Poll

If you know Undertale's story, is it worth playing?

Yes
1 (25%)
No
3 (75%)
Other (Explain)
0 (0%)

Total Members Voted: 4

Probably Familiar Game Philosophy Question

(((Fun_Timer))) | Ascended Posting Frenzy
 
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Reading this before answering the poll may ruin the thread. Continue?
I know the story of Undertale without having played it. It's my steam library, yet I've played the game for only seven minutes. The consensus I've seen among friends is "Undertale's not really worth playing if you know what happens."

I wonder... if Undertale were really an experience worth playing, wouldn't the story be somewhat incomplete without the gameplay experience? If the distinction of games over other media forms is in the experience of play, are stories which  alone sell the experience worth playing rather than watching?

Is Undertale worth playing?

Do walking sims have any place in gaming as opposed to cinema?


Turkey | Mythic Inconceivable!
 
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I'm confused how you know what happens without having played it. Did you watch a Let's Play of it? Because the experience is much more than a plot synopsis.

Yes, Undertale is worth playing.


snurch | Heroic Unstoppable!
 
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depends on the game

undertale i have no clue

some games are gameplay only tbh


(((Fun_Timer))) | Ascended Posting Frenzy
 
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I'm confused how you know what happens without having played it. Did you watch a Let's Play of it? Because the experience is much more than a plot synopsis.

Yes, Undertale is worth playing.
I did not watch a letsplay, I just watched random videos whose patchwork of story painted the full picture.
I fail to see how your response addresses the thread topic and I'd rather not guess because my stupidity will confuse both of us.


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depends on the game

undertale i have no clue

some games are gameplay only tbh
Yet those experiences are worth playing precisely because they're sold on gameplay. They could not function as another form of media without sacrificing participant agency.


Turkey | Mythic Inconceivable!
 
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I fail to see how your response addresses the thread topic
I may not have understood what the topic is, then. You asked, "If you know Undertale's story, is it worth playing?", and I said "yes" and explained why. What else should I have said?


Doctor Doom | Mythic Invincible!
 
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the one true God is Doctor Doom and we should all be worshiping him.
Watching a walkthrough makes playing Undertale redundant, yes. Since you've only seen the important bits it might still be worth your while to play it, since there's loads of little amusing side bits, jokes and references.


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Watching a walkthrough makes playing Undertale redundant, yes. Since you've only seen the important bits it might still be worth your while to play it, since there's loads of little amusing side bits, jokes and references.
I fail to see how your response addresses the thread topic
I may not have understood what the topic is, then. You asked, "If you know Undertale's story, is it worth playing?", and I said "yes" and explained why. What else should I have said?
I think this is relevant to both of your responses:

I'm not asking whether or not watching the walkthrough obviates playing through a loss of novelty (although it's an interesting point I've considered), I'm asking whether the very notion of story as a selling point justifies investment in a medium distinguished by play, or if that even really matters in the context of gaming and why it does/doesn't.


Turkey | Mythic Inconceivable!
 
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Watching a walkthrough makes playing Undertale redundant, yes. Since you've only seen the important bits it might still be worth your while to play it, since there's loads of little amusing side bits, jokes and references.
I fail to see how your response addresses the thread topic
I may not have understood what the topic is, then. You asked, "If you know Undertale's story, is it worth playing?", and I said "yes" and explained why. What else should I have said?
I think this is relevant to both of your responses:

I'm not asking whether or not watching the walkthrough obviates playing through a loss of novelty (although it's an interesting point I've considered), I'm asking whether the very notion of story as a selling point justifies investment in a medium distinguished by play, or if that even really matters in the context of gaming and why it does/doesn't.

There are a lot of optional experiences in the game. You may sort of know the characters or the story, but you haven't experienced a narrative of your own. Even if someone made the same broad choices as I did, I wouldn't consider them identical playthroughs. Video games as a medium provide a personal context for the story that is absent from other narrative mediums. And the gameplay itself is fun enough to ignore the abstract storytelling the game utilizes.