Most Important thing in a game?

The most obvious is gameplay. After that, it's story and characters for me. Bonus points if the level design is great.

I would say game play which is a very complex thing to talk about. For a FPS it mostly about the staging (level design) of the shootouts, for a RPG player control character growth is apart of it (stats, gears and abilities) and for a open world game the own world affects it (world design). There may be no overlap between games.

All of those things are important to make a game that is truly great.

I agree the whole is greater than that sum of its parts but that does not mean they are all weighted the same.

Well I'm not sure if it's the most important thing to me, but all of my favourite games have a great story & characters. So those are definitely important. World design would also be right up there.

To me Gamesplay, Story and characters are most important

Yeah I picked them all as well and would have also picked Sound/Music if it was on there too.

you forgot soundtrack and frps two things that are very important depending on type of game/person

Gameplay, world design, and level design. Since I play mostly FPS games, story and characters don't matter to me that much. Graphics are fine so long as they don't make my eyes bleed.

There's no one answer. It depends entirely on the game. Some of the games I love have almost no story and shitty graphics while others are beautiful and have terrific stories. It just depends.

Depend on the game ... an RPG need a great story, a racing game need good graphics good frame rate, a fighting game need impressive gameplay and frame rate, rts need the best control possible, a platformer need gameplay level design ... FPS is all about graphics

Depends on the game genre, there are whole bunch of games that have no story at all ( like PacMan, Galaga or Space Invaders ) and they still are fun to play.

The most important aspect, especially before all those aspects of games that you listed, is that the game is functional. If it breaks in some way while playing it, then it doesn't matter how great gameplay, graphics, story, world design, level design, characters, etc. are.

Could not answer. As it is a combination of most of the above. Would be difficult to pick the most important. ex. Graphics enhance gameplay, and add that sense of realism.

Gameplay without a doubt, but a story will push me to beat the game.

graphics

level design

story

Quallity, you need all these things to make a decent game!

no game is a game if there are no gameplay in it,so is the game didn't provide much detail of what's happening in there (story)...earworms? I guess it's a need,I don't care if the graphics are like old outhouses,as long as it's enjoyable.

gameplay. hands down. GAMES are supposed to be PLAYed. everything else is just extra, but ultimately games are about gameplay. i even appreciate audio-visual presentation more that story. story-driven = linear. it's extremely hard to tell a gripping story in a dynamic game environment. go see a movie or read a book if you want a solid story.

No vote. You left off multiplayer. I'm a huge fan of Return to Castle Wolfenstein but did not buy Wolfenstein The New Order and will not buy the upcoming sequel The Old Blood either NO MP!

All of them, If a game had sub par gameplay but gets story, setting and characters spot on I can still enjoy it.

None of these things.

The most important thing is that the game is sold at a price which matches whatever content and quality it has.

I'm a consumer, not an art critic.

I gotta laugh a bit at people who say its obvious that the most important thing in a game is gameplay. Which might be the case for them but there are some who value other things like story a lot higher.

It might be because i am a bit older than the avg. gamer being in my 20´s i have a active life so i don't have time to sit down and play just to play anymore, so for me the most important thing is immersion and that is story, if the story is bland or there isn't one, i will usually quickly jump away from that game.

That goes under gameplay

Is it fun?

@Jacanuk: to be honest I rate gameplay and story equally. But it's hard to enjoy a good story if the gameplay is a pain or boring.

I have it a lot easier when it comes to overlooking bad gameplay compared to bad story. If i can't get drawn in by the story or its characters, i usually drop the game and never play it again. Same thing doesn´t apply to gameplay, if the story draws me in , its a game worth playing.

@Jacanuk: I typically feel that way about horror games because I expect them to have deliberately limited gameplay

Gameplay and level design. Nonlinear gameplay with depth and impressive level design can get you a long way, now i dont get why people care so much about story since the way games are made it is impossible to make a masterpiece of a story since it will have to have less gameplay and more cutscenes and be more linear and scripted.

I chose every option.

The thing is, different people value different aspects, and play for different reasons.

It's game play for me. All I care about when playing a game is if I'm having fun. Mrs./Pac Man, Doom, Space Harrier, and the Super Mario series are just a few examples of games that I still enjoy today because they are just fun to play. Are there better FPS'es than Doom, sure. But Doom is a game you can quickly get in and out of, and have some fun without having to get involved in a lengthy story, tutorial, etc...

For me it's the exact opposite. I'm in my 30s, active as well, and have kids who need my time. I feel I don't have time to get immersed in a story. I need a game that I can quickly jump in and out of. It doesn't mean I don't enjoy games with a good story, just that I have to be conscious of when I play one, because I know I will play in short bursts.

So, as you can see, OP, there is no one universal answer to what's better, because everyone's situation and tastes are different.

Gameplay.

Every single option in the poll. Depending on what game it is. Some are just action games. While some really depend on deep stories and character development. Some games are known mostly for their graphics and so on.

Wheres the checkbox for AI and Co-Op ?

Gameplay but a story line will keep me going for sure.

I'd place them as follows

1) Gameplay

2) Level Design

3) World Design

4) Graphics

5) Story

6) Characters

Depends on the game, trying to say one element is more important then another just feels wrong.

Gameplay > Level Design > World Design > Graphics > Sound > Story > Characters

AI goes under gameplay and Co OP is a game mode

A great game originates with a great gameplay idea. All the other stuff is just fluff.

Gameplay has a huge lead

What would make you stop playing a game sooner? Bad graphics, or bad gameplay?

@The_Last_Ride:

Doesn't Level Design go under gameplay aswell ?

Yep. Tho most horror games today seem to be more about cheap jump scares than anything else and that is just terrible.

I really miss good games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil.

I'm more inclined to spend time on a game with great gameplay and a horrible story than vice versa. So gameplay is first for me. Rewarding exploration is also important. I love a good story, but if the gameplay fails to complement that, I'd rather watch a movie or read a good book.

I used to play games with nary a consideration as to why I was playing with them. These days, I'm finding I need some form of meaning to justify mechanics. I play games who have great gameplay, but that's not quite enough anymore. I don't know why. It's like the difference between just sex and sex while being in love. One's fun, but the other is on an entirely different level.

I'd group level design with gameplay.

GAMEPLAY---VISUAL---AUDIO

I've already mentioned Contra III once today but when I'm shooting a gun I want it to sound cool and I want the music to kick ass.

It might depend on the game but mostly atmosphere, story and world design do the trick for me.

By far the most important aspect of any game is how many blades of grass there are.