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[inm8num2]

As a primary form of gameplay, QTE is essentially a shortcut for game design.

 

[Atomski]

I wouldnt say developers are lazy with putting QTEs in games. They are there because they want cinematic bullshit in videogames, that shit sells great too most gamers.

I also think its a clear sign of how limited controllers are.. developers want these cinematic scenes yet the basic input just wouldn't translate in those moments so they take control away and simplify the action down to a button smash.

Our amount of input in a game is extremely bottlenecked if you think about it.

 

[Mazzo]

Because I think taking control away from the player mid gameplay and replacing it with a new, often totally different control scheme which barely resembles what's going on on-screen is a terrible idea. What you gain from it (pretty and dynamic scenes) is not worth it at all :<

 

[Valkrai]

I don't have too much problems with QTEs except for one crucial thing.

If it means life or death just for failing a QTE. It feels lazy, stupid, and unfair if you miss one little button prompt at a certain time. MP3 had it, Unleashed had it, Bayo1 had it and it really made the game worse for it.

 

[Brunobi02]

Because its

• Lazy
• You can fail them and have to start over
• Its not fun
• They are unskippable
• Actual gameplay should replace QTEs

Unless you are a dev you can't call them lazy. If you only knew the amount of work to just create a QTE.

In the other hand QTEs suck when devs don't know how to to execute them properly. You can just make a cutscene and then stick a bunch of prompts in the middle. Good QTEs are a fine art.

 

[Hurt and Scared]

It's funny you mention tomb raider the QuickTime events have put me off the game I'd usually fail the QuickTime 2-3 times before nailing it and it is not rewarding or satisfying its just unnecessary I'm honestly not sure if ill go back to tomb raider after I beat infamous or ground zeroes.

Also

QuickTime Events Suck!

 

[Goldenmoney]

I found qte's pretty annoying and forced in Tomb Raider. In Wonderful 101 they made sense, but I felt like there were still too many of them.

 

[VeryGooster]

I don't like mashing buttons or wiggling a stick furiously for a QTE on a controller regardless if the controller's build quality can sustain it or not.

When you lead into what looks very much like a cutscene, my natural reaction is to kind of let my guard down and just watch (or go do something else if I don't find the story interesting), and then all of a sudden a giant "X" or "B" or Circle appears on the screen to press, it's simply not fun regardless of minimal effort on my end. Why not just leave it as a scene?

I agree with people who are bringing up God of War as a positive example. More often than not, it seemed to be a "continuation" of gameplay rather than a hindrance.

Tomb Raider (2013) where Lara takes on a wolf is probably the worst example in recent memory because it went on for far longer than necessary.

I don't believe the idea of the QTE is "lazy," that devs are like "Screw it, they can just push a button." It may feel that way, but I think they're looking for alternate ways to make the "cinematic" feel more "interactive," but the results are again, a hindrance--it feels like having your cake and eating it.

 

[Dire]

Watching a cut scene while having to press random buttons doesn't suddenly make it an exhilarating and exciting experience. It's still just watching a cut scene while having to press random buttons. Oh and don't press them in the right order and you get to do it all over again. Gee, what fun!

 

[BolognaSoup]

I sit back to watch and enjoy a cut scene, maybe grab a drink, and all of a sudden a damn button QTE prompt pops up on screen, I miss it and have to start the scene over again. THE ABSOLUTE WORST.

This was by far the most effective (and basically only) QTE that improved a gameplay experience for me:

 

[Dark Octave]

Because its

• Lazy
• You can fail them and have to start over
• Its not fun
• They are unskippable
• Actual gameplay should replace QTEs

Ninja Blade was awesome.

 

[Polioliolio]

Context sensitive gaming sort of killed gaming for me a little bit.

Sure, it's okay I guess to walk up to something and the A button makes it happen... It allows a lot more actions than could normally exist, but I'm still favorable of the concept of each button being an action, and always performs that action.

If there's an inbetween, it's doing something like a QTE style dodge, but always making it the jump button, or a part where you need to attack as fast as you can, and it's tied to your attack button. I hate that stuff where weird combinations of buttons appear for no reason other than to make sure you're paying attention and you know the controller lay out well.


I don't mind it in a game like Heavy Rain, where the entire concept relies on it and the whole experience is context heavy.

 

[Muzy72]

QTEs in The Wonderful 101 were fantastic. Especially that ending! So hilarious yet epic at the same time.

 

[Timeaisis]

Failing QTEs is the single biggest annoyance I have in gaming. Talk about immersion breaking.

 

[jblank83]

That's a good question.

Press A over and over for 30 seconds and maybe I'll give you the answer.

 

[Jeronimo Jones]

In general they're kind of cheap, and doing the same scene repeatedly because some finicky input isn't being recognized is annoying. Then you risk missing whatever plot twist or dialog is happening because you're too focused on the upcoming button presses.

I don't hate them but I don't love them.

 

[Nymphae]

It's a disgusting oversimplification of videogames. Press button watch cool thing happen.

It's a total cop out. A good designer would come up with some epic scene or set piece, and think of how that will translate into gameplay, or conversely, they will take the mechanics they've built, and consider how to utilize those to make the most effective and fun set-pieces/gameplay moments.

QTEs ignore all of that. It starts with a scene/set piece idea, and they go on from there like it's a movie. They want to show you a scene, and since this is a game, you have to be pressing buttons or something right? So just throw a few into the cinematic, there, that's some tight gameplay.

 

[Hellshy.]

There are times I think QTE's are done wrong and I cant stand them myself but other times I think they get unfair hate. I actually am looking forward to seeing the branching QTE's in The Order 1886. It sounds like they give you various options and sequences change instead of repeating if you fail at something.

if done right and not to frequent I enjoy them. Lets be real if I could kill a enemy that I beat to a bloody pulp by pressing buttons for attack , a button for blocking, and a button for dodging in certain order , a cool QTE to finish off can be a welcome change instead of just continuing to press the same buttons in the same order that I already know is working and going to allow me to kill the guy.

They dont belong any where near tense situations where your skills and reflexes are being tested

 

[Timmy00]

It really depends on the game. As long as the QTEs aren't obtrusive and the game doesn't rely on them, I don't mind them.

 

[Manu]

I don't hate them, I only hate when they're poorly implemented.

 

[Archaix]

They're generally terrible. If they branch off and have multiple outcomes they can be better, but most of the time it's just fail, try this nonsense again. They're the worst answer to the old problem of a character being capable of incredible feats in cut scenes but not while you actually have control. It's the same now, except you have to press A when you see the green button prompt flash to give you the illusion of actually having impact on the flashy events being shown.

 

[Dire]

...

I don't mind it in a game like Heavy Rain, where the entire concept relies on it and the whole experience is context heavy.

There were a large number of QTE-only games back in the Sega CD era. Road Avenger, Time Gal, Sewer Shark, Ground Zero: Texas, Dragon's Lair and a whole lot more. While I have not played Heavy Rain I can't say anything positive about Sega CD QTE games. I honestly have no idea why QTEs in general are making a bit of a resurgence. I'd blame huge budgets. You can't create just force out fun gameplay for 100million dollars, but you can sure force out a cutscenes and QTE with it.

 

[Deified Data]

Dev's like "We want the player to be able to do this badass thing, but we're too lazy to implement it into actual gameplay". A QTE is born.

 

[dragonbane]

Couple of examples in Heavy Rain that I really liked. The QTEs were very well thought out and implemented. It really enhanced the experience for me:

 

[Massive Duck. C.M.]

QTEs are more prevalent now because some devs want everyone to feel like they've done something cool regardless of skill, or just want to make sure you see their vision for how a scene plays out.

 

[TheUsual]

Was it God of War that had the player do a QTE to open every chest? That got old real quick. The player should just have to press the button once. If the design was to have Kratos struggle opening these chests, just design the animation to do it automatically.

 

[Captain Jack]

Platinum Games usually do QTEs very, very well, though I felt they were a bit too quick in Bayonetta. Wonderful 101's in particular were awesome because they simply use the main game mechanic that has been drilled into your head since the start of the game, give you tons of time to actually do the input, and have satisfying payoffs/funny failures.

Also, button mashing to perform menial tasks like opening doors is awful. Button mashing Platinum style, though?

YESYESYES

 

[Boogdud]

Personally, I dislike them because they are neither entirely gameplay nor are they entirely an entertaining movie. One or the other please. If it's a movie I want to relax and watch it as a reward so I can pay attention to the details, etc. The button presses and stick pulls are nothing more than a distraction.

 

[TrueGrime]

I think the new Tomb Raider did QTE really well.

 

[stuminus3]

QTEs as "finishing moves" at the end of badass boss fights = great. The one and only time you should ever get "press X to awesome". It's almost like a reward.

Terrible QTEs in things like CoD are an abuse of that.

 

[The Llama]

Shenmue 2 was the first game I remember have QTE's, and at the time I thought it was really cool and innovative. Since then, I don't mind them, but they can be kind of annoying just because I have too many moments where "NOOO I WANTED TO HIT SQUARE BUT ACCIDENTALLY HIT TRIANGLE, CRAP NOW I HAVE TO DO ALL THIS OVER AGAIN!!!!"

 

[Parakeetman]

Couple of examples in Heavy Rain that I really liked. The QTEs were very well thought out and implemented. It really enhanced the experience for me:

Actually it was overly complex which alienated non-gamers. Defeating the purpose of it being a mostly cinematic experience.

That really, really was a dumb shit design decision to make the motions so WTF.

 

[MightyHedgehog]

Generally, they have zero to do with the game you're playing and mastering the rest of the time. It's like being ambushed with a blitz round of 'Simon Says' in the middle of an otherwise very different action game. The only form of it I don't really mind is when it is more considered in its integration into the gameplay as a tactical option, like RE4-RE6 handles its context-sensitive attacks based on position, facing direction, and status. For all other classic forms of QTE, it's just a matter of how tolerable it is.

 

[TheSlySoul]

Mainly people hate them because it requires you to randomly push a button. It takes little skill and all attention to do it. Like I am not a fan of the QTE's in South Park: SoT on the PC because the timing is so little compared to a console in which you know the button layout. I do not hate them, but I rather the developer not resort to using QTE's to pad a game out instead of actual gameplay.

Edit: There are good QTE-based games. I like Asura's Wrath. However, **** the DLC. That was stupid. Glad I rented it.

 

[dragonbane]

Actually it was overly complex which alienated non-gamers. Defeating the purpose of it being a mostly cinematic experience.

That really, really was a dumb shit design decision to make the motions so WTF.

Fortunately there are 3 difficulty levels. The easiest one is specifically labelled for non-gamers and removes all of the motion prompts, shoulder buttons and makes the rest stupidly easy. I recorded those GIFs on the highest setting, which I feel is really intense even for a "hardcore" gamer. Since the fights are a struggle for survival, they shouldn't be too simple IMO. Even if the game is really cinematic. It also felt really natural and not complex at all to me.

 

[ryuken-d]

Because it went from novelty gimmick to being fucking everywhere.

I do hate them sometimes.... most the time but it usually wont stop me from playing the game. but some do it much better than others thats forsure.

a QTE free game would obviously be the best but how do you tell the player what to do without, you know telling them, its funny I turned off the prompts in a game I'm playing and went up to a door (not all doors can be opened of course) and without the prompt showing i actually thought I couldnt open it haha, then of course I knew what button to push. so it should work you have an open door button you have an attack button so if some asshole grabs you out of know where you could push the attack button (fast enough) and kick them off of you. maybe its the whole AAA hand holding thing.

 

[Manu]

I think the new Tomb Raider did QTE really well.

...are you serious? those were some of the worst I've seen in any game ever.

 

[Sotha_Sil]

The only time I've enjoyed them is in Heavy Rain and Walking Dead, because those are basically point and click games.

My least favorite ones are the basic "mash A to open door" nonsense you see in Tomb Raider, God of War, and Uncharted. The uselessness of it all becomes quite annoying when you have to do it again and again. Cinematic QTE's used to showcase "epic" moments in a game that can't be handled with the regular engine also do nothing for me.

 

[Hindl]

Platinum Games usually do QTEs very, very well, though I felt they were a bit too quick in Bayonetta. Wonderful 101's in particular were awesome because they simply use the main game mechanic that has been drilled into your head since the start of the game, give you tons of time to actually do the input, and have satisfying payoffs/funny failures.

Hit the nail on the head. W101's QTE's were great, very forgiving, and it was mostly just making the shapes. Plus, if you failed, it was still very entertaining, and you get put right back to the beginning of the QTE. Like the last one, which I failed so many times,

Spoiler

Damnit Earth it's too much button spamming to save you!

, was hilarious, first because if you look on the gamepad you can see the heroes mashing the buttons right along with you, and the failure

Spoiler

Earth gets popped like a balloon

was entertaining.

 

[TheSlySoul]

The only time I've enjoyed them is in Walking Dead, because those are basically point and click games.

I think it works in The Walking Dead because you have a sense of urgency when they come up. It isn't like they prompt you on normal, dull events. No, you are in trouble and need to get out. QTE also works as a finisher in the case of DKC: TF

 

[genbatzu]

I never managed to "win" this QTE on my PS

 

[Serrato]

I find them lazy and dumbing gameplay in general. Though there is exceptions (RE4, Platinum Games in general...) most of them remove skills and ask me a Simon Says game right in the middle of gameplay. I put them in the same vein as ''Press A to Awesome'' type of gameplay or auto-awesome movements.

There was a image that was showing the difference in parkour between Mirror's Edge and Assassins Creed. In Mirror's Edge YOU need to do all those button press with good timing or you fall down. In AssCreed, you need to press Left Trigger + Forward and you,re set. I'm not doing this, i'm just asking Ezio/any other random asssassin to do it.

This is the real difference : Most QTE will make you ask the Player Char to do something instead of making YOU do it. I am not awesome, HE IS awesome.


That's my main grip.

 

[Laevateinn]

In Shenmue, it made sense. I'm being punched at from the right so I want to move left. The guy I'm chasing knocked some stuff over so I want to jump so I press A.

A game does it badly when they just throw a button on the screen for that don't really make sense for the action being done or use QTEs to break up the action when it really isn't necessary to break up the action.

 

[Not Spaceghost]

Any sort of a complex action should never be put in a QTE, the worst thing about GoW QTE's were the half circles or full rotations because they had a very specific start and end point or were meant to start from one direction.

A good QTE should feel like it's about reaction but not too fast that it feels impossible, a good QTE should not feel like a loop to over come but a nice reward at the end of a segment.

QTE's shouldn't punish incorrect inputs, they should punish not hitting the input in the correct window.

A good example of QTE's is actually castlevania lords of shadow 1, you could push ANY BUTTON as long as it was hit within the certain window to complete the action. While they were over used and generally kind of poorly placed their QTE style is one of my favorites because it doesn't test your patience, instead tests your reaction, so because of that the QTE feels good to pull off.

I also feel like there is this terrible mentality that anything with a button prompt is a QTE. So when you see things like bayonetta torture attacks, they're kind of not a full QTE because it's a trigger and you won't fail for lack of inputs.

QTE's are a good tool because there are times you want to be able to do something flashy but you don't want to make the player just watch and the action you want the player to perform is way over the top for standard gameplay. Honestly I believe QTE's have a place in games but have been abused to the point that people have the worst gut reflex to them.

 

[rjc571]

I didn't buy the last two Arkham games because fuck you Rocksteady I'm not going to mash the spacebar every time I want to open a grate

 

[jluedtke]

Unless you are a dev you can't call them lazy. If you only knew the amount of work to just create a QTE.

That misses the point entirely. It doesn't matter how much work it takes to create them. I think the argument against them is that it's (usually) a lazy design choice.

 

[plainr_]

I like QTE's because it forces dev's to produce those big flashy scenes in realtime rather than the usual prerecorded cutscene. A game switching to a video breaks immersion all the time.

 

[danmaku]

I like QTE's because it forces dev's to produce those big flashy scenes in realtime rather than the usual prerecorded cutscene. A game switching to a video breaks immersion all the time.

QTE are much older than real time cutscenes... actually, they were created to give some semblance of interactivity to FMV sequences.

 

[RM8]

I have very, very low QTE tolerance. QTEs are to me cutscenes that I can't skip, they destroy the flow of games (they're used in action games a lot) and overall I think they're a very low form of gameplay.

 

[Htown]

Because you should let the player do cool stuff in the actual gameplay, not by pressing a single button to make sure you don't rewind a cutscene you've animated.