Loved how you tackled the power of show and not tell. It has made me realize that the most effective kinds of storytelling are the ones that you don't notice, because of how immersed in the story you are
I, uh, definitely did NOT have to look up proprioception but yeah, I think it’s exactly along those lines. You start to unthinkingly feel *as* the character, which creates a real bond between them and the player (and why people think Link or Master Chief are great characters when…c’mon)
An interesting analysis. A long time since I played this game, but it sticks in my mind along with Donkey Kong Country, Star Fox and SWIV from the SNES era. In terms of modern games and that same level of engagement, I'd suggest giving Soma a go if you have not already. It is a very compelling game in terms of environmental story telling - using the medium in crafty ways to inform the player about the mechanics but at the same time, on another level, tangle them up within the protagonist of the story by leading you down the same rabbit hole with, depending on how much attention you have been paying, a story that is shockingly horrible (or you are horrified in advance of the protagonist and their reaction is the payoff for your anticipation). This is not quite the same thing as you describe in this video, synergy, but rather it uses many of the same approaches to deliver a different experience, one which is integral to the story being told - one which creates a tension between "synergy" and, because this is horror, a desire to step back from being too engaged with the central character, so you no longer feel you are compelled to contemplate their fate too closely. If you have not played it, I recommend Soma. It is grim fun... sort of.
Great analysis. Admittedly, Super Metroid's narrative takes a back seat once you land on Zebes, and aside from a few select moments, up to the end, it doesn't get much beyond its starting exposition. On the other hand, I feel that Metroid Fusion managed to deliver more impactful events but always felt the need to explain what is going on. Sometimes things are better left unexplained.
I had a whole section on how Fusion could have done more with less that I ended up cutting out but it boiled down to this: Fusion could have had a version with all the dialogue cut that would still have worked. There would need to be changes, obviously, but I think it was possible- and would have been a much, much better game for it. Someone, give Fusion the AM2R treatment
@@thegammelier Incidentally, I am in the midst of the making of a Fusion reimagining. Still, I am not too keen on ditching Adam and all dialogue entirely as I reckon, that would, not only, loose some of Fusion's identity but also make some events confusing without prior warning (at the very least he can provide some guidance for those who are lost) On the flip side, dialog is no longer mandatory and one sided. The player, as Samus, gets multiples answers to choose from. You can be sassy or just dead serious with Adam. That will never make up for the complete feel of isolation Super is known for, sure, but I am willing to think that's a good compromise.
Nice! I agree, some events would be confusing, but those would be the ones that should be changed- or! Use the environment to clue the player in, like the game already does with the reactor meltdown. Suddenly the lights are flashing red and the PA system says ‘reactor meltdown imminent.’ Then, all doors that aren’t mission critical are locked, plus the station number flashes that you need to go to to stop it. No extra dialogue necessary! Until you have to stop and talk to Adam so he can tell you exactly what’s going on… Thanks for watching and good luck with the remake! I’ll definitely keep an eye out for it
@@thegammelier I strongly disagree. Some characterization is what makes Fusion so exceptional. It would have massively benefited from more dialogue coming from Samus in my opinion. Super was a deeply unengaging game for me. Yeah seeing the baby metroid was investing. But otherwise I am just wandering around for no reason other than I wanted to play a bunch of Metroid games (inspired by my love of Ori).
I guess I'm the Samus stan lorehound you mentioned, because I honestly prefer the more lore-heavy stuff like Fusion and the Prime trilogy ^^; But I do agree with a lot of your points about HOW the narrative is delivered between the various games. --- Fusion and Dread locking you into Navigation rooms with Adam is kind of a pain; though at least Dread improves slightly on that by letting you skip through the dialogue fast after the initial few tutorial briefings, and not forcing nav pointers on you. It still feels pretty clunky, and very tell-over-show, but it's better. (Prime's Scan Visor feels like a further step up from that, even if still reliant on a whole lot of text.) I also don't mind the Adam stuff in Fusion and Dread as much as I otherwise might, because that talkiness is itself a plot point. In Fusion Samus chafes against being ordered around, and in the lategame goes increasingly off-script from the stated mission objectives. (Itself sort of a broader-scale script like I wound up whining about down below, but feels less artificial to me by virtue of being built into the baseline game design.) Meanwhile, in Dread, while the Nav rooms are kind of still tedious for a lot of the game, the reveal that it's Raven Beak impersonating Adam at the end reframes the whole thing and makes it much more interesting to re-experience a second time around. Like, it is very reliant on telling, yes, but it also does something interesting by telling you through what turns out to be an unreliable, actively malicious source. All of that being said, instead of the big setpiece scripted moments you highlighted, I feel like one of Super's biggest narrative advantages that I wish would be emphasized more in later games, is the use of the level design itself and subtext (and some good music) to evoke emotion. Maridia, for example, is generally hated for being a miserable slog, confusing and obtuse even by usual Metroid maze standards, and littered with quicksand traps that create further frustration and misery. And honestly, I think that's a strength for it - Maridia is depressing on purpose. Samus is so close and yet so far from rescuing the hatchling, and the awful, dragging level design, bleaker-than-usual color palette, and dull, subdued music really helps put the player in her headspace, far more effectively than any of Other M's angsty monologues ever could hope to. (Similarly, Lower Norfair feels unrelentingly hostile in a number of ways, the abundance of lava and high-level enemies being only the most obvious aspect.) It's this sort of subtext in design I would want to see emphasized again in future releases; Dread I think had a decent stab at it with the atmosphere in the EMMI zones, (and Prime 2 accomplishes a similar trick with the Dark World and its mechanics) but still kinda fell flat in terms of how the normal regions and the path through them should relate to Samus's journey. As you said, synergy is key here. I am still a lore nerd, so I don't mind the more direct stuff, but like, a blend of the best of both approaches, I feel, would be the ideal way to go. Instead of telling over showing, or showing over telling... just show AND tell. --- As far as cutscenes versus scripted sequences go, I'm kinda of two minds there. On one hand, I really like this concept of synergy as you describe it, making you feel as the character does instead of for/about them, and I do think Metroid could really benefit from utilizing them more again. On the other hand, QTEs always feel really artificial to me and tend to take me out of the game instead of helping with synergy, barring a couple of extremely well-directed exceptions. Scripted sequences in a more general sense without all that button mashing are much better, but also kinda reveal their artifice and lose a lot of power on a repeat playthrough. (And I'm the kind of gal who only plays a few specific games multiple times rather than playing a whole bunch only once, so it's probably more of a problem for me than others.) I do agree that getting to try to grapple with the Power Bomb EMMI directly would have been preferable, but it also runs the risk of feeling kind of annoying the second or third time around, knowing the outcome is fixed whether I fight back or not. The SA-X sequences in Fusion are terrifying exactly once, but once you figure out how they work it becomes kinda rote, and some people have even made videos of messing with the rudimentary scripted AI in the chases by running circles around it, and derailing the entire tone. (The EMMIs have their own flaws, but they really do feel like a more dynamic and intense version of that idea, especially since they can show up anywhere within their zones rather than playing out the exact same way every time. That plus the one-hit KO means that even as you get more used to them, they never entirely lose their edge and sense of danger.) The Mother Brain fight at the end of Super can't be abused the same way, but it still kinda loses the impact once you realize your lack of actual agency there. (Fusion and Other M get a lot of flack for that, but honestly it started with Super.) --- On the other hand, despite its own problems and the slight overreliance on it in Dread, I love the cinematic cutscene approach for a couple reasons: First is how it allows close-ups of the action to get a proper sense for scale, where everything normally feels kinda diminutive from my distant third-person viewing perspective; I honestly think the Prime games do the best job of making me feel like I am Samus just with the first-person perspective, whereas with the 2D ones I've played, even the techniques you described can't entirely overcome a certain ongoing awareness that I am simply playing as and observing her rather than being her. With most of the cutscenes, the cinematography puts me more on her level instead of the usual ant-farm perspective, ironically giving slightly more of that sense of synergy you described even if I'm not in control and still outside her POV, because I at least feel like I'm in there in the room with her. Secondly, as a writer and again, Samus stan, I really love how these cutscenes allow Samus to be more expressive in body language than she could be in normal gameplay, giving me a strong sense of her character and responses to the various major developments without a single line of dialogue. (Okay technically there is exactly one single line of dialogue and a very long scream of rage, but like, literally everything else is silent yet deeply characterful.) Getting to experience these things AS her is of course ideal, but again the POV issue (which is probably mostly my issue, but it still is one) means there was already going to be a certain sort of detatchment in this sidescrolling format, so this is at least the next best thing. (On that note, I am very curious how Prime 4 will handle it's narrative delivery.) --- Going back to the topic of scripted sequences, I think the much better example of the kind of synergy you're describing, in the same game even, is the opportunity to save the animals at the very end. It's completely up to player choice what to do there. You don't just have an illusion of control - you can just do it, or not, and the game responds to that choice. Even if it's just the presence or absence of a miniscule moving pixel in the final screen, that means so much more to me. The hatchling's death is tragic, but it just feels... artificial somehow, in comparison. I can't do anything about it, and once I realized that, it kinda had me questioning what the point of all this was, to spend the whole game searching for it only to watch it die in what functionally may as well be a cutscene. That plus Super is already halfway-retreading NEStroid with the recycled bosses and world; it's main claim to fame is more for refining the gameplay concept of the original into a proper genre-starter. The whole thing ending the same way it started, (baby's gone, place is exploding) acting as more of a narrative dead-end than a wrap-up, (until Fusion found a way to uno-reverse-card it into forwarding things again with the Metroid DNA infusion) just didn't sit right with me. If it were played for tragedy, "yes this was pointless but that was the point", then I might be more on-board with it, but they don't really give it any further thought after MB is dead for realsies this time, and the end screen music is as triumphant as ever. Idunno, not trying to be a spicy contrarian or anything, but the whole story decision is one I'm increasingly less fond of over time, and giving the illusion of control ironically soured me a bit more toward it, because of that subsequent realization that my actions don't really matter either way, whereas a cutscene at least is upfront about being unalterable. But the animals? That's entirely my choice, my actions, and there's a satisfaction in seeing that dot zip off away from Zebes because I made that happen. And if I don't, letting them down honestly hits much harder than the hatchling's fate does, because there was something I could have done about it. --- TLDR: I'm a writer and lore nerd first, gamer second, and so we are probably just coming at this issue from fundamentally different perspectives and don't see eye-to-eye on this stuff... (and I am grumpier about Super's ending than I realized) ...but my ramblings aside, this was still a very interesting video, and even if I didn't agree with a lot of your argument, I still found it an interesting and more in-depth perspective than a lot of the usual discussion around Super. I do genuinely like this synergy concept, and it's something I'll be keeping an eye out for as I play other games. Also, despite our differing preferences about scripted sequences and whether lore is important or not and all that - Based on what you said, I think we can both agree that Other M did it the worst of all. XD
Thank you for the thoughtful response! I’m glad that, even if you don’t agree with me, you’re at least engaging with the subject matter of the video. So, you’ve touched on something I actually cut from the script (I cut a LOT from the script, the video was originally twice as long): repeat playthroughs and how they can change the impact of a moment that relies on you not knowing it ahead of time. You’re right, knowing the trick ahead of time does change its impact but I think it’s worth it if it means I get an experience I can’t get from another medium, even if it’s only once. I carry those moments with me for a long time. But I’d also say this only applies to games going for more basic emotions (fear, anger, etc). Resident Evil stops being scary after a while, especially if you’re speed running it or trying to get all the unlockables, but boy howdy, do I cherish those first playthroughs. However, in the case of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, I replayed it for the video to get the footage and was worried that the ending wouldn’t affect me again, since I knew the trick. Turns out, I was still wrecked by it because it’s communicating the game’s themes and a deeper emotion (loss, mourning, growth) and still struck those chords. I also hadn’t played it in years but I was pleased it still resonated. Anyway, thanks for sharing your thoughts!
@@thegammelier Ooh, that is honestly a good point. The transience of that moment and how it affected you still mattering, even if it doesn't hit the same way again... Also something for me to try and pay more attention to. Yeah, I think you're right about that, there's more longevity in the stuff that speaks more to the heart, and the deeper, messier parts of being human. I'm glad that Brothers still held up ^.^ Sure! Sorry again for rambling so long, but the video definitely sparked a lot of thoughts, for better or worse. Thank you for hearing me out : )
Player synergy is an interesting term. Having said that, I always thought that empathy for player characters included synergy as well, so I wonder if the reason we don't really see the term in use is because empathy is more of an umbrella term.
A good point but I still think it’s deserving of its own term, since this is unique to games. We need our own term! I appreciate the response! For this and the VS video
Music is really important for such synergy in the game. Music should convey emotions of that character and in such way you can feel what character feels at this point. Maridia is a great example of it.
Your RUclips channel is a gem, and I hope that it will soon be discovered by a larger audience or that the algorithm will start functioning properly. Although I am aware that algorithms don't operate in this way, if giving it my glasses works, I'll do it! Since watching your three-part God of War Ragnarök series, I've been keeping a close eye on the community section of RUclips when I visit the page for updates on new videos from you, even when it is only to like the post (are we watching algorithm?). RUclips first suggested your channel to me after I experessed interest in a 16-hour-or-so cutscene-only video to watch the game's story (GoWR) and see if this award winning behemot needed reconsideration, since the gameplay doesn't particularly pull me in. The first two videos of the (to be) trilogy were released, and I was so blown away by them that I couldn't help but await the last part. While being patient, I watched the other videos on your channel, and I was bummed to see that you had only recently started RUclips when I finished those. Since then, I've been eagerly awaiting each new video you release. I think you expressed it best in the introduction of your video when you summarized what other channels had said about Super Metroid and asked, "What can I possibly have to add that hasn't already been said to a 30-year-old game?" I think a whole lot. I think I've reached the stage where anything you make, I will definitely watch it and it's highly probable that I'll find it intriguing & enjoyable.
Thank you for the kind words, I really appreciate it. I work hard on these, so it’s nice to hear someone likes them. Yep, I’ve only been at this for less than a year, but I’ll keep plugging away, even if my output slows down from time to time (as this video sure did)
Metroid didn't have cutscenes be because Harold Cutscene hadn't invented them until later that same year. As a screenwriter you should have known this. Great video 9/10. One point deduction for not mentioning Harold Cutscene.
one of the few breakable items i didnt get in metriod prime was the DANG GLASS TUBE. yes i understand several similar areas wanted you to use the super bomb, but those were easily scanable, while the tube itself... how are you even supposed to scan it from inside the tube, let alone figure that out?
Now try doing that when you’re 9 with no internet guides… Like I said, discovered it completely by accident because I was so angry, I laid bombs everywhere
Its influence is all throughout gaming, though, even if it isn’t so much the storytelling aspects. Citizen Kane wasn’t super well received when it came out, either! These things take time.
I watched Citizen Kane a few years ago because I was doing a AFI top 100 thing. I was really pleasantly surprised by how dang good it was. But yea not the best movie of all time.
My genuine hope is the next Metroid eschews all the lore and just gives us a great, simple story like Super. All you need to know for Super comes from the opening cutscene. No muss, no fuss. While I’m not nice to Dread’s story in the video, I’m very happy it sold well and have already played through it, like, four times. Hopefully we don’t have to wait 10 years for the next one
@@novustalks7525you guys have total misunderstading of Samus's character, if you think Dread's story was "weak". Story in Dread was probably the most personal and important for Samus herself.
@@thegammelierI can understand why you want another simple story to understand, but Metroid is way more deeper in it's topics, then it's might seem. You definitely need a good understanding of lore and story overall to enjoy story heavy Metroid games.
It’s a tough question! A developer who had a hit, faded from the public view, then had a major release that dabbles in another dev’s wheelhouse? I’m sure there’s an answer, I’m just not sure what that answer is
I’ve been meaning to get to this video, so thanks for the tweet. Excellent breakdown. This deserves so much more traction!
Thanks! My ‘synergy’ theory needs so much more exposure………
Loved how you tackled the power of show and not tell. It has made me realize that the most effective kinds of storytelling are the ones that you don't notice, because of how immersed in the story you are
The hardest to realize how good they are, too. Hence why I defend Uncharted 4 so strongly. The best stories make it look easy and dismissible
synergy feels kind of like the expansion of player proprioception that happens with game control, but in more of a narrative area? very interesting!
I, uh, definitely did NOT have to look up proprioception but yeah, I think it’s exactly along those lines. You start to unthinkingly feel *as* the character, which creates a real bond between them and the player (and why people think Link or Master Chief are great characters when…c’mon)
spot on with the citizen kane comparison. five words for you: man with a movie camera
Looking it up, I’m pretty sure I watched this in film school…? It’s been so long though
Thanks for watching!
Arlo keeps appearing everywhere lately.
An interesting analysis. A long time since I played this game, but it sticks in my mind along with Donkey Kong Country, Star Fox and SWIV from the SNES era. In terms of modern games and that same level of engagement, I'd suggest giving Soma a go if you have not already. It is a very compelling game in terms of environmental story telling - using the medium in crafty ways to inform the player about the mechanics but at the same time, on another level, tangle them up within the protagonist of the story by leading you down the same rabbit hole with, depending on how much attention you have been paying, a story that is shockingly horrible (or you are horrified in advance of the protagonist and their reaction is the payoff for your anticipation). This is not quite the same thing as you describe in this video, synergy, but rather it uses many of the same approaches to deliver a different experience, one which is integral to the story being told - one which creates a tension between "synergy" and, because this is horror, a desire to step back from being too engaged with the central character, so you no longer feel you are compelled to contemplate their fate too closely. If you have not played it, I recommend Soma. It is grim fun... sort of.
Great analysis.
Admittedly, Super Metroid's narrative takes a back seat once you land on Zebes, and aside from a few select moments, up to the end, it doesn't get much beyond its starting exposition. On the other hand, I feel that Metroid Fusion managed to deliver more impactful events but always felt the need to explain what is going on.
Sometimes things are better left unexplained.
I had a whole section on how Fusion could have done more with less that I ended up cutting out but it boiled down to this: Fusion could have had a version with all the dialogue cut that would still have worked.
There would need to be changes, obviously, but I think it was possible- and would have been a much, much better game for it.
Someone, give Fusion the AM2R treatment
@@thegammelier Incidentally, I am in the midst of the making of a Fusion reimagining. Still, I am not too keen on ditching Adam and all dialogue entirely as I reckon, that would, not only, loose some of Fusion's identity but also make some events confusing without prior warning (at the very least he can provide some guidance for those who are lost) On the flip side, dialog is no longer mandatory and one sided. The player, as Samus, gets multiples answers to choose from. You can be sassy or just dead serious with Adam. That will never make up for the complete feel of isolation Super is known for, sure, but I am willing to think that's a good compromise.
Nice! I agree, some events would be confusing, but those would be the ones that should be changed- or! Use the environment to clue the player in, like the game already does with the reactor meltdown. Suddenly the lights are flashing red and the PA system says ‘reactor meltdown imminent.’ Then, all doors that aren’t mission critical are locked, plus the station number flashes that you need to go to to stop it. No extra dialogue necessary!
Until you have to stop and talk to Adam so he can tell you exactly what’s going on…
Thanks for watching and good luck with the remake! I’ll definitely keep an eye out for it
@@thegammelier I strongly disagree. Some characterization is what makes Fusion so exceptional. It would have massively benefited from more dialogue coming from Samus in my opinion.
Super was a deeply unengaging game for me. Yeah seeing the baby metroid was investing. But otherwise I am just wandering around for no reason other than I wanted to play a bunch of Metroid games (inspired by my love of Ori).
I guess I'm the Samus stan lorehound you mentioned, because I honestly prefer the more lore-heavy stuff like Fusion and the Prime trilogy ^^; But I do agree with a lot of your points about HOW the narrative is delivered between the various games.
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Fusion and Dread locking you into Navigation rooms with Adam is kind of a pain; though at least Dread improves slightly on that by letting you skip through the dialogue fast after the initial few tutorial briefings, and not forcing nav pointers on you. It still feels pretty clunky, and very tell-over-show, but it's better. (Prime's Scan Visor feels like a further step up from that, even if still reliant on a whole lot of text.)
I also don't mind the Adam stuff in Fusion and Dread as much as I otherwise might, because that talkiness is itself a plot point. In Fusion Samus chafes against being ordered around, and in the lategame goes increasingly off-script from the stated mission objectives. (Itself sort of a broader-scale script like I wound up whining about down below, but feels less artificial to me by virtue of being built into the baseline game design.) Meanwhile, in Dread, while the Nav rooms are kind of still tedious for a lot of the game, the reveal that it's Raven Beak impersonating Adam at the end reframes the whole thing and makes it much more interesting to re-experience a second time around. Like, it is very reliant on telling, yes, but it also does something interesting by telling you through what turns out to be an unreliable, actively malicious source.
All of that being said, instead of the big setpiece scripted moments you highlighted, I feel like one of Super's biggest narrative advantages that I wish would be emphasized more in later games, is the use of the level design itself and subtext (and some good music) to evoke emotion. Maridia, for example, is generally hated for being a miserable slog, confusing and obtuse even by usual Metroid maze standards, and littered with quicksand traps that create further frustration and misery. And honestly, I think that's a strength for it - Maridia is depressing on purpose. Samus is so close and yet so far from rescuing the hatchling, and the awful, dragging level design, bleaker-than-usual color palette, and dull, subdued music really helps put the player in her headspace, far more effectively than any of Other M's angsty monologues ever could hope to. (Similarly, Lower Norfair feels unrelentingly hostile in a number of ways, the abundance of lava and high-level enemies being only the most obvious aspect.)
It's this sort of subtext in design I would want to see emphasized again in future releases; Dread I think had a decent stab at it with the atmosphere in the EMMI zones, (and Prime 2 accomplishes a similar trick with the Dark World and its mechanics) but still kinda fell flat in terms of how the normal regions and the path through them should relate to Samus's journey. As you said, synergy is key here.
I am still a lore nerd, so I don't mind the more direct stuff, but like, a blend of the best of both approaches, I feel, would be the ideal way to go. Instead of telling over showing, or showing over telling... just show AND tell.
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As far as cutscenes versus scripted sequences go, I'm kinda of two minds there. On one hand, I really like this concept of synergy as you describe it, making you feel as the character does instead of for/about them, and I do think Metroid could really benefit from utilizing them more again. On the other hand, QTEs always feel really artificial to me and tend to take me out of the game instead of helping with synergy, barring a couple of extremely well-directed exceptions.
Scripted sequences in a more general sense without all that button mashing are much better, but also kinda reveal their artifice and lose a lot of power on a repeat playthrough. (And I'm the kind of gal who only plays a few specific games multiple times rather than playing a whole bunch only once, so it's probably more of a problem for me than others.) I do agree that getting to try to grapple with the Power Bomb EMMI directly would have been preferable, but it also runs the risk of feeling kind of annoying the second or third time around, knowing the outcome is fixed whether I fight back or not.
The SA-X sequences in Fusion are terrifying exactly once, but once you figure out how they work it becomes kinda rote, and some people have even made videos of messing with the rudimentary scripted AI in the chases by running circles around it, and derailing the entire tone. (The EMMIs have their own flaws, but they really do feel like a more dynamic and intense version of that idea, especially since they can show up anywhere within their zones rather than playing out the exact same way every time. That plus the one-hit KO means that even as you get more used to them, they never entirely lose their edge and sense of danger.)
The Mother Brain fight at the end of Super can't be abused the same way, but it still kinda loses the impact once you realize your lack of actual agency there. (Fusion and Other M get a lot of flack for that, but honestly it started with Super.)
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On the other hand, despite its own problems and the slight overreliance on it in Dread, I love the cinematic cutscene approach for a couple reasons:
First is how it allows close-ups of the action to get a proper sense for scale, where everything normally feels kinda diminutive from my distant third-person viewing perspective; I honestly think the Prime games do the best job of making me feel like I am Samus just with the first-person perspective, whereas with the 2D ones I've played, even the techniques you described can't entirely overcome a certain ongoing awareness that I am simply playing as and observing her rather than being her. With most of the cutscenes, the cinematography puts me more on her level instead of the usual ant-farm perspective, ironically giving slightly more of that sense of synergy you described even if I'm not in control and still outside her POV, because I at least feel like I'm in there in the room with her.
Secondly, as a writer and again, Samus stan, I really love how these cutscenes allow Samus to be more expressive in body language than she could be in normal gameplay, giving me a strong sense of her character and responses to the various major developments without a single line of dialogue. (Okay technically there is exactly one single line of dialogue and a very long scream of rage, but like, literally everything else is silent yet deeply characterful.) Getting to experience these things AS her is of course ideal, but again the POV issue (which is probably mostly my issue, but it still is one) means there was already going to be a certain sort of detatchment in this sidescrolling format, so this is at least the next best thing.
(On that note, I am very curious how Prime 4 will handle it's narrative delivery.)
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Going back to the topic of scripted sequences, I think the much better example of the kind of synergy you're describing, in the same game even, is the opportunity to save the animals at the very end. It's completely up to player choice what to do there. You don't just have an illusion of control - you can just do it, or not, and the game responds to that choice. Even if it's just the presence or absence of a miniscule moving pixel in the final screen, that means so much more to me.
The hatchling's death is tragic, but it just feels... artificial somehow, in comparison. I can't do anything about it, and once I realized that, it kinda had me questioning what the point of all this was, to spend the whole game searching for it only to watch it die in what functionally may as well be a cutscene. That plus Super is already halfway-retreading NEStroid with the recycled bosses and world; it's main claim to fame is more for refining the gameplay concept of the original into a proper genre-starter. The whole thing ending the same way it started, (baby's gone, place is exploding) acting as more of a narrative dead-end than a wrap-up, (until Fusion found a way to uno-reverse-card it into forwarding things again with the Metroid DNA infusion) just didn't sit right with me. If it were played for tragedy, "yes this was pointless but that was the point", then I might be more on-board with it, but they don't really give it any further thought after MB is dead for realsies this time, and the end screen music is as triumphant as ever.
Idunno, not trying to be a spicy contrarian or anything, but the whole story decision is one I'm increasingly less fond of over time, and giving the illusion of control ironically soured me a bit more toward it, because of that subsequent realization that my actions don't really matter either way, whereas a cutscene at least is upfront about being unalterable.
But the animals? That's entirely my choice, my actions, and there's a satisfaction in seeing that dot zip off away from Zebes because I made that happen. And if I don't, letting them down honestly hits much harder than the hatchling's fate does, because there was something I could have done about it.
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TLDR: I'm a writer and lore nerd first, gamer second, and so we are probably just coming at this issue from fundamentally different perspectives and don't see eye-to-eye on this stuff... (and I am grumpier about Super's ending than I realized) ...but my ramblings aside, this was still a very interesting video, and even if I didn't agree with a lot of your argument, I still found it an interesting and more in-depth perspective than a lot of the usual discussion around Super. I do genuinely like this synergy concept, and it's something I'll be keeping an eye out for as I play other games. Also, despite our differing preferences about scripted sequences and whether lore is important or not and all that - Based on what you said, I think we can both agree that Other M did it the worst of all. XD
Thank you for the thoughtful response! I’m glad that, even if you don’t agree with me, you’re at least engaging with the subject matter of the video.
So, you’ve touched on something I actually cut from the script (I cut a LOT from the script, the video was originally twice as long): repeat playthroughs and how they can change the impact of a moment that relies on you not knowing it ahead of time.
You’re right, knowing the trick ahead of time does change its impact but I think it’s worth it if it means I get an experience I can’t get from another medium, even if it’s only once. I carry those moments with me for a long time. But I’d also say this only applies to games going for more basic emotions (fear, anger, etc). Resident Evil stops being scary after a while, especially if you’re speed running it or trying to get all the unlockables, but boy howdy, do I cherish those first playthroughs.
However, in the case of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, I replayed it for the video to get the footage and was worried that the ending wouldn’t affect me again, since I knew the trick. Turns out, I was still wrecked by it because it’s communicating the game’s themes and a deeper emotion (loss, mourning, growth) and still struck those chords. I also hadn’t played it in years but I was pleased it still resonated.
Anyway, thanks for sharing your thoughts!
@@thegammelier Ooh, that is honestly a good point. The transience of that moment and how it affected you still mattering, even if it doesn't hit the same way again... Also something for me to try and pay more attention to.
Yeah, I think you're right about that, there's more longevity in the stuff that speaks more to the heart, and the deeper, messier parts of being human. I'm glad that Brothers still held up ^.^
Sure! Sorry again for rambling so long, but the video definitely sparked a lot of thoughts, for better or worse. Thank you for hearing me out : )
Player synergy is an interesting term. Having said that, I always thought that empathy for player characters included synergy as well, so I wonder if the reason we don't really see the term in use is because empathy is more of an umbrella term.
A good point but I still think it’s deserving of its own term, since this is unique to games. We need our own term!
I appreciate the response! For this and the VS video
Agreed. Specificity in terminology is proof of depth and nuance in a subject.
Great video, although disappointed you didn't include any analysis of the cane from Citzen Kane
10/10, would cane again
Phenomenal video. Will definitely be watching this again in the future.
Music is really important for such synergy in the game. Music should convey emotions of that character and in such way you can feel what character feels at this point. Maridia is a great example of it.
Totally agree. It’s a major factor of narrative design
Your RUclips channel is a gem, and I hope that it will soon be discovered by a larger audience or that the algorithm will start functioning properly. Although I am aware that algorithms don't operate in this way, if giving it my glasses works, I'll do it! Since watching your three-part God of War Ragnarök series, I've been keeping a close eye on the community section of RUclips when I visit the page for updates on new videos from you, even when it is only to like the post (are we watching algorithm?).
RUclips first suggested your channel to me after I experessed interest in a 16-hour-or-so cutscene-only video to watch the game's story (GoWR) and see if this award winning behemot needed reconsideration, since the gameplay doesn't particularly pull me in. The first two videos of the (to be) trilogy were released, and I was so blown away by them that I couldn't help but await the last part. While being patient, I watched the other videos on your channel, and I was bummed to see that you had only recently started RUclips when I finished those. Since then, I've been eagerly awaiting each new video you release. I think you expressed it best in the introduction of your video when you summarized what other channels had said about Super Metroid and asked, "What can I possibly have to add that hasn't already been said to a 30-year-old game?" I think a whole lot. I think I've reached the stage where anything you make, I will definitely watch it and it's highly probable that I'll find it intriguing & enjoyable.
Thank you for the kind words, I really appreciate it. I work hard on these, so it’s nice to hear someone likes them.
Yep, I’ve only been at this for less than a year, but I’ll keep plugging away, even if my output slows down from time to time (as this video sure did)
00:36 Sympathy for Mr. Miller
Great video man, keep creating the world needs it!
Nice video ! Sub & Big Like ! And love retro Metroid games.
Super well written episode man! I never really actually played much Metroid and enjoyed it and learned something.
Get on it! They’re all great, even if I was less than kind to some of them
@@thegammelier Maybe if I can get the kid to focus on something for a bit. That would be a good game to play
Metroid didn't have cutscenes be because Harold Cutscene hadn't invented them until later that same year. As a screenwriter you should have known this. Great video 9/10. One point deduction for not mentioning Harold Cutscene.
Me and Harold had a falling out and I would appreciate if you would not bring his name up in my company
one of the few breakable items i didnt get in metriod prime was the DANG GLASS TUBE. yes i understand several similar areas wanted you to use the super bomb, but those were easily scanable, while the tube itself... how are you even supposed to scan it from inside the tube, let alone figure that out?
Now try doing that when you’re 9 with no internet guides…
Like I said, discovered it completely by accident because I was so angry, I laid bombs everywhere
Oh Dang, a Sudden Death reference. I might have to rewatch this shit!
We should all rewatch Sudden Death, the world over!
it's funny to call it the "citizen kane of gaming" because unlike citizen kane, it's not like the medium learned from it.
Its influence is all throughout gaming, though, even if it isn’t so much the storytelling aspects. Citizen Kane wasn’t super well received when it came out, either! These things take time.
@@thegammelier fair enough, i shouldn't be this negative, you brought some other games as examples on the video as well
I watched Citizen Kane a few years ago because I was doing a AFI top 100 thing. I was really pleasantly surprised by how dang good it was. But yea not the best movie of all time.
Yeah, I had to watch it in film school, was totally uninterested thinking it’d be old and stodgy and boring, then was blown away
Metroid could do with more of an actual story though. There's so many gaps in the lore
My genuine hope is the next Metroid eschews all the lore and just gives us a great, simple story like Super. All you need to know for Super comes from the opening cutscene. No muss, no fuss.
While I’m not nice to Dread’s story in the video, I’m very happy it sold well and have already played through it, like, four times. Hopefully we don’t have to wait 10 years for the next one
@@thegammelier the story was definitely dreads weakest part. There's a few plot holes and a lot was left unexplained
@@novustalks7525you guys have total misunderstading of Samus's character, if you think Dread's story was "weak". Story in Dread was probably the most personal and important for Samus herself.
@@thegammelierI can understand why you want another simple story to understand, but Metroid is way more deeper in it's topics, then it's might seem. You definitely need a good understanding of lore and story overall to enjoy story heavy Metroid games.
@@dis_inferno9173 very little happens. It does nothing to "conclude the story" or answer questions
Look forward to you scientifically prove that Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is one of the best stories in a game. I agree, btw 😤
What’s the Sudden Death of video games? Batman: Arkham Origins
….unless someone has a better answer
It’s a tough question! A developer who had a hit, faded from the public view, then had a major release that dabbles in another dev’s wheelhouse? I’m sure there’s an answer, I’m just not sure what that answer is
Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub Zero
@@thegammelier oh man I didn’t even consider the production with that question. More so the scenario. But excellent point