Cinematics in Games

[TheOneFreeMan]

I'm just playing Halo for the first time (I've never played on consoles before, I know I'm very behind the times on this one). While the story is very good, I couldn't help but notice the liberal use of cinematic cut-scenes as the main vehicle for storytelling in-game. Some of the cinematics are also very long, 2-3 minutes in the middle of the game seperating levels. This got me thinking ... are cinematics in games a good thing or a bad thing?

I know a lot of narrative theorists now believe that cinematics are bad because they break the illusion of immersiveness in a game; it's hard to stay immersed when you're taken out of the game for a little bit. Half Life kind of kicked off the concept of a "blank slate" player character, where the player character is completely mute and you have control over them at all times, the thinking being that if you have no personality in the character you're controlling you are more able to project your own onto that character and get immersed with the game and story. F.E.A.R., Bioshock, Half Life 2, etc ... a lot of developers are using this technique now for FPSs.

But if you have a cinematic, you lose that control. You have to watch your character doing things, talking to people without you having interactivity ... and surely interactivity is the very thing which makes us play the games instead of watch a movie instead. I certainly prefer first-person games where I have control all of my character all the time; apart from anything else it increases tension because you never know what might happen even when major plot events are happening. It keeps you on your toes and involved with the game, even if your input isn't ultimately needed for the game to progress at that point.

On the flip side though ... I am enjoying Halo's story. It's definitely a good plot, cinematic cut-scenes or not. And just look at the Mafia 2 E3 demo. I don't think anybody's going to be criticising that game's story because it has cut scenes.

What are your thoughts?

 

[Barnz]

I am enjoying Halo's story.

What did you just say? I can't hear you.

 

[Cornerstone]

While the story is very good

Stopped reading here.

 

[PimpinPenguin]

I love Cinematics in games apart from the Metal Gear Solid series, they are way too long and shit.

 

[Shem]

I think cinematic cutscenes are a good way for players to see something relatively awe-inspiring. I think Crysis was fairly well in doing this, they were able to show the players something very cool. I remember one of the cutscenes in Crysis where a jet crashes into a tree and explodes in a burst of flames. I probably wouldn't have missed it if there wasn't a cutscene, but the way the camera was positioned made it look really good.

 

[ríomhaire]

You think Halo is liberal in the use of cutscenes? Try playing some Japanese games!

Cutscenes are a fine way to progress the story/show the player something important, if done properly. Games where you get a cutscene every time you walk into a new room (also known as Japanese games) are annoying as hell.

 

[TheOneFreeMan]

Stopped reading here.

Most people I've talked to about Halo have that attitude, recently. I think the Halo franchise has been exploited so much that people have become a bit jaded, really.

I'm just playing it for the first time, and my impression is that while a lot of the dialogue is cheesy, the main plot is sound. While their methods of telling it could be better, and it's not got the depth of something as well written as HL2, the story is a good one and did the job. Make fun of me for that opinion if you will.

You think Halo is liberal in the use of cutscenes? Try playing some Japanese games!

Good point. I should have excluded those from that statement.

 

[jverne]

i in general like cut scenes...gives you a break and time to relax and watch the scenery. of course they must be properly made, for not to be in the way.

as in a cut scene should leave you enough time to react...let's say before the big boss fight. quake 4 had many such cut scenes just before some major battle, but i think they inserted enough delay to allow you to react.

 

[Qonfused]

I hate quick time events in cut scenes. Get those out of here.

 

[Warped]

I love cutscenes. in fact though, I like the high production values of cutscenes more than the cheap old in game cutscenes you see everyday now (sorry Valve) and games like FFX, and God of War 2 were really special because of the movie like cutscenes. i always looked forward to watching them

 

[kupocake]

FPS and Cutscenes. No. They break character continuity and if Halo is anything to go by, they are generally a poor piece of adhesive between a designer's attention-deficient need to visit every goddamned terrain type imaginable.

Actually why I rate Halo 2 a little higher. Because having two protagonists put two fingers up at character continuity from the start and the whole, dated mechanic was excusable as a result.

 

[Darkside55]

Cutscenes serve a few (arguably) beneficial purposes. By taking away control from the player, the developer is free to advance the story without worrying that the player will interfere or miss the scene by looking in the wrong direction at the wrong time. Cutscenes can also show the player's character doing things that the player could ordinarily not do through gameplay, or with dynamic angles that the in-game camera wasn't made to show. In addition to that, cutscenes can also be presented in a different style than the in-game engine; CG rendering for higher detail, or an animated style are two examples.

Cutscenes have also long been used as a reward for the player: "If I beat this level, I'll be able to see what happens next!" That can be a powerful motivator to keep the player engaged. It also provides a break, a chance to kick back from the action and relax. You'll notice that in Half-Life, where there are no cutscenes, this reward system is still in place--after a particularly hectic action setpiece you're given a vista or some downtime to listen to NPCs talk.

Speaking of Halo, think of when you meet the Gravemind in Halo 2. If you still had control over your viewpoint, being able to look around while dangling from one of the Gravemind's tentacles, would that have made the experience any better? Would it still be such an awesome scene if you could only view it from first person? I personally don't think so. If you think of Metal Gear: Twin Snakes, there's a lot of cool things Snake does that just wouldn't fit if you were controlling him during those sequences. In fact, you COULDN'T do those kinds of things; you'd be introducing mechanics into the game for very specific things. Even if you had them as a quick time event, it would not be as cool.

So cutscenes still serve a purpose and aren't likely to go anywhere anytime soon.




Also to everyone in this thread who said "hurr hurr Halo story," THE GRAVEMIND. Your argument is invalid. Also, "Your destruction is the will of the Gods, and we are their instrument." You know you love that shit. Don't lie to me.

 

[Remus]

I'm fine with cutscenes if they aren't too frequent. One cutscene at the end of a level is fine, but having one mission littered with cutscenes interrupting the gameplay would be annoying as hell.

Like Warped said, I also prefer high production value CGI cutscenes like the ones from Blizzard, in game cutscenes are ok but only if the game engine is capable of high quality graphics. For example the ingame cutscenes in command and conquer generals were horrible.

That aside, I absolutely hate quick time events they feel so contrived and unnecessary. I also hate the type of cutscene where you meet the villain of the respective game and in the cutscene you get incapacitated, captured, etc. It's been done to death and it's absolute bull shit!

 

[Darkside55]

quick time events they feel so contrived and unnecessary

Respectfully disagreed, because Shenmue and Die Hard Arcade.

 

[Letters]

I like cutscenes, but far too often they are either unpausable, unskippable, or both, which can suck.

For example, having a cutscene that you can't skip right before a boss fight where you're likely to die is just awful.

 

[kupocake]

Also to everyone in this thread who said "hurr hurr Halo story," THE GRAVEMIND. Your argument is invalid. Also, "Your destruction is the will of the Gods, and we are their instrument." You know you love that shit. Don't lie to me.

Nearly had to wiki to work who you were talking about, and I don't mind Halo's story.

Cutscenes have also long been used as a reward for the player: "If I beat this level, I'll be able to see what happens next!" That can be a powerful motivator to keep the player engaged.

This ultimately just exposes the fact that some 'games' simply suck.

 

[Darkside55]

How does that suck? You're getting a reward for your progress...this is the basis that video games are built on! Progress = reward!


Also you had to wiki the Gravemind? I am sad. More people should know of the Gravemind.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhx4ZAH_Md4

 

[TheOneFreeMan]

I'm going to purposefully ignore all references to said Gravemind, as I still haven't finished Halo 1, and am going on to Halo 2 afterwards.

Are cut-scenes really an appropriate reward for completing a level, though? In a way it just enhances the level based structure of the gameplay, which makes you very consciously aware of the fact that you're playing a game instead of playing a part in a story. Take the ending of Half Life 2: Episode 2 ... it's effectively a cut-scene to end the game on. Yet you still feel like you're in control because you have freedom to look around wherever you like, zoom in, and the like. If it was a cinematic cut-scene, would it really have had the same emotional punch?

 

[Darkside55]

Yes. Plenty of games still carry emotional weight even when you lose control. It's like saying, "Would watching a sad movie still make you feel sad since you can't make the actor on screen look around at what you want to focus on?"

Valve has already talked about techniques they use to lure the eye anyway, so while you're perfectly able to look around they're still subtly directing your view to look at what they want you to look at. In essence you're still viewing a cutscene...you can simply choose to point your view away from whoever's talking and focus on whatever knickknacks you find in the level. But who's really going to do that the first time around?

 

[Hurricane]

I actually like cutscenes better because they give the character at least a little personality. Some people might say that reduces your ability to become immersed in the story, but you usually forget about it as soon as the action starts up again. Did the fact that Dom was shown in a cutscene with his wife make Gears 2 any worse? No. What it did was build up his character's story and make you relate to him, so that, when she died, you would get upset and angry with him (although probably not to the same degree).

 

[Darkedge34]

What did you just say? I can't hear you.

This.

 

[Qonfused]

Respectfully disagreed, because Shenmue and Die Hard Arcade.

Okay fine. But not totally. They still suck, except for those examples.

 

[Krynn72]

I like cutscenes. When done right they are a nice break from active gameplay. Pacing is of the utmost importance when deciding where to put them though, and if you mess up the pacing, people will start to hate it. IE: MGS and Final Fantasy.

 

[theotherguy]

I like valve's philosophy in that the player should feel like they themselves are a character in the game, at least with FPS games. Having cut scenes that show the player's character, and speech that the player doesn't control, can all detract from this experience.

Valve still has cut scenes, but they never take control completely away from the player. They employ various tricks to keep the player focused on important plot points, but they never overtly take control away from the player. (Well, except for rare moments in the Citadel or when you are knocked unconscious.) The camera certainly never leaves the player's vantage point.

But cutscenes are not all that bad. If the style of the game calls for a strong, deep central character, or has very important story elements that must be presented, then a cutscene could be necessary. For instance, I would much rather hear witty dialogue coming from my character during a cutscene than while I'm playing. (Sorry duke nukem.)

 

[13LACKBISHOP]

I don't mind cut scenes. Apart from when they do a CGI cut scene in the middle of a normal cuts scene. Thats really annoying. As for the let the player stay mute and look around to help immersion in some weird way I am like the opposite. I pick up on it when I play games. Also it feels so unnatural when characters don't speak. I think It breaks immersion because if you were there you would speak so I pick upon it. Like in the thief games were garret used to say things like "a throne room, how pretentious" it just helps the immersion in some unexplainable way. Also I like to BE the character I am playing. For example if I am playing the hit man games I find its best to use the third person because It makes me feel like I AM mister 47. Like I am a hit man. The only times I like those sort of cut scenes is when I play custom characters.

 

[Lobster]

The thing I always found odd about HALO, is master chief will say nothing for 95% of the game, and then randomly say 4 or 5 words in odd places. It seems like they almost as went as far as to have him say nothing ala Freeman, then suddenly decided to give him a line of dialogue two thirds of the way through, If you are gonna give the player words, then at least make it consistant.

I dont hate cutscenes, but I do prefer the way valve handles things, they are the only company I know that have put time and effort into making interactive dialogue scenes where characters can deliver complex gestures no matter where you are standing in the room, the best example for me is when you arrive at Black Mesa East in Half-Life 2 and while you are able to explore the lab itself, Alyx and Mossman start having an argument, if you then look at Eli he looks directly at you and rolls his eyes before interupting them, its subtle but its just what makes the Half-Life games unique in my mind. There are rare cases where control is removed, but they are cases where Gordons control is also taken from him, like the prison pod in the citadel, or the trippy gman scenes.

Bioshock maintained first person for the entire game, but the few characters you acctully met face to face were not agile enough to really convey the same kinda dynamic motion when they gave lines, so the control was locked off, which was a shame. FarCry 2 also stayed devoted to first person and allowed you to move during the dialogue scenes, and even did some neat AI stuff for when you turned your back on people, sadly the dialogue was pretty badly put together, and no one seems to breath for the entire game, which kinda ruined it.

I guess what im saying is, I can accept cutscenes if the game needs them due to the fact the assets or tech make delivering complex infomation in the game itself difficult. But I do wanna see more effort put into using and expanding upon the Half-Life method of doing things.

 

[Qhartb]

I like both ways. Half-life-style non-cutscenes are definitely much more immersive. I hope to see more developers exploring alternatives to traditional cutscenes. Cutscenes create a barrier between gameplay and story progression. However, that isn't always a bad thing -- a well-crafted cutscene can be a satisfying reward for completing a section of gameplay. Letting the player feel completely in-control of their character is a worthy goal, but it shouldn't be the number-one priority of every game to be developed.