It's the best question you can ask anyone really.
Why? Why is this? Why should I? Why should we?
Everyone, anywhere, all the time, should ask themselves this question after each statement someone makes.
You are beautiful.
Why?
This is tasty.
Why?
Etc etc so on and so forth ad nauseum.
So how does this blog post relate to video games? Simple. Ask yourself why every moment you're playing every game.
You must stop the invaders.
Why?
Today, most game designers are stunted and failed screenplay writers who would say- based upon their Star Wars and comic book addled haze of a childhood- a number of non-concerning reasons.
Because the fate of the world hangs in the balance!
Why?
One of the greatest games of all time, Doom, has a constant response to every why.
You must kill the monsters!
Why?
Because they are from Hell. And hell's pretty bad.
Why?
Because they've murdered all your comrades, your friends, your family, and you are trapped alone on mars. Everyone you once knew and loved is strung from the trees and walls, desperately taking in their final gasps of life in a haze of pain. You are trapped in a world where flesh and bone compose the walls, floors, ceilings. All the while creatures are looming around every corner to eviscerate you and claim the only remaining human soul that anyone knows of. For this, you are the last candle light of humanity before the unstoppable wind of evil snuffs out the once burning beacon of human existence in this solar system.
oh.
You really can't form a more complete narrative than that. Of course, the whys' will continue as the game progresses.
Why are their chainsaws and medical supplies in hell?
Why are the same groups of monsters constantly coming after me?
Why are these space bases laid out in a maze like fashion with no practical purpose?
Simple response: "Hell's a pretty fucked up place dude. You ever been there to say what it's like?"
I'm tempted to bring a recent modern game I've played, Uncharted 2, which was recently lumped with more praise that I'd ever care to make a case against. Unlike Doom's constant "why" response, Uncharted 2 leaves you with no responses.
Nathan Drake must claim the lost treasure of some place!
Why?
Cause he wants it.
Why?
Cause he is a treasure hunter.
Why?
Fuck you play our terribly acted game.
No.
As you begin to ask more questions, you're left with even worse responses.
Help Nathan Drake steal these maps!
Why?
Cause he wants them.
Why?
Cause.
That's it, that's the entire motivation for the game. Naughty Dog assumes you give a shit about helping a mass murder earn his riches.
It's pretty depressing that the general population is apparently eating up this pap. Each level introduces mechanics you will use only once in a blue moon all while attempting to make a loveable and human character out of a man who steals from museums because it benefits him.
In Grand Theft Auto 4 we played Niko Belic, a man who wasn't afraid to kill but realized the inhumanity of himself while taking part. The open sandbox parts didn't punish you engaging in ultra violence and the game always ignored your agency as a player in between missions.
This is a good thing. I know I occasionally want to fuck around with a game, so why should it have any bearing on the overarching story? It's akin to watching your favorite scenes off a DVD. The actors have no idea if you're either laughing at it or whacking off to it. It honestly makes no difference to them, they'll keep playing their part in the drama. You, on the other hand, are free to enjoy both the moment to moment excitement and the overarching irony taking place around them.
Uncharted 2, on the other hand, assumes you give a flying fuck about obeying it's amoral and unlikeable character's moral code.
Break into the museum and steal artifacts, but make sure to not kill any guards!
Why?
Because they are innocent.
Why?
Because fuck you, play our prescripted scenario.
Of course, in the following level you're apparently free to kill off similarly armed mercenaries as you please.
At no point in this game have I been told why I, as a player, should care. At least GTA4 you've got the promise of more free areas to explore and destroy as you please.
Which brings us all back to Doom. You care because you don't want to die. If you want to die then there's really no point for you to boot up this game now is there.
Unlike modern "masterpieces" such as Uncharted 2, your motivations outside of this overaching question of why are both self imposed and rewarded for exploring them.
Why do I want to find these secret areas in Doom?
Because you'll get access to better guns and items sooner, especially if you've croaked before in this level.
I cannot stress enough that Doom attains that intangible since of "place" and "weight" that so many other shooters have been attempting for years to capture. As you're zipping through the levels, each more convoluted than the last, you feel this unexplainable since of belonging.
The textures with all their bright 256 VGA colors feel real. Enemies made from photos of clay models and pixel art feel strangely menacing. More importantly, perhaps, all of these visuals allow you to develop iconic imagery with each level that allows you to navigate with purpose.
The next time you play a given level, you'll remember the basics of where items and keycards are and will then be tempted to explore the out limits of the map.
What if you attempt that jump?
What if you press against that wall which seems slightly out of place?
99% of the time, you'll be rewarded with a new secret area or simply a different way you might be able to approach a situation.
This point of "going back" to levels is another important facet of what makes Doom one of the greatest games of all time and continues to respond to "why": It's a game that grows with you.
You'll want to go back and replay this level on a harder difficulty.
Why?
Because you'll find new weapons, more enemies, and new challenges due to your changing physical attributes.
As you keep pushing yourself through the harder challenges, you'll find that tangible sense of place become more real on each playthrough. You'll learn to recognize and respond to every single monster. You'll learn the dirty little tricks of movement you didn't think were possible. You'll discover the funny little ticks and side benefits each powerup offers. You'll also find yourself pushing for faster and faster clear times.
In the end, you'll find that your greatest challenge lies in fighting with the geometry of the level itself and how it controls your assaults on the enemy.
That choice of the word assault, by the way, isn't merely a synonym for "fights". It means just that, assualt. You are faster, better armed, and smarter than any enemy in Doom. Assuming you know each monster and their capabilities, the only thing that could possibly kill you is any surprise attack the level itself could create.
More entertaining, however, is the fact their strength lies in numbers. Glorious glorious numbers.
A small fight will have at least 2 dozen monsters attempting to ambush you. A larger fight will be pushing the 50 mark. The best fights, however, will throw well over a hundred foes at you.
You will not stop shooting and you will not stop for a rest with pathetic concepts like "regenerating health" or "limited ammo". Instead, you're going to fight!
You'll ask once more, why should I fight so many goons?
Because it's a perfectly designed game.
