Gameplay. Story. Audio. Graphics. They're ALL important. And I don't mean some being more important than others in a priority list. I mean all of them equally. Because the key to successful games has always been the successful balance of all these things. Not just being superb in one category and tragically weak in the others.
When you think about it, they're not seperate and independant entities, but rather components of a greater whole, each playing a critical role in the smooth operations of a machine.
Some people say gameplay >>> graphics, and while graphics don't have to be the state of the art cutting edge, if too insufficient they diminish the gameplay. Story in games, just like in movies, needs the audio and art direction (graphics) to successfully convey the emotion. Music without a visual feedback is not as impactful as when heard with somethig we see that gives it context. Since this is video games we're talking about and not a passive observational media, the story is only compelling through our interaction (the gameplay). Each plays off one another and when doing so harmoniously - that's when the magic happens :)
So really trying to prioritize one over the other is pointless and ultimately futile. Good balance of all the components is what's important in video games :)
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