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Watch Dogs probably has the worst writing I've seen in a game in quite a while

Lulzwagon said:
A news report echoed through the air that "Aiden Pearce" was the vigilante and police were looking for any tips on his whereabouts. 5 minutes later I did a mission where I was purposely sent to prison and booked under the name "Aiden Pearce" for a completely unrelated crime and the police didn't seem too phased,
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He changed his name to john in the system
 
It's pretty bad. Cliché lines in games are a dime a dozen but I haven't groaned this hard at them in a long time.

"Was it my fault!?"

Goddammit, Aiden, yes. Yes, everything is your fault.
 
mullet2000 said:
The concept is certainly a good one. I'm sure many people here can attest to being excited about the concept after E3 2012.

They just failed to execute on it on so many levels. I mean, the majority of the time Aiden doesn't even feel like a hacker, he feels like a gang member or a mobster or something.

I think the boxart for the game itself says a lot about where they placed the value of being a hacker in relation to being some urban gun-toting vigilante, though.
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I definitely agree with you. Objectively, the writing is quite poor. If anything, it's just sad that a game like this kind of feels refreshing? (Even when it's not). We need more diversity in story/settings. I would also appreciate more games going to other cities (Second Son's Seattle and Watch Dogs Chicago was a nice change of pace for instance). Basically I agree with everything you are saying. It just kind of bums me out, because initially I was enjoying the game. I liked the change in city, and the modern/hacking theme. But it definitely devolves into a typical action/thriller shlock with lackluster characters and mindless writing.

Better luck next time?
 
Setsuna said:
He changed his name to john in the system
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After they said they were booking "Aiden Pearce" he did so he could be put in the system as John. If random citizens on the street call the cops on me when they see me, an actual cop should know something's up when he sees me AND knows my name.
 
Ryu751 said:
The story is absolutely terrible. The stuff with the family is auto skip. Rest of the game is great though
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It doesn't really work, because main character is just an asshole. They try to make you feel sympathetic for him, but all of the problems he causes for everyone is his own fault. He has no reason to be torn, whatsoever. It's a pretty simple thing.

Funny enough, it would have worked better had Aiden just bowed out of the game after he got his
niece killed.
BUT then was pulled back in (by force) (which kind of happens later in the game?). At least then, it would be more of like...the consequences of his past actions coming back to bite him (even if he got out of the life). Then you could feel a bit more sympathetic for him, and it would become harder and harder to do things that you no longer want to do (but have to, because you have been forced into the situation). Instead they just make him a reckless asshole from the very beginning, and it never ends. And even when he gets his family in more danger, he's always making more and more excuses. You pretty much lose all respect for the guy about 30% into the game, and then after that why do you even care about him, his family, or any of the consequences?
 
Gamerloid said:
You guys make me not want to open my copy of the game ._.
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The hate for this game is ridiculous - especially when compared to the downright reverence GTAV receives when Watch Dogs looks better, plays better and has more content which is more interesting.

The story isn't hot shit. But no open world stories are - I can't think of one which it is head and shoulders worse than.
 
Adry9 said:
No. Vaas is awesome, he makes up for the story.
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Eh, Watch Dogs is definitely better so far IMO. Don't get me wrong, I loved Far Cry 3. But its story is really bad. I agree that nothing in Watch Dogs touches Vaas (
but Vaas was pretty underutilized and was ultimately mishandled
).

EDIT: I mean, I think Watch Dogs overall story is better (not the game. I like Far Cry 3 more as an overall game. Just my subjective opinion though).
 
The game's premist and narrative are fairly bland and banal. It clearly wants you to think the storyline is more engaging and riveting than it is.
 
mullet2000 said:
I hate using the term "soul" but this feels like one of the most soulless games I've ever played.
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Yep.

As a sandbox there is definitely some fun to be found, but everything directed within that sandbox treads very old and worn ground, has no personality, or is otherwise a complete waste of time. Tie that plot, with those characters, to the very worst aspects of open world mission design (think of your least favorite GTA and GTA-clone missions), give it more endings than Lord of the Rings, stir in a pot with Hollywood-style hacking, and voila, I present to you: Watch_Dogs.

I actually enjoy the city and most of the side mission stuff, but God damn, that campaign ... Its infuriating.
 
CaptainAhab said:
Open world games are plagued by bad writing. I'll never understand why games like Watch Dogs and GTA put their half-assed story so front and center if they aren't going to follow through. Why not just make a sandbox?
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I'll never understand why people reward the writing of GTA – I can't remember the last GTA game with decent writing. The games are incredibly poorly written (particular GTA IV, which was initially presented as a game with a meaningful story). Max Payne 3 was more of the same.

On the other hand, Red Dead Redemption was a masterpiece. It's almost hard to believe that the same person (apparently) wrote it.
 
modest-genius said:
The hate for this game is ridiculous - especially when compared to the downright reverence GTAV receives when Watch Dogs looks better, plays better and has more content which is more interesting.

The story isn't hot shit. But no open world stories are - I can't think of one which it is head and shoulders worse than.
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what are you smoking?
 
I knew that the story would be garbage once we found out that it was all a revenge story from one of the trailers.

Revenge plots are so bad, because they don't even offer anything creative from the start.
 
Pyronite said:
I'll never understand why people reward the writing of GTA – I can't remember the last GTA game with decent writing. The games are incredibly poorly written (particular GTA IV, which was initially presented as a game with a meaningful story). Max Payne 3 was more of the same.

On the other hand, Red Dead Redemption was a masterpiece. It's almost hard to believe that the same person (apparently) wrote it.
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Really dude? Red Dead always felt like a Rockstar written game.
 
I still think it's worth playing. Gameplay wise it's superior to about every game of the genre, although I like sleeping dogs a bit better because I like melee.

Doing gang hideouts and what not using blacklist style predator stealth is fun.
 
maybe he just feels jaded. like "well so many people have died already, what's a few more." plus the bad writing; it results in a character who is a sociopath.
 
Sadly I agree wholeheartedly. The game left such an awful taste in my mouth and I could barely get past the first chapter. Awful writing with wannabe GTA gameplay just doesn't cut it anymore. Destiny was the last nail in this coffin for me. After the alpha, I just couldn't bare to go back to playing that showcase in mediocrity. Luckily, Best Buy was offering 40 in trade.

Ubi lost its hit multiplier with this, after solid releases with FC 3, Blood Dragon and AC 4.
 
IMO the game just sucks, period. I quit playing about 3-4 hours into the story. And haven't touched it since.
 
Clara should have been the lead character. Although I think people are being hyperbolic about the story. It's pretty much on par with most games these days. Bandwagons are so easy to jump on these days it seems.
 
Ranger35 said:
I like it, I understand Aiden, I find him and the other characters like-able. Could it be better, sure, is it horrid or whatever dramatic people call it, no.
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. I agree. Seeing a lot of people naming the character flaws. He feels like a sociopath because he actually is one.
Any remorse he attempts to convey is just him reassuring himself that what he's doing is right despite everyone else telling himself that it is, because it isn't, he manipulates, harms, or flat out kills people all in the name of revenge, is it the right thing to do, no, the game isn't a power fantasy and most games with this plot provide tons of reasons that are meant for the player to feel like he's doing the right thing
. It's a well executed character flaw and one that is uncommon of typical video game leads. And I literally never killed any police during the game, I always found a way to escape them non-lethally save for a broken bones here and there thanks to the baton. It's quite possible to complete many missions in the game without harming someone. And that imo is the true story of Watch Dogs. Kinda like how ghost runs where Snake is never scene in MGS is considered the true canon as opposed to going guns blazing. They're definitely going somewhere with the plot, this was just setting the stage.
 
Crossing Eden said:
. I agree. Seeing a lot of people naming the character flaws. He feels like a sociopath because he actually is one.
Any remorse he attempts to convey is just him reassuring himself that what he's doing is right despite everyone else telling himself that it is, because it isn't, he manipulates, harms, or flat out kills people all in the name of revenge, is it the right thing to do, no, the game isn't a power fantasy and most games with this plot provide tons of reasons that are meant for the player to feel like he's doing the right thing
. It's a well executed character flaw and one that is uncommon of typical video game leads. And I literally never killed any police during the game, I always found a way to escape them non-lethally save for a broken bones here and there thanks to the baton. It's quite possible to complete many missions in the game without harming someone. And that imo is the true story of Watch Dogs. Kinda like how ghost runs where Snake is never scene in MGS is considered the true canon as opposed to going guns blazing. They're definitely going somewhere with the plot, this was just setting the stage.
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Fair enough. But I don't really think they go far enough with his character to push the angle of him being a sociopath or person that can't let go of playing the action hero to entirely justify it. I mean, they could have told a compelling story with that. Certainly. But I'm not seeing it. I more so see the typical brooding protagonist, that feels guilty about something that he's done. But that never really work either because of who he is. So it's kind of a mix of things that never really gets fleshed out.
 
Nothing Ubisoft produces is quality level writing (except South Park, but that was written by Matt and Trey). This isn't new. But combined with the weak gameplay it was a rather disappointing game for me and didn't live up to the hype (the batman voice, omg Christian Bale what have you done to this industry?)
 
Pimpbaa said:
Clara should have been the lead character. Although I think people are being hyperbolic about the story. It's pretty much on par with most games these days. Bandwagons are so easy to jump on these days it seems.
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Enhhh I really don't feel like it is on par. Not even in the ball park, really. Like I said in my OP, I'm usually fairly forgiving about game stories, but Watch Dogs really felt especially bad to me. Not to mention I play...a lot of games and I can't think of any that I've played recently that actually put some focus on the story that have left me so uninterested and actively rolling my eyes at it.

I mean a lot of people in this thread are saying "well it's Ubisoft, what do you expect" but at least, say, the Assassin's Creed series' writing ranged from good to ok most of the time (for me). Farcry 3, as overall-mediocre as it was, at least had Vaas going for it. Then after that Blood Dragon was really fun, anyway. I don't Watch Dogs as on par.
 
I was so pissed that they managed to fuck up the choice at the end as well.
Why did they need to plant the stupid green dots saying. "HEY! JUST WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT YOU HAVE TWO CHOICES HERE! KILL HIM OR LEAVE.
They missed an excellent moment to find whether or not you bought into Aiden's special brand of sociopath. Just
drop you in his shoes with the guy breaking down in front of you and let you find the limits of the situation.

Also how did the people figure out who you were!? You threatened the informant and it was implied he wouldn't spill the beans right?


I thought that for the first time they managed to create a character free of the dissonance of a character in a normal open world game. Mainly because he is a sociopath and what you do outside of cut scenes is what you mainly do in them.

Edit: Also
 
Azula said:
Fair enough. But I don't really think they go far enough with his character to push the angle of him being a sociopath or person that can't let go of playing the action hero to entirely justify it. I mean, they could have told a compelling story with that. Certainly. But I'm not seeing it. I more so see the typical brooding protagonist, that feels guilty about something that he's done. But that never really work either because of who he is. So it's kind of a mix of things that never really gets fleshed out.
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That's the thing is that
he doesn't actually feel bad about the things he's done. It's all just a farce and a borderline parody of typical revenge plots that constantly try to justify the reasons why someone is out for revenge
. I realized this when you see this face...
150Z62M423_lit.jpg

^ Since you played the game you know what's on the screens in the actual game. That's the face of a sociopath.
Someone who can smile like that after looking behind at the screens and looking at all the dead bodies is insane, regardless of whether or not he's trying to be gentle it especially hit harder for me because I slaughtered those guys with no remorse without them ever even knowing I was there in the first place
The game is trying to tell you this constantly.
And finally confirms it when Aiden ponders about whether or not he's supposed to feel empty after killing Quinn, they stopped just short of having him laugh maniacally during that scene
. And considering that
his tale is not yet done, it definitely seems like he's only gonna become a worse person overtime
 
mullet2000 said:
Keep in mind I said that I've seen/played, though I feel like I've played more than enough games for that statement to mean something to me, at least, when I say it.

It's just so boring and flat. Literally none of the characters are relatable or interesting in anyway, save MAYBE Jordie Chin...but he's also barely in the game. Every character feels like a cardboard cut-out made to play a role in the overall plot rather than a character themselves.

Also Aiden is a terrible character. His motivations are weird, saying he just wants to protect his family, but murdering others willie-nillie to do it, including cops which...they never really explain why he's ok with (at least if they did, I can't remember it). On top of that he constantly puts his family in danger due to his revenge motivations while also spewing that he wants to protect them, they're the most important thing in the world to him, etc. You could make the argument that that's the point, he's a flawed character, but the writing in this game does not seem at all self-aware enough for that, considering most of the dialog is either quite dry or an attempt at a cool sounding line on Aiden's part. Also many of the scenes with interaction between Aiden and his sister or his nephew is hilariously awkward and wooden feeling. They don't sell it at all.

Also in act 2 this guy
Aiden knows kidnaps his sister and Aiden's response shifts from complete outrage to "oh don't worry, I know him, he won't hurt her" constantly over the course of the game.
Like wut, there's no consistency about how he acts about it. Also, the end of the game just goes all the way into outright stupidity, with Aiden
being framed as some type of "city protector" (read: Batman) character after getting his revenge, which is utterly dumb given he's done nothing but murder, cause a massive blackout that resulted in innocent people's death, etc. He both directly and indirectly killed waayyy more people than his niece's killer did.
It's hilarious to me that Ubisoft thinks this guy is cool, Aiden is the most try-hard character I've seen in a game in some time.

I think overall "game stories" get a bad-rep, and many can prove to be enjoyable or at least memorable. I don't think people give the writing in games, taken as a whole, enough credit. It's come a loonnng way in the past five years as a whole. The last couple games I played - all very different games from different backgrounds - have all impressed me with their writing, these games being Wolfenstein: The New Order (great writing and characters), Transistor (a lot of personality, great writing), and Danganronpa (Japanese as hell and falls into pitfalls sometimes due to it, but definitely has a personality and is engaging). Watch Dogs has none of these things. Nothing is memorable or exciting about anyone in it.

I hate using the term "soul" but this feels like one of the most soulless games I've ever played. It has no personality of its own, be it though its characters...or the game itself, really. But that's a whole different thread.

Anyway, anyone feel the same way? I just beat it today and I was rolling my eyes more than I was hitting buttons by the end of it. Each scene seemed to find a way to feel even more emotionally-empty than the last.
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And this is why I refuse to play this one. No soul. I can appreciate some of the open world gameplay E3 graphical accomplishment, but shit, why would I want to play as Aiden?
 
chickdigger802 said:
Nothing about the game makes sense. Why the fuck does everyone know your name? It's even shown on the news! Why not go with an alias if you freaking care about your family.
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What's ridiculous early on in the missions is that you're essentially trying to conceal your identity and like you said, you then hear them in the news giving out your full name. Let's not forget about the signature outfit that doesn't trouble people to identify you with like at all.
 
Also this bugged me

Why did it take them so long to get get back to the Merlaut? A simple google search could have told them that a mob boss owns the hotel. Maybe he has something to hide and would be willing to kill to keep it a secret?
 
I keep trying to play this game and I just don't care about anything going on. Some of the mechanics are definitely neat but I need a story to hold my attention in open world games. I can't bring myself to tackle side quests that have little to no payoff if I don't feel they fit with the story of the world and my character within it.

*shrug* think I'm gonna sell it and start Black Flag over. Or maybe finally try one of the earlier ACs. Never played any before IV but have the entire main series on PS3.
(and got tricked into getting Liberation on Vita. Damn you, PSN sales!)
 
DNAbro said:
I guess i can agree with this. The characters were so good, i didn't even notice the overall plot was weak.
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Well, that's pretty much the staple of the GTA series since the third one. Strong, interesting, colorfully written characters in a generic crime-drama plot.
 
mullet2000 said:
Not to mention I play...a lot of games
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I play...a lot of games too. And your example of Far Cry 3, I felt that was considerably worse story wise. And something like say Assassin's Creed 3 was absolutely dreadful. Although none of that really impacted my fun with those games, because story is never the most important aspect in a game (gameplay is).
 
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