Cutscenes: The Silent Killer of Player Agency

Let’s talk about a gaming pet peeve. It’s not about difficult bosses, or pay-to-win schemes. It’s something far more insidious, something that quietly chips away at the core of what makes games great: our control.

The Cutscene Conundrum

Video games are unique. They offer an experience movies and books simply can’t: agency. We decide what happens, we drive the story, we are the hero (or villain!). However, this power is too often snatched away from us by the dreaded cutscene. Cutscenes can be helpful, but too much non-interactive cutscenes create a disconnect between player agency and the narrative.

I remember vividly playing a highly anticipated RPG. The first few hours were amazing. I was exploring, making choices, and shaping my character. Then came the flood: endless cutscenes filled with exposition and plot twists I had no hand in creating. I felt like a spectator in my own adventure. That’s the moment I realized something was deeply wrong with the way games were using, or rather abusing, cutscenes.

Why Cutscenes Fail Us

The core problem lies in the disruption of flow. Games thrive on the player’s constant input and interaction. Cutscenes break this link. We go from actively shaping the world to passively watching it unfold. This can lead to disengagement and a sense of frustration. We just want to play!

Furthermore, excessive cutscenes often indicate weak storytelling. Instead of showing us the story through gameplay, developers rely on exposition dumps. This is a sign that the game’s narrative isn’t integrated effectively into the core mechanics. Trust the player to understand.

The Illusion of Choice

Many games offer “interactive” cutscenes. These typically involve quick-time events (QTEs) or dialogue choices. However, these are often a facade. The QTEs are usually forgiving, and the dialogue choices rarely have any meaningful impact. This creates the illusion of agency, which is arguably worse than no agency at all. It insults the player’s intelligence. It wastes our time.

Consider the Telltale Games series. While praised for their narrative focus, their gameplay is largely built around dialogue choices. Despite the branching narratives, many players felt that the overall story remained largely the same regardless of their choices. This highlights the challenge of creating truly meaningful choices within a heavily scripted experience. Don’t make it seem like our choices matter if they don’t.

The Interactive Alternative

So, what’s the solution? The answer is to integrate storytelling into the gameplay itself. Show, don’t tell. Use environmental storytelling, character interactions, and challenging gameplay scenarios to convey the narrative. This keeps the player engaged and invested in the world. It also reinforces the feeling of agency.

Dark Souls is a masterclass in this approach. The game’s lore is fragmented and hidden within item descriptions, environmental details, and enemy behaviors. It’s up to the player to piece together the story, making it a far more rewarding and immersive experience than any lengthy cutscene could provide.

Challenges and Pitfalls

Integrating storytelling into gameplay isn’t easy. It requires careful planning, creative design, and a deep understanding of player psychology. A common mistake is to prioritize spectacle over substance. Developers often create elaborate set pieces that look impressive but contribute little to the story or player agency.

Another pitfall is failing to provide clear feedback. If the player’s actions don’t have a noticeable impact on the world, they’ll quickly lose interest. Ensure that every choice, every action, has a consequence, however small. Make the world reactive to our actions.

Practical Application

Here are a few practical tips for game developers looking to minimize their reliance on cutscenes:

1. Focus on Environmental Storytelling: Use the game world to tell the story. Clutter the environment with details. Allow players to discover the narrative through exploration.
2. Empower Player Choice: Give players meaningful choices that affect the story. Ensure that these choices have consequences. Allow for different outcomes.
3. Integrate Narrative into Gameplay: Use gameplay mechanics to convey the story. Make the narrative part of the core game loop. Reward players for understanding the story.
4. Use Cutscenes Sparingly: Reserve cutscenes for key moments. Use them to punctuate the gameplay, not to replace it. Keep them short and impactful.

Real-World Example: Breath of the Wild

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild offers a compelling example of how to effectively use cutscenes. While the game does feature cutscenes, they are relatively short and infrequent. The majority of the story is conveyed through gameplay, exploration, and character interactions. Players are free to explore the world at their own pace. They can discover the story in any order they choose. This fosters a strong sense of agency and investment. This approach made the game a massive success.

Moving Forward: Player Agency is King

As game developers, we have a responsibility to respect the player’s agency. We must remember that games are interactive experiences. We are not simply telling stories. We are creating worlds that players can explore, shape, and inhabit. By minimizing our reliance on non-interactive cutscenes and embracing more immersive forms of storytelling, we can create games that are truly unforgettable.

The future of gaming lies in empowering players, not restricting them. The future involves cutting back on cutscenes. Let’s build worlds where we are the storytellers, not just the audience. Let’s make sure the “game” is actually in video games.