Today I want to briefly discuss a matter I’ve been thinking about for a while. That discussion in question being how I’ve found myself watching videogame ‘movies’ on YouTube, and genuinely believe it’s a viable way to take in the narrative of a game without playing through it.
I want to briefly preface this article by noting what I mean by videogame movie is a video on YouTube that features every cutscene from a game in one longform style, thus offering the viewer the full narrative of that particular game.
When I think about some of the videogames I never got around to finishing or even starting, I often ask myself why it is I couldn’t seem to do so. I’ve come to realise it’s largely due to the gameplay or genre of game. For example, I am absolutely rubbish at puzzle games and stealth games. I don’t particularly have the patience or skills to figure a puzzle out or creep my way through a building full of enemies, to then be spotted by one and starting all over. I have the upmost respect for those that can, yet it’s not my cup of tea.
Because of this, games like Hitman have always intrigued me, the concept I find interesting, yet every time I tried to play the game, I ended up getting frustrated. This is a shame because some of the creative ways I’ve seen people assassinate the targets are brilliant. Similarly, with puzzle games, if I must have my hand held to the extent of the puzzle being solved for me, I don’t see the point in me playing the game.
You may notice that of the two genres of game there, one tends to have more narrative-heavy games than the other. However, there’s other genres worth mentioning that have games I’ve not managed to finish, just because the gameplay wasn’t for me. I’ll briefly mention these now before getting into the main argument of why I think videogame movies can be a stepping stone to enjoying games even more.
Games such as The Last of Us Part 2 really interested me from a narrative perspective, but after playing the first, I had no desire to actually play the second at the initial time of writing this. Similarly, the majority of hack n slash games I’m not really that much of a fan of (the God of War series being an exception) and yet the Devil May Cry franchise stands out to me because the lore behind it is the sort of thing I enjoy diving in to.
This notion of only watching the ‘movie’ version of the game also extends to titles I don’t have the console for – such as Xbox or Nintendo exclusive games – and as such, I want to see what the narrative of those games is. Games that stand out to me in this category are the Gears of War series and the later entries in the Halo franchise. Again, both sets of games appeal to me, but with those examples I don’t have the necessary console to play them.
I think videogame movies on YouTube, not to be confused with theatrical movie releases that are based on or are adaptations of videogames, also differ from watching a let’s play or walkthrough. To me, with those, you’re essentially watching that player experience the game as they want to. There’s a difference between that and what I’m about to recommend as a gateway to videogames for those who are wanting to experience the lore and narrative of a game, but either don’t play games at all, or don’t get on well with certain genres.
To go back to an earlier point, I’ve watched was the entire ‘movie’ of The Last of Us Part 2. I’d like to give credit here to the YouTube user MKIceAndFire as it was their video I watched. Now one thing I know some people are going to point out is that because I didn’t personally play the game, that my thoughts towards it are somewhat invalid as I wasn’t fully immersed in the experience. However, I want to argue the opposite (I have also played the game since I initially wrote this piece many moons ago).
Because of the brilliant editing of this video, EVERY single cutscene is included, as well as all optional bits of dialogue that flesh out the world, alongside any notes or documents too. There are even sections of gameplay added that give context as you move through the narrative, so I genuinely felt I’d missed nothing out. I agree I wasn’t in control, and that videogames do give more agency than other forms of media, but to invalidate my opinions seems a bit far.
After all, I wanted to get the narrative and environment of the world given to me, and I did. If watching a film, you realise you’re not given as much agency there, but can still appreciate and take in what is presented to you. If you want the FULL walkthrough with every bit of gameplay, that’s a let’s play, of which MKIceAndFire has also made.
Similarly, games I don’t have access to but want to watch the story of, I can do so thanks to videos on YouTube that again are brilliantly edited to include all cutscenes and contextual gameplay segments. Because of this, I’ve managed to work my way through the later Halo games, the Gears of War franchise, the Hitman games, and lots of ‘indie’ games that didn’t appeal to me for their gameplay, but did for their storytelling. I’ll give a mention here to the YouTube channel Gamer’s Little Playground, who are fantastic in uploading these types of videos, and have covered hundreds, if not thousands of games.
Obviously, each game is a unique case, in that some must go mostly just from cutscene to cutscene, whilst others can offer some contextual gameplay too. But overall, from most videos I’ve watched, you truly can experience the entire narrative and get clued in on a fictional world without having to pick up the controller yourself. As a gaming fan, I prefer to play the games myself, but for those where the gameplay doesn’t seem to be my jam, this is a totally viable option.
There are even games, such as the BioShock series, where I was playing other things at the time and didn’t want to reinstall the games again to play through, but I did want to refresh myself in the narrative of those titles. As such, I could stick on the movie on YouTube and boom, brain refreshed. Thanks to the magic of YouTube too, you don’t need a console hooked up to play the games, just a device compatible with YouTube.
Ultimately, I think that’s all I have to say. Having recently watched The Last of Us Part 2 ‘movie’ in its entirety, I wanted to share with you all this totally viable way of immersing yourself in the stories that videogames tell without having to play them if the gameplay isn’t your thing. I’ve even noticed that I have managed to convince others who’ve never picked up a controller before to watch some of these sorts of videos, because they were looking to watch a good story unfold, and more so now than ever before, the medium of videogames can offer that too.
Dualshocks and Daydreams 