What defines a game as good to you? Is it story, graphics, game play?

Tbh I find myself becoming more and more focused on game play first, I feel it should always have the top priority, story, graphics, music should be used to further the game play, I feel it should be the core of every game

gameplay > story > graphics

I would even put story last

It depends.

In most games I play, the story.

Mafia 3's gameplay was trash, but I still enjoyed it because of the story so it honestly depends.

Games like Dark Souls I play strictly for that gameplay/difficulty

Gameplay 100%

harmony and balance between all 3 ideally, but if I had to choose, I would choose gameplay, story then graphics like most people

Tbh I hate games with trash game play and good story s*** just makes me want a TV series or movie version lol

I care about video games as a storytelling medium. Personally, I need gameplay to be in service of a story; I find it hard to become invested in a game when there's no thematic or emotional context to give meaning to the gameplay. (The only games I enjoy purely for their gameplay are Monster Hunter and city builders.)

Take the original Kingdom Hearts for example: the gameplay can be pretty rough at times, but I'm emotionally invested in the characters and the events of the game are supported by an underlying theme. Even if the gameplay is occasionally clunky, it still supports a story that I care about and makes the overall game more personally meaningful.

Contrast this with Kingdom Hearts II (or any later entry), where gameplay is smooth, tight, and responsive, but the storytelling is a hot mess with no thematic or emotional context to give meaning to anything that happens. Even if the gameplay is enjoyable, I'm not invested in the story it's supporting and so I don't really care about the game as a result.

Yeah I kinda agree

I mean what's the point of playing something if playing it isn't good, it doesn't make sense for it to be a game imo

If I want good story only I'll read a book or watch a movie if I want sound and images too but to me the real art in video games is in how it can project you into another space and makes you feel things that are very visceral and instinctive

story, aesthetic, characters, customization, then gameplay in that order for me

I mean what's the point of playing something if playing it isn't good, it doesn't make sense for it to be a game imo

It’s not really a question of “good” or “bad.” I don’t even like evaluating media in those terms because I find it to be reductive and hardly ever conducive of meaningful discussion.

If I want good story only I'll read a book or watch a movie if I want sound and images too but to me the real art in video games is in how it can project you into another space and makes you feel things that are very visceral and instinctive

Sure, you can find stories in novels and films, but that doesn’t mean storytelling should be exclusive to those mediums. Just like literature has prose and film has visual storytelling, video games have their own suite of language that developers are still figuring out. Those interactive “visceral and instinctive” experiences can all be delivered within the context of a story.

i see a lotta people saying this but be quick to dismiss a game cause it dont look good

Depends on what the game is aiming to achieve. I don’t think a universal standard/criteria does justice to every kind of experience developers are trying to create

Gameplay first and foremost. If i only wanted a good story id watch a movie or something

I feel like sometimes when the story is too good i rush thru the gameplay

Graphics are whatever to me. Game design should be in conversation with story kinda hard to play a game that fails at one. Im most invested in single player experiences so by virtue maybe story wins out but both are equally important to me.

Gameplay > story > graphics

BUT

When a story is absolutely amazing it shines above all 3

Hard for a game with good story to stand out if the gameplay is simply isn't enjoyable

Graphics either wow me or offensively bad on the technical side of things, art direction is a separate matter

Gameplay > all

A good mix of gameplay and aesthetic. Story's not as important to me but sometimes it's so good that it could be my favorite part of the game