Just wondered what anyone else thought.....

Currently playing Post Mortem and I noticed (so far) that there is nothing in it that's irrelevant or useless. I don't mean red herrings though (and if anyone's read Laura's wonderful review of this game you'll know there are none of those either)

I mean the really trivial things such as being able to turn the taps on in a bathroom or flush a toilet. A good example in PM is drawers: there are millions of drawers in this game and yet only the ones with something useful in them can be opened. I want to be able to open them all.

I seem to remember a game (Black Dahlia maybe?) where if a room had a light switch then you could turn it on and off. It had nothing to do with the game and didn't suddenly reveal a new clue or anything like that, it was just there.

So, am I odd (OK, odder than usual) or does anyone else like these things?

I know what you mean! Some games give you very little to interact with, for example: maybe only one drawer in a desk with 4 drawers can be opened. (or worse, no matter what drawer you click on , the same drawer opens).

Those extra touches add some realisim to the game (and can make games last longer, as you try every room and drawer, etc looking for clues. The problem I suppose is that it makes the development time longer, as you have to add all the extra graphics and code to handle things that have nothing to do with progressing in the game.

Louis

I like these types of things..if a draw opens you think oh it might be a clue but it really is just a useless draw...or doors that open and take you into rooms that aren't relevant at all!Its all part of the game!

Me, Me, Me!

I love to play around with all kinds of things in a game. I want to open all the doors, drawers, boxes and be able to pick up the things inside them. Actually, it makes the game more interesting to me because you don't know if it is important or not.

I want to enter all the rooms too. I was so disappointed that I couldn't check out all the staterooms in Titanic.

I also enjoy contact with animals, like the sunners in Riven and the cute little burping bug in Amerzone (can't think of the name right now).

~Dee

I am on the fence with stuff to check out in games. If it isn't presented as red herrings or keeps you from advancing if you don;t mess with it - Then I like it as the exploration is there but optional. Sometimes I am running hot and heavy with the plot, pushing through the game and don't want to slow down.

Black Dahlia (which is one of my favorite games for other reasons) had non-essential places and things to look at - but even though opening that dresser drawer didn't advance the game - if you missed it - you didn't go onto the next chapter.


But I love it where at your option you can just amble about and check things out - like in Riven and such.

Laura

You can turn the lights on and off in "Harvest". (even though this is not part of the plot - but I thought it was a neat touch that adds realism). It's good to see that players appreciate those types of added touches.

Mike

A really funny touch to the game "Foul Play:Mystery at Akward Manor" is that when you are searching for clues, if you hit the light switch (as you inevitably do) the game goes dark, and a droll Butler's voice says "May I get that for you madam/sir?" and turns the light back on. Or if you click on the mirror, laughing voices say "They're looking at themselves again!"

I always like fooling around with the plumbing in games. I'll try to turn on the water in the sinks and flush the toilets. Labyrinth of Time had a working toilet and Faust had a sink and a tub that worked. But I don't think I've ever seen a game where you could turn on the shower. Not that I remember anyway.

I also like it when appliances work - when you can use a phonograph to play LP's (as in Zork Nemesis) or tune in a radio (as in Faust), etc. It may not be essential to playing the game but it makes the gameworld seem more real.

Have I got a game for you, Thunderchile! Have you played Watchermaker? Most of the stuff you can fiddle with is non-essential to the game. You can go in all of the room, open all the draws and cabinets, click on almost everything for some sort of comment. Sometimes it got annoying, hearing lame comments about every single thing, but for the most part I also enjoy clicking on/interacting with everything I see.

I especially liked listening to that radio in the "40's" segment of AMBER. While fiddling around with it to get that dumbwaiter to go up and down I had great fun listening to all the old commercials and WWII bulletins.
Cynch

Great topic, and one of my hobby horses

For me, being able to interact with the gameworld even in seemingly meaningless ways contributes to that feeling of 'being there'. To open drawers, look behind doors, turn lights on and off, makes the location 'real'. I also like to get the character's (or game) description of objects and paintings etc as it gives those items a physical presence and they exist for the character and the player. You can also learn quite a bit about your character based on her/his responses.

Too many of the latest 3D games seem to ignore or restrict this interactivity. Oh they may have beautiful graphics but for me they are as lifeless as a stage backdrop if you can't interact with them.

Often it's the little touches that make a game memorable...

Gordon

As long as these characteristics or peculiarities in the game add warmth, color and definitely help engage the gamer, I think they are just terrific. Love the feeling of being able to snoop around here and there for little tidbits. If, in fact, this exercise is a "red herring" in its truest sense; that is, a distraction that leads the gamer off down the wrong trail, then I don't like em'.

Love, Witchen =O)

I'm with the "fiddlers" on this one. I feel cheated if I cannot enter all the rooms or open all the drawers just to see what's there. BTW, Darkfall was great that way...I could go into every wonderfully creepy room in that hotel. And then I got the goggles and found more new stuff. This was a small (very small) gripe I had with Syberia. "No point in going down there." <img border="0" title="" alt="[Confused]" src="confused.gif" />

Marion

Hi Marion.......... I'm with you on the dead end doors/gates/streets. Hopefully this won't show up in the sequel. No message at all is better than "No point in going down there," ...as it denotes to some gamers that at some later point, there just might be a point in going down there.

Love, Witchen =O)

i like playing with things, and if i'm not allowed to play, i want a good reason.

it bugged me in syberia that i would click on something and kate would say "I don't need to do that yet," or "I don't need to do that again." #1 -- in some cases, i just clicked to see what the object was... i didn't even know i was telling her to do something! #2 -- how does *she* know she doesn't need to do it yet/again?! it took away from the realism for me because i felt like kate knew something i didn't... which meant i wasn't *really* controlling her after all.

-emily