Is there any way to make games that don't involve copious amounts of killing?

Like, by the time you finish a typical Call of Duty game, you are a mini-genocidal maniac having killed hundreds of enemy soldiers.

Is there any way to make a shooter game that doesn't have you committing mass murder? I don't think any human being has ever killed more than say, 50 people in personal combat.

Stealth Games like Dishonored, Tenchu, Metal Gear Solid and Splinter Cell often reward you for not killing anyone or only target persons. And in some of them, even killing target persons is optional.

Play portal 1 and 2.

Deus Ex: HR.

You can play the whole game without killing anyone except bosses.

in terms of shooters, you actually cannot kill anything in everyday shooter. it's really about the act of creation despite using the shooter genre as a base. the targets are so abstracted that it puts the focus on the theme rather than any immediate action.

can there be a war game without killing (or the ordering of killing like in a strategy game)? i still think abstraction would be key as this year we saw the revamped release of closure (not a shooter), which is a game about death except it features no killing. a change in design priorities would also work. i know there was a game in development where you play a combat reporter who obviously wouldn't take part in the fighting, but i haven't heard anything about it in a while. however, a game like this just wouldn't make a AAA release right now because more people want to shoot guns instead of pictures.

I guess the best answer is the stealth-action genre.

I hate stealth games, unless the involve predator elements. Like Rocksteady's Batman and both Prototype games (yes, Prototype has the best stealth ever !).Lulekani

[QUOTE="Lulekani"]I hate stealth games, unless the involve predator elements. Like Rocksteady's Batman and both Prototype games (yes, Prototype has the best stealth ever !).Justforvisit

[QUOTE="Justforvisit"]

[QUOTE="Lulekani"]I hate stealth games, unless the involve predator elements. Like Rocksteady's Batman and both Prototype games (yes, Prototype has the best stealth ever !).MaskedPlayer

Sure, there are a bunch of games that don't involve necessary killing.

Minecraft, Portal, Limbo are just a few of them.

I always find it a little funny myself that people love characters like Nathan Drake who are basically mass murdering psychopaths. I think Drakes body count by the end of his three games is north of 3000 people, and I am not exaggerating either i'm pretty sure you kill about 1000 people in each game. Suck on that Ted Bundy!GodModeEnabled

EXACTLY. I was definitely thinking about Nathan Drake.

LIke, he seems like a cool typical guy (def one of the better depictions in games) but then there are the bodies. Even the boss at the end of Uncharted 2 sorta makes a reference.

I dunno, it's like you need to establish some sort of gameplay, and like if Drake basically didn't fight until boss battles, then the player wouldn't know how to handle him in a gun fight.

Which might make it cooler? henchmen battles are almost always forgettable anyways. Maybe those games should only feature "boss" battles

I always find it a little funny myself that people love characters like Nathan Drake who are basically mass murdering psychopaths. I think Drakes body count by the end of his three games is north of 3000 people, and I am not exaggerating either i'm pretty sure you kill about 1000 people in each game. Suck on that Ted Bundy!GodModeEnabled

I think the player has to suspend their disbelief to a degree in these situations. In the gameplay, yes, Drake kills thousands of enemies. Do I actually seriously take that into consideration as part of the story? Not really. There's a disconnect between story and actual gameplay, and I think that's why you get people who like Drake and characters like him. Now if Drake was mowing down characters during cutscenes of the story, I think that would be a different thing.

[QUOTE="GodModeEnabled"]I always find it a little funny myself that people love characters like Nathan Drake who are basically mass murdering psychopaths. I think Drakes body count by the end of his three games is north of 3000 people, and I am not exaggerating either i'm pretty sure you kill about 1000 people in each game. Suck on that Ted Bundy!Vari3ty

I think the player has to suspend their disbelief to a degree in these situations. In the gameplay, yes, Drake kills thousands of enemies. Do I actually seriously take that into consideration as part of the story? Not really. There's a disconnect between story and actual gameplay, and I think that's why you get people who like Drake and characters like him. Now if Drake was mowing down characters during cutscenes of the story, I think that would be a different thing.

Maybe those games should only feature "boss" battles

taiwwa

This kinda reminds me of Indiana Jones, and how he's portrayed as this bad-ass archeologist, when in reality the job is mostly paperwork and brushing of dirt to uncover a bone :)

I would think the reason for all the killing is because you need to be doing something constantly in a game to keep your interest. I don't know how well a game like Uncharted would work if you had to spend time reading, then driving to a location, exploring it, and finally leaving.

[QUOTE="GodModeEnabled"]I always find it a little funny myself that people love characters like Nathan Drake who are basically mass murdering psychopaths. I think Drakes body count by the end of his three games is north of 3000 people, and I am not exaggerating either i'm pretty sure you kill about 1000 people in each game. Suck on that Ted Bundy!Vari3ty

I think the player has to suspend their disbelief to a degree in these situations. In the gameplay, yes, Drake kills thousands of enemies. Do I actually seriously take that into consideration as part of the story? Not really. There's a disconnect between story and actual gameplay, and I think that's why you get people who like Drake and characters like him. Now if Drake was mowing down characters during cutscenes of the story, I think that would be a different thing.

[QUOTE="taiwwa"]

Maybe those games should only feature "boss" battles

Grieverr

This kinda reminds me of Indiana Jones, and how he's portrayed as this bad-ass archeologist, when in reality the job is mostly paperwork and brushing of dirt to uncover a bone :)

I would think the reason for all the killing is because you need to be doing something constantly in a game to keep your interest. I don't know how well a game like Uncharted would work if you had to spend time reading, then driving to a location, exploring it, and finally leaving.

It would actually be pretty simple. Make it so that he has to stealth his way past them. I mean, each of the guys he kills is like some Serbian mercenary, right? Drake couldn't take on 1/2 of those guys if you're being consistent.

It would be more interesting if Drake had to figure out how to avoid them and find clever ways of escape, rather than just Rambo'ing his way through.

[QUOTE="GodModeEnabled"]I always find it a little funny myself that people love characters like Nathan Drake who are basically mass murdering psychopaths. I think Drakes body count by the end of his three games is north of 3000 people, and I am not exaggerating either i'm pretty sure you kill about 1000 people in each game. Suck on that Ted Bundy!Vari3ty

I think the player has to suspend their disbelief to a degree in these situations. In the gameplay, yes, Drake kills thousands of enemies. Do I actually seriously take that into consideration as part of the story? Not really. There's a disconnect between story and actual gameplay, and I think that's why you get people who like Drake and characters like him. Now if Drake was mowing down characters during cutscenes of the story, I think that would be a different thing.

Tetris is pretty good :P

I always find it a little funny myself that people love characters like Nathan Drake who are basically mass murdering psychopaths. I think Drakes body count by the end of his three games is north of 3000 people, and I am not exaggerating either i'm pretty sure you kill about 1000 people in each game. Suck on that Ted Bundy!GodModeEnabled

But that wouldn't be considered murder now would it? Think about it, he kills pirates who try to kill him. He kills a private army working under a war criminal. He tends to kill those in his line of work. Not saying he never kills somebody he maybe shouldn't from time to time. But calling the character a massmurderer seems harsh.

Not like the guy is walking around pumping bullets into unarmed civilians and burning down villages.

You can clearly play Uncharted so that you'll NEVER EVER fire the first shot ^^

So, actually, just self defense o.o

I mean, if you'd be shot at, wouldn't you fire back?

Why would anyone want that?? Killing in games is fun, the more bloody the better.

You can clearly play Uncharted so that you'll NEVER EVER fire the first shot ^^

So, actually, just self defense o.o

I mean, if you'd be shot at, wouldn't you fire back?

Justforvisit

While he does shoot before being shot at in plenty of areas, I do think there is enough context to justify it in my mind for a game like this. As I said he kills those in his line of work, working with or under criminals. Calling him a massmurderer and psychopath seems a bit harsh.

But at the same time I don't think everything within a game like this is meant to be taken literal, games do need to be a balancing act and even the best designed shooters will have this same issue. I just find it funny that the label massmurderer and psychopath is often thrown at Uncharted but not other video game series. But then again the greatness that is Uncharted has always caused butthurt the world over. :P