History Main / EnjoyTheStorySkipTheGame

* The CultClassic RPG ''TabletopGame/SkyrealmsOfJorune'', as a game, is a rather uninspired ripoff of ''TabletopGame/RuneQuest'' that uses d20's instead of d100's. What draws people to the game, however, is its setting, which is a vibrant PlanetaryRomance world with colorful races and a unique magic system.

* The setting of ''TabletopGame/{{Rifts}}'', as well as the various other RPGs in the Palladium Games Multiverse, is a very diverse, complex setting that runs on RuleOfCool and being JustForFun/TropeOverdosed. Unfortunately, the game itself is based on the Palladium Megaversal System, a set of rules derived from creator Kevin Siembieda's TabletopGame/AdvancedDungeonsAndDragons house rules that is a bit of a kludgy, unbalanced mess gameplay-wise. As a result, the general advice from fans is "read the books for the setting info, and then run your campaign using a different system altogether."

* The setting of ''TabletopGame/{{Rifts}}'', as well as the various other RPG's in the Palladium Games Multiverse, is a very diverse, complex setting that runs on RuleOfCool and being JustForFun/TropeOverdosed. Unfortunately, the game itself is based on the Palladium Megaversal System, a set of rules derived from creator Kevin Siembieda's TabletopGame/AdvancedDungeonsAndDragons house rules that is a bit of a kludgy, unbalanced mess gameplay-wise. As a result, the general advice from fans is "read the books for the setting info, and then run your campaign using a different system altogether."

** ''VideoGame/Persona2'' has it even worse. The games' story is frequently called one of the best - if not THE best - plot in the ''Persona'' series, and even ''Shin Megami Tensei'' as a whole. However, many people are extremely put off by the aged gameplay, to they point they confess of being incapable of getting into it and expressing regret that they won't experience the plot for themselves.

** It's SpiritualSuccessor ''VideoGame/TormentTidesOfNumenera'' suffers from the same issue: the story, worldbuilding, art and atmosphere were very well praised (although agreeded that is not as strong as its predecessor). But the combat is still... questionable, noted for begin dull and boring, and just as ''Planescape Torment'' you can skip most of it with some good dialogue checks. This was actually a disappointment as some fans expected that with more freedom and less time constrains coming from being self-published by a Kickstarter and coming after 15 years of game design evolution would have developed better combat.

** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'': Even though the story is regarded by the fandom for being some of ''the'' best story-telling and world-building in the series, there has been a lot of criticism of the gameplay. The root of the criticisms come from the Monastery grinding gameplay advancement to a halt without participating in it, the homogenous map design and the samey-feeling nature of the class progression system and it's balance. It's very easy to simply class every Physical character as a Wyvern Lord and steam-roll the game, which combined with the other mechanics makes it feel for several the story is the best thing about it by a long-shot.

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* The earlier entries in the ''VideoGame/LegacyOfKain'' franchise were widely praised by critics for both their gameplay and their storytelling (especially in the second entry in the series, ''Soul Reaver''), but the gameplay of each subsequent entry was less and less positively received until by the time of the release of the fifth entry, ''Defiance'', multiple critics said that the only reason to play the game was for its story.
* ''VideoGame/EnslavedOdysseyToTheWest'' has gameplay that is seen as decent at best and mediocre at worst. However, it's generally agreed that the gorgeous visuals, the smart script by noted novelist and screenwriter Creator/AlexGarland, and the performances(especially by Creator/AndySerkis, who plays the main character) are what really make the playthrough worthwhile.

* ''VideoGame/ThemsFightinHerds''. Most fans of the game are more interested in the world of Foenum and the backstories of the six ungulate fighters than the actual fighting gameplay, especially since both the world and characters were made by the [[Creator/LaurenFaust same woman]] behind ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic''. This was actually encouraged by the game devs and one of the main reasons behind the creation of the visual lobby mode, where players can explore the world, watch matches, and other stuff even if they are bad at fighting games.
* ''VideoGame/SNKVsCapcomSVCChaos'' is seen as a lackluster fighter especially compared to its Capcom-developed counterpart, ''VideoGame/CapcomVsSNK2MarkOfTheMillennium''. For players, its most outstanding element is the pre-battle dialogue; [[https://www.gamefaqs.com/neo/914539-svc-chaos-snk-vs-capcom/faqs/26771 every possible combination of combatants has a unique conversation to go with it]], many of which are very entertaining to read. And yes, the game will even acknowledge {{Mirror Match}}es, with the resulting conversations lampshading the matchup. Finally, it's worth noting that SNK must have paid big bucks to get this game localized because the translation of all these lines of dialogue is surprisingly spot-on.

* ''Franchise/{{Blazblue}}''. While tons of fans [[PlayTheGameSkipTheStory completely ignore the story for the gameplay]], there are a large portion who become immersed in the game’s incredibly intricate story architected by Toshimichi Mori and its lovable and colorful cast of characters that they end up finding the most enjoyment from watching cutscenes on Website/{{YouTube}}.

* ''VideoGame/KirbyStarAllies'' has gameplay that can be seen as lackluster and very easy for the most part, while the story is seen as extremely memorable and possibly the series' best, due to a combination of [[VileVillainSaccharineShow macabre villains]] and [[ArcWelding lore]].

* The ''VideoGame/{{Neptunia}}'' series is known for its quirky characters and parody-stuffed writing that {{lampshade|Hanging}}s every RPG trope in the book with cute versions of your favorite gaming console or franchise as characters. The gameplay in the first game was downright terrible, and even with improvements made in the following titles, the combat is still button-mashy busywork with formulaic dungeons and repetitive sidequests. The first game's resounding success came from the humor and characters, and definitely not from the gameplay. While the series gradually got better about this, the lighthearted story is what fans come back for in each installment.

* ''VideoGame/PaperMario'' series:
** ''VideoGame/SuperPaperMario'' gets this from quite a lot of players. The story is considered one of the best if not the best in the entire ''Franchise/SuperMarioBros'' franchise for its deep themes and interesting characters and one of the most sympathetic villains in the franchise. Its gameplay, however, is divisive, with most fans either tolerating it or flat out hating it.
** The general opinion on ''VideoGame/PaperMarioColorSplash'' is that the writing has high moments of good humor, the setting is creative, and the visuals are SceneryPorn. The gameplay is at best contested, the combat in particular being disliked for being based on consumables, lacking in strategy, and offering little reward for winning battles.

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasy'' in general seems to be this. Go online and look up forums and there are way more threads dedicated to story or characters than to the actual gameplay.

* ''{{Literature/Dragonlance}}'' was originally a TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons setting but is far better known to the general public for the dozens of novels, short stories and comics that use the evocative characters, mythos and world of Krynn than for the game modules set there, which tend to have a middling at best reputation among D&D players.
** Some of this is due to the stories fully embracing aspects of the 1st Edition AD&D rules into the narrative, which caused problems when later editions emerged. Some examples were Clerics and Wizards being heavily restricted in their behaviors (Wizards were only ''allowed'' to use daggers for weapons by the ''gods'' themselves), and thus any class that utilized magic other than a genuine priest of the gods or wizard of the Towers of High Sorcery was either non-functional or a renegade to be hunted. This meant Barbarians, Paladins, and Druids had no magical abilities (which made the latter class useless), Bards, Sorcerers, and Warlocks would be considered renegades to hunt down, and Monks flat out didn't exist. Most of the new player races were used as comic relief in the novels (Kender, Gully Dwarves, and Gnomes), and one that wasn't was over-powered (the Irda). Non-player monsters races were heavily culled, thus limiting foes that weren't Draconians or Goblins to be encountered in small groups only if they existed at all. Finally, the original continent of Ansalon was pretty small-sized to fit the narrative of the first three novels and was thus limiting to [=DMs=] who wanted to tell original stories. While anything is possible for a creative DM, all of this had the effect of trying to work on a coloring book that was already 75% completed, you only had a small number of crayons to choose from, and half of those crayons were goofy colors you may not want to use anyway.

* Most reviewers at the time agreed that the main issue with ''VideoGame/SiegeOfAvalon'' was already summed up in its own promotional tagline: "Played any good books lately?" Its main drawing point was the expansive LowFantasy storyline, filled with political intrigue and conspiracies, but as an [[WesternRPG RPG]] it was somewhat underwhelming.
* ''VideoGame/PlanescapeTorment'' is noted for its excellent story, characters, and loads of freedom and roleplaying options, but the combat is not the game's strong point. Luckily you can solve most problems with dialogue options rather than fighting (the entire game has a total of three unskippable fights).
** It's SpiritualSuccessor ''VideoGame/TormentTidesOfNumenera'' suffers from the same issue: the story, worldbuilding, art and atmosphere were very well praised (although agreeded that is not as strong as its predecessor). But the combat is still... questionable, noted for begin dull and boring, and just as ''Planescape Torment'' you can skip most of it with some good dialogue checks. This was actually a disappointment as some fans expected that with more freedom and less time constrains coming from being self-published by a Kickstarter and coming after 15 years of game design evolution would have developed better combat.
** Some people joke the ''other'' SpiritualSuccessor ''VideoGame/DiscoElysium'' actually solved the problem by not having combat at all, focusing purely on the story.

* Like with the above, ''VideoGame/DragonAgeOrigins'' is widely seen as one of the best games made by ''Bioware'' because of the strong writing, world-building, and the way your player characters race and actions affect almost ''every'' detail in the game. Gameplay is seen as one of the weakest areas however, because it uses ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' mechanics and gimmicks, with semi-MMO elements, resulting in tedious and frustrating gameplay mechanics at times that can bog down many who are less familiar with the mechanics of it. And just like ''Mass Effect'', while the series has improved the gameplay, the story quality has been notably heavily criticized for dumbing down the complexity in favor of just simply being approachable.

* The gameplay in ''VideoGame/{{Albion}}'' is... [[SoOkayItsAverage you know, okay]]. A bit clumsy but playable. But boy can you ever spend a lot of time talking to people to learn about [[HumanoidAlien Iskai]] culture or Dji Cantos philosophy. It's not even the main plot as the world-building that's so focused on. As of this writing, the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albion_%28video_game%29 Wikipedia page]] for the game consists mostly of a description of the world.

* ''VideoGame/MaxAnAutisticJourney'' is a look into the mind of an autistic boy first and an RPG second, as significantly more effort is put into showing how autism affects one's daily life than balancing the abilities or providing deep RPG mechanics. Many Steam user reviews praise the story, but note that the gameplay isn't anything special.
* ''[[VideoGame/AdventureTime Adventure Time: Pirates of the Enchiridion]]'' is extremely basic as [=RPGs=] go, and especially if you're playing [[PortingDisaster the Nintendo Switch version]] with its horrendous loading times and numerous {{Game Breaking Bug}}s... but the story and dialog are actually pretty good, giving it the feel of an extended and interactable episode of the show.

* As per the page quote, ''VideoGame/SilentHill2'' is often held up as the pinnacle of the series and one of the greatest examples of the SurvivalHorror genre (some have gone so far to say that its story is one of the best the ''medium'' has to offer). However, most of its acclaim was focused on its story, atmosphere and visual design, with many critics less impressed by its awkward, repetitive combat and nonsensical, unintuitive {{Moon Logic Puzzle}}s. Interestingly, the game featured an option that rendered the player practically invincible, [[StoryDifficultySetting allowing players to experience the game solely for its story and puzzles]].

* ''Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics'' includes a card game known as Takoyaki amongst the 51 playable games. The game isn't well-liked by many players, other than children, due to the outcome being based entirely on {{luck|BasedMission}}. However, it provides some [[FoodPorn tantalizing trivia]] about ''takoyaki'' (fried octopus balls) every time you complete a round and sound effects of ''takoyaki'' being cooked whenever you successfully flip your cards (to simulate flipping takoyaki dough), which has earned it some fans.

* ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'' is best-known for a top-notch script [[{{Woolseyism}} especially in the localized versions]] that keeps players entertained the whole way and having one of the most [[LoveToHate lovably hateable]] villains in existence, yet has an unconventional and [[BrokenBase polarizing]] control scheme that [[SomeDexterityRequired demands dexterity]] and gives the middle finger to left-handed players, especially during its Land Battle segments.
* ''VideoGame/{{Futurama}}: The Game'' is an interesting example, it was well-received by fans of the show, not because of its SoOkayItsAverage gameplay, but because of it writing being funny and true to the show, thanks to being written by David X. Cohen, the show's lead writer. The cutscenes from the game were later edited together into a DVD bonus feature on the ''Futurama'' movie ''[[Recap/FuturamaM2TheBeastWithABillionBacks The Beast With a Billion Backs]]'', entitled "The Lost Adventure", allowing people to skip the gameplay altogether.

* While the ''VideoGame/SakuraWars'' games have serviceable turn-based strategy battles, they tend to be fairly easy and, much like ''Super Robot Wars'' above, serve as another medium through which to convey the games' stories.

* ''VideoGame/TheNeverhood'' is widely beloved by its fans for being a quirky CultClassic with loveable characters and an interesting world, but the puzzles are [[SolveTheSoupCans extremely obtuse]] and most require you to have [[GuideDangIt some sort of guide on hand]].

* Franchise/Blazblue. While tons of fans [[PlayTheGameSkipTheStory completely ignore the story for the gameplay]], there are a large portion who become immersed in the game’s incredibly intricate story architected by Toshimichi Mori and its lovable and colorful cast of characters that they end up finding the most enjoyment from watching cutscenes on Website/{{YouTube}}.

* ''VideoGame/EarthBound'', ''VideoGame/EarthBoundBeginnings'', and ''VideoGame/Mother3'' are remembered more for their story, particularly the setting and the colorful cast of characters, than for their gameplay, which was very bare-bones and rather dated even when the first game released in 1989.

** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'': Even though the story is regarded by the fandom for being some of ''the'' best story-telling and world-building in the series, some people dislike certain aspects of the game, such as the amount of time the player spends at the Monastery and a few issues with game balance.

* ''VideoGame/EarthBound'' and the other games in the ''[=EarthBound=]'' series [[NoExportForYou that only came out in Japan]][[note]]although the first game eventually saw a worldwide release on the Wii U Virtual Console in 2015[[/note]] are remembered more for their story, particularly the setting and the colorful cast of characters, than for their gameplay, which was very bare-bones and rather dated even for its time.

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[[folder:Driving Game]]
* Most of the interest for the Sega CD version of ''The Adventures of Batman and Robin'' doesn't come from its rather repetitive and difficult driving gameplay, but for the fact that the game features 17 minutes of exclusive animated footage done in the style and recorded by the actors of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'', effectively serving as a "lost episode" of the show.

** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemThreeHouses'' is a weird case of this, as even though the story is regarded by the fandom for being some of ''the'' best story-telling and world-building in the series, the actual combat itself is not held in as much regard due to the game being nearly plagued by {{Scrappy Mechanic}}s, especially in regards to the Monastery. Because of the Monastery and other design choices, the game ends up becoming extremely difficult to play on subsequent playthroughs without it growing highly tiresome, even with NewGamePlus bonuses. The Monastery is seen by some as extremely tedious and only worth going through for flavor text (or in the event of playing [[HarderThanHard Maddening Mode]]), with a mere 30 to 50 minutes of gameplay being broken up with anywhere from 3 to 4 hours of Monastery storytelling, which can be seen as a ''really'' big crimp for those who aren't fond of it. The Monastery's skippable, thankfully, but doing so means you'll lose out on one of the game's biggest selling points (character customization and reclassing) and end up losing most of the fun stuff just to skip out on the tedious, boring mechanics. This means gameplay for ''Three Houses'' for one playthrough takes about 50-60 hours each, and that's before the general 30-40 hours of gameplay when repeating saves. Combine this with most maps being held in not-so-high regard while reusing content across all routes, and the game is regarded as a game that struggles with getting its gameplay right.

* ''Rainbow VideoGame/{{Cotton}}'' is a seriously flawed shooter whose poor reception would [[FranchiseKiller kill the franchise for two decades]], but the game features 20 minutes of fully-animated cutscenes which have decent production values and stay true to the funny., lighthearted appeal of the franchise. Indeed, there wasn't much demand to rerelease the game alongside the rest of the series [[MilestoneCelebration for its 30th anniversary]], mostly because ''Cotton'' fans agree you're better off just watching the cutscenes elsewhere.

* The type of games Creator/QuanticDream became famous for. Since interactive movies focus on story over gameplay by definition and most of them originate from the same studio, their characteristics are as identical as they fit into this trope: the player basically [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin plays a movie]] with only marginal and very unobtrusive input, usually in the form of [[PressXToNotDie QTEs]] which non-player observers often don't even notice. The focus absolutely rests on enjoying the compelling story and the games' well-written, professionally voiced and, more often than not, [[InkSuitActor A-list-actor-MoCapped]] characters.
Specific examples include:

* It is widely agreed that the whole point of ''Videogame/{{Killer 7}}'' is the [[MindScrew bizarre plot]], with the shooting, monster killing and inventory puzzles serving as little more than filler between story points.

* The main series for Franchise/{{Pokemon}} gets this too. Over the years, as the stories have become more complex and the world building has increased, the games have attracted players who play the Pokémon games for the lore, the characters, and the settings, starting with ''VideoGame/PokemonBlackAndWhite''. When the subsequent generation, ''VideoGame/PokemonXAndY'', dialed back on the story in favor of exploration and competitive play, these fans were not happy. In response, the generation after that, ''VideoGame/PokemonSunAndMoon'', became the most story-heavy main series Pokémon games to date, whose backlash from fans of ''X and Y'' made it clear that this franchise has both Enjoy the Story, Skip the Game and PlayTheGameSkipTheStory.

* Most ''VideoGame/{{Touhou}}'' fans don't consider the ''Touhou'' [[ShootEmUp shooting games]] ''bad'', but they ''are'' designed by a man who thinks if you beat his games after only 20 hours of trying, it's ''[[NintendoHard too easy]]'', so the difficulty can [[ItsHardSoItSucks turn them off]]. To them, it's more fun to indulge in the characters, the lore, the connections to various East Asian mythologies, and the massive universe of fanworks surrounding those elements. Additionally, some fans who do play the games [[MorePopularSpinoff prefer the fighting game spinoffs]]. This is perhaps why the general scrolling shooter fanbase [[FandomRivalry has a beef with]] that of ''Touhou'', as many shooter fans [[PlayTheGameSkipTheStory feel that stories are completely irrelevant to shooters]].

* There is a good portion of the ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}'' fanbase that follows the game's background and universe through novels like ''Literature/CiaphasCain'', video games, [=RPGs=], and lore in the Codices without actually playing the wargame. This isn't surprising, as actually building, assembling, and painting a viable army is [[CrackIsCheaper an expensive and time-consuming hobby]], and the universe is very detailed and intricate, appealing to many who may not have the time, money, or interest to invest in the game.

** ''VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar'' was released in 1996, and to this ''day'' it's regarded as one of the, if not ''the'', best ''Fire Emblem'' in terms of narrative power. This is due to how the [[DarkerAndEdgier uncharacteristically]] [[CrapsackWorld dark]] tone of the game, the DeconReconSwitch that ties the first-generation and second-generation together, some excellent GameplayAndStoryIntegration as well as the shocking twist of [[spoiler:Sigurd, the main protagonist, being executed at the end of the first-gen]] make it a very warmly-received narrative as a whole. The cost to this was that the game, from a gameplay-perspective, having not aged well and is seen by some as having too poor gameplay to offset the story, with even fans of the game admitting the gameplay is weak. This is due to a sheer amount of [[ScrappyMechanic Scrappy Mechanics]] more than anything: doubling being locked behind weapons and skills, absolutely colossal and unintuitive maps that bias the game heavily in favor of mount-users ([[Administrivia/TropesAreTools which can be seen as a point in favor of the game]]), a [[GuideDangIt poorly-explained marriage system that can potentially gimp your second-gen playthrough if you don't know what to do]], as well as no trading feature in case a character who can't use axes ends up getting an axe from killing an enemy who uses it. Combine that with the game being hideously unbalanced, heavily dependent on the Arena for optimization and plenty of GameBreaker characters that wholly invalidate any use to use any others, and you have a game that is very lucky to have such a well-written story, for it alone is what brings people to play the game even in the present.

* Most of the praise for the ''Franchise/{{Drakengard}}'' series has gone to its story, pitch black tone, and memorable cast. The games themselves tend to have extremely poor gameplay, with repetitive and monotonous combat on the ground, and even worse controls during the air missions. This trope was part of the reason ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'' was a collaborative effort with Creator/PlatinumGames in an attempt to deliberately avert this and actually have a game in the series with genuinely good gameplay. And now all games onward from Yoko Taro, like the VideoGameRemake of ''VideoGame/{{Nier}}'', or the mobile game, ''VideoGame/NierReincarnation'', have made an attempt to match up to the standard that Automata has set for the franchise, with quite successful results! And now, plenty of people are waiting for remakes of the older Drakengard games, so that they meet the same standards as well.

* ''VideoGame/CriminalCase'' is a pretty standard HiddenObjectGame with limited search locations and rather generic mini-games. However it has a very solid story-telling that multiple LetsPlay channels have been created to showcase the game's story, most notably LetsPlay/PitchingAce88.

* Most of the interest for the Sega CD version of ''The Adventures of Batman and Robin'' doesn't come from its rather reptitive and very difficult driving gameplay, but moreso for the fact that the game features 17 minutes of exclusive animated footage done in the style and recorded by the actors of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'', effectively serving as a "lost episode" of the show.

[[folder:Real-Time Strategy]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Homeworld}}'' had this issue with its slow pace, 3D mechanics and tricky interface; but the story in the manual was some really good reading, as was the story in the cutscenes.

* Most of the praise for the ''Franchise/{{Drakengard}}'' series has gone to its story, pitch black tone, and memorable cast. The games themselves tend to have extremely poor gameplay, with repetitive and monotonous combat on the ground, and even worse controls during the air missions. This trope was part of the reason ''VideoGame/NierAutomata'' was a collaborative effort with Creator/PlatinumGames in an attempt to deliberately avert this and actually have a game in the series with genuinely good gameplay. And now all games onward from Yoko Taro, like the VideoGameRemake of ''VideoGame/Nier'', or the mobile game, ''VideoGame/NierReincarnation'', have made an attempt to match up to the standard that Automata has set for the franchise, with quite successful results! And now, plenty of people are waiting for remakes of the older Drakengard games, so that they meet the same standards as well.