Taking a game's bad story seriously is freaking stupid

[MetalMusicMan]

Watching this totally over-the-top, retarded fan made video for Street Fighter really set me off... Videos like this just make it even worse, because they try so hard to be serious and it just ruins everything by doing so.  This crap isn't meant to be serious to begin with.

Street Fighter: Legacy	Small | Large

(Props to the director / editor of this, it looks great, despite being totally retarded / gay in every other possible way.  It seriously hurt my eyes to watch this over dramatic lawl-fest, but at least it looked pretty.)

Seriously, what is it with people who take the story lines of shallow games so seriously?  People who talk about the "awesome storyline" of games like Street Fighter are just very, very sad.  I don't think I've ever spent more than 30 seconds talking or thinking about the storyline, because I know it was put together by starved, crack-addicted hamsters during a tantric sex session.

"ZOMFG, RYU IS LIKE THIS LONE WARRIOR WHO TRAVELS THE WORLD AND HAS A DARK PAST AND STUFF AND KEN IS HIS FRIEND BUT THEY'RE ALSO RIVALS BUT MOSTLY FRIENDS AND THEY HAVE TO SAVE THE WORLD FROM [random event of terribleness]!!!"

Holy shit, that just blew my mind!

Don't get me wrong, I love Street Fighter and play it all the time and can't stop talking about it... but I'm not going to kid myself and try to pretend that a game based solely around multiplayer has a good storyline.  I can talk about Street Fighter all day, but I'm talking about GAME PLAY and game theory.

It's the same for games like Diablo, World of Warcraft, etc.  People want to read into a crappy storyline and make up this elaborate(ly bad) fiction in order to immerse themselves in the game universe.  Newsflash: you don't play any of those games to be immersed.  You play them to kick ass / improve yourself / play with friends, etc.  

If you want to be immersed, go play a game with a good storyline (pick a Valve or Bioware title and you can't go wrong).  If you want to test yourself and learn about game theory, play a good competitive game like Street Fighter or something.  I enjoy doing both, but I don't confuse the two.  

I certainly wouldn't spend 2 hours theorizing about the best possible combination of characters or moves in Baldur's Gate, because that game is made to be about the STORY first, gameplay second.  The opposite is true for Street Fighter, Brawl, Counter Strike, or any number of great competitive games with terrible or nonexistent storylines.  

If it's a competitive game, just play it, don't try to connect with the characters, because they're not meant to touch you on a deeper intellectual level.  That's the gameplay's job, not the character's job.

[Syphien]

Man, this silly stuff really sets you off lol.  I watched one that was a fight between ken and ryu and it was animated and stuff pretty damn well.  They weren't trying to show some awesome storyline but just cool animation and fight choreography. At least, that's what I got out of it.  If they were then shame on them lol. I thought it was pretty cool to watch.  Here's the link:

Street Fighter: Beginnings End	Small | Large

[MetalMusicMan]

I don't have a problem with generic, cool fight scenes.  It's like an action movie-- it knows it isn't winning any acting awards, so it just shows a lot of explosions and everyone has a good time.

...but when they try to throw in super dramatic music and try to make you "feel something" or whatever, it stops being cool and becomes really fucking stupid, lol.

[MetalMusicMan]

Oh also, Seth that video that you linked is pretty much exactly the same video as the one I linked... it's like almost an exact copy, lmfao.

[Syphien]

Oh also, Seth that video that you linked is pretty much exactly the same video as the one I linked... it's like almost an exact copy, lmfao.

If by the exact same you mean ryu and ken fight then sure.  They didn't have a super big story intro involving akuma and stuff.  Also, the one I linked was posted on SRK yesturday.

Don't get me wrong, by no means am I disagreeing with you in the fact that people take these poopy stories way to seriously.  

[MetalMusicMan]

But it's Ryu... walking around... in the woods... with whispy windy wind and leafy leaves... then seeing ken... then fighting him... WITH WHISPY WINDY WIND AND LEAFY LEAFY LEAVES!

[Syphien]

But it's Ryu... walking around... in the woods... with whispy windy wind and leafy leaves... then seeing ken... then fighting him... WITH WHISPY WINDY WIND AND LEAFY LEAFY LEAVES!

Right, all I said was the animation and fighting was cool haha.  I know it's a cheesy ass setup.  The fight choreography was no where near the same and the animation was a bit different as well .

[Alt-F4]

i definitely love the story lines for SF overall, but my love for them is much like the love a B-movie. Its dumb and stupid, occasionally kind of cool, but very, very fun.

[WarKirby]

i chuckle, because you're "counter point game" (windows vista issues, competive gaming, rpg examples, etc..) is always baldur's gate.
also, not to flame here or anything, but im sure there are tons of D&D junkies who would argue that gameplay is right up there with story in baldur's gate. Maybe not lan or tournament play, but still. In case anyone insists you to specify.

[sonchez]

thats not quite fair tho. story and competitive gaming don't have to be mutually exclusive. the character backgrounds add some flavour to otherwise stock characters. granted they aren't deep but not everything has to be. they might as well revert to using stick figures and plain white backgrounds because the visuals aren't important, right?. Let crytek handle those types of games. remove the music, its pointless, its not top  quality, leave the music the rock band.
Newsflash: if people are writing crappy fanfiction for WoW, they mostly like are playing for immersion in the game. Otherwise RP servers wouldn't exist.
not everyone plays the same games you do for the same reasons. there are artbooks, soundtracks, etc for SF out there. People buy them too, meaning that people see more than just the competitive aspect of SF as important. Just because the crappy storyline isnt the main draw of SF doesn't mean that there aren't people out there who enjoy it. To  give them shit because they enjoy a different aspect of the same overall community as you is just lame.

[Syphien]

I actually agree with you a little there sonchez.  I do think some games have very weak story lines but I still watch and / or read them because the game itself interest me. 

Also, I will tend to agree that people like the game for different reasons but that's why this is pretty opinion based.  I won't call someone stupid for really liking and thinking, for example, the street fighter story line however, that doesn't mean that the story isn't weak to most extents.  Then again, just because the story's weak doesn't mean the fights aren't less cool imo . lol

[MetalMusicMan]

i definitely love the story lines for SF overall, but my love for them is much like the love a B-movie. Its dumb and stupid, occasionally kind of cool, but very, very fun.

Winner!  This is exactly how the storyline for this series should be treated.  I love talking about Siberian Bear Cyclones with you, lmfao.

thats not quite fair tho. story and competitive gaming don't have to be mutually exclusive. the character backgrounds add some flavour to otherwise stock characters. granted they aren't deep but not everything has to be. they might as well revert to using stick figures and plain white backgrounds because the visuals aren't important, right?. Let crytek handle those types of games. remove the music, its pointless, its not top  quality, leave the music the rock band.
Newsflash: if people are writing crappy fanfiction for WoW, they mostly like are playing for immersion in the game. Otherwise RP servers wouldn't exist.
not everyone plays the same games you do for the same reasons. there are artbooks, soundtracks, etc for SF out there. People buy them too, meaning that people see more than just the competitive aspect of SF as important. Just because the crappy storyline isnt the main draw of SF doesn't mean that there aren't people out there who enjoy it. To  give them shit because they enjoy a different aspect of the same overall community as you is just lame.

They don't HAVE to be mutually exclusive, no... but they always end up being.  Funny how that works out.  Additionally, you can't even compare completely removing MUSIC to having a bad or good story.  I didn't chastise Street Fighter for trying to have a crappy side story, I chastised the fans for trying to make it more serious than it is.  Huge difference there buddy.

Also, it's really not lame at all.  All it is is common sense.  The storyline is TERRIBLE.  I think the characters are very cool-- I love all of the classic SF characters for various and very good reasons-- none of which are because they invoke emotion out of me.  Liking Blanka because he's goofy or liking Ryu because he is the classic cookie cutter good-guy-fighter archytype is fun, amusing, and valid.  Trying to claim that they have some kind of deep, underlying meaningfulness is not.

No where in my article did I say that competitive gaming was the pinnacle of life (that's in all my other posts!).  I actually specifically pointed out that playing a game just for story or enjoyment with no competitive intentions is perfectly fine-- why wouldn't it be?  I simply made the obvious and valid point that taking the storyline of a stupid game and trying to pretend it is somehow awe-inspiring is fucking retarded, because it is.  

i chuckle, because you're "counter point game" (windows vista issues, competive gaming, rpg examples, etc..) is always baldur's gate.
also, not to flame here or anything, but im sure there are tons of D&D junkies who would argue that gameplay is right up there with story in baldur's gate. Maybe not lan or tournament play, but still. In case anyone insists you to specify.

Yeah, Baldur's Gate has great game play, but it isn't competitive and it's not something that you can really get any real self growth out of.  Neither is Dragon Age, Mass Effect, etc.  You get that from story and character developement.  Good gameplay is a necessity for any good game, but with a story driven game, it's usually "good" because it flows naturally and doesn't inhibit you from immersing yourself-- not because it's challenging or competitive or capable of helping you with self improvement.

[sonchez]

They don't HAVE to be mutually exclusive, no... but they always end up being.  Funny how that works out.  Additionally, you can't even compare completely removing MUSIC to having a bad or good story.  I didn't chastise Street Fighter for trying to have a crappy side story, I chastised the fans for trying to make it more serious than it is.  Huge difference there buddy.

Also, it's really not lame at all.  All it is is common sense.  The storyline is TERRIBLE.  I think the characters are very cool-- I love all of the classic SF characters for various and very good reasons-- none of which are because they invoke emotion out of me.  Liking Blanka because he's goofy or liking Ryu because he is the classic cookie cutter good-guy-fighter archytype is fun, amusing, and valid.  Trying to claim that they have some kind of deep, underlying meaningfulness is not.

No where in my article did I say that competitive gaming was the pinnacle of life (that's in all my other posts!).  I actually specifically pointed out that playing a game just for story or enjoyment with no competitive intentions is perfectly fine-- why wouldn't it be?  I simply made the obvious and valid point that taking the storyline of a stupid game and trying to pretend it is somehow awe-inspiring is fucking retarded, because it is.  

the thing is, if they want to take is seriously, who cares. If they are chasing you down, and tying you to a post while they recite their fanfiction, well ok i can understand your anger. otherwise, its a who gives a crap concern. also it doesn't matter if they usually end up being mutually exclusive, both could exist without the other quite easily, so it doesn't matter in that regard. (Im not gonna comment on that anymore, we will end up arguing rhetoric. lol)
also "I'm not your buddy, guy!" lol

[MetalMusicMan]

I'm not your guy, friend!



Anyway-- who cares?!  Who cares?!?!!??!  THIS IS THE RANT BOARD, SIR!  It's very existence is to ridicule and belittle that which is retarded and shoved in one's face to the tenth degree of utmost pointlessness!

Honestly though, this kind of thing really is everywhere.  There were two of these released in one week, plus 1 or 2 in the last 2 weeks or so.  It just keeps happening, lol.  It's always bothered me with the Blizzard games, and the recent SF craze and people trying to make the story some kind of real life drama just pushed me over the edge.

[sonchez]

I'm not your guy, friend!



Anyway-- who cares?!  Who cares?!?!!??!  THIS IS THE RANT BOARD, SIR!  It's very existence is to ridicule and belittle that which is retarded and shoved in one's face to the tenth degree of utmost pointlessness!

Honestly though, this kind of thing really is everywhere.  There were two of these released in one week, plus 1 or 2 in the last 2 weeks or so.  It just keeps happening, lol.  It's always bothered me with the Blizzard games, and the recent SF craze and people trying to make the story some kind of real life drama just pushed me over the edge.

I'm not your friend, buddy!

I RESERVE THE RIGHT TO ANTI-RANT ANY RANT!......Let me check with my associate quickly on this matter.............MY BASSET HOUND AGREES! WE WILL ANTI-RANT THIS RANT!

lol i generally just avoid those books, for example, i love knowing more of the story in the halo series. The books have some bad writing tho....therefore i just use Wikipedia or a equivalent wikia site. as a result i could care less about how crappy the material is, i got the information i wanted in a painless manner lol.
If you get a chance, check out Deadly Premonition for the xbox360. The story is completely B- movie stuff, but it does it in a kind of self aware self deprecating way. its only 20 bucks so if you dont like it, its not like it will ruin you. also the graphics are horrible..lol. Its actually a bit creepy at times tho, so its staving off my survival horror withdrawal for awhile. (alan wake please don't disappoint)