Great Game Characters Compensate For Plot?

Thanks to the IGDA for their 'Culture Clash' column discussing why interesting game characters make for better games, even if those games have a weak plot. The author gives the intriguing example of Max Payne, suggesting the game is memorable, despite the "relatively cliched" story, because "...the first time we see Max, he's giving up smoking because it's bad for his baby. The second time, he's howling his misery over the loss of his wife. He is a human being with a broken soul, and an enormously compelling and emotionally engaging character." However, games such as Morrowind present the main character as "little more than a cipher through which we experienced the game's story", and it's suggested that this is less successful: "It can be an effective way to craft a powerful narrative, but it's also one that is more likely to fail if poorly executed."

Comments

Re:RPGs?

[MrResistor]

With many RPGs where you generate your own character (ie Baldur's Gate, Morrowind, etc.) the main character lacks any identity

Dude, that's the whole point!

Morrowind is an RPG in the truest pen-and-paper sense. The whole point is that the character's identity and future is entirely determined by you, the player.

IMHO, it's the games like Diablo that are a tragic misuse of the term RPG, since there isn't any actual Role Playing (you know, the "RP" in "RPG"). Contrast with Morrowind, where the Role Playing is only limited by the current state of conversational AI technology.

If you don't like Morrowind, that's fine, but I think your perception of what an RPG is has been sadly warped by the tripe that is most CRPGs.