Moments and scenes that stuck with you

Thirith on 4/11/2008 at 07:19

Quote Posted by Sulphur

Also from COD4, every single goddamn moment in Pripyat, right up to the mission's end.

I've played this bit now and would have to agree. Although, strangely I find the Pripyat in STALKER more compelling - as an area, that is. I didn't like the sniper alley gameplay in STALKER's Pripyat, but the dilapidated atmosphere was spot on. Call of Duty 4 does a great job but it feels more shiny, more like a film set, less real.

mothra on 4/11/2008 at 10:11

i already forgot COD4 had such a mission. pripyat/the zone will always be engraved together with STALKER into my brain. no popcorn game with glossy boo-ya graphics can destroy that.
and I say:
THE POLITO FORM IS DEAD INSECT, ARE YOU AFRAID ?
got me much more than
A MAN CHOOSES,
especially since then the whole SS-story ripoff was becoming 100% clear to me

Scots Taffer on 4/11/2008 at 11:36

Quote Posted by Brethren

Also, can't believe no one mentioned this - The Constantine transformation cutscene from Thief 1.

And, the first moments of Bioshock, with the plane crash and introduction of Rapture (sorta downhill from there though).

Agreed and agreed. I don't think Constantine was mentioned though because the OP seemed to determine gaming moments where the player was directly involved, as opposed to watching a cutscene.

For example, Mafia's ending has probably had the biggest emotional impact on me of any game.

However, when it comes to "wow" moments I don't think the HL series can be bested - pure adrenaline in the form of flawlessly constructed action scenes or meticulously planned "reveals" after serious tension and claustrophobia.

nicked on 4/11/2008 at 13:43

Avoiding obvious Thief mentions, I'd have to say the medical facility in Quake 4. Luckily I'd avoided all the hype so I really wasn't expecting it, and the sheer immediacy of the horror was very effective.

The entirety of Surface Tension from Half-Life. Balls-to-the-wall adrenaline rush that was a cinematic marvel way ahead of it's time.

The return to Candlekeep in Baldur's Gate 1 and especially the caverns beneath afterwards. Something about doppelgangers freaks me out.

The whole sub-plot about Lisa Trevor in Resi Evil (gamecube remake - not sure about the original). Really twisted.

denisv on 4/11/2008 at 14:52

If I had to pick one moment, it would be coming to Shamazaar in Outcast.

Sulphur on 4/11/2008 at 16:04

Quote Posted by Thirith

It doesn't have a patch on Stalker, no. Not as an open area. But taken for what it is, that 'cinematic' flair is why it kicks ass all the way through. I don't mind a game being on rails when it can be as tense and immersive as that mission.

Quote Posted by mothra

i got a copy of CoD4 in exchange for a hand job and was totally ripped off :mad: :mad: :mad:

We get it, you hate CoD4. We heard you the last time. I like Stalker a lot, but you're just being profoundly meh.

Aja on 4/11/2008 at 18:06

Quote Posted by mothra

and I say:
THE POLITO FORM IS DEAD INSECT, ARE YOU AFRAID ?
got me much more than
A MAN CHOOSES,
especially since then the whole SS-story ripoff was becoming 100% clear to me

I don't understand this argument, since the moment I mentioned has little to do with Atlas and everything to do with Andrew Ryan. It wasn't the SURPRISE that was so affecting, it was the horror of realizing what you were about to do, and how Ryan was going to claim moral victory, regardless.

And maybe it's because I played Bioshock first, but I found the SS2 twist to be not only predictable, but a near-given by that point (still a great scene, though).

Angel Dust on 4/11/2008 at 21:03

Quote Posted by Aja

And maybe it's because I played Bioshock first, but I found the SS2 twist to be not only predictable, but a near-given by that point (still a great scene, though).

It's undoubtedly because you played Bioshock first. Not just because the plot twist is exactly the same but because you would have played a lot of games since SS2 came out that probably also have big twists and are more aware of the conventions. I'm not saying SS2 was the first to do this, because of course it wasn't, but for a lot here it was probably the first time they experienced a twist like that especially in a FPP game. Also if you had played SS1 than the twist and the subsequent partnership takes on a more complex emotional significance. It was so much more than just a 'gotcha' twist, it was complete mind fuck for all that had played SS1.

Bioshock left me cold as far as story went and it was mostly very predictable. The 'A MAN CHOOSES' scene was clever but had no emotional impact on me and the mind fuck possibilities of it were not as fully realised as they could have been due to the limp third act. Of course my indifference to 'A MAN CHOOSES' is not really the stories fault but more the fact that I simply was bored of the gameplay by that stage and hence rather disengaged from the whole experience. Your mileage may vary of course!

june gloom on 4/11/2008 at 21:26

I played SS2 years before I played Bioshock and I still thought the scene with Ryan was brilliant- it certainly stood out against the rest of the story. So I dunno what you guys are on about.

redrain85 on 4/11/2008 at 22:40

Quote Posted by dethtoll

I played SS2 years before I played Bioshock and I still thought the scene with Ryan was brilliant- it certainly stood out against the rest of the story. So I dunno what you guys are on about.

That and the "Would you kindly" moment definitely struck a chord with me. Even though I already knew that the player was Ryan's son and genetically engineered, I wasn't expecting that phrase to have the significance that it did. It's just a tragedy that "A Man Chooses" has absolutely no bearing on the gameplay that follows.

And, of course, the nature of who Atlas was and the rest of the game's story fell completely flat because I'd already played SS2.