Why I Don't Like Stealth Games
By:
Jimmy Thang
|
July 22, 2011, 6:37 pm

I don't like stealth games. Always have and probably always will. I even loath the stealthy moments in non-stealth games. Remember that mandatory-stealth-induced castle courtyard scene in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time? Yea, I dreaded it. Anytime there's an automatic fail if you're spotted by enemies would almost always conjure up the most frustrating videogame memories for me. I just hate that feeling when you need to sneak from one bush quickly and quietly to the next whilst having to avoid myriad guards. It just makes me feel unease. While I feel most vulnerable during these moments, in an attempt to progress through these mandatory sections, I assure myself that I can do it and press on...

Great game, but I didn't like this part very much...
 
..."AHH!! F*CK!" Is usually what I say to myself when I get caught and have to start the mission all over again. I don't mind having to start sections of a game over if I feel like I lost fair and square, but sometimes I feel like these segments are almost entirely luck-based and the thought of having to replay these parts over until they're perfected does not want me playing more...

While I realize that not all stealth games give you a "Game Over" screen or even a "Mission Failed" screen if you get caught (as in the case with the Metal Gear Solid series), having to frantically run and hide away from enemies for 60 seconds is a) kind of stress-inducing in its own right and b) just not very fun to play hide and seek for a convoluted amount of time. While you can sometimes run and gun your way out of these situations, it wouldn't be a stealth game if these action elements worked as effectively as they do in their true-action game counterparts.
 

This is supposed to be fun?
 
For as long as I can remember, I've disliked stealth elements. So much so that it has prevented me from playing some other games with only a sprinkling of the gameplay mechanic. Not too long ago, a friend suggested I play the critically-acclaimed Beyond Good and Evil. "Doesn't that game have stealth elements in it?" I asked. "It's mostly a platformer but it does have some stealth in it," he replied. Having heard that, I'm sure the game was fine and dandy, but knew that it would unfortunately not be my cup of tea. So you can perhaps see why I would never play a Splinter Cell title.


Am I missing out on some great games?
 
Does this limit the amount of games I am able to enjoy? Certainly. Do I care? Yes, actually, I do. While I don't like playing through stealth games, I must say that I do enjoy the Metal Gear Solid series (watching them that is), and I don't mean that as a jab to the series' extremely lengthy cinematics (even though they are quite long). In college, I watched my roomate play through MGS 1, 2, and 3. I've seen the majority of the story unfold and really enjoy Solid Snake and his epic mythos (as convoluted as it may be at times). Now, several years later, my roommate has moved on with his life and I've got a dusty used copy of MGS 4 sitting within my backlog of games to beat. But, begrudgingly, because it is a stealth game, it never seemed to spring up to the top of my must-play-now tier.

A game that I completed recently was Uncharted 2 which combined shooting with some minor and mostly optional stealth mechanics. While I initially tried to sneak around guards to snap their necks in the shadows, I would almost always get caught. This would leave me with my pants down (both figuratively and literally - don't ask) and I would ultimately have to go in with guns ablazin'. Stealth games - I think they're just not for me.


I tried going for the stealth kills, I really did!
 
I guess I've always been more of an action/adventure junkie. But psychologically speaking, shouldn't everyone be more interested in doing the shooting then having to worry about getting shot at?

While videogames do offer a sense of escapism, the intensity and stresses that they can induce somehow are able to seep out of our TV screens, into our controllers, and up into our brains. If I were to control Splinter Cell's Sam Fisher, a real part of me would feel nervous about getting caught. The threat of failing the mission or getting killed in the game makes me fearful for my virtual life. Sorry, but I just don't find that fun.

But when you think about it, isn't it much more enjoyable to be a bank robber than someone who has to sneak away from the bank robbers? In Jurassic Park, wouldn't it be more fun to be the raptors in the kitchen as opposed to the kids who have to sneak away from them? I don't know anyone in their right minds who can argue otherwise, and so I can't really see why people enjoy stealth gameplay in the first place.


Oh, yea....looks like loads of fun!
 
Yes, yes, I know it's ultimately a videogame, and your life really isn't on the line, but when I've been primed to beat games ever since I was a little kid, unnerving moments like these act as frustrating roadblocks in my quest to progress through the game I'm enjoying. I guess this comparison closely parallels people’s enjoyment of horror movies/games. In reality, no one likes to be frightened or scared, but in the world of entertainment, many people enjoy it. But then again, I have many friends who don't understand why people seek scares as a form of entertainment.

I guess that's how I am with stealth games. I simply don't enjoy what they have to offer. Either that or I just plain suck at videogames...it's probably the latter.
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