tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3402915042780490574.post3891214274062446718..comments2024-03-29T04:55:41.460-07:00Comments on Critical Damage: Gods And Their Machines: Deus Ex Machina in GamesBrendan Keoghhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01772283679871140397noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3402915042780490574.post-17382299188496465862010-07-20T16:50:40.661-07:002010-07-20T16:50:40.661-07:00Enjoyed the post. I do think we are more forgivin...Enjoyed the post. I do think we are more forgiving of games which commit the crime of deus ex machina than other narrative forms. <br /><br />Just imagine if in the third Harry Potter novel, Hermione had been given the time-turner by Dumbledore moments before they needed to use it to save the day, rather than at the very start of the school year. It would have been terrible. <br /><br />However, Half-Life 2 gives us multiple physics puzzles where every puzzle piece happens to be quite convenient to the place we're standing. (It would be too frustrating if we had to traipse back through half the level in order to get those pieces.) Indeed, the ultimate of these is a souped-up gravity gun that, ultimately, changes the game rules.<br /><br />Perhaps this is a case of gameplay trumping plot? Or is it that because these devices change our gameplay experience, that we accept them intrinsically as rules and not plot devices?<br /><br />I'm not sure where I stand in the end, but you've certainly left me thinking.SeanDnoreply@blogger.com