even if they are mediocre), to carry the 'epic' narrative its a videogame first not a movie

 

[DeepEnigma]

You mean the 30 fps cinematic experience ?

Ahem, Creative Decision™

 

[Team Andromeda]

Have you seen the budgets for TV series or a movie lately?

Well said ,and it's another industry with loads of layoffs and cuts .

This pathetic Hellblade 2 bashing is getting a bit much. It was great game with a great story . But you can make cinematic games in a shirt spake of time as SEGA and Yakuza team show.

I Like like the fact that we have different style of games with a story to tell .

 

[EverydayBeast]

Cinematics in gaming have been around for years, during cutscenes it’s the right thing to do.

 

[Crayon]

You mean real cinematic games or just anything with cut scenes?

 

[tmlDan]

hellblade is the worst example you can use, LoU is cinematic, RDR2 is cinematic, Uncharted 4 is Cinematic, Cyberpunk is cinematic, are those bad? hell naw.

Hellblade 2 just sucked, it didn't expand on a decent double A formula from the first game, so it failed.

 

[coffinbirth]

What's wrong with Hellblade 2? That's what devs wanted and delivered.

Personally I love short games with strong story element, something like What Remains of Edith Finch? Is one of the best experiences I have ever had in my 26 years of gaming. Same for Soma. Amazing interactive stories

Games like until dawn or dark pictures series have even more focus on story over gameplay and I like them all. Persona series and Witcher 3 is like 50/50 story/gameplay.

At the same time I love games where gameplay is the main focus. There is room for every genre.

Seriously, of the hundreds upon hundreds of games I've played over the years, What Remains of Edith Finch is right up there with the very best of them. I was also quite fond of The Unfinished Swan. I'm REALLY hoping we get to see their next game soon. The only real hint about what it is that I'm aware of is "focusing on the enchanting beauty of animal locomotion"
SOLD

 

[Oddvintagechap]

They should stop making games I don’t like.

 

[Danjin44]

Variety is good for gaming industry and they are people who do enjoy those type of games.....I dont see any reason it shouldn't exist.

 

[Kataploom]

I mean, you're kinda right but not quite so, if you think people that liked Hellblade 2 didn't enjoy the gameplay moments, you're not seeing the whole picture.

As long as there is variety it's ok if some games are more cinematic. I'm the first one to criticize the focus on cinematic stuff in gaming, yet it's ok to have some games focused on it so we can experience different things depending on the mood.

Now, if you told me "modern audiences" funny give a damn about cinematics and graphic fidelity you'd have a point, younger people have grew with mostly low fidelity + strong art identity experiences, that's why current AAA is kinda against market, specially when those younger generations play lots of gameplay driven stuff like GaaS, Nintendo and indie games.

 

[Bojji]

The whole point of Gamepass is that subscriptions will grow as more games are put in. Hellblade 2 came in like 23rd for most played Xbox game the week of its release. The peak CCU on steam was almost half of Redfall's. Microsoft needs to grow gamepass for it to be viable. HB2 didn't move the needle at all

Maybe, I don't know. In the end I don't care if this game was a success for MS or not (they are like headless chicken this gen). There are many single player "cinematic" games that are successful so I don't doubt we will see more.

Seriously, of the hundreds upon hundreds of games I've played over the years, What Remains of Edith Finch is right up there with the very best of them. I was also quite fond of The Unfinished Swan. I'm REALLY hoping we get to see their next game soon. The only real hint about what it is that I'm aware of is "focusing on the enchanting beauty of animal locomotion"
SOLD

I didn't expect it to be this good! I have yet to play TUS but thanks for mentioning this game.

They should stop making games I don’t like.

I don't like RTS games and they pretty much stopped making them. I'm sorry RTS fans

 

[Celine]

Q: So if you don't keep your eyes on the game itself [during development], you'll end up meandering down the wrong path.

A: Right. Up until now games have had nothing to do with movies, like I've kept on saying all this time, but now people are going on about how every game will be like a movie from now on. We've come all this way and somewhere along the line, we've forgotten that we're supposed to be making games, and not movies. Now, as a result of that, game development is turning into a circus, costs are skyrocketing, users get bored faster than ever before, and the development of truly new games -- new ways of having fun -- has all but stopped. And now, because of all that, it's getting difficult to make a profit producing video games.
If we don't change the way game development is carried out, I can't see the industry or the marketplace rejuvenating itself anytime soon.

[spolier]- Hiroshi Yamauchi around 2001[/spoiler]

 

[BigLee74]

You chose a 4 hour cinematic tech demo with marginal basic brain dead gameplay as an example .... cinematic games are ok ... you want to talk about cinematic experiences like hellblade

Down to 4 hours now are we? This game keeps shrinking!

 

[Red5]

Agreed, less cinematic hand holdy games and more games like Deus Ex and Thief, the more interactivity we get the better.

 

[Gaelyon]

You really think they could make a 6 hour show in less than 6 months? In that case, I have a tower in Paris I'd like to sell you.

Interesting, in France we says "I have a castle in Spain" instead

 

[SmokedMeat]

Errrr... GTA6 is a cinematic game.

"Cinematic" games isn't a genre. It's a qualifier that describes the level of production values for the SP experience.

In the past “cinematic games” referred to the level of non interaction in a game. A larger focus on flashy cinematic moments at the press of a button instead of deep gameplay mechanics.

 

[Fbh]

Cinematic is too broad of a term IMO.
I'd call Hellblade 2, Uncharted 2 and God of War Ragnarok cinematic but they are quite different games in terms of not only gameplay but their approach to cinematic gaming.

The problem with modern cinematic games, IMO, is that the "cinematic" focus has shifted from the gameplay to the story.
IMO cinematic games peaked with Uncharted 2 because it was all about making you feel like you are playing an interactive action movie. Be it the early chopper chase, the firefight on the moving trucks or the iconic train sequence, it's linear and scripted but it still feels like you are an active part of what is going on.

A lot of modern cinematic games feel the other way around, like the "cinematic" parts are all about taking away gameplay as much as possible for the sake of storytelling.
A game like GOW Ragnarok or TLOU2 feels cinematic in that it's constantly interrupting the fun gameplay for cutscenes, and conversation scenes and boring story "gameplay" sequences where you do little more than walk around environments as the story unfolds around you.

 

[Majukun]

it never made any sense

 

[James Sawyer Ford]

No, 5 hour sloggy walking QTE games need to die because you should just make a movie if there’s not going to be a game

Cinematics are fine when combined with real games

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

In the past “cinematic games” referred to the level of non interaction in a game. A larger focus on flashy cinematic moments at the press of a button instead of deep gameplay mechanics.

WTF? No!

Cinematic has always referred to the audio-visual style of cutscenes, e.g. using VFX like colour grading, CA and other VFX to emulate a film-like look, while also referring to the overall production-like quality of cutscenes and gameplay visuals to emulate film.

It's always ever been about graphical style. It's NEVER been about the amount of cutscenes or non-interactivity.

E.g. there are many games with a tonne of cutscenes that have never been referred to as cinematic games, e.g. games with anime graphics.

 

[A.Romero]

There are games that are making good money by keeping this style. There will always be room in the market for games with this approach, it's just that not every game is good enough to actually be successful, like with any other genre.

 

[SmokedMeat]

It's always ever been about graphical style. It's NEVER been about the amount of cutscenes or non-interactivity.

It was when used in a derogatory manner.

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

It was when used in a derogatory manner.

That's not a real definition. That's just ignorant goons being ignorant goons.

 

[Represent.]

lmao

 

[64bitmodels]

it never made any sense

It didn't make sense when metal gear solid and Max payne did it? wtf

 

[HeWhoWalks]

Nobody is doing 5 hours experiences like hb2, and thank god for that.

Even the most cinematic (good) games nowadays still have a shitload of gameplay.

Bingo.

 

[Zannegan]

As many have pointed out, Hellblade isn't the best example of cinematic gaming.

With that said, I tend to avoid even the most acclaimed cinematic games if they sacrifice interaction and player agency for the sake of storytelling. Common sense says that any story that has to minimize its game elements to be told effectively, is probably better off in another medium.

Ironically, most "cinematic" games tend to have garbage stories anyway, so the sacrifice rarely pays off.

 

[Zannegan]

That's not a real definition. That's just ignorant goons being ignorant goons.

It may not be a real definition, but it is how the word was used back when "cinematic" became a marketing buzzword in the last couple of generations. Gamers are just adopting and reacting to executive speak.

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

It may not be a real definition, but it is how the word was used back when "cinematic" became a marketing buzzword in the last couple of generations. Gamers are just adopting and reacting to executive speak.

Yeah, but it's like how linear games became used as a derogatory term. It was a fad that lasted only as long as recently where everything is open-world and gamers are now begging for 7-10hr tightly designed experiences that respect gamer's time.

 

[coffinbirth]

I didn't expect it to be this good! I have yet to play TUS but thanks for mentioning this game.

For sure, just be aware that it is absolutely nothing like What Remains... but still a memorable experience.