If anything, the interactive element should change the way stories can be told and confound our expectations, but most seem to be retreads of a generic formula. They’re written first and foremost as cinematic stories, then gameplay is wrapped around it.

I don’t know.

Hello.

Leopold: Exactly. I couldn’t care less whether a well-written game were a mass-market success (my favourite films, after all, are the weird indie ones that no one’s really heard of), so long as well-written games were at least allowed the chance to exist. Thankfully, the indie game market is growing as we speak, and that’ll hopefully make such a chance to be much more likely.

Although, not to be a cynic, but popular art tends to converge towards the inane due to economic practice and marketing. Honestly, everyone wants movies with better writing, but crappy stories are continually produced. In fact, good, well-written and original films are a rarity and continue to be. I think for games this will be the same. Rikard is right in some sense – it is an opportunity to improve, do better or show how it’s done. The problem is, it A) may not be recognized (even Grim Fandango, despite it’s greatness, was never an all-time best seller) or might not engender changes in the industry. But know there are people out here like you dying for you to make games worth playing and that are entertaining and meaningful beyond their gameplay gimmicks.