I agree as I'm suffering from cutscene syndrome with Metal Gear Solid 4. Some of the cutscenes are like 30mins.

I agree, I would rather have the cutscene take place during the game itself, a la half-life.

Also, I'll add that Metal Gear and Mass Effect are really annoying to play because the gameplay is totally not fluid.

Well said, i agree.
If the gameplay doesn't match up with the graphics or story the game ends up unbalanced.
But it's not like every game gets it wrong, some balance the gameplay to match the story, like Infamous for exmpl
But others as you mentioned focus too much on one thing but not another, they focus too much on the epic cutscenes rather than the gameplay.

it's shame cause if done well a great cutscene can set the mood of the game through good story telling.
Like i remember the cutscene from FF10 and how great it set up the premise for the game.

Idk.

I love watching me some cut scenes, especially when it is related to Final Fantasy games after 7.

The combination of have the feel that you are watching a movie then it jumps into gameplay is pretty great.

Uncharted is a good seamless example of excellent cut scenes merged with gameplay. There is a long list of games but I don't feel like going into it. Cut scenes have come a long way and I don't even feel like that is an issue anymore where the cut scenes exceed the gameplay. They usually work together and go hand in hand.

@DJ

Exactly, if done right it only enhances the experience..
ofc it also depends what kinda game you get, if you get action game with lots of cutscenes and quick time events you can't really complain if the game didn't promise more than that.

For exmpl i don't like God of war and that's their basic formula, i already know what to expect from the GOW games so instead of expecting more from them i just move on to a game that is more to my liking.

Well consider the games, Mass effect is basically an erotic sci fi novel and MG is all about government conspiracies, both games are story driven if it didn't have long ass dialogues and cut scenes the story wouldn't have alot of depth.

At least in those 2 exmpls the gameplay do comes secondary and it's not fluid cause you have to process alot of information. but still, both games have decent enough gameplay imo

Aye, Half-Life pretty much nailed it in terms of seamlessly integrating cutscenes and narrative into the game. The way the entire game including every cutscene is seen from Freeman's perspective is very clever. It's surprising more games don't follow suit because the sense of immersion it creates is stunning.

Funny how innovation in the industry means catching up to Valve...

And it's not only the dynamic cutscenes with Half-Life, but also the 'silent protagonist' that I like. Dead Space (1) and the Legend of Zelda also employ the silent protagonist, and nobody can argue that both of those were well done.


Valve is hands down my favorite game developer. Their goal is not to make money, and they're all about the games and the people who play them. Steam and the simply outrageously cheap deals they offer nearly everyday through Steam are evidence of that.

The Take-Two Interactive conglomerate of 2K Games/Rockstar Games is a VERY close second because they've yet to release a game I have not enjoyed, from NBA 2k to Borderlands to Civilation to the unbelievable Grand Theft Auto. Take-Two is a tad more interested in the money than Valve, but they make great games so I'll excuse it.

A Grown-Ass Man's Guide To Super-Hard Old Nintendo Games

Read this article today and it made me think of the OP.

He is so spot on about that stupid Top Gun game. I remember landing on the aircraft once but out of all the times I tried. It definitely wasn't worth it. I came nowhere near close to beating that game.

I disagree about Mike Tyson's punch out. I ****ing rip that game.

Everything else is pretty accurate about the games on the list that I have played. I remember being annoyed by Battle Toads a lot.