Gameplay vs. Story: Which Matters More?

[Junior Moe]

Story, easy. Gameplay is important but I need to be vested into the game one way or another. I love the Telltale Walking Dead games because they create tense moments. There's no real gameplay to it, but I love it all the same. The Last of Us is another one like Uncharted. The gunplay is nothing special and gameplay is repetitive but man that story pulls you in. I was finally able to beat Zelda once I got vested in the story. The game from a gameplay and bug perspective is perfect. It didn't matter until I got hooked into and started progressing in the story.

[youvalss]

Gameplay. I play open-world games (non-RPG) exclusively and as long as the gameplay is great with a living-breathing world, I can spend hours without even knowing what the story is about.

[CM Hooe]

Depends on the game.

I loved (and still love) Bioshock Infinite for its story and atmosphere. While its gameplay was solid and competent it wasn't any special. It was definitely the narrative that drove that game forward.

On the flip side, DOOM 2016 has a story, but its attitude towards narrative is made very clear in the opening moments of the game when the protagonist destroys the monitor during an exposition dump, ending it abruptly. The gameplay alone drives DOOM, and it's freaking awesome.

[Blzer]

Gameplay.

I'll be honest, although I'm watching the cutscenes and such, I'm not really soaking it all in. I kind of just wait for the game to cue me in on what to do next, like with GTA and such.

[jfsolo]

As someone who doesn't play multiplayer, it's story by a wide margin for me. For most people I believe that the gameplay is the end itself, but for me it is the means to what is most important, the tale being told or the ideas being discussed.

[bcruise]

Gameplay. Rarely - VERY rarely - will I play a game long enough to enjoy a good story if the gameplay is bad (and yes I know "bad" gameplay is as subjective a topic as it gets, and I have a pretty high tolerance for gameplay faults). The story enriches a video game experience for me - it doesn't drive it.

There are some genres this doesn't apply to of course - light/no gameplay isn't the same as "bad" gameplay".

[RockinDaMike]

Nowadays, I need both to be excellent for me to be interested and finish

[mgoblue]

Quote: Originally Posted by RockinDaMike

Nowadays, I need both to be excellent for me to be interested and finish

That is true...I say story earlier, but I don't think I could deal with a truly bad gameplay game. I can deal with bugs more, but I buy somewhat few games so they aren't ever horrible in both.