Nintendo games need VA and better story telling

To me, aside from the obvious visual and performance limitations of being tied to the Switch, this is the biggest problem with Nintendo games that make it difficult to enjoy them now. During the NES/SNES/N64 eras they could get by with it because most other companies were generally doing the same thing. The problem now is, you will never get that "first time" experience from a new Nintendo game as long as they fall back and rely on the same tired tropes from 20+ years ago.

We've all played all of their games in both 2D and 3D, and the fact is that the WOW factor just ain't there anymore. When Super Mario Bros. 3 first released it blew minds. It was revolutionary for its time. The same goes for Super Mario 64. The same can't be said for any of the New Super Mario Bros. games or Super Mario Odyssey. They are been there done that experiences.

Nintendo should be investing the money they make from overcharging for their products into really bringing their franchises to life. Their games feel like too much of relics of the past rather than modern experiences.

While a company like Sony is able to achieve this with their IP:

Nintendo is stuck in the stone age with their games looking like this:

Nintendo's art style almost looks babyish now when they should be aiming for Pixar level visuals, VA and story telling. Why have so many characters in the Mario universe if the only story their creatively bankrupt minds can tell is Bowser kidnapped the Princess again? The same applies to Zelda and so forth.

The Mario Franchise is not stacking up compared to ratchet anymore back in the day mario was king mario 64 and super mario world and it was king now ratchet is top dog look at that graphics

Nintendo doesn't even know what's motion capture😂 So incredibly behind competition.

It is weird that Nintendo is stressing you Sony fannies so hard.🤭

So you're saying Nintendo games need to be less like games and more like movies?

How surprising.

That’s never really bothered me to honest. I’ve still been plenty wowed by the Mario games. From Super Mario World to Super Mario 64 to Super Mario Galaxy to Super Mario Odyssey. They’ve all continued to impress me. Same with the Zelda franchise.

I also very much enjoy the graphic style that Nintendo goes for in their games. Sure that ‘Pixar’ quality and look is great as well but I don’t think that that has to be the defacto style for everyone.

I’m also fine with the basic story premise of the Mario games. It does it’s job in giving the platformer games enough context for me to play through and a satisfactory conclusion. I find the story telling in the Zelda games to be pretty good. It’s usually told in game and in the general world of the games.

The Fire Emblem games are quite good both in graphics and story telling.

Not all their stuff is perfect though. I think the Mario RPGs have been falling behind lately.

So you are saying that Sony games are best for kids and folks who can't get through so much text. Interesting. 🤔

If I want a story, I'll read a book, not some b-rate scripted Sony game imo

Story telling is better in videogames when it doesn't try so hard and not so heavy handed.

I don't think I've ever seen the "Nintendo makes games for adults, Sony makes games for kids" argument before...

You are asking me what does Sony got to do with it when the OP references directly references Sony. The rest of your comment just reiterates what I thought you were saying.

"Sony games are best for kids and folks who can't get through so much text."😎

Yeah....yeah.....they really don't though. a games quality is not dictated by its VO work or production values or story telling (sonys way isnt even that interesting...just spoon feeding the player through cutscenes). at the end of the day thats just nice window dressing.

In many other types of games (Tabletop, board games etc.) reading is just a requirement. why should video games be any different? bloody hell imagine trying to play something like stellaris where the player is explained the rules of the game through VO work...it would be exhausting. some of it is and its slow (and skippable thankfully).

it would certainly be nice if Nintendo broke out the orchestra a bit more (because when they do...man oh man) and, sure, i would love to see what nintendos artists would do given the resources of a top of the line PC.

but they dont need them. this is not critical to making a quality game.

if you are playing mario because you just want to save the princess and are arguing that something like mario odyssey is not creative because the story is "mario needs to save the princess" then...i don't....wha? or if you try to argue that its boring because "all you do is collect moons"....not an argument. it hold no water.

@Pedro: I know trolling is your shtick, but please refrain from derailing the thread. Thank you.

Are you implying that Mario rescuing Peach for the 18 billionth time is better story telling than games that actually put effort into giving the player a reason to see through to the end?

Gameplay without a purpose is a waste of the players time.

Now that i think of it, it must be so cheap to make Nintendo games. Ancient graphics, no voice acting, no motion capture, no lips syncing, etc. But they're still charging $60. Incredible ripoff if you ask me.

And yet mario,Zelda etc keeps outselling all the Sony franchises… should really tell you how important graphic and VA is compared to gameplay!

Lack of software is the only reason why. What else are you going to buy on a Nintendo console?

As someone who owns a Switch, I do agree that Nintendo loves ripping off people with their games sometimes. I mean they still sell old Wii-U games that are ported to the Switch for full price. And don't get me started with Super Mario 3D All-Stars.

??? Nintendo targets the kid audience. Just like Fortnite, milking kids is by far the easiest way to print cash, so of course the sales are guaranteed, just like Fortnite skins and emotes🤭A child doesn't ask if the game is worth it or not. If its on their system, they get it.

Nintendo sale records is just kids buying everything that comes to their system because they don't know any better🤦‍♂️

Brainwashing them with happy meal toys.

It's smart business, but like you said they only get away with it because the majority of their audience are kids. That shit would never fly with PS and PC players.

Absolutely. But it is a very smart business, so gotta give em that.

Voice acting definitely adds to the experience.

Please point out which part of my comment was outside of the thread.

I am a fan of both sony and nintendo. Zelda is my all time favorite franchise. 2 is ratchet and clank. I didnt care much for wii and Wii U I considered that a dark time for Nintendo. I loved the gamecube but it didnt sale great. Switch is a pretty good console. I do kind of wish nintendo would go back to having around the same power like gamecube instead of underpowered but at the same time nintendo makes fun games and that is what its all about fun games. With zelda BOTW having VC for the first time in franchise history it will be interesting to see how BOTW 2 is when it comes to VC.

You cows are so intimidated by a crappy console with ancient hardware! 🤣

@NathanDrakeSwag: when why on earth did returnal sell like crap??? I mean why do you cows never buy your exclusive games instead of another crappy COD/FIFA/BF ?? It must be so embarrassing for you, when you actually have to celebrate a 8th place on the sales chart…

@hardwenzen: Is that why you haven’t bought a ps5 yet, because you are a critical thinking adult that have realized the PlayStation is a waste of money??

A good chunk of Nintendo's market are kids. They have no attention span lol. Having a story beyond "Kill bad guy" is just a waste on them. Then you have the core Nintendo crowd, people who grew up with Nintendo and Nintendo plays to their nostalgia. Link is a silent protagonist. Change that and risk lots of backlash lol. Then you have your average casual who just wants something simple, but fun.

???

Demon's Remake AAA
Ratchet AAA
Returnal AAA
FF7RI AAAA
KOF15 AAA

What were you saying again??? Oh and btw, Kena is around the corner and is a guaranteed AAA as well. Try again.🤷‍♂️

How many of those games you both? 1

Kena is a not even AAA and is multiplatform indie game.

I think the bolded carry the most blame for Nintendo's failure to evolve with the times. There are too many Nintendo fanboys who want Nintendo games to look and play exactly the same as they did when they were kids. It doesn't make any logical sense, but that's what they want.

Normal gamers like us get excited when we see a franchise like Ratchet & Clank evolve into what it is now which is a playable Pixar movie. Nintendo fanboys get excited to buy roms.

@Pedro said:

@hardwenzen said:

@djoffer123 said:

@hardwenzen: Is that why you haven’t bought a ps5 yet, because you are a critical thinking adult that have realized the PlayStation is a waste of money??

???

Demon's Remake AAA

Ratchet AAA

Returnal AAA

FF7RI AAAA

KOF15 AAA

What were you saying again??? Oh and btw, Kena is around the corner and is a guaranteed AAA as well. Try again.🤷‍♂️

How many of those games you both? 1

Kena is a not even AAA and is multiplatform indie game.

Nice try, but you failed as always, Lemdro. Kena is guaranteed to be an AAA and is a PS exclusive just like Infinite is an Xbox exclusive. Funny how Kena, an indie title, looks better than the 500 million American dolla dolla billz flagship title from Microsoft. Really is sad to see.

@hardwenzen: You owned yourself undercover Xbox shill. 😂🤣

Sorry cows, Mario is still king in this department. The new Ratchet looks like a great game, but it ain't no masterpiece like Mario Odyssey.

R&C Rift Apart is superior to Mario Odyssey in every way. Gameplay, graphics, VA, story, sound, presentation, performance.

I am not an undercover Xbox shill. Stop calling me that or i will be mad really mad.

There really isn't a right or wrong way to do this. I personally think video games should not spend so much time and money trying to be movies. My preference is when it is kept minimalist. Show, don't tell. Journey has one of the best videogame stories I've ever experienced, all told by the surroundings through visuals. Perfectly suited to the medium. Shadow of the Colossus and Super Metroid are some other good examples. I also like the System/Bioshock and Metroid Prime method, where you piece together the narrative through audio logs and readouts. More "telling" but it gives the player some agency in uncovering it.

If anyone disagrees, that's fine. Entertainment is subjective, and this is just my opinion.

Yup. That is also why nobody is even talking about Odyssey. Its a forgotten game. Nobody cares about yet another 3D mario.

Lmao, if you say so.

@hrt_rulz01 said:

@NathanDrakeSwag

@hrt_rulz01 said:

Sorry cows, Mario is still king in this department. The new Ratchet looks like a great game, but it ain't no masterpiece like Mario Odyssey.

said:

R&C Rift Apart is superior to Mario Odyssey in every way. Gameplay, graphics, VA, story, sound, presentation, performance.

Lmao, if you say so.

It's pretty sad how you sheep rely on other peoples opinions to make up your own. Real gamers play games and then decide on their own. As a manticore who has played and completed both games, R&C Rift Apart was just a way better experience. Traveling through dimensions is a revolutionary gameplay mechanic. While Odyssey lets you...toss a cap lol.

😂 A Sony fanny claiming scores don't matter? 🤣

Desperate times, call for desperate measures.

@Pedro: Lmao... you gotta laugh at these clowns 😂😂🤣🤣

@NathanDrakeSwag:

Ratchet and Clank is a perfect example of how crap videogame storytelling really is. When they tried to sell that shit as an actual movie, it was universally shat upon. 21% on Rotten Tomatoes. I wish they spent less time on cutscenes and voice actors, and more time making less floaty jumping physics.

Look, I think these are perfectly good games, but Insomniac should leave the storytelling to Pixar.

@NathanDrakeSwag said:

To me, aside from the obvious visual and performance limitations of being tied to the Switch, this is the biggest problem with Nintendo games that make it difficult to enjoy them now. During the NES/SNES/N64 eras they could get by with it because most other companies were generally doing the same thing. The problem now is, you will never get that "first time" experience from a new Nintendo game as long as they fall back and rely on the same tired tropes from 20+ years ago.

We've all played all of their games in both 2D and 3D, and the fact is that the WOW factor just ain't there anymore. When Super Mario Bros. 3 first released it blew minds. It was revolutionary for its time. The same goes for Super Mario 64. The same can't be said for any of the New Super Mario Bros. games or Super Mario Odyssey. They are been there done that experiences.

Nintendo should be investing the money they make from overcharging for their products into really bringing their franchises to life. Their games feel like too much of relics of the past rather than modern experiences.

While a company like Sony is able to achieve this with their IP:

Nintendo is stuck in the stone age with their games looking like this:

Nintendo's art style almost looks babyish now when they should be aiming for Pixar level visuals, VA and story telling. Why have so many characters in the Mario universe if the only story their creatively bankrupt minds can tell is Bowser kidnapped the Princess again? The same applies to Zelda and so forth.

yawn.

@hrt_rulz01: Agreed. I’m seeing some pretty fun comments going on in this here thread. 😅

I thought Nintendo was good at storytelling.

@NathanDrakeSwag: I've played both Mario Odyssey and Ratchet and Clank and Odyssey was a big disappointment. Failed to be the Mario 64 type game we wanted. Instead, you putz around all day and try out new jackets lol. Ratchet and Clank is the best in the series.

I don't buy it. Games like ratchet and clank are great, but fundamentally different from Mario even if they are both 3rd person platformers. When I buy Mario I don't buy it for a ratchet and clank experience and making it one would in fact ruin it. Likewise, when I buy ratchet and clank I demand a ratchet and clank experience. Ditto for the HZD BotW comparisons. The gaming market is samey enough already and I strongly oppose it moving further in that direction.

Agreed. 👍