Nintendo Was Hard Pt. 2: Story vs. Discovery

To make my point here, I’m going to break down the ways video games motivate us to play into two categories: story and discovery.  Consider Oblivion; the game had a distinct (if somewhat uninteresting) central story that dictated its action and progression.  It also had a strong emphasis on exploration (which was more interesting than the story, but that’s neither here nor there) and discovery.  Here’s where things get tricky: it also had an RPG skill development model, which, in my taxonomy, falls under discovery – the unlocking of new gameplay elements.

Nintendo Was Hard, Is That Important?

I’ve been playing Metal Gear Solid 4 recently, and I’m quite pleased with the game.  Really, any game that starts off with a fake interview with the actor who voices the main character, dressed up like the main character, but promoting something other than the game…

Oh, and the actor’s name is David, and then later in the game Snake’s “mom” calls HIM David…

It’s all so meta, it gets me all tingly.