Should a Games Plot strive to be more like an epic or a novel?

@The Title: Can't it depend on the game? Why should every game plot be of the same type?

I think the prevailing sentiment is that too many major games have gone with the former type to the point where it feels shoehorned, even if they didn't need it.

A great story can make a great game, but that also depends on execution. Also, as someone said, if the story keeps getting in the way of the player sitting there with the controller in their hands, it's a pretty poor execution, which makes for a pretty poor game.

We seem to be building a list of well written games, and I'll go ahead and mention that Braid is absolutely fantastic. As is the Mother series.

Not necessarily.... or at all really.

The problem with silent character protagonists is that, no matter what the player thinks, their characterization will never be acknowledged by the story itself.

Or, in the case of games with dialogue trees, the forms of character you can choose from are extremely shallow(I think KOTOR 2 is a really good exception to this).

And also, being a "silent protagonist" doesn't necessarily mean having no personality. Take Chrono for example. He's obviously youthful, energetic, heroic, has a thing for Japanese swords, has the hots for Marle, is in good physical shape, and oversleeps. This isn't even a wild mass guess—all of this is canon. Though he never speaks a word, his actions speak volumes, so he clearly has a personality.

In those cases it's just jarring, since there's no point in having them not talk.

Speaking of silent protagonists, the Shin Megami Tensei series has always done it well. The characters all have their own personality, but it's subtle enough so that you can still think of them as your avatar in the game world.

Nice points are being made in this thread. Maybe I'll go give Persona a try