You’ve been offered a choice of play. Take the blue route, save everybody, and be praised a hero — maybe something you’d like to see happen in reality — or take the red route and damn everybody to hell.
Several games have offered you a similar choice. Fallout is one example; inFAMOUS is another; Fable and Oblivion only lead the list further.
Are you one to take the heroic route? Or are you one to take the evil route? Why do you choose such a path and what pleasure does it bring? Do you find yourself expressing any sort of sympathy or dislike to the characters affected by your decision? If a game were of higher or lower difficulty depending on which path the player takes, would you choose the path with your preferred difficulty, or would you choose the path you’d normally take? Do your personal morals affect your decision?
You know what to do, folks. Commence discussion.
Personally, I would ALWAYS take the good route first, then go full asshole in the second time around. I’ve always enjoyed playing the goody two-shoes. Its in my system or something. But when it comes to games that are deeper in choices like Mass Effect or Dragon Age I end up doing what I feel is right. Not doing something evil for the sake of being an arse (again thats reserved for the second playtrough >:))
Personally, I always just do what I think I would do in a situation like that for real. I usually do not set out with a set intention of being either good or evil, but just go along with it and see where I end up. I usually end up somewhere in between!
I really enjoy a game with choices though like Dragon Age or Mass Effect. I always find it adds a lot in terms of individuality and immersion into the game.
I completely agree with you there, I handle the choices like I would in real life, except I aim for a Trophy or something.
And why should I be a prick and kill someone, if they stay loyal to me, if I spare them?^^
I also love those kind of games: Dragon Age, KotoR etc. :D
Depends how good the story is, normally the ‘evil/dark/bad/etc.’ storyline is way more interesting and thought provoking, whereas the ‘good’ storyline is pure cheese, and I hate that. Funny thing, but with the original Silent Hill, I was so shaken (but impressed) by the bad ending, that I never got the good one. Simply because the story was so well told (and realistic) that I didn’t want to ruin it.
That might seem stupid to some people, and I can see why, but, that ending will stay with me forever, few films or books hit me as hard as the ending of that game, it was sad, tragic, blunt, but at the same time, totally believable, because in life, ‘good’ endings don’t normally happen, people die, the innocent suffer, and the world goes on, uncaring and unknowing. Now if only David Lynch did a film adaption of the original Silent Hill, with the ‘bad’ storyline, that would be amazing… will never happen, but still.
Saying that (potentially hypocritical moment), I always wished there was an alternate storyline in Devil May Cry 3, one where you get to follow your brother into the Demon realm, and try to help him, even after everything that happened. As the oldest brother in my family, I’d have jumped after him, even if he cut my hand like that. After all, the wound will heal, but the pain of letting him go wouldn’t. I can’t explain it, but I always wanted that option, though the storyline as it stands was very well told at that point, I just… the idea of leaving him on his own in the Demon realm… no way, I couldn’t live with that.