Stealth in Games

[[unpolished post]]

I can't figure out exactly why I love stealth games as much as I do.

The funny thing is, I have not played that many, and I arrived at that conclusion after playing only one game - Thief 3. (To date I have played Thief 3, Beyond Good and Evil, Fallout3, and Splinter Cell)

So how and why did I come to be so married to stealth in games? It was a mystery to me, weakly explained by my love of first person and my enthrallment with the idea of getting to planning ahead and strategize. I would mention things like how I liked to explore and see every corner and detail included by the developers as possibly part of the explanation, but I couldn't really tie down why I find them intrinsically so much more appealing.

Well, I just discovered another reason, which may be an even more central cause. In stealth games inaction is an option. Therefore every action is a conscious choice.
At any time I can leave the area to hide in a safer zone, or I can weigh the benefits of charging ahead and into danger.
Becoming involved itself is a meditated choice I make, or do not make. I can either sneak by while the guard is standing there, peg him now, or wait until I know he will leave his post.

This has an enormous effect upon me. Suddenly, the act of playing the game itself is immersive. While I still easily break the immersion by making a game-y choice (eg, I don't care if I die, lets run past anyway) operating in the game world can't be avoided.

How is this different from, say, a shooter, an rpg, or any other genre? Well, it probably has to do with control. In an rpg, the encounters, the loot, your attacks, as well as the overall plot are all fixed, random, or otherwise out of my control. It is very limiting in this way and I am consistently aware of playing a game. I can still enjoy it, but only as a game, not as a world important to me.

(Being too aware that I am playing a game is a huge problem I have. It frequently makes games un-enjoyable for me and I can't seem to shake it, even when I really want to)

Playing an fps, on the other hand, is much more immersive for me because I am constantly making decisions right down to which gun and how I move. While the plot is still fixed and the world around me is very regimented, I can still feel like I am at least a real entity operating within in the game world. The game world, unfortunately, often conspires to make me remember it is a game. We've all walked into an open area spotted a few health packs, and immediately known: "This means a boss is coming." The fences, enemies, events, or lack thereof constantly force me to act in a specific way. This is great for tailoring an intended experience while still letting the player choose when and where to move, and I fully appreciate it. But it still makes it oh so easy for me to spot game mechanics.
A tiny lag - must be a checkpoint. Danger ahead.
A new weapon? Must be a new enemy or section of game head.
Oddly quiet? Must be a build up for a bigger battle or an extended puzzle.
Once that battle is finished, I can count on a restock and a plot point or a quieter section.
A new building model? Must be important later.
A locked door? Chances are I'll be questing for a key.
Character is the average good guy? Probably going to die later.
Character cares too much about something? They will probably betray you for it later.
Lots of chest high walls? Prepare for enemies.
Bright light? Probably supposed to head that direction.
The list goes on and on. And I always notice them. I think about how to take advantage of every little thing, trying to beat the game instead of enjoying it.

Stealth games, for me, make the entire game lose its boundaries in a way other games do not.
I can use any number of methods to overcome him, or I can just avoid the guard altogether. Taking note of all the game mechanics is what I am supposed to do, and therefore they are concealed a little more aesthetically - particularly since I have the time to stop and notice them. The environment is part of gameplay instead of just a part of forcing the player into gameplay. They are challenges and obstacles instead of guides. I can be playing to beat the game, and still find it enjoyable. I also have far more control over who I am and what choices I make. The world still contains me, but that is both because it is supposed to, and because I am the one who is unable.

As I said before - more strategy, more environmental importance, more exploration, more sense of being inside the game world (immersion). And on top of it all, I also am consciously and intuitively choosing how to play the game as part of the game. All of these together mean that stealth games are games that I can wholesomely enjoy where other games I lose enjoyment of.

Not only to I get to choose how to act, but whether to act at all. Be it for economic, moral, or enjoyment reasons, I can choose to act in exactly the way I want. And without "breaking" the game. Sure, in a shooter I can force my will upon the game and demand that I use my pistol against a gunship, but the game breaks when I choose to do that. The game will become contorted and deformed. I will most certainly die hundreds of times, it will not be fun, it will not be a good difficulty, and it will be not the same game. In stealth games, any method is an option and the game does not break when you choose alternative methods. Of course you can still break the game - running through a level with the expectation of being cornered eventually and dying, but often you can get away with any tactic and still find a way to accomplish your goal. Or at least make it back to safety to try again once the heat has died down.