Magnavox Videogames and the Entertainment Revolution Trigger Happy manual Tie me up, tie me down

Trigger Happy

Tie me up, tie me down

So should videogames totally abandon their current model of prescripted story line interrupting interactive play? Not necessarily. While it certainly does not amount to “interactive storytelling,” it can still work remarkably well on its own account, under the same circumstances as any good story: when it is well written.

A good videogame story provides a powerful external motivation (external to the actual gameplay mechanics) for continuing to try to beat the system. A well-scripted game, such as Metal Gear Solid, keeps you playing because fundamentally, as E. M. Forster remarked of the primary appeal of the novel, you just want to know what happens next. It helps that Metal Gear Solid’s cut-scenes of vocal dialogue are generally well acted, and the multiple twists and turns of the thriller plot are highly enjoyable, dropping little hints as to the true nature of your mission and the organization you work for, keeping you guessing as to how it will all turn out.

But Metal Gear Solid’s true brilliance lies in its touches of humorous self-consciousness. It knows it’s a game. One of your opponents, a pink-

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