Spec Ops story explanation!!

[Douglas]

Hey everyone, Effylmimer here. I made a video analyzing the story of Spec Ops, just incase anyone was having a hard time understanding the game's story.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DN6YTm9DoQk

[babby]

thank you...i came here to ask if anyone else was confused about the story. i've only played for about 2 hours and already am completely confused.

[Douglas]

Glad I could help!

[ISO]

THanks for the video :)

[Señor SeñoRita MargaRita]

Cool

[lightshortl]

I had fun Playing I also had fun Beating it, just got it Thrusday downloaded it and played on Friday and Beat it on Saturday It was a Pretty hard game but not hard enough even though After I kept dying in the same spot It let me change my difficulty so I must play again on hard

[antendeathstar]

I didn't know the game really messed with your mind that much, with layer upon layer of mystery.

I thought after the white white phosphorous attack on the civvies you went crazy but then againt Konrad knew way to much about what you did throughout the game. After you bashed in that guys head who looked like Adams, Konrad comments on what you just did.

I didn't shoot Konrad because he was all in my head and i thought the chracter just finally lost the rest of his marbles.

[The Lone Wanderer]

Thanks for the video. Who is Konrad exactly? I was even unsure of his origin.

[Douglas]

Konrad was Walker's commanding officer when they were both in Afghanistan. Konrad saved walkers life by dragging him half a mile to an evac zone or something like that. Because of this, Walker sees Konrad as a hero.

[jaaay85]

Over rated game and story. Completely pointless game. I feel like I wasted my time.

The writer clearly wants to make movies. The story wasn't all that surprising or shocking. Games != Movies, Movies != Games.

Do not play this game if you want to play a game.

[Douglas]

I'm sorry you feel that way, but I respectfully disagree

[jaaay85]

Originally posted by Effylmimer:

I'm sorry you feel that way, but I respectfully disagree

Disagree all you like, had you seen a few war movies and any mind banging twisty "thriller" you'd realise that Spec Ops is nothing special. It fails as a game and it is a game. It's not a novel and it's not a movie. It's a game, and the gameplay is subpar to say the least.

Very bad checkpoint placement, basic level design, absolutely stupid friendly AI, tacked on environmental elements. The core combat mechanic, the cover system is annoying to get in and out of, they mix the same key for running with getting into cover? it doesn't work well.

How many times do they "reset" the player, taking away all the items you have. Frustrating to say the least. Terrible game.

You can like the story as much as you like, all it's elements have been done before (and better, not in game though, for good reason), the end wasn't shocking as it was probably meant to be.

Good video explaining things though, there are definitely things in there that most people wouldn't pick up on during the first play through such as the colour fades. That's just poor game design though. If you need someone else to explain something about your game. Then you failed to communicate your ideas - which isn't what you want to do. Games do it a lot though, so can't be too harsh there. I couldn't play this game again, the combat is just so frustrating.

[Douglas]

Again, thats fine that you hated the game, I and many other people loved it. Nothing I say will make you like the game, nothing you say will make me not like it. But I'm glad you got my video!

[Katana]

netnerd, I've been in film analysis classes, and have seen some really amazing filmmaking techniques and amazing films, but that is no reason to declare that games can't be impressive in their own ways too.

You really, really want to be careful about declaring any particular feature/action of the game to cause it to be horrible, without considering the intentions/effects. ie, "No vehicles?? WORST GAME EVER." Resetting the player's guns is actually not a bad idea - storywise, it enforces the feeling of disempowerment - struggling against superior odds and prevailing (Obviously, you don't want games where you can use The Redeemer at any point without penalty) and ensures that players aren't penalized for entering new areas without suitable weaponry.

PS. Mixing the run and cover buttons is exactly what Gears of War did for four games. It's a massive franchise now. You're often running into cover, so it makes sense.

And I'm not sure it's really possible for the themes of the game to have been in any movie. Anytime a movie involves a tragic hero, I can sit back in my chair and sigh at him, thinking "What a fool. How could he have not seen all this coming? This is his fault, and his alone." When I played Spec Ops though, I really couldn't deny that Walker never pulls the trigger without me clicking my mouse; that everything horrible that happens in Dubai is, at least partially, because of me. That when Walker repeatedly insists "This isn't my fault!!" it sounds just as hollow as when I say it towards the game. None of that can happen in a movie.

If outside-the-media discussion should never, ever be required to get something out of a game, I guess you can readily dismiss the hundreds of great literary classics that are assigned reading in English classes. ("Class, can anyone tell me what themes Hamlet is touching on by 'To be, or not to be?' ") Plus, the deeper themes of this game are not something that people should be -required- to be interested in. The goal is to make people absorbed, and want to think about the game more. But if they're not, then forcing information into the player's face to claim a "deeper story" is not going to be so appreciated.

I don't think anyone can fault people who personally found nothing satisfying from the game, but it's incredibly obnoxious to insist that everyone should find it to be horrible. I really, really didn't like The Witcher 2 because of its badly-designed combat, but I can't exactly personally deny that so many other people found its story to be very well-written and off-the-beat.

[Douglas]

Well said Katana. One of the biggest reasons Spec Ops works as a story and a game is because Walker's actions are your actions. Walker will never fire a single bullet unless you command him to, and yet the story will not progress unless you command him to. In movies, the story progresses and the characters take action whether engaged or not. Spec Ops succeeds at forcing your/Walker commit horrible acts against man and then making you feel like the bad guy for it. That is something that a movie will NEVER be able to do, and that is why Spec Ops, despite its mediocre gameplay, still excells as a video game. In my opinion.

[Ogisha]

Nice interpretation there. Good thing about this game - everyone can have their version of the story. For example, I don't think that the trio died in that helicopter crash. I think that we're following Walker as he is gradually loosing his mind until very end, when he completelly lost it. He saw himself as a hero who can make things changed, but there're no heroes in war...
This game brings powerfull message, something like movie Apocalypse Now.