When it comes to openings and endings, which is more important for you? A game with a strong bombastic opening but kind of ends weakly, or a game that starts off a bit weak but snowballs into something special by the end?
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When it comes to openings and endings, which is more important for you? A game with a strong bombastic opening but kind of ends weakly, or a game that starts off a bit weak but snowballs into something special by the end?
I can get over a game with a slow start, but I have to have a good and thorough ending. I don't like it when games leave too much up to your imagination at the end.
Strong opening. The game could have an amazing ending but I'll never get to it if it doesn't engage me at the start
I'm generally a "journey over destination" guy, so I can put up with a weak ending if the game opens well. It takes a really terrible conclusion to completely sour my opinion of the game overall.
However, if the game's story revolves around the ending or events within it, like the answers to a mystery or a climactic showdown, it had better be a good one.
A game has to have a good enough opening to keep me playing. If it manages that, it doesn't necessarily have to be a great opening. But a weak ending can feel like a real let-down, so I'm voting for "Strong ending".
This is kind of my own thoughts. Since I tend to play RPGs with long playtimes, the great opening dozens of hours ago is usually a fleeting memory by the time I reach the end game, and it's usually the ending that leaves the final taste of the experience for me. I've noticed how a lot of games I particularly dislike tend to have poor endings because the front was loaded too much.Quote:
Originally Posted by Mr. Carnelian
The ending is the most important part of a story. Make a great game with a crap ending and the sum of it is negative for me. An ending that I hate will have an meteor crush of a minus for my ratings.
Endings that ruined movies for me that I liked until the ending started:
Life
Prestige
Others that I do not remember now.
Games with endings that would have ruined things for me if there was not more:
Final Fantasy XIII-2
Final Fantasy XV; the final, final scene saved it for me.
Yeah, this sums up my approach. I'm definitely more 'the journey' over 'the ending'. This probably explains why ME: 3's ending didn't bother me so much. The rest of the game was just so good.Quote:
Originally Posted by KleinerKiller
Ending and it's not even a competition. I decide whether or not I'll actually play a game before I even start it, and a weak opening is not gonna dissuade me. An ending is what can elevate a good game to something truly special.
I don't really have an opinion on the matter, but I will say I remember a lot more powerful openings than I do endings. Most of my favorite games had a decent bookend. And by that I mean I enjoyed both. But what sticks out for me is the opening to FF6, 7, Xenogeras. Ico, Shadow of the Colossus, Knights of the Old Republic 1 and 2, Saints Row 1 and 2, Dragon's Dogma, Bloodborne, The Last of Us
All had really good beginnings and endings, and what sticks out for me more is the beginning. Probably more because I've started the games more than I've finished them. But even with a game/series like Mass Effect, the ending didn't ruin it for me. Skyrim and Oblivion had pretty blah endings that didn't ruin anything for me
I think as a writer I subconsciously give a small pass for weak endings as long as they're not terrible, because i know a strong ending is way harder than a strong opening
I have a huge list of games I've never finished that I absolutely loved the opening hours in: Xenoblade Chronicles, Fire Emblem Awakening, Fire Emblem Fates, Persona 4, Persona 5, Gravity Rush, Horizon: Zero Dawn. I can't imagine a bad ending could ruin any of these games once I finish them. Though I could see a bad beginning cause me to take breaks from them sooner, more frequently, and for longer periods, if not indefinitely
So while I love a great and compelling ending, I can't deny the impact of a poignant beginning
Under the assumption that the game is good (a bad game will be bad regardless of its beginning or end) I feel a stronger ending is more important. A weak opening has the rest of the game to build. A weak ending is final.
Tough one. If I know a game is really good then I'll generally stick it out to the end. In that case, ending is more important.
Saying that, I agree with Pumpkin that if a game doesn't start well then I'm likely to not continue playing.
I DON'T KNOW, STOP ASKING HARD QUESTIONS.
The opening doesn't have to be great, just there enough to engage me. However at the end, I want a ending that sums everything up. A week ending can ruin the journey through the game. I vote strong ending.
Neither a weak start nor a weak end on their own is enough to ruin a game for me, but I'll take a strong ending over a strong start.