Watching/Reading games

[Pumpkin]

Does anyone else do this? If I absolutely hate the gameplay for a certain game, or suck at it, I'll either read the script or I'll watch someone else play it on the youtubes. The problem with the watching is that people talk and I don't want them to, but I can just mute it if I need to.

Anyone else do this or do you just tough it out? Do you watch or read games if you don't own them and can't afford/find them?

[chionos]

I'll usually tough it out if the game's gameplay doesn't quite stack up with its story. I'm usually just there for the story anyway.

[The Man]

I watch even games whose gameplay I enjoy sometimes. A lot of this has to do with simply not having time to play through them myself all the time, but some of it has to do with the fact that other people's gameplay can be a lot more entertaining than mine, especially if they're doing something like a tool-assisted speedrun.

[Rez09]

I watch a LOT of adventure games being run. They are effectively interactive books and when I play them I never use guides so they take me forever, which makes watching people that know what they are doing is really enjoyable because I get the story in a timely manner. It's also nice when the people playing have knowledgeable commentary about the games and understand the nods made to other titles by the developers.

I also watch RPGs and Strategy games being run, but usually it's for a different reason. Instead of wanting to see the story of the game, I have often completed the game already and am curious to see what I may have missed or alternate ways of doing things. This is why speedruns of RPGs end up interesting to me, as runners are often low level and lean heavily on certain powerful strategies I never knew about. Really, who the hell uses a poison rod with the 'throw' command? >: o

[Psychotic]

I love to watch people play games and I think their commentary is usually a great addition. Well, it depends who the commentator is.

[Depression Moon]

The only time I watch gameplay of a game is a preview or I'll go look up a walkthrough on Youtube if I'm stuck at a particular place.

Ah, I forgot I used to watch tournaments too. Never read a game though.

[Christmas]

I just read everything about FF XIII and World of Warcraft from wikia. I am interested but do not want to dedicate the effort or the money to play them. So reading is pretty well an alternative for my lazy style of life.

[escobert]

I've been watching Mr. Moon Atlis life videos latley. I can't wait to get arma 3

[Big D]

My wife plays a lot fewer games than I do, but she'll watch me playing the story-heavy ones for enjoyment. All the drama and entertainment, with none of the button-mashing. Plus it means she can craft or knit or do basically anything while still following what I'm doing on-screen.

Also, Metal Gear Solid 2 and 4 get that much more entertaining when you're treated to an OTT rendition of 'My Heart Will Go On' everytime Rose and Jack are being whiny and melodramatic at each other.

[Pike]

I do greatly enjoy watching games (especially speedruns) and reading Let's Plays; overall I prefer to play them though!

[Madame Adequate]

I like watching and love reading LPs, especially ones with an interesting gimmick or for games I've still got a lot to learn about.

[Jess]

I actually got into games because I used to spend hours watching my Dad playing games as a kid and it used to be fun! I often watch my boyfriend play, too. I probably watch him play more than I play myself.

[Ayen]

Not really. I have a hard time sitting down for long periods of time to watch a video online that isn't Game of Thrones or Doctor Who related. If I hate the gameplay I'm not likely to watch a video about it anyway.

[Mirage]

No, I do not. If the story is good but the gameplay is bad, i just forget about the game and move on to something else. Usually, if the gameplay is bad enough to make me not want to finish it, I won't play it play for long enough to get very involved in the story anyway.

[Karifean]

Well I read a lot of visual novels, if that counts.

Other than that, I mostly just watch Let's Plays of games I've already played, or do not plan on playing. I haven't yet watched a Let's Play with the purpose of replacing the actual playing.