Video Game Story Of The Year

Bioshock Infinite is unique in terms of story in this industry , it's mind-blowing with a great ending which keeps u involved after beating it ....i'd go with Bioshock Infinite.

@ mjorh

But Texas was right about the Quantum Physics functioning as a Deus Ex Machina in Plot and Gameplay.

Gone Home,The Stanley Parable,Secret Files: Sam Peters and The Wolf Among Us.

More like handwaving. Any plot hole or continuity/logic error in that game can pretty much be addressed with the magical "Quantum physics! The Lutèces did it!"

If a different Booker is brought in through a dimensional rift every time you die, why does he still have the same guns, ammo, money and memories as the previous one? "Quantum Physics! The Lutèces did it!"

Why is there a sea on Columbia? Why can people breathe and why are there no 200mph winds even though we're 5 kilometers in the sky? "Quantum Physics! The Lutèces did it!"

@ Black_Knight_00

LMAO ! :D

Yep. You gotta admire Ken Levines ambition..... It hilarious ! And if he asks, it wasn't me. ;)

@Lulu_Lulu:

You wave around this banner of interactivity yet place Bioshock Infinite in the poll. This game takes control away and forces the player spectate at many points throughout the experience.

Walk into room, find the invisible X on the floor and just as you're a mere foot away you're sucked into it and forced to watch as Elizabeth explains the situation, or gets kidnapped, or dances, or you're thrown out of a zeppelin or something. The game does this quite often. These are essentially cutscenes.

You lay praise for the opening of TLOU yet you have no control over the events. You simply play through them. The only time ND takes control away is when it truly makes sense to do so. Bioshock does this, Beyond: Two Souls does this as well. So you condemn Naughty Dog and The Last Of Us yet you praise games from developers who do the same thing.

I also find it funny that you seem to appreciate interactivity in this medium yet you only focus on the story (obvious double standards you have aside) yet TLOU is a far more interactive gameplay experience than anything found in Beyond: Two Souls. So where does this crusade for interactivity end?

I haven't played a game this year whose story especially stood out to me. At least, not games from 2013.

I seem to remember that the game basically flat-out told you that your choices were meaningless, and you had no control over what was going to happen. Wasn't there some point in the game were you're told that the story won't continue until you leave a room (involving a crib, perhaps), and it was absolutely right?

Oh, not to mention the fact that, for a game of 'infinite' possibilities and a character that can open portals to essentially anywhere...everything was painfully linear, to the point where Elizabeth's powers could only do whatever the plot demanded of them (completely inconsistently, too). So not only was the plot frustratingly linear for the player, but it didn't even make sense for the characters to be following the plot - which makes it the worst kind of non-interactive story, in a way.

According to society: Last of Us.

Between these 2 games: Bioshock Infinite.

@ contracts420

I'm not condemning them TLOU for not Being interactive, I'm condemning for not even trying. To be honest theres no real winner. The idea is still at its infancy so don't I don't expect anybody to get it right anytime soon. Simply nominate the people that got it the least wrong.

I only focus on Interactive Story Specifically because thats the area games seem to be behind the most. If you wana talk interactivity in general then go ahead, TLOU won't win in the category Either. ;)

Why is this so Important to you anyway? I don't expect a proper answer but..... I'm just curious. Seems like you want TLOU to win for no logical reason, Should I call the Pastry Awards and find out you've been harrassing them for not nominating TLOU ? Lol :D

@ Planeforger

Bioshock (and Beyond) never claimed to have meaningfull choice making as part of its design, you can't condemn a game for not adding a feature you wanted, well you could if you want to but that would just make you a douche.

Also a story needn't have multiple paths like The Walking Dead to interactive, its a common mistake people make ;) .

Oh and the worst interactive story still qualifies to be nominated way more than the best non-interactive story, thats literally all Quantic Dream's games have going for them. lol but don't worry man, when the real awards for the best video game story role out, the critics won't know the difference anymore than you will so theres hope for your precious cutscenes ! :D come on....... I can't see you but I can feel you grinning.

I haven't played Bioshock Infinite, so I didn't opine on the nature of interactivity in it's story. Now that I've read some comments in this thread about the lack of interactivity the player has in the story/cutscenes; I have to ask why did you include it in the first place? The interactivity the player has to affect, or be part of, the narrative seems to be just the same as in any other shooter. It doesn't seem to fit your criteria for what constitutes an "Interactive Story." It's an incongruity that undermines the credibility of your opening post.

no your poll is the one that is faailing hard, you make a poll about the "best story of the year" then you make some bad excuses to fit your favorites, your poll is bad, your thread is bad and your excuses are bad.

@ SirWander

I actually no it doesn't have to have any effect on the story, it just needs to give to the player something to do in these plot points even if its just "press X to comfort Elizabeth". Infact I think you're right about shooters, even Call Of Duty, can definately qualify as Interactive Stories aswell, That explains why I was intrigued by MW3 and Black Ops campaign so much. The irony ! LOL ! I think its funny how even COD is trying harder than TLOU is.

@Black_Knight_00: You know why Bioshock Infinite must be the GOTY ?

Quantum Physics!

:D!

+

The reason that ppl kinda hate the story of Bioshock Infinite is that they didin't understand the story so they're one to blame not the game !

Overally it was one the best experiences i've ever had n i believe it deserves 2 be at least the nominee of GOTY .

+

The "Inception" of gaming world = Bioshock Infinite .

The "Nolan" of gaming world = Ken Levine !

@ Krelian-co

You assume I like Beyond and Bioshock more than TLOU, actually I don't, I had the most fun with TLOU and Hated Infinite the most (the reason for both is gameplay). I like Arkham Origins and Splintercell Blacklist more than all those three combine. See unlike you I am able compartmentalise Logic from feelings. I set the criteria in the Original post, and the rest of the thread was me just reinforcing my original point in different ways in the hopes you would see the difference, clearly you didn't. Besides I made this thread out of boredom, I admit its not my best work, but I'l make a better one soon. I promise ;)

@ mjorh

Bioshock most definately should not be the GOTY, not with the Weapon redundancy, Braindead and Dual State AI, The Bullet Sponges Enemies and the god awfull difficulty structure. It can't go for the GOTY on story alone.

you may paint it wheatever color you want, your poll is a failure no matter how you want to put it, keep using the excuses you want yet again, those two games would lose against others (TLOU) included if the poll was complete.

"hey guys poll about the best game story of the year but im only going to post what games i want" damn thats a dumb logic.

Oh I did understand it, but I disagree with it completely.

[Spoilers ahead]

Those are just problems with the story, I could spend a few paragraphs talking about why the gameplay is mediocre and why the pacing is terrible.

I strongly disagreed with gamespot's 4.0 re-review, but I maintain that Bioshock Infinite is not GOTY material.

@ Krelian-co

Dumb Logic is skipping the OP and then throwing around accusations when I point out your ignorance. I set the criteria on the 1st post, I'l take responsibilty for not explain it properly but beyond that, you're still ignorant. :D

@ Black_Knight_00

I firmly agree.

First i would like to say that you are taking the poll to heart Krelian. However, that is just me. I actually understand your opinion of the last of us Lulu. Maybe joel could pick up a picture or a toy and remember his daughter. I do not really want to elaborate on it that much. I personally see TLOU as more of a prototype of what Naughty Dog can do with an interactive story.

My real problem with Infinite was the fact that there were moments for real interaction that were not presented. You could not give anyone any money in the poor area. No dialogue after listening to a voxaphone. A great example of what could have been a achieved was the demo presented at e3 2012 where elizabeth impersonated Abraham Lincoln and when booker could choose to help the delivery man or even the moment with the horse. However, I know that certain things caused Levine to change his plans.

I explored the Uncharted series through 2 and 3 after my experience with TLOU, and I think what I admired was the increase in focus on interaction that was the result of a brief section in Uncharted 2.

When I played Infinite I was expecting a little more in terms of interaction because of the previous bioshock games' narrative devices.

@ cooolio

Well If You put it that way..... I guess that makes sense.

Has anybody played Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons ? It seems like a good contentender But I can't be sure, I haven't played the game....... Yet.

@Lulu_Lulu:

You were the one who opened up this discussion. You had used TLOU as a poor example in your OP yet placed Bioshock Infinite in the poll, clearly showing a sort of double standard. Everything you condemn TLOU for can be found in Bioshock Infinite. You can comfort Elizabeth, yet the player can engage in conversations with Ellie in TLOU, walking away mid conversation may actually have the character respond to the player in a negative way at times. I'd call that interactive.

All I've done is point out your flawed logic, your BS. Even look at your responses to others who disagree or try to dispute this with you... you take jabs at them. All you've done is reinforce my notions.

The Wolf Among Us has the best story of a game released is year (that I've played). Cannot wait for episode 2, 3, 4 and 5.

@ contracts420

Yes I opened this discussion and set the criteria, You may have missed them, you may have misunderstood them, but they are most definately there in my OP. Besides Bioshock Infinte doesn't yank away control away from you as abruptly as TLOU.

I'm not saying its a good example, infact there are no good examples, I left out TLOU for chickening out. Atleast Bioshock Infinite was consistant with its "press X for story" approach, which is more than I can say for TLOU and its movie leeching.

Its sad how I have nothing better to do than keep coming back to this thread and repeating myself. :(

SPOILER

Becouse he's not stupid ! why would he put Elizabeth in jeopardy? Elizabeth is the main objective character that story is defined based on her ,you've utterly lost the major aspect of the story ....

Booker has no idea that he's looking for his own daughter, all he knows is extracting a girl outta the city and he's not seeking redemption whatsoever!

It's not a type of story that u would care about a specific character , the whole story is damn strong that absorbs u without focuisng THAT much on characters , u may be right about Booker but Elizabeth is a strong one!

It's really complicated n thought-provoking , u need to draw attention 2 every little thing in order 2 get it ...it's not a straight-forward story like The Last of Us which is great on narretive n emotional stuff , i admire what Naughty Dog pulled off , both games are masterpiece on their own terms ....

The gameplay is great , it's a FPS n i dunno what do u expect from a FPS ....Combat is entertaining .

@Lulu_Lulu I disagree , AI is great n i gotta say Elizabeth is a revolutionary companion , that's harsh to say Bioshock Infinite is all about story n lacks graphics ,sound designs n stuff ...

It's a good-looking , entertaining game with a unique n excellent story n deserves 2 be the nominee at least ....

@Lulu_Lulu:

lol You're clearly grasping at straws that aren't there. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

I don't know which of my points you're responding to. Who's not stupid? Booker or Comstock? And you missed a huge plot point yourself if you didn't get that Booker was looking for redemption. What do you think "wipe away the debt refers to?"

About the gameplay: it's mediocre at best. The shooting is awkward, the AI is terrible, the fights are too many and too repetitive. Is it competent? Sure, but it's just barely adequate. This sort of action was trite in Halo 2.

@ contracts420

The Last Of Us does not meet the criteria. If you wana disagree with that then okay.

Hmm, honestly i dont get the facination with Bioshock Infinite , the story was subpar and the ending was unbelieveable and its clear that the writer just heard the term and then decided to use it without any research, and its certainly not the story most i have heard remember from that game.

Comstock, u said why Comstock doesn't tell Booker that they're the same .

But Booker during the story was wondering what the hell "wipe away the debt" means ! he's in confusion n bewildered, the second half of the story he gradually gets what's going on n why he's in the city n so on ...Luteces hired Booker 2 get there n extract Elizabeth, he didn't accept the baptism n u can understand from the dialogues that Booker literally doesn't know shit about what's going on ...

Define "awekward" ! u seriously think that if AI was terrible this game would get THAT kinda perfect scores?! jus gimme an example of this terrible AI you're talking about ...

"Fights are too many n too repetitive" ...hmm....Name one ideal FPS of yours n i'll compare it to this game , becouse i don't know what you're expecting from this genre ....it's like we get sth different from other FPSs !

It doesn't satisfy your taste i think ....

@Jacanuk Man you seriously think a guy like Ken Levine would do such a thing ?! it's your opinion n i respect that but the thing is most gamers are kinda interested in straight-forward sorta story n they expect 2 understand everything by playing the game n don't even bother 2 just think a little bit !

@ Jacanuk

I mean the Enemy AI. Plus Elizebeth felt like a loot dispenser on my 5 playthrough. I couldn't take it enemy more

The AI is awful. It's not broken or anything, but this is 2013 and we still see enemies blindly rushing behind corners over the bodies of their buddies. All the enemies do in this game is run directly into your shotgun to smack you with stick or stand in place while shooting and getting shot. Play F.E.A.R. and see how good AI is done, how the enemies use strategy and coordinate with each other to flank and ambush you, how they roll to cover when under fire and they try to flush you out of cover with grenades, bickering with each other over who should move out of cover to try and get you, and that's a 2005 game.

The shooting: I get that they wanted to go Halo with the third Bioshock, with regenerating health, two weapons limit and an uninterrupted streak of firefights, but it doesn't work. Why? Because weapons and vigors need to be upgraded in order to be effective against higher tier enemies and that means you will likely always use the same guns that you are upgrading and never bother with the others, which leads to monotony., plus some powers come so late in the game you're guaranteed never to use them. Combine that with the stupid enemies and every fight is the same. The controls are subpar for a console shooter: the aiming and turning is stiff compared to CoD or BF3, the weapons and vigor powers are boring and lack punch and impact and there aren't even any bosses to spice up the action. You'd think the Songbird would be an obvious fit for a boss fight but that never happens, it dies in a cutscene. There's that ghost bitch which is basically a glorified crow dude and you have to fight three times in 20 minutes. There are the handymen, but they go down in like a minute and they're always the exact same every time you fight them and what do they do? They rush at you and smack you. Bioshock 1 and 2 had rooms filled with water and puddles of gasoline you could use to set traps for the enemies, here you get a few exploding barrels here and there, which are not nearly as creative and satisfying to exploit.

Again Bioshock 1 and 2 had like six different kinds of splicers, plus different kinds of Big Daddies, which were always terrifying to encounter. Infinite has cops with sticks, cops with machine guns and cops with grenade launchers, mechanized patriots wich can be dispatched in 20 seconds by electrifying them and shooting them in the back and once in a blue moon you get to fight a crow guy who teleports around. Two hours of gameplay and you've seen everything the 15 hours game has to offer. Why this long? Because it's stretched out with pointless fetch quests over and over and over again "You've found the gunsmith, now find his tools, now find him again in an alternate reality, then do it again, then fight through the jail to free him... twice!" Big Daddies were optional fights in Bioshock, you had to consider your resources before deciding to shake their tree unprovoked. There were moral choices, there were multiple endings.

Am I getting through at all here? It's an ok game, but it does nothing particularly well aside from the art design and one character, even compared to the original Bioshock.

Have to go with The Last of Us, sucks cause I want more from the IP but at the same time I don't want a sequel or prequel cause of it's uniqueness.

Thanks for the complete explanation, i'm sold!

Seriously, u can say this sorta stuff for nowadays FPSs u know the gameplay policy have changed in recent years , devs have a tendency toward an easy gameplay 2 expand the radious of gamers , about AI , yeah i agree on the instability n unbalanced part but if my memory serves right i didn't encounter the type of AI u explained , gotta play it again ...

One more thing , Military FPS should be separated from FPS IMO , in MFPS the focus is on multiplayer n u don't expect a mind-blowing story or a great narrative ....

I would replay it too, but I really think this game has no replay value once you know the big twist. Maybe it's just me, but I can't sit through that 10 hour middle part again. If anything it made me want to go back and replay the first Bioshock.

The Dream Machine Episode 4