I played this video in the background ehile I worked (I answer emails all day) and I had to payse just to deal with something as simple as using a different analog stick
Dropping in to say, that I've never played nor heard of the Brothers game, but here I am, weeping at the solution to the water "puzzle". That is incredibly powerful. Wow
That last loom Trico gives the boy just before he flies away always WRECKS me. So much tender emotion conveyed in a face that shouldn't be expressive at all. Sending Trico away always makes me cry.
SOMA is probably the scariest game I’ve ever played because once that existential crisis happens, everything after that suddenly becomes more terrifying because your mind begins racing trying to come up with answers for what it really means to exist. And to this day even watching some random UA-cam video on that game gives me some anxiety. That games plot was just. Terrifying on a cosmic level. They give you an excellent horror game that plays with your fears of the ocean and things running at you. And then when your mind is fragile they drop narrative bombs on you like the duplication scene. Excellent video mate well done! This was well crafted and put together. Everything you brought up I felt deserved to be discussed in a video like this. Can’t complain man. Checked all my boxes
In the early days of Cinema, films still largely resembled stage plays and vaudeville performances. Now that the medium has matured it is considered an art form. Computer games are still early as well, we’re just starting to leave the early era actually. Games borrowing a lot from movies for methods of storytelling is just a growing pain of the medium.
That said, often cinema and some devs like Kojima overdo it As the other comment says here, it's better to focus on the heart which is the story and delivering the emotion well, without worrying if it is artsy or not Same for poetry etc, people obsess too much over form and often say nothing
@@liamcurran5612 of course, and e.g. MGSV has outstanding gameplay mechanics Or for that matter any good platformer etc will live and die by mechanics alone. But in games that have any kind of story at all, especially in the AAA space, they also live and die by the story, dialogue, VA, performance capture etc, in fact much more than the gameplay
For Nier Automata, I love that game to death but I'll never play it again because it just doesn't feel right after getting ending E. Absolute masterpiece of a game and story.
I've been wanting to play it again ever since I got ending E, but you're right, every time I think of doing it, it just feels wrong. I probably will eventually, because it is one of my favorite games of all time, but it's gonna be so weird when I do
I'm currently replaying it, now armed with new knowledge after beating Nier Replicant, and while it's really eye-opening to understand all the callbacks....it just isn't the same.
Major Journey spoiler: My first play through with journey I met a player but I didn’t know the game had multiplayer, I legitimately believed it was a computer. I kept wondering to myself how they made such a complicated AI, I remember at the top of the mountain, I hesitated before walking in and the other guy stopped. He gave one pulse, and waited for me as if to nudge me on, then we walked through together. It wasn’t until the username of the player was revealed to me at the very end of the credits did I realize that was a person! I’ve never had an experience like that ever again in a video game.
This ending of Nier Automata is probably the only time that a game made me cry with something that wasn't a sad scene, it was at that moment where I realized that this game doesn't work in other media, it needs to be a game, that's the only way the weight of the final decision can be felt
Fr, I'm about 2/3 of the way through replicant, and I think it uses the medium BETTER than automata. The game itself is not better, automata has far better combat, movement, side quests, but the way playing through route B changes the context of the story is absolutely brilliant, and I don't think automata really captured the same feeling until route C when you cycle through everybody
I’m so glad to see TLOU here. People often label it as a “movie game”, but after watching the HBO show, I had a whole new appreciation for the little interactions during gameplay between Joel and Ellie
Some argue that The Last of Us didn’t embrace the medium at all. But I disagree, and I think it’s actually underrated in what it does well when leveraging the strengths of being a computer game. Does it borrow heavily from cinema? Yes, but honestly, I like the game a lot better than the HBO show, in terms of writing, structure and most of all, ironically, the performances.
I love your line of script where you say: “aligning the game’s protagonist, with the person holding the controller”. That really hits the nail on the head (for me) on what makes computer games such a special art form. Immersion at its finest.
You're not wrong. It was widely considered the first video game that is a gesamtkunstwerk. (lit. all-encompassing artwork) Aka a piece of art that successfully encompasses practically all forms of art. First used for certain operas, especially Wagner's. Then in architecture. Then movies. And now, for video games. And Shadow of the Colossus was the progenitor of that. The interesting thing is, all the other mediums are comparatively limited in terms of art forms used. They all have different forms of visual arts, for example, but they interactivity-as per the subject of this video. Except for architecture, which got to its status _because_ of interactivity, _despite_ how many other categories it misses out on: music, characters, and arguably even a story. Which makes video games, by default, _more_ of a gesamtkunstwerk than _any_ of its ancestors.
Finished Nier Automata a few weeks ago and I still can't comprehend the impact it had on me. It is not a game IMO, it an experience everyone should have. That is not to forget the exceptional music that lives rent-free in my head. I had the privilege of also watching the Nier orchestra and highly recommend you attempt that if you get the chance. Thank you for the video and for some truly jaw-dropping experiences.
A good chunk of these games wouldn’t exist without Ico, which I think is THE perfect example of a medium-specific story. Fumito Ueda is a video game auteur like no other.
@@AZAMA___The creator of the Souls series literally left his job at Oracle and decided to get into the games industry after playing Ico. That game is legendary
I have heard of SOMA before but I had no idea what it was about but watching that segment of the video truly terrified me and made me tear up. What a phenomenal way to fill you with dread and feel true sadness for the main character. I'm not sure if I'll ever play it since I don't like horror but that short segment was one of the most terrifying uses of gameplay I may have ever seen
For a horror game, it isn't too scary. There's even an easy mode wich will trivialize the encounters. So on a brave day, you might be able to get trough! But yeah, that game gives you a different flavour of horror alongside the traditional scares: Existential horror.
I love subtle changes on gameplay depending on history, like Halo 3 odst, when you get all recordings and replay a mission where you help a guy, instead of helping, the reticle turns red, bc now we know he's an enemy thanks to the recordings
You’re the first creator to talk about brothers I’ve come across. It’s hard to describe how powerful that button press is, and how instant is the metaphor when you press it and feel it working. It literally is the button press that made me sob.
So many people misunderstood Last Guardians nuanced controls and AI. They were complaining how hard it was to command him what to do. They entirely missed the point it was like training a pet. Videogames can tell such unique stories and it's a shame people fail to see the special things it's trying to do. Players don't "immerse" themselves. They just grind competitive games. Good video.
Yeah, it's the commercial aspect of making it fun for as many players as possible vs the artistic vision. Sadly the commercial aspect usually wins, that's why we must cherish the games made by visionaries like Ueda and Taro.
i anticipated the last guardian for years.. it sucked. playing that game was constantly questioning whether it was completely glitched or deliberately not doing anything. my character got stuck in a tree at one point for so long i had to reboot the whole thing. huge tutorial prompts were still popping up in the final minutes of the game. and beyond basic stuff like the game actually working - the narrative was dated and obvious.
@@yeahiagree1070 The boy's controls felt very floaty, no doubt about that. As for the tutorial prompts? Totally unnecessary. That said, my experience was different. Trico generally listened as long as I didn’t overload it with commands. Ueda's stories have always been simple, it's the way they are told that make them special. And that ending? I did not see it coming. SPOILERS: I fully thought Trico would die at the end.
@@GameTalesHQ i'm not even talking about interacting with the creature - i mean the game's camera controls barely functioned. the glaring technical issues ruined any potential emotional connection. it's the same narrative as ico - just worse.
Yes! I’m always mentioning the twist in Brothers as a great example of how to build drama and storytelling through gameplay, and not cinematics. Journey and Ueda’s games are also already classics examples of this as well.
17:33 Dishonored has a similar type of player tracking. You can beat the game without killing anyone. And you choosing to kill or not to kill not only determines the ending but it also determines how enemies react to you.
Team Ico's can't be expressed better in any other form of media other than games. There's something beautifully tranquil and tactile that gives breath to those masterpieces
Ueda's philosophy of design through subtraction has always worked wonders. There is absolutely no fluff in his games. Everything is there for a reason.
i remember i got journey for free during some holiday sale on the playstation 4 and being stuck at one point just for another person to pop up for the first time in my playthrough and go through it like they've done it before, and during the last few sequences going through them all with another person. it really was a magic experience like no other. also this made me really want to play more games so i'm looking through the timeline avoiding spoilers and noting them to see which game i'll play next
I remember reading something about Alan Moore’s Watchmen. He said he wanted to write the story in such a way that it could only be properly portrayed in the form of a comic book. I think more games that are designed such that they could only be games will be what truly elevates gaming to the same level as other art forms
Excellent work my man. Watched a friend play through SotC the other day and they ALMOST didn't grab during the ending. I was thinking "ah that's a shame" but then at the last possible second he grabbed on to the side of the well and held on until he couldn't anymore. Perfection.
Batman arkham knight for me is one of these games. There is the theme about madness and joker's passive influence which changes the statues, ads, posters and gargoyles decorating the city to the jokers face. If you look again it changes back to normal, took me hours playing to notice the first time.
I think a great example of games as a medium is Disco Elysium. The different skills you level up are actually different aspects of your charcter's psyche. The skills pitch in during conversations, offering their perspective on situations and conversations, and the more you level certain skills up, the more they take an active part, meaning your experience of the game is shaped by the choices you make in how you want your character to be
I’d highly suggest giving 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim a try. It’s the epitome of a story that only works in the format of the game and gameplay that only makes sense in the context of the story. A genuine master class in using gaming as an art form
Without spoiling anything, Metaphor: Refantazio does some really clever things with its story that only works because it's a video game, and it's an amazing game to boot anyway, very highly recommend it
i would put Undertale in this list as well, its so genius how it leads you in different directions just to show you that you have free will. if you play it conventionally, you will end up thinking of all of the different decisions you couldve made, all the paths you didnt take. it also plays with your savedata on the fight against flowey, and you have to reopen the game several times in order to keep fighting. You go through so much, and put the characters through so much, you break and you forgive, you fight and you laugh, and despite everything, its still you...
Journeys mp was so interesting. It was such a welcome surprise when someone would just show up when you were playing. You wouldn't see their name and could only see if you checked your recent players list You wouldn't even know how long they'd be with you. It was quite poignant
Didn't know about Nier Automata ending as I have never played it, but it sounds exactly like humanity most basic sacrifice: be saved and save others, even at the cost of our own life. It's like helping our parents when they get old, after everything they sacrificed for us, and us sacrificing for our children. Sacrifice is one of the most inspiring moves. And maybe, it's the reason why Warhammer 40k is not as crazy as it sounds in a futuristic intergalactic permanent war situation where people helps each other with anything to lose except its species.
This is fascinating. I love the idea of games that couldn't exist as anything other than a game. As an aspiring developer, this is exactly what I want to accomplish: to create a game that takes full advantage of all the strengths of the medium
Doki Doki really gets that aspect once you get into digging into the game files. It's asking a little much (probably intended as a communuty riddle) but makes for nice theory videos.
If I had to describe DDLC in relation to this video, it would be that it shows the possibility of what can be done with the medium. Especially since it is a visual novel, a genre of games that people used to say wasn't actual gaming.
Jusant is a great indie game which released in the past year. It's a game basically about climbing. But the controls make you feel like you are experiencing the act of climbing throughout the whole game. It's far different than something like Assassin's Creed games where you simply push single button to automatically scale any surface. With Jusant you have to coordinate your climbing movements with various controller actions. And the game gives a sense of achievement as you progress.
Yeah, Jusant is totally in the line here : direct descendant of Journey, minimalistic and calm as an Ueda game, an eco-fable supported by a beautifully crafted science-fictionnal world. Less words, more emotions 😇
Amazing video! I especially loved the Bloodborne section because you put into words what I wasn't able to describe when experiencing the game (even though I never played it myself, I LOVED watching playthroughs). I don't know if "Detroit: Become Human" has been suggested already, but I think its main menu system would surprise you, not unlike Nier Automata's from what I can gather. In "Detroit", taking place in the near future, humanity is helped by robotic androids that are created to serve them. So naturally, the developers put an android on the main menu of the game, as a helpful companion who welcomes the player and interacts with you whenever you log into the game. But as the story unfolds, the androids start to break out of their program. They feel consciousness, feel emotions, gain free will... And so does the android on the main menu screen, even though she's not part of the story at all! She even ends up asking you for permission to definitively leave your game to find her own life purpose! Truly a great use of the medium imo.
Glad you enjoyed it so much! Honestly, any excuse to talk about Bloodborne is good enough for me haha. I played Detroit back in 2018, so it’s been a while. Your description really helped jog my memory, though. I completely agree-it’s such a clever moment.
Great video. Its so weird how we fight the pull in Shadow of the Collosus. Like as a gamer it's clearly progression but as Wanderer I fight it for a while despite knowing its futile before eventually letting go. And I've done this every playthrough. 🤔
This is an absolutely fantastic idea for a video, and excellently executed. Some of the games on this list are definitely on my mind and I think about them quite a lot because moments such as these just leave a very strong impression that no other medium can. I hope you make more volumes with more examples in the future, as there are definitely more of them. For example, you mentioned TLoU, but the second game has a moment like that at around its halfway point that no matter what camp you’re on regarding your opinion of the game (I’m on the side of people who loved it) - it garners a reaction out of the player that’s heavily tied to your perception of the story. Another example is Undertale. There are just too many moments to list, as the game does an excellent job of tracking your actions and letting you know that it does. It’s absolutely best to play it blind for that reason. I’ll mention one example in the next paragraph, but attempt to still be vague: Early on in the game, there’s a specific encounter that you have multiple ways of tackling, just like the game tells you - either peacefully, or not. But for that encounter, it’s not immediately clear how you can do it peacefully. The game knows that, because it goads you into what you might think leads to it, only to subvert it and lead to an unwanted conclusion. Shocked by this, I immediately went online to see how, and even IF at all, I can choose another outcome. Turns out, you can. But after doing that, going to the next save point, I suddenly encounter an antagonist. And it tells me it knows I loaded the game to change the outcome, and laughs. And the other example I sadly didn’t notice in the comments, but is definitely up there on my list of best moments of games used as a medium to tell their story is the “Zero Escape” trilogy. It’s a visual novel with “Escape room” puzzles in-between, with both story and gameplay being good at what they do. All 3 games have a late-game twist that heavily relies on it being a game. Ironically, they get worse at it with each title (Second game is still good, improves upon the actual story and puzzles, and the twist is great, but not as well executed as the first game, and… the third game is a huge disappointment), but the first game’s twist… It not only uses the game as a medium, but also the platform itself being a Nintendo DS with dual screens is used, making you do something completely unexpected. Anyone that played the game will immediately know what I mean when they think of THAT ONE SUDOKU PUZZLE. Highly recommended.
Thank you! I might do a part two in the future as I've got a ton of great recommendations in the comments. Undertale, Pathalogic 2, Disco Elysium, 1000xResist, OMORI and tons more (I still have to play all of these). If everything goes according to plan I'll feature TLOU2 in my next video which you'll probably enjoy. I still have a Nintendo DS lying around so maybe i'll look into Zero Escape, no promises though haha.
6:53 - it is not just one button press, but the game's actual mechanic. It was not just an arbitrary interaction to trigger the punchline, but the entire gameplay itself building up to it. That's why Brothers is the best video game as an artform to me.
Beautiful video! If you ever do a part 2 I'd like to suggest another beautiful small game called "Before your eyes" which uses blink detection from your webcam as the principal mean of gameplay. I don't want to spoil the story in case you want to play it
If I've learned anything being a gamer throughout my entire life, it's that video games have learned how to adapt other mediums, but no other medium is figured out how to adapt video games except maybe books
What a fantastic video, you've hit the nail on the head of exactly what needs to be highlighted right now. Thank you for putting this together, I will definetely be using it to explain my obsessions in the future to people lmao
fahk even in just a video essay the nier ending always has me tearing up... shit hit so hard in a dark moment of my life. The fact that I could help someone by giving up my save was so much more impactful then id ever thought it could be.
Thank you for this beautiful video. It encaptures exactly how I feel about videogames, my favorite medium and greatest passion. I hope more people see this video, because you did an amazing job. Keep it up!
Damn man this is one of the best gaming video essays. I think this topic you're talking about is the most important reason why I love games so much and why it's such a special medium of telling stories. Breaking "the 4th wall" of interaction in games is what make them unforgettable
Awesome video! I love how you manage to explain the entire game's medium, whether or not you've played it. I got teary-eyed again when you showcased the brothers-it truly is an absolute masterpiece.
am still recovering from the outer wilds post game depression and being hit with a section from outerwilds makes me want to cry all over again i love that game so much its such a life changer and as a game design student it makes me appreciate game devs that put in so much love and UGH im crying as i write this i love that game so much. also loved this video , thanks for making it and bringing attention to other games that i should look into :> cheers!
Fantastic video. Gaming is one of the best art forms out there because of the amount of immersion it is capable of achieving. Some notable examples I believe also deserve to be included in this discussion are the following: • Doki Doki Literature Club • Inscryption • Lisa: The Painful • Undertale • Hotline Miami • Fear & Hunger • Before Your Eyes • What Remains of Edith Finch • The Stanley Parable All of these titles break conventions and use video game tropes and expectations to either mess with the player or add to the story / gameplay.
Added them all to the list. I did play Doki Doki, Hotline Miami and Stanley Parable. I didn't care much for Doki but I really liked the other two games.
Brothers really got me. Great game. And I know there’s no shortage of people gushing about RDR2 online, but it really shook me to the core. I lived as Arthur, and bonded with members of the gang. It’s a long game, but I think the length is what makes it feel so personal and epic. A tv series can be long, but doesn’t hit in the same way a game does. The Last of Us also starts the game with the player controlling Sarah. It just hits that much harder when she dies. I love video games. lol. Great video!
I feel like another game that fits really well in this category is before your eyes, which is a story based game but every time you blink you skip ahead in time. It’s a really cool concept that is impossible to replicate in any other media.
Absolutely fascinating video! Really enjoyable from both a gamer perspective and a game dev perspective on incredible story telling and mechanics! Thanks for this one!
Fantastic video. As someone who loves video games as a medium, I love how you talked about how no matter how hard other mediums try, they cant replicate it. I'll say one of my fav games of all time is Hellblade Senua Sacrifice, and it does something in its mechanics and story that you describe in the first half of the video
Thanks, dude! I played Hellblade when it was first released, so it's been a while. What exactly are you referring to? I remember the binaural audio being really trippy and adding to the immersion.
@GameTalesHQ the final fight you have to fight your way to the antagonist but the waves never stops but the game doesn't tell you that. So eventually you have to let them defeat you
@@ZachAttackReviews Ah yes, I remember that. If I remember correctly, eventually the voices in your head start telling you to give up right? That's a really cool in-universe way of telling the player what to do, without resorting to text prompts or other immersion breaking tools. Good pick.
When playing resi or ico i couldnt help but feel that the isolation those games make you feel could ONLY be felt in the game. ico has a friend he cant talk to thats so helpless but she didnt feel like a chore, bc it immersed you into the shoes of a little boy saving a little girl, playing hero and in the end BEING a hero. And resident evil esp when it had tank controls made me feel so trapped narrow halls with no peripheral vision these zombie made me want to survive to see the characters get out, no anger just genuine fear and stress
Final Fantasy VII, with Sepbiroth dealing 4000 dmg with a hit during the flashback, so you can see his legendary strength when you barely make about 100 damage, or when your limit break is filled when "somebody" dies.
Amen. So many moments were made better because it was a game. The way Cloud is always telling everyone how to do stuff. The way everyone relies on him for truth. The midgar zolom. The way a tiny little secret nook in the game reveals that even what Sephorith believes about himself isn’t actually 100% true. Omnislash at the end! The date :) the way the characters stories hit harder because they are with you and you are an active participant in the story. Unlike tv where you watch and don’t participate. In games you participate. And that changes what you can do a lot. While sotc, soulsborne, hellblade etc are obvious choices; FF has a lot of great examples of video games that just wouldn’t quite be the same as a movie or show.
what a great video to watch, and when you explain the Nier section, it always bring me a tears whenever i heard that song, thank you for this video an dkeep up the great work you have done
I'd wager that fully embracing the medium is being more branching instead of cinematic. Thus, story generators like Kenshi are the "gamiest games" imho where each player will experience a completely different story unfold: something only a game can provide.
I’d like to add the general Xeno-series too, personally speaking. So much story and world building is done through gameplay and the Unique type of character interactions that usually only happens through the gaming medium. Also helps that games can be exorbitantly larger and more complex story-wise than most other mediums helps this game series put its best foot forward in every entry.
Fantastic work man, I really loved the longer length to be able to hit more games that have done it well. I also cant find a way to claim that XIII should have been included.
@ yeah it is. You’re not wrong that it’s oft forgotten about. I feel it was a major part of my life for a short sliver of time, and in the moment felt like it could last forever as a series. Now that I’ve gotten older I see that it was just a naive age and one of my first experiences with a “cliff hanger” ending that never got resolved with a sequel.
@@domhanson9167 Those couple of games that were your 'first' will always remain special, even though they're objectively not even that great. So I feel you. Sad that it never got that sequel.
Amazing video bro, amazing, and thank you for bringing back all my memories of playing shadow of the colossus, such a good video, liked and subscribed.
I could tell outer wilds was coming up by just those first notes. I can hear the wilds from anywhere. Thank you for talking about my favorite game ever
An absolute masterpiece of a video man. You make a point that a lot of people surprisingly miss about video games. I would recommend Persona 3 FES (dear god, not the remake), it beautifully utilizes the medium to tell an impactful story.
Having played most of the games featured in the video, been through various emotions these games elicit, this video made me feel the same emotions over again.
Incredible video, made me remember inFamous 2 which has a similar thing to The Last of Us & Shadow of the Colossus, though it is more simple and straightforward. In the ending (i believe only the good ending, i am not sure, since it's been a while since i played it, because it's stuck on the PS3) it takes a game mechanic you use throughout the story to upgrade your powers - charging a sort of tool with electricity, and adds a very humane twist to it. It is the the last action you make in the game and makes the controller literally become the symbol of the medium, connecting the player to the game and fully immersing you in it. A very simple thing, but one that can stick with you and turn an overall mediocre game to a good game, to something better. Totally worth playing it through yourself, just for the ending alone
Another one I can think of is Gris. It is a beautiful 2D platformer about Grief and the abilities you gain throughout the game mirror the process of grief. It's been a very long time since I have played it but I think at first you have to go through a sandstorm and you gain the ability to turn yourself into a block and stay in one spot so you don't get swept away. You still have to let the storm blow over to continue on but at least you are not at the storm's mercy anymore.
Amazing video! I'd also like mention that Far Cry 3 might also fit this category. It's story can surely be adapted to different media but I think it really only works the best as a game
Id like to add another game: Horizon: Zero Dawn. Granted it doesn't do a ton compared to the examples given, but it does do one thing i personally like: give you a reason to do the side quests. I personally believe any game with side quest has them because the character would have done each of them, so i will do every one before i finish a game. Horizon gives you a reason to do a few specificly. Obviously you can beat the game without them, but doing them adds more to Aloy's journey. Shes not just trying to learn about her past, shes trying to understand her world. The side quests involve: helping her people, saving someones sister, helping someone grow in hunting, and saving an heir. Obviously im simplifying these, but the point stands: Aloy as a person would do each of these, but theres no reason to do them. Her people outcasted her, the brother of the sister is some random petson you met, you gave no reason to care about the hunter, and the heir is related to the main villain
@@GameTalesHQ And I was NOT disappointed. Made me reminisce about my playthroughs, shed a tear for games I've never played or witnessed before and made me look deeper into the meaning of certain systems of games. Such a great video. I was here in the trenches, can't wait to see you reach 1 million subs one day. The sky isn't the limit, it's just the beginning!
the last guardian's use of its gameplay, specially near the ending and the ending itself, still breaks my heart... (its not for everyone, as for everything else, if you dont want to enjoy something you would endlessly find faults on it, if you want to enjoy something, you would appreciate it regardless of its faults. im not making excuse for it. but nowadays everyone feels like they need to be a connoisseur that gives critic to anything they touch instead of just appreciating whats in front of them as it is)
I think it's a good thing if a game is not for everybody. If you make a game that caters to everyone, no one will truly connect to it. If you make something unique, that's where you can truly reach people, and of course alienate people :)
While they certainly don't have the significance of the other moments mentioned in this video, there are 2 really clever uses of the medium in Simon the Sorcerer 3D (You are locked in a room with a couple of other characters and the trick of escaping is trolling one of them until he kills you and you respawn at the savepoint outside the house.) and Pony Island (During a simple text puzzle that requires you to pay attention, you are getting some fake Steam chat pop ups).
@@comradestannis To be honest, StS 3D isn't necessarily a game that I would recommend. The switch to 3D only makes the game look even older with large empty areas and NPCs straight out of Minecraft. The writing sometimes feels so cringe / bad like it is taken from some fanfiction. While you probably already know these 2 games, The Stanley Parable had some very clever moments with the interactive narrator and Undertale is just so much more than a simple game that it has been presented to the Pope as a gift.
Maybe its a stretch but I felt this with trying to 100% Fate Samurai Remnant. The game has 3 endings, with the true ending locked behind completing the others with NG+. However the part that stood out to me was the revelations about the main characters personality and motivations that only get shown in NG+, and how I the player felt the same boredom and desire for a true challenge that the MC did, culminating in a bittersweet ending that really drove home the themes.
I think that rain world is another game like this, but for different. Unlike all of these games, it has pretty much no narrative following the player(albeit with the hint of a larger narrative through the different campaigns), but forces you to think and act like a wild animal. It is a survival game not because you have to survive a specific challenge, but that you have to survive as an animal does. It is easily one of the most frustrating games I have ever played, but Ive still spent hundreds of hours on it because it is clear that the difficulty stems from the emergent behaviors from simple rules that simply feel natural. Its so difficult to explain why this game is good,but to me that may be because of the primal satisfaction of overcoming and surviving in a hostile environment.
Never played Brothers, but i almost cried listening to you explain the swimming mechanic
It's very touching and beautifully delivered trough gameplay!
Holy shit I did not heed this comment's warning and now I'm crying too 😭 That was trully inspired. Beatifully done.
The way i literally teared up BAD, it was uncontrollable
Yeah I broke down into tears....
I played this video in the background ehile I worked (I answer emails all day) and I had to payse just to deal with something as simple as using a different analog stick
Dropping in to say, that I've never played nor heard of the Brothers game, but here I am, weeping at the solution to the water "puzzle". That is incredibly powerful. Wow
I will now offer this video essay to anyone who is passionate about gaming . This just encapsulates the medium perfectly .
@@flyinggraysuns9620 Awesome, thanks for such a lovely compliment!
That last loom Trico gives the boy just before he flies away always WRECKS me.
So much tender emotion conveyed in a face that shouldn't be expressive at all. Sending Trico away always makes me cry.
SOMA is probably the scariest game I’ve ever played because once that existential crisis happens, everything after that suddenly becomes more terrifying because your mind begins racing trying to come up with answers for what it really means to exist. And to this day even watching some random UA-cam video on that game gives me some anxiety. That games plot was just. Terrifying on a cosmic level. They give you an excellent horror game that plays with your fears of the ocean and things running at you. And then when your mind is fragile they drop narrative bombs on you like the duplication scene.
Excellent video mate well done! This was well crafted and put together. Everything you brought up I felt deserved to be discussed in a video like this. Can’t complain man. Checked all my boxes
Hell yeah, glad you liked it! And for sure, SOMA does has some amazing themes.
In the early days of Cinema, films still largely resembled stage plays and vaudeville performances. Now that the medium has matured it is considered an art form.
Computer games are still early as well, we’re just starting to leave the early era actually. Games borrowing a lot from movies for methods of storytelling is just a growing pain of the medium.
Ironically I think films were better written, directed, and acted when still produced as if for the stage. Just my opinion, but nevertheless.
That said, often cinema and some devs like Kojima overdo it
As the other comment says here, it's better to focus on the heart which is the story and delivering the emotion well, without worrying if it is artsy or not
Same for poetry etc, people obsess too much over form and often say nothing
@@kaushalsuvarna5156 I think the story is the backbone of a film and the gameplay is the backbone of a computer game
@@liamcurran5612 of course, and e.g. MGSV has outstanding gameplay mechanics
Or for that matter any good platformer etc will live and die by mechanics alone.
But in games that have any kind of story at all, especially in the AAA space, they also live and die by the story, dialogue, VA, performance capture etc, in fact much more than the gameplay
@@liamcurran5612 also in that case story is not the backbone of a film, camera work and scene setting and, in general, direction is
For Nier Automata, I love that game to death but I'll never play it again because it just doesn't feel right after getting ending E. Absolute masterpiece of a game and story.
I've been wanting to play it again ever since I got ending E, but you're right, every time I think of doing it, it just feels wrong. I probably will eventually, because it is one of my favorite games of all time, but it's gonna be so weird when I do
I'm currently replaying it, now armed with new knowledge after beating Nier Replicant, and while it's really eye-opening to understand all the callbacks....it just isn't the same.
@@dylanwoods5944 Emil, Devola and Popola hit a lot harder once you've played Replicant
bruh I've played the game like 4 times already wtf
Major Journey spoiler:
My first play through with journey I met a player but I didn’t know the game had multiplayer, I legitimately believed it was a computer. I kept wondering to myself how they made such a complicated AI, I remember at the top of the mountain, I hesitated before walking in and the other guy stopped. He gave one pulse, and waited for me as if to nudge me on, then we walked through together. It wasn’t until the username of the player was revealed to me at the very end of the credits did I realize that was a person! I’ve never had an experience like that ever again in a video game.
That sounds so damn beautiful holy shit.....
This ending of Nier Automata is probably the only time that a game made me cry with something that wasn't a sad scene, it was at that moment where I realized that this game doesn't work in other media, it needs to be a game, that's the only way the weight of the final decision can be felt
Yoko Taro is a genius at utilizing the medium to its fullest
One of the most unique directors we have!
Fr, I'm about 2/3 of the way through replicant, and I think it uses the medium BETTER than automata. The game itself is not better, automata has far better combat, movement, side quests, but the way playing through route B changes the context of the story is absolutely brilliant, and I don't think automata really captured the same feeling until route C when you cycle through everybody
@@pogethedoge I also think the OG NieR has a better story overall. But ending E of Automata was something else.
I’m so glad to see TLOU here. People often label it as a “movie game”, but after watching the HBO show, I had a whole new appreciation for the little interactions during gameplay between Joel and Ellie
Right!? TLOU has a lot of these subtle moments that just didn't translate to the small screen.
It is a movie game 😂
I’ve never understood what the term “movie game” meant with regards to that game at all. It’s such a selectively used term with no clear definition.
Some argue that The Last of Us didn’t embrace the medium at all. But I disagree, and I think it’s actually underrated in what it does well when leveraging the strengths of being a computer game.
Does it borrow heavily from cinema? Yes, but honestly, I like the game a lot better than the HBO show, in terms of writing, structure and most of all, ironically, the performances.
@@EmberbloodIt’s a video game, genius. Look it up maybe 🤡👍.
I love your line of script where you say:
“aligning the game’s protagonist, with the person holding the controller”.
That really hits the nail on the head (for me) on what makes computer games such a special art form. Immersion at its finest.
Yes! Immersion is such a key ingredient for a memorable videogame.
When I first played Shadow of Colossus on the PS2, I was like, "this isn't a game; this is a piece of art".
You're not wrong. It was widely considered the first video game that is a gesamtkunstwerk. (lit. all-encompassing artwork)
Aka a piece of art that successfully encompasses practically all forms of art. First used for certain operas, especially Wagner's.
Then in architecture. Then movies. And now, for video games. And Shadow of the Colossus was the progenitor of that.
The interesting thing is, all the other mediums are comparatively limited in terms of art forms used.
They all have different forms of visual arts, for example, but they interactivity-as per the subject of this video.
Except for architecture, which got to its status _because_ of interactivity, _despite_ how many other categories it misses out on: music, characters, and arguably even a story.
Which makes video games, by default, _more_ of a gesamtkunstwerk than _any_ of its ancestors.
Finished Nier Automata a few weeks ago and I still can't comprehend the impact it had on me. It is not a game IMO, it an experience everyone should have. That is not to forget the exceptional music that lives rent-free in my head. I had the privilege of also watching the Nier orchestra and highly recommend you attempt that if you get the chance.
Thank you for the video and for some truly jaw-dropping experiences.
Oof, I'm jealous! I'd love to hear that orchestra live.
And thank you for commenting :)
The Brothers river moment made me sob when I played that game. The single most powerful mechanics-driven story moment I've played.
A good chunk of these games wouldn’t exist without Ico, which I think is THE perfect example of a medium-specific story. Fumito Ueda is a video game auteur like no other.
Yes, ICO is so good! I felt like I had nothing more to add, so I linked Max Derrat's video on it.
Very true, many of these games creators actually mentionned ICO at some point, as an inspiration that led them to work in the industry 🤍
@@AZAMA___The creator of the Souls series literally left his job at Oracle and decided to get into the games industry after playing Ico. That game is legendary
Ueda alongside others like Kojima have set the standards for Video Game Narrative Potential.
@@calummacritchie7840 I need to catch up on Kojima's stuff, haven't played anything by him yet.
I have heard of SOMA before but I had no idea what it was about but watching that segment of the video truly terrified me and made me tear up. What a phenomenal way to fill you with dread and feel true sadness for the main character. I'm not sure if I'll ever play it since I don't like horror but that short segment was one of the most terrifying uses of gameplay I may have ever seen
For a horror game, it isn't too scary. There's even an easy mode wich will trivialize the encounters. So on a brave day, you might be able to get trough! But yeah, that game gives you a different flavour of horror alongside the traditional scares: Existential horror.
I love subtle changes on gameplay depending on history, like Halo 3 odst, when you get all recordings and replay a mission where you help a guy, instead of helping, the reticle turns red, bc now we know he's an enemy thanks to the recordings
You’re the first creator to talk about brothers I’ve come across. It’s hard to describe how powerful that button press is, and how instant is the metaphor when you press it and feel it working. It literally is the button press that made me sob.
How??? That game was the essayist's favorite child for ~5 years after it came out. I saw dozens of videos about it.
So many people misunderstood Last Guardians nuanced controls and AI. They were complaining how hard it was to command him what to do. They entirely missed the point it was like training a pet. Videogames can tell such unique stories and it's a shame people fail to see the special things it's trying to do. Players don't "immerse" themselves. They just grind competitive games.
Good video.
Yeah, it's the commercial aspect of making it fun for as many players as possible vs the artistic vision. Sadly the commercial aspect usually wins, that's why we must cherish the games made by visionaries like Ueda and Taro.
i anticipated the last guardian for years.. it sucked. playing that game was constantly questioning whether it was completely glitched or deliberately not doing anything. my character got stuck in a tree at one point for so long i had to reboot the whole thing. huge tutorial prompts were still popping up in the final minutes of the game. and beyond basic stuff like the game actually working - the narrative was dated and obvious.
@@yeahiagree1070 The boy's controls felt very floaty, no doubt about that. As for the tutorial prompts? Totally unnecessary.
That said, my experience was different. Trico generally listened as long as I didn’t overload it with commands.
Ueda's stories have always been simple, it's the way they are told that make them special.
And that ending? I did not see it coming.
SPOILERS:
I fully thought Trico would die at the end.
@@GameTalesHQ i'm not even talking about interacting with the creature - i mean the game's camera controls barely functioned. the glaring technical issues ruined any potential emotional connection. it's the same narrative as ico - just worse.
Yes! I’m always mentioning the twist in Brothers as a great example of how to build drama and storytelling through gameplay, and not cinematics. Journey and Ueda’s games are also already classics examples of this as well.
A masterfully created 42 minute epic.
Thanks! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Agreed
17:33 Dishonored has a similar type of player tracking. You can beat the game without killing anyone. And you choosing to kill or not to kill not only determines the ending but it also determines how enemies react to you.
@@barskabdagl7701 True, I love that game! But Dishonored is up front about it's morality system, that's why I didn't mention it here.
Team Ico's can't be expressed better in any other form of media other than games. There's something beautifully tranquil and tactile that gives breath to those masterpieces
Ueda's philosophy of design through subtraction has always worked wonders. There is absolutely no fluff in his games. Everything is there for a reason.
i remember i got journey for free during some holiday sale on the playstation 4 and being stuck at one point just for another person to pop up for the first time in my playthrough and go through it like they've done it before, and during the last few sequences going through them all with another person. it really was a magic experience like no other. also this made me really want to play more games so i'm looking through the timeline avoiding spoilers and noting them to see which game i'll play next
@@YellowNotThe Awesome, all of them are worth playing!
I remember reading something about Alan Moore’s Watchmen. He said he wanted to write the story in such a way that it could only be properly portrayed in the form of a comic book. I think more games that are designed such that they could only be games will be what truly elevates gaming to the same level as other art forms
I feel like games are already on the same level as other artforms, but there is still is so much untapped potential.
Excellent work my man. Watched a friend play through SotC the other day and they ALMOST didn't grab during the ending. I was thinking "ah that's a shame" but then at the last possible second he grabbed on to the side of the well and held on until he couldn't anymore. Perfection.
Thanks dude, and thanks for bouncing idea's around with me! And yeah, it would be a shame if he didn't grab the ledge, good thing he did :)
Batman arkham knight for me is one of these games. There is the theme about madness and joker's passive influence which changes the statues, ads, posters and gargoyles decorating the city to the jokers face. If you look again it changes back to normal, took me hours playing to notice the first time.
This video was beautiful - teared up twice, thank you for making it.
I think a great example of games as a medium is Disco Elysium. The different skills you level up are actually different aspects of your charcter's psyche. The skills pitch in during conversations, offering their perspective on situations and conversations, and the more you level certain skills up, the more they take an active part, meaning your experience of the game is shaped by the choices you make in how you want your character to be
I’d highly suggest giving 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim a try. It’s the epitome of a story that only works in the format of the game and gameplay that only makes sense in the context of the story.
A genuine master class in using gaming as an art form
I like vanillaware as a developer, will have to check that game out in the future.
Without spoiling anything, Metaphor: Refantazio does some really clever things with its story that only works because it's a video game, and it's an amazing game to boot anyway, very highly recommend it
How lucky I am to have stumbled upon this video, it's right up my alley. Your voice is really nice as well.
Your*
Thank you, I'm glad you enjoyed it :)
i would put Undertale in this list as well, its so genius how it leads you in different directions just to show you that you have free will. if you play it conventionally, you will end up thinking of all of the different decisions you couldve made, all the paths you didnt take. it also plays with your savedata on the fight against flowey, and you have to reopen the game several times in order to keep fighting. You go through so much, and put the characters through so much, you break and you forgive, you fight and you laugh, and despite everything, its still you...
Journeys mp was so interesting. It was such a welcome surprise when someone would just show up when you were playing. You wouldn't see their name and could only see if you checked your recent players list
You wouldn't even know how long they'd be with you. It was quite poignant
A beautiful title that doesn't lose its power on subsequent playthroughs!
Didn't know about Nier Automata ending as I have never played it, but it sounds exactly like humanity most basic sacrifice: be saved and save others, even at the cost of our own life. It's like helping our parents when they get old, after everything they sacrificed for us, and us sacrificing for our children. Sacrifice is one of the most inspiring moves. And maybe, it's the reason why Warhammer 40k is not as crazy as it sounds in a futuristic intergalactic permanent war situation where people helps each other with anything to lose except its species.
Yes, when games can tap into these universal and human themes, they can be really powerful.
This is fascinating. I love the idea of games that couldn't exist as anything other than a game. As an aspiring developer, this is exactly what I want to accomplish: to create a game that takes full advantage of all the strengths of the medium
There's also the layer of meta games like Inscription and Doki Doki that rely on file snooping & manipulation to influence the game directly
I wasn't too impressed by Doki Doki myself, but that's probably because it was hyped up so much online. I haven't played Inscryption yet though!
Doki Doki really gets that aspect once you get into digging into the game files. It's asking a little much (probably intended as a communuty riddle) but makes for nice theory videos.
If I had to describe DDLC in relation to this video, it would be that it shows the possibility of what can be done with the medium. Especially since it is a visual novel, a genre of games that people used to say wasn't actual gaming.
@@JAMllostthegame For sure, it's a valid pick. I personally did not care for it though.
Jusant is a great indie game which released in the past year. It's a game basically about climbing. But the controls make you feel like you are experiencing the act of climbing throughout the whole game. It's far different than something like Assassin's Creed games where you simply push single button to automatically scale any surface. With Jusant you have to coordinate your climbing movements with various controller actions. And the game gives a sense of achievement as you progress.
Sounds awesome, added it to my wishlist!
Yeah, Jusant is totally in the line here : direct descendant of Journey, minimalistic and calm as an Ueda game, an eco-fable supported by a beautifully crafted science-fictionnal world.
Less words, more emotions 😇
Brothers A tale of two son...this game and the soundtrack will always stay with me. The emotional journey was too overwhelming
Amazing video! I especially loved the Bloodborne section because you put into words what I wasn't able to describe when experiencing the game (even though I never played it myself, I LOVED watching playthroughs).
I don't know if "Detroit: Become Human" has been suggested already, but I think its main menu system would surprise you, not unlike Nier Automata's from what I can gather.
In "Detroit", taking place in the near future, humanity is helped by robotic androids that are created to serve them. So naturally, the developers put an android on the main menu of the game, as a helpful companion who welcomes the player and interacts with you whenever you log into the game.
But as the story unfolds, the androids start to break out of their program. They feel consciousness, feel emotions, gain free will... And so does the android on the main menu screen, even though she's not part of the story at all! She even ends up asking you for permission to definitively leave your game to find her own life purpose! Truly a great use of the medium imo.
Glad you enjoyed it so much! Honestly, any excuse to talk about Bloodborne is good enough for me haha.
I played Detroit back in 2018, so it’s been a while. Your description really helped jog my memory, though. I completely agree-it’s such a clever moment.
Amazing video. Thank you so much! I'm still blown away by Soma's ending even though it's been years since I've played it...
Great video. Its so weird how we fight the pull in Shadow of the Collosus. Like as a gamer it's clearly progression but as Wanderer I fight it for a while despite knowing its futile before eventually letting go. And I've done this every playthrough. 🤔
Yep, the game does such a great job of aligning the player with the protagonist. Masterful stuff.
Great game, truly.
This is an absolutely fantastic idea for a video, and excellently executed. Some of the games on this list are definitely on my mind and I think about them quite a lot because moments such as these just leave a very strong impression that no other medium can.
I hope you make more volumes with more examples in the future, as there are definitely more of them. For example, you mentioned TLoU, but the second game has a moment like that at around its halfway point that no matter what camp you’re on regarding your opinion of the game (I’m on the side of people who loved it) - it garners a reaction out of the player that’s heavily tied to your perception of the story.
Another example is Undertale. There are just too many moments to list, as the game does an excellent job of tracking your actions and letting you know that it does. It’s absolutely best to play it blind for that reason. I’ll mention one example in the next paragraph, but attempt to still be vague:
Early on in the game, there’s a specific encounter that you have multiple ways of tackling, just like the game tells you - either peacefully, or not. But for that encounter, it’s not immediately clear how you can do it peacefully. The game knows that, because it goads you into what you might think leads to it, only to subvert it and lead to an unwanted conclusion. Shocked by this, I immediately went online to see how, and even IF at all, I can choose another outcome. Turns out, you can. But after doing that, going to the next save point, I suddenly encounter an antagonist. And it tells me it knows I loaded the game to change the outcome, and laughs.
And the other example I sadly didn’t notice in the comments, but is definitely up there on my list of best moments of games used as a medium to tell their story is the “Zero Escape” trilogy. It’s a visual novel with “Escape room” puzzles in-between, with both story and gameplay being good at what they do. All 3 games have a late-game twist that heavily relies on it being a game. Ironically, they get worse at it with each title (Second game is still good, improves upon the actual story and puzzles, and the twist is great, but not as well executed as the first game, and… the third game is a huge disappointment), but the first game’s twist…
It not only uses the game as a medium, but also the platform itself being a Nintendo DS with dual screens is used, making you do something completely unexpected. Anyone that played the game will immediately know what I mean when they think of THAT ONE SUDOKU PUZZLE.
Highly recommended.
Thank you! I might do a part two in the future as I've got a ton of great recommendations in the comments. Undertale, Pathalogic 2, Disco Elysium, 1000xResist, OMORI and tons more (I still have to play all of these).
If everything goes according to plan I'll feature TLOU2 in my next video which you'll probably enjoy.
I still have a Nintendo DS lying around so maybe i'll look into Zero Escape, no promises though haha.
6:53 - it is not just one button press, but the game's actual mechanic. It was not just an arbitrary interaction to trigger the punchline, but the entire gameplay itself building up to it. That's why Brothers is the best video game as an artform to me.
Yep, it's definitely up there as one of the very best.
Road 96 is a very underrated game, loved playing it
Beautiful video! If you ever do a part 2 I'd like to suggest another beautiful small game called "Before your eyes" which uses blink detection from your webcam as the principal mean of gameplay. I don't want to spoil the story in case you want to play it
Thank you! I haven't heard of that game before, sounds really interesting, added it to my wishlist!
@@GameTalesHQ It is free on Netflix. It's really great game
Sounds up my alley. Any other games?
Hellblade 1 does a fantastic job displaying trauma, schizophrenia, and inner/mental turmoil that would otherwise not work in any other medium
It was a great game, would love to see more of that kind of stuff from the AA scene. That binaural gives me goosebumbs every time.
If I've learned anything being a gamer throughout my entire life, it's that video games have learned how to adapt other mediums, but no other medium is figured out how to adapt video games except maybe books
What a fantastic video, you've hit the nail on the head of exactly what needs to be highlighted right now. Thank you for putting this together, I will definetely be using it to explain my obsessions in the future to people lmao
Glad you enjoyed it :)
fahk even in just a video essay the nier ending always has me tearing up... shit hit so hard in a dark moment of my life. The fact that I could help someone by giving up my save was so much more impactful then id ever thought it could be.
Thank you for this beautiful video. It encaptures exactly how I feel about videogames, my favorite medium and greatest passion. I hope more people see this video, because you did an amazing job. Keep it up!
@@Geoxje Thank you for the lovely comment :)
Damn man this is one of the best gaming video essays. I think this topic you're talking about is the most important reason why I love games so much and why it's such a special medium of telling stories. Breaking "the 4th wall" of interaction in games is what make them unforgettable
High praise! I appreciate that a lot :)
Awesome video! I love how you manage to explain the entire game's medium, whether or not you've played it. I got teary-eyed again when you showcased the brothers-it truly is an absolute masterpiece.
Thank you!
Video was well worth the wait! It's amazing how the medium of videogames allow for these truly unique and engaging moments.
Thanks mate!
am still recovering from the outer wilds post game depression and being hit with a section from outerwilds makes me want to cry all over again i love that game so much its such a life changer and as a game design student it makes me appreciate game devs that put in so much love and UGH im crying as i write this i love that game so much. also loved this video , thanks for making it and bringing attention to other games that i should look into :> cheers!
Cheers :)
Fantastic video. Gaming is one of the best art forms out there because of the amount of immersion it is capable of achieving.
Some notable examples I believe also deserve to be included in this discussion are the following:
• Doki Doki Literature Club
• Inscryption
• Lisa: The Painful
• Undertale
• Hotline Miami
• Fear & Hunger
• Before Your Eyes
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• The Stanley Parable
All of these titles break conventions and use video game tropes and expectations to either mess with the player or add to the story / gameplay.
Added them all to the list. I did play Doki Doki, Hotline Miami and Stanley Parable. I didn't care much for Doki but I really liked the other two games.
MYTHICAL RECOMMENDED PULL, i love love love when youtube randomly recommends small creators with amazing content
Hahaha thank you!
Brothers really got me. Great game. And I know there’s no shortage of people gushing about RDR2 online, but it really shook me to the core. I lived as Arthur, and bonded with members of the gang. It’s a long game, but I think the length is what makes it feel so personal and epic. A tv series can be long, but doesn’t hit in the same way a game does. The Last of Us also starts the game with the player controlling Sarah. It just hits that much harder when she dies. I love video games. lol. Great video!
RDR2 is an amazing title for sure! And yeah TLOU does some cool character switches, just like the winter section with Ellie. And thanks alot :)
I feel like another game that fits really well in this category is before your eyes, which is a story based game but every time you blink you skip ahead in time. It’s a really cool concept that is impossible to replicate in any other media.
That's a really cool concept, somebody else already recommended it to me. So it's on the wishlist!
@@GameTalesHQdefinitely a must play imo
What a video, you left me speechless as well as with the need to talk further about the topic. :)
Hell yeah, that's awesome!
Absolutely fascinating video! Really enjoyable from both a gamer perspective and a game dev perspective on incredible story telling and mechanics! Thanks for this one!
Thanks brother!
Fantastic video. As someone who loves video games as a medium, I love how you talked about how no matter how hard other mediums try, they cant replicate it. I'll say one of my fav games of all time is Hellblade Senua Sacrifice, and it does something in its mechanics and story that you describe in the first half of the video
Thanks, dude! I played Hellblade when it was first released, so it's been a while. What exactly are you referring to? I remember the binaural audio being really trippy and adding to the immersion.
@GameTalesHQ the final fight you have to fight your way to the antagonist but the waves never stops but the game doesn't tell you that. So eventually you have to let them defeat you
@@ZachAttackReviews Ah yes, I remember that. If I remember correctly, eventually the voices in your head start telling you to give up right? That's a really cool in-universe way of telling the player what to do, without resorting to text prompts or other immersion breaking tools. Good pick.
When playing resi or ico i couldnt help but feel that the isolation those games make you feel could ONLY be felt in the game. ico has a friend he cant talk to thats so helpless but she didnt feel like a chore, bc it immersed you into the shoes of a little boy saving a little girl, playing hero and in the end BEING a hero. And resident evil esp when it had tank controls made me feel so trapped narrow halls with no peripheral vision these zombie made me want to survive to see the characters get out, no anger just genuine fear and stress
I expected a nice essay about videogames, I received a life changing video that revitalized my love for this medium and almost made me cry in public
@@helenagallas5852 Thank you 🙏🏼
Brothers a tale of two sons is one of, if not my favorite game of all time. It's absolutely heartwrenching
Final Fantasy VII, with Sepbiroth dealing 4000 dmg with a hit during the flashback, so you can see his legendary strength when you barely make about 100 damage, or when your limit break is filled when "somebody" dies.
Amen. So many moments were made better because it was a game. The way Cloud is always telling everyone how to do stuff. The way everyone relies on him for truth. The midgar zolom. The way a tiny little secret nook in the game reveals that even what Sephorith believes about himself isn’t actually 100% true. Omnislash at the end! The date :) the way the characters stories hit harder because they are with you and you are an active participant in the story. Unlike tv where you watch and don’t participate. In games you participate. And that changes what you can do a lot. While sotc, soulsborne, hellblade etc are obvious choices; FF has a lot of great examples of video games that just wouldn’t quite be the same as a movie or show.
what a great video to watch, and when you explain the Nier section, it always bring me a tears whenever i heard that song, thank you for this video an dkeep up the great work you have done
Thanks mate!
Well… I’m subscribed now lol
Unreal work in the video. So well done, G ❤
Thanks broski!
Brooo this is my type of video best thing i watched all day. Good job man
Hell yeah, I appreciate that bro!
Not sure if IMMORTALITY meets your criteria for fully embracing the medium, but this video reminded me of it
I'd wager that fully embracing the medium is being more branching instead of cinematic. Thus, story generators like Kenshi are the "gamiest games" imho where each player will experience a completely different story unfold: something only a game can provide.
I haven't played it yet, looks super interesting!
@@Odisseia-hh2td This video was more focussed on more traditionally narrative driven games, but for sure; Kenshi is a true sandbox.
What's the game about?
I’d like to add the general Xeno-series too, personally speaking.
So much story and world building is done through gameplay and the Unique type of character interactions that usually only happens through the gaming medium.
Also helps that games can be exorbitantly larger and more complex story-wise than most other mediums helps this game series put its best foot forward in every entry.
Fantastic work man, I really loved the longer length to be able to hit more games that have done it well. I also cant find a way to claim that XIII should have been included.
Glad you enjoyed it! XIII is a first person shooter right? I think I saw a video on that game once, it's a game you don't hear many people talk about.
@ yeah it is. You’re not wrong that it’s oft forgotten about. I feel it was a major part of my life for a short sliver of time, and in the moment felt like it could last forever as a series. Now that I’ve gotten older I see that it was just a naive age and one of my first experiences with a “cliff hanger” ending that never got resolved with a sequel.
@@domhanson9167 Those couple of games that were your 'first' will always remain special, even though they're objectively not even that great. So I feel you. Sad that it never got that sequel.
Amazing video bro, amazing, and thank you for bringing back all my memories of playing shadow of the colossus, such a good video, liked and subscribed.
@@ghost_asçldkfj Thanks man, glad you enjoyed!
I could tell outer wilds was coming up by just those first notes. I can hear the wilds from anywhere. Thank you for talking about my favorite game ever
@@Amara87387 Beautiful game! And that soundtrack is magical.
An absolute masterpiece of a video man. You make a point that a lot of people surprisingly miss about video games. I would recommend Persona 3 FES (dear god, not the remake), it beautifully utilizes the medium to tell an impactful story.
Thanks man :) The Persona series is always a bit daunting for me, because the games take so long to complete. I'll give them a shot someday though!
my husband and I enjoy this video a lot! He also recommends the Lewis scene in What Remains of Edith Finch
Glad you guys liked it. I'll definitely have to play What Remains of Edith Finch sometime!
Thank you for this video. Gaming is not all about graphics and visual fidelity. Playing tetris or pacman floods us with fun childhood memories.
I've never played brothers, always meant to get to it... that spoiler has me in tears rn.
beautiful video, I loved watching it and hearing your insights
Having played most of the games featured in the video, been through various emotions these games elicit, this video made me feel the same emotions over again.
Incredible video, made me remember inFamous 2 which has a similar thing to The Last of Us & Shadow of the Colossus, though it is more simple and straightforward. In the ending (i believe only the good ending, i am not sure, since it's been a while since i played it, because it's stuck on the PS3) it takes a game mechanic you use throughout the story to upgrade your powers - charging a sort of tool with electricity, and adds a very humane twist to it. It is the the last action you make in the game and makes the controller literally become the symbol of the medium, connecting the player to the game and fully immersing you in it. A very simple thing, but one that can stick with you and turn an overall mediocre game to a good game, to something better. Totally worth playing it through yourself, just for the ending alone
Thank you! I'll keep inFamous 2 in mind :)
Great video, was invested every minute 👏
Hell yeah, thanks!
Another one I can think of is Gris. It is a beautiful 2D platformer about Grief and the abilities you gain throughout the game mirror the process of grief. It's been a very long time since I have played it but I think at first you have to go through a sandstorm and you gain the ability to turn yourself into a block and stay in one spot so you don't get swept away. You still have to let the storm blow over to continue on but at least you are not at the storm's mercy anymore.
SOMA rewrote my brain. That FEELING it gave me is something ill never forget.
Amazing video! I'd also like mention that Far Cry 3 might also fit this category. It's story can surely be adapted to different media but I think it really only works the best as a game
Thanks! I haven't played Far Cry 3, will get to it someday.
The brother swimming on his own almost making me cry bro. That's so sad.
It's very bittersweet!
Id like to add another game: Horizon: Zero Dawn. Granted it doesn't do a ton compared to the examples given, but it does do one thing i personally like: give you a reason to do the side quests. I personally believe any game with side quest has them because the character would have done each of them, so i will do every one before i finish a game. Horizon gives you a reason to do a few specificly. Obviously you can beat the game without them, but doing them adds more to Aloy's journey. Shes not just trying to learn about her past, shes trying to understand her world. The side quests involve: helping her people, saving someones sister, helping someone grow in hunting, and saving an heir. Obviously im simplifying these, but the point stands: Aloy as a person would do each of these, but theres no reason to do them. Her people outcasted her, the brother of the sister is some random petson you met, you gave no reason to care about the hunter, and the heir is related to the main villain
What a beautifully well-made video. Really appreciate all the spoiler warnings you put in too ♥
@@MaazQureshi12 Thank you!
I think Halo Reach's final mission objective is also a good example.
undertale also to track the players actions, it has like 93 endings because of this. though they can be grouped into 3 main "paths"
Yeah, I still gotta play that game. I'll get to it soon :)
@@GameTalesHQ i feel like it would fit this video, and best of luck in the underground
Yes a new video! Can't wait
I hope you enjoy it :)
@@GameTalesHQ And I was NOT disappointed. Made me reminisce about my playthroughs, shed a tear for games I've never played or witnessed before and made me look deeper into the meaning of certain systems of games. Such a great video. I was here in the trenches, can't wait to see you reach 1 million subs one day. The sky isn't the limit, it's just the beginning!
@@Tempuslight Thank you for the lovely comment, I truly appreciate it!
the last guardian's use of its gameplay, specially near the ending and the ending itself, still breaks my heart...
(its not for everyone, as for everything else, if you dont want to enjoy something you would endlessly find faults on it, if you want to enjoy something, you would appreciate it regardless of its faults. im not making excuse for it. but nowadays everyone feels like they need to be a connoisseur that gives critic to anything they touch instead of just appreciating whats in front of them as it is)
I think it's a good thing if a game is not for everybody. If you make a game that caters to everyone, no one will truly connect to it. If you make something unique, that's where you can truly reach people, and of course alienate people :)
amazing content man! subscribed
Glad you enjoyed it :)
While they certainly don't have the significance of the other moments mentioned in this video, there are 2 really clever uses of the medium in Simon the Sorcerer 3D (You are locked in a room with a couple of other characters and the trick of escaping is trolling one of them until he kills you and you respawn at the savepoint outside the house.) and Pony Island (During a simple text puzzle that requires you to pay attention, you are getting some fake Steam chat pop ups).
Cool stuff! Thanks for letting me know :)
Might play these. Any other recommendations?
@@comradestannis To be honest, StS 3D isn't necessarily a game that I would recommend. The switch to 3D only makes the game look even older with large empty areas and NPCs straight out of Minecraft. The writing sometimes feels so cringe / bad like it is taken from some fanfiction. While you probably already know these 2 games, The Stanley Parable had some very clever moments with the interactive narrator and Undertale is just so much more than a simple game that it has been presented to the Pope as a gift.
Maybe its a stretch but I felt this with trying to 100% Fate Samurai Remnant. The game has 3 endings, with the true ending locked behind completing the others with NG+. However the part that stood out to me was the revelations about the main characters personality and motivations that only get shown in NG+, and how I the player felt the same boredom and desire for a true challenge that the MC did, culminating in a bittersweet ending that really drove home the themes.
I don't know the game, but japanese developers seem to include stuff like this more often. Thanks for sharing :)
Bloody loved road 96! So happy to see praise for an amazing and underrated game ❤
Beautiful video. Truly, truly beautiful.
I think that rain world is another game like this, but for different. Unlike all of these games, it has pretty much no narrative following the player(albeit with the hint of a larger narrative through the different campaigns), but forces you to think and act like a wild animal. It is a survival game not because you have to survive a specific challenge, but that you have to survive as an animal does. It is easily one of the most frustrating games I have ever played, but Ive still spent hundreds of hours on it because it is clear that the difficulty stems from the emergent behaviors from simple rules that simply feel natural. Its so difficult to explain why this game is good,but to me that may be because of the primal satisfaction of overcoming and surviving in a hostile environment.
I've seen it mentioned a couple of times. It's on my wishlist!
This here's a banger, and I know bangers. Great video
Hell yeah