Your Opinion On Cutscenes

[DrRipley]

I hate them. To me, they are a waste of time and a waste of developers' efforts. If I wanted to watch a movie, I'd watch a movie. Also, I hate it that some games force you to watch them and they don't give you the option to skip over them unless you've finished the whole game.

Just to be clear though, I know that they are there for "immersion" or whatever, but do you honestly feel any more immersed any more than you would without them? If anything, I think it takes you out of the game even more because it causes you to stop every few steps you take.

I personally wish they'd just leave the long cutscenes to games like FF that actually benefit from having cutscenes. I'd rather they just spend their cutscene effort and budget on making the game more full and fun rather than showing me a movie that I can't do much with.

Your thoughts?

 

[Haze]

I love cutscenes - if the game is good. I usually never skip cutscenes unless the game isn't very good or the story is generic. Can't stand lengthy ones (Metal Gear Solid)

 

[BlackSolaris]

It really depends. If i am playing an RPG, sure, cutscenes are cool, but if am playing a game with fast paced action or a FPS, i think i would skip them, just because i will be more focused on the gameplay.

And then there ae games like Bayonetta, which are so over the top that i have to see the cutscenes just so i can see how crazy things can get!

 

[lindbergh]

I love cutscenes. They make a game be more cinematic. It helps move the story forward. I also like long cutscenes as long as they are well made and interesting. A great example would be Metal Gear Solid. Most of the cutscenes in the game are very interesting and well thought out. That's why I love watching them. Just imagine an RPG or an adventure game without any cutscene. Would that be a great game? I don't think so.

 

[RaggaJungle]

I think they are good, they add more emotion and character to the game and it draws me more in to the storyline. If the cut-scenes are poorly acted though then it can be detrimental to the overall enjoyability of the game. For example Resident Evil has quite poor cut scenes as they are over dramatic, however I find them quite funny so it does not necessarily spoil the game.

 

[carclain]

I don't mind cutscenes, as long as they are not too long and provide info on the story. I didn't enjoy the cutscenes on AC3, i skipped most after about a minute and a half, they just take up too much time, and I didn't understand the story anyway so.

 

[BilboSwaggins]

They're good in moderation, but a game that over-uses cutscenes and quick time events is one of the biggest immersion killers for me as it feels like I'm watching a movie rather than taking a direct part in the action. Modern military shooters are probably the worst offenders, with the exception of Spec Ops: The Line.

 

[ozadin]

They are the necessity for good storylines. What game have you played that had no storyline at all, but was a great game? I don't think there are many out there.
As long as the cutscenes are about a minute long, I wouldn't mind.

 

[WriteBlack]

I think cutscenes can be nice sometimes. In the Uncharted series cutscenes were very nicely integrated and they added something that couldn't have been without interactivity. It's also nice when the scenes are dynamic - for example, if you change your skin, it will change in the cutscene.

The kind that I don't like, however, are the ones that add nothing to the game, and it is obvious the devs were to pressed or lazy to add interactivity or dynamics there.

 

[maurovis]

Depends on the game, and really depends on the cut scenes. Some are very drawn out and really not well done at all, but when you take games like God of War that has such a great story line I think the cut scenes make the game a whole lot better.

 

[TheCourier]

I think they are great - in moderation. That way they are more "special" and increases the chances that you will appreciate them more and that they will actually add to the story. If they are overused, they just get tedious and annoying. I know there was one Final Fantasy game in particular (forgot which one exactly) where there was a cut-scene every 10 feet practically. So I never got that game myself. It turned me completely away from it.

I also think most games nowadays (or at least RPGs and Adventure genre games) should have cut-scenes, preferably at least one for the intro and one at the ending. Fallout New Vegas only has one cut-scene for the intro, but it is very well done, helps get you into the story, and is entertaining in addition to looking really good too. And that one scene was all it needed.

 

[xxfearless]

Personally, I'm a huge fan of cutscenes. While I get that they don't work for every type of game - how weird would it be to have a full cutscene, with dialogue, in the middle of something like Skyrim? - when they do work, they work well. I do play a lot of RPGs, especially Japanese ones, where these scenes are a common occurrence and add so much to the plot, lore, and characters. Games like Final Fantasy, Star Ocean, and Nier really benefit from these scenes, in my opinion.

For the record, they really do help immerse me in the world of the game I'm playing. Something like The Walking Dead, for instance, would not have been as emotional for me without cutscenes.

 

[sinailori101]

I love cutscenes, they get me more interested in the game, though I would rather prefer them short, lengthy ones gets me distracted. Cutscenes of games like Metal Gear Solid should be implemented in other games, but it has to be short, maximum of one and a half minute.

Another game with great cutscenes is Kane and Lynch, every time I get to one I never skip it, because the game actually continues from there, ah..I hate to miss out on those ones. God of War also provides great cutscenes, unlike the new Metal Gear, trust me one this one I haven't played but saw a friend playing it in his house, I was pissed, I didn't even ask him for the name, the game is really now Metal Geared, not human at all just robots.

 

[Ebib]

Personally I think they are great! Some may be a bit long winded (the one at the beginning of MG3 was very long) but they really add to the gaming experience.

Cut scenes are a fantastic way of telling the story of the game and helping the player immerse themselves in this new world, as well as be able to learn more about
the characters, the world and the story. I think they help carry what emotions the player should be feeling and I wouldn't swap them for anything. They can make you
laugh or cry. Some of the best moments in video games for me were shown in cutscenes.

Some of them can be long winded and some are just added to eat into gameplay time but overall I think they're a very positive thing for games to have. They can help
the player and guide them in the right direction, as well as convey a powerful and moving story.

 

[KellyKellz]

I love cutscenes if they don't draw me away from the entire experience of the game. What I mean is if the cutscene looks nothing like the game or if its thrown in mid gameplay in an odd manner then it usually doesn't work for me. I really like in-game engine cutscenes that utilize what your actually seeing while playing the game rather than pre-rendered. Its just better for the immersion and better for the flow of the game in general.

 

[themarksquared]

I'm in a cryptic mood so I'll give my answer in a cryptic way. I loved playing every single part of Max Payne 3 so I guess the answer would be yes. Trust me, I like interaction in video games but sometimes I feel lazy to play so I would prefer to have cutscenes in order to rest my hands but still have some action. Yeah, I'm a lazy gamer. I'm one of those guys.

I still don't get why people hated the cutscenes in Max Payne 3, though. I, for one, think that those were some of the best cutscenes I've ever seen in a video game!