Ben-DutkaOh, it's inevitable.
As we are now in an industry where people honestly believe a linear, story-driven structure is actually inferior to the open-world structure, even the very best games are subject to irrational and even downright moronic backlash.
It happened last year with The Order: 1886 and I can unfortunately guarantee you'll see it happen again when the highly anticipated Uncharted 4: A Thief's End comes out: Lots of critics will make a big point of saying something like, "it looks great, BUT…" The "but?" We know what it'll entail; it will be the implication that no linear game can be as good as an open-world game, because the former structure is "old-fashioned," "outdated," and yes, actually "inferior." It's just another symptom of a society that no longer has any attention span to speak of, as everyone desperately tries to prove cinematics and cut-scenes are now unnecessary and were really only hindrances in the past.
Yes, Naughty Dog has worked to open up the levels and areas in the new Uncharted but it won't be enough. You watch. And if there are any cut-scenes that run longer than two minutes, watch out. Hell, The Order didn't have any super long cut-scenes; the overwhelming majority weren't more than a few minutes long but even five minutes causes people to absolutely freak out these days. I'm sure you'll find some critics that will appreciate the game for what it is, and will acknowledge the sheer idiocy of proclaiming linear formats "inferior." But that is not the pervading belief right now; the industry is going away from story-driven adventures in the AAA realm, and that's of course because the masses have no interest in great stories. They just want to press buttons.
The scores certainly won't be as low for Uncharted 4 as they were for The Order , but those scores will be lower than people think, and it'll be entirely attributed to critics who will try to prove to the world that the franchise "feels old." Just watch.
Related Game(s): Uncharted 4
Oh, the tyranny of the masses.
tyranny of the stupid
I think the order would have had much higher marks if it just had a complete story. It ends in what should have been the halfway point. The levels were beautiful and it had some interesting ideaa.
What I'm saying is that I think naughty dog will provide a complete experience that will satisfy most of its critics
That is not the reason The Order got 5s and 6s.
You're probably right, but I sure would have liked it better.
You are so right man and you know what, i keep this Open World trend ruined one of my most beloved franchises Metal Gear Solid i just can't get into the MGS V atmosphere and story i just can't the game is way too distracting for because of the superior open world so i say Yes to Uncharted 4 structure, i have a daughter now i don't have the time to explore very big worlds and i love games with good story…
I know & agree with most of what you're saying Ben, but I don't think this will apply to Uncharted.
All three previous games received excellent review scores from most major game sites, and open-world was already the "in" thing to do back then. Typically if the game is really really great in its genre it will still get great reviews simply because it's such a great game regardless of genre, like for example Uncharted, Heavy Rain, The Last of Us or The Walking Dead. None of which are from "in" genres but the games are just so great that it's hard not to love it, and of course if you also happen to love the genre they become instant classics!
No, I think there's a very distinct difference between now and then:
Open-world was sort of trending last generation but it now dominates. It's not merely seen as another viable structure now, either; it's considered THE structure and worse, inherently superior to anything in the linear realm. That really wasn't the case when any of the previous Uncharteds came out.
The Order was really on a rail though… Uncharted was more like a Tomb Raider. You follow a story but you have to find all sorts of things in levels and explore and find ways to reach your goals by interacting with the environment in a lot of different ways. I am pretty sure if they follow on that and keep adding a little more secrets and interesting discoveries the game will score high and be awesome to play. Doesn't need to be open world but Uncharted allowed you to be sneaky or chaotic and the stages were always interesting. I am not worried. As long as it doesn't become just a movie with few actions required and big arrow signs everywhere lol And the fact that it's a *stage* meant that this was way more complete and they had a lot of opportunities to create very different experiences since it doesn't need to be all connected. Anyway I will keep my hopes up and give it a try for sure 🙂
Ah and wanted to point out too that as long as there are reviewers like you who are unbiased to a specific genre, we should be fine. You are already doing gods work and giving clear and neutral views in your reviews (which is why I always come here to read)
Last edited by Neo_Aeon666 on 3/21/2016 11:09:27 PM
Sure, open-world has become more and more popular the last few years, but really The Last of Us is only 3 years old, and the remastered version received equally great reviews recently on PS4, and the just released Rise of the Tomb Raider also got great reviews, so I don't see it being a problem for an established franchise like Uncharted.
It's probably more of a problem for new unknown IPs like for example The Order, and especially if they have other flaws that can get picked apart to death…
Nah, it's still Uncharted so it'll still recieve tons of high scores and I'll still have no idea what the big deal is. People, which reviewers happen to be, are pre-disposed to consider it could and that bias will push down the open world bias.
The Order didn't get low marks for not being open world. It got low scores for not bringing much to the table other than pretty graphics. Plenty of games come out today that score well without being open world.
Uncharted 4 is probably going to get pretty great scores across the board. I'd be willing to wager that no major outlet knocks it for being "linear".
I'd agree there is a glut of open world games now, but it's not because nobody has an attention span or because people hate linearity. It's because developers, for some reason, go HAM with new gameplay mechanics/aesthetics until they're worn out, whether they need to or not. Remember when EVERYTHING was a cover shooter, whether it needed to be or not? Or when every shooter was a WWII shooter, and now they're all Modern Warfare clones? Back when MGS and Splinter Cell were all the rage, every game suddenly had stealth elements, even when they made no sense.
Eventually, developers will wear out the "open world for the sake of being open" design, and only use it when it actually makes sense. In the meantime, games like Uncharted 4 will still do just fine.
Would you like me to go back and show you, Ben, where you said the very same thing about other games? How about any Call of Duty games that has come out over the years? And quite a few more actually.
Want to know why Dynasty Warrior type games keep selling like wildfire? How about COD games too? Or even the Dragon Quest games. Because people love the games. You hate these games so you come up with ideas to berate them, the most popular being "They are the same thing over and over again. Basically these are the same games with a new coat of paint."
Well now Uncharted is getting the same treatment and you come on here and want to warn fans as if people are attacking the game. I know you love the Uncharted series. But as good as you review the other games I mentioned and were spot on about them. They were still good games. Perhaps you need to see the same thing about Uncharted and realize you need to stop being so fanatical about it.
IMO the best way to review a game is by 2 types of people. The most important is by the people who are indifferent and have an open mind about a game. They usually have the best judgement because they can see the flaws in a game. The second best is by people who LOVE the game. They just give good karma to peeps who also love the game.
If you dont like a game or game series, you should never be judging it in the first place because you would have never been playing it to begin with.
End of line.
Last edited by ethird1 on 3/21/2016 10:05:25 AM
I would love for you to go back and prove it with specifics instead of loose generalizations, actually.
Have at it!
Provide links and quotations please. If you're right, it shouldn't be difficult to do.
Last edited by Underdog15 on 3/21/2016 11:11:02 AM
"Would you like me to go back and show you, Ben, where you said the very same thing about other games? How about any Call of Duty games that has come out over the years? And quite a few more actually."
I have no idea what you're talking about. I can't even interpret that.
100% disagree with this article, in that I believe Uncharted will be universally praised.
I loved the Order, but its gameplay was pretty one note. It could have had more gameplay variety and I think that is where at least for me it lost points.
Uncharted has always had a lot more variety, it has chase scenes, puzzle solving, platforming and usually (except for 3 IMO) really well done stories.
Look at how well The Last of Us, and TLoU remastered did and they are hugely linear games. Some sections you are just walking around too.
I can see some critics saying that it is linear but I dont think its going to be anything even close to The Order, which really did need more time in the oven.
Last edited by xenris on 3/21/2016 11:25:34 AM
TLoU got plenty of flak for being so heavily linear and having "too-long" cut-scenes. I absolutely guarantee that if it came out now, it would receive significantly lower scores for feeling "outdated."
And a lot of games get flak these days for being open ended side fillers as well. Critics gonna complain, doesn't mean quality isn't quality. Not sure TLOU would score differently today, but maybe it would. Who knows…
@Ben, I guess we will just have to wait and see. I hope I'm right for the sake of humanity and the game industry as a whole though 😛
FWIW, I totally agree with Ben here.
It's sad, but that's just how is it…
(I'm still buying Uncharted 4, tho)
Open world is fine for some games but they sure as hell dont all need it, in fact its part of the reason many including myself felt mgs5 was meh. Im getting uncharted because I enjoy that it tells a story with great set pieces, movie style action and likeable characters along with solid fun gameplay.
Once again Ben comparing The Order with Uncharted, I just don't see it if anything Quantum Break it's more similar to The Order.
I wonder whether those same critics that are critical of games for being linear, or using outdated/old fashioned cut-scenes would say the same about a novel?
Novels are notoriously linear in progression, with lots of exposition and no open world. Worse than that they are on paper…talk about being linear, old fashioned and outdated?
Hey Highlander,
long time no see, welcome back.
TY Biker, it has been a long time. Lengthy absence due to 'life'. As Marvin the paranoid android would say, "Life, don't talk to me about life…."
Hah! A fellow Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fan, love it!!
Welcome back Highlander, been missing your posts around here!
Meh I don't know. When it comes to Uncharted and ND I put nothing past them or their influence on the industry.
When Uncharted 2 came out I think it competed with MW2 and while I'm sure most would agreed the former is by far the better game, the industry was obsessed with MW2. I thought for sure most sources and media would claim MW2 goty. That didn't happen.
Now in regards to open world, I do agree the industry is obsessed with it. But I don't think it reflects how Uncharted will turn out. Not to mention The Order is a terrible example to use as justification in regards to Uncharted and how it fares. While The Order may have been better than the respect it got, Uncharted does everything it intends well. A game that does those things surprisingly, regardless of genre or style tends to do well in the industry.
In an industry with media outlets I just don't respect in regards to reviews and the processes which are used, at least I can say the universal praise for games that execute well is welcomed.
Last edited by bigrailer19 on 3/21/2016 5:41:10 PM
Well said!
Sooo ppl will then say Uncharted 4 is like EVERY other Uncharted game? Ok thats fine because they STILL got 9s and 10s from reviews. SO I dont care if they say its nothing new yet go and still give it an amazing score. Also if its the Order all over again then why did THAT get reviewed so badly but Uncharted does not lol
Can we stop criticizing critics of the order 1886 simply thinking because it's linear because that's not the whole story. Game is shallow. Period. Potential is there, but execution isn't. Uncharted is a completely different ball game on execution.
No point trying to reason here. Most people who disagree with what you're saying really believe this which isn't entirely true. UC3 which isn't even the best UC is miles ahead better than The Order.
Literally, miles…!
No…the Order was just an average game honestly. I did like the story though. Linearity wasn't the issue. Seriously, get off your high horses guys thinking all critics want open world and mp. Open world neither makes a game great or broken although MGSV lack of a true ending shows resources should have been targeted in that direction.
UC4 will do fine. No one complained about Tomb Raider.
I love The Order: 1886 and I thought the game play was terrific. Wasn't varied but was a perfect implementation. Multiplayer would have been sick.
~Breaking news~
OMG Highlander's back!!?
Greetings 🙂
Didn't happen 😀
Oh, the tyranny of the masses.
I love The Order: 1886 and I thought the game play was terrific. Wasn't varied but was a perfect implementation. Multiplayer would have been sick.
~Breaking news~
OMG Highlander's back!!?
Can we stop criticizing critics of the order 1886 simply thinking because it's linear because that's not the whole story. Game is shallow. Period. Potential is there, but execution isn't. Uncharted is a completely different ball game on execution.
Literally, miles…!
No…the Order was just an average game honestly. I did like the story though. Linearity wasn't the issue. Seriously, get off your high horses guys thinking all critics want open world and mp. Open world neither makes a game great or broken although MGSV lack of a true ending shows resources should have been targeted in that direction.
UC4 will do fine. No one complained about Tomb Raider.
Sooo ppl will then say Uncharted 4 is like EVERY other Uncharted game? Ok thats fine because they STILL got 9s and 10s from reviews. SO I dont care if they say its nothing new yet go and still give it an amazing score. Also if its the Order all over again then why did THAT get reviewed so badly but Uncharted does not lol
Didn't happen 😀
Greetings 🙂
I think the order would have had much higher marks if it just had a complete story. It ends in what should have been the halfway point. The levels were beautiful and it had some interesting ideaa.
What I'm saying is that I think naughty dog will provide a complete experience that will satisfy most of its critics
tyranny of the stupid
You're probably right, but I sure would have liked it better.
That is not the reason The Order got 5s and 6s.
You are so right man and you know what, i keep this Open World trend ruined one of my most beloved franchises Metal Gear Solid i just can't get into the MGS V atmosphere and story i just can't the game is way too distracting for because of the superior open world so i say Yes to Uncharted 4 structure, i have a daughter now i don't have the time to explore very big worlds and i love games with good story…
I know & agree with most of what you're saying Ben, but I don't think this will apply to Uncharted.
All three previous games received excellent review scores from most major game sites, and open-world was already the "in" thing to do back then. Typically if the game is really really great in its genre it will still get great reviews simply because it's such a great game regardless of genre, like for example Uncharted, Heavy Rain, The Last of Us or The Walking Dead. None of which are from "in" genres but the games are just so great that it's hard not to love it, and of course if you also happen to love the genre they become instant classics!