Why are so many video games so depressing?

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...Especially when the real world is depressing enough as it is? When the SNES first came out it was a huge deal that it had more colors than any other console at that time and the games always looked brighter and more fun to look at. Now consoles can use virtually every color their is and yet they mostly only use shades of dark, gritty grey and brown and occasionally dark green. I guess its because most game player are guys ages 18 and up and therefore will supposedly only like games that are dark, gritty, and gory. Any game that isn't is considered a "kiddy" game and not for "serious" gamers. But it IS a game! You PLAY a game, therefore it is NOT supposed to be serious! The plots and stories revolve around nuclear war and holocaust and pandemics and the protagonist usually has a dark past and dies at the end of the games. Even newer versions of games that are normally lighthearted and colorful have some pretty depressing characters or plot twists: Count Bleck and Tippi in Super Paper Mario, Rosalina in Super Mario Galaxy (you know, because she left her whole world behind when she was a little girl to help a Luma find its mother and couldn't get back) and Klonoa for the Playstation and the Wii remake where at the end Klonoa finds out his whole life has been a lie and he doesn't really exist in the world he loves and gets sucked into a black hole, which was like a smack in the face after playing such a cute and enjoyable game. I don't know if these games are being influenced by the way the world is now or this is what the average gamer wants now or what, BUT I WISH THEY'D LIGHTEN UP JUST A LITTLE BIT! And I believe that's the end of my rant. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to try and beat Epic Mickey... the irony...

Conker's Bad Fur Day (N64)/Live and Reloaded (xbox) was very awesome, that is, until the very end. In the beginning, Conker is the king and he tells the story (which you play) of how he became the king and at the end despite gaining a million dollars and becoming the king, he didn't want to be nor did he want to meet all those characters he met on his adventure and he was so cocky that he forgot to bring his girlfriend back to life and at the end, he says "Don't know what you got 'til it's gone." That game was a fun ride that became depressing at the end.

Team Fortress 2 says hello to you.

It is a light-hearted, cartoony, and comical first person shooter game with Pixaresque graphics and it amazing. Who says a grown-up game had to be all "dark and edgy?" Team Fortress 2 is a game I consider a masterpiece. What is really cool is that it is team-based and you have to rely on teamwork to win, it is a game that teaches working together and is probably the most others-centered FPS around.

Plus, HATS! It is a game where you can express yourself as an individual by collecting hats and accessories for your characters and there is nothing more happy and uplifting than silly hats!

Mother 3.

I do enjoy dark storylines, but I fail to see how a severely limited colour palette makes things any darker. I personally file that under bad game design, but to each their own. I'm guessing they assume that the 18+ crowd has some kind of disdain for colour, but I'm 24, and I like colour. I swear modern devs use the same colour palette my mom uses to pick out home decor.

Try Minecraft
I can't recommend it enough.
its bright and colourful, just makes me happy to play it.

It's...just...amazing.

At its core its about building things, mining and crafting.

It has a survival mode, which is more like your typical game...you have health 'hearts' and have to fight off creatures and survive.

but creative mode is amazing as well, you can build anything you want with unlimited resources, and you can fly.
Its SO satisfying to imagine something in your head and then build it. You can even share your creation with other people if you so choose, or let them enter your world and help you build things, if you choose.

The world is endless...no I'm not kidding...if you fly in one direction it will go on forever, the game generates random terrain.

I was building a typical house on the ground, and it occurred to me, I wonder if I could build a house in the sky above the clouds?
Yes, I could.

Its a 'play any way you want' sandbox style game, and its executed so well its just a work of art.

Theres also a massive online community of support. People modify the game, and you can download and try out their mods.
There are also texture packs that change all the graphics in the game if you want to try that out.

I really can't say enough.
one of the best and most creative games in years.

It only costs about $25 also.

I'm not very excited by dark and gritty games either. Maybe it's why I prefer older games and games for kids...I used to love the Spyro series lol.

I've never played Klonoa, but aren't the Super Mario games from Japan? I've always found a lot of Japanese games to have excessively depressing storylines (in relation to North American ones). For one example, I started playing Eternal Sonata awhile ago--and please nobody spoil it, I have not finished it yet!--and I recall one of the opening cutscenes involved the main character, a cute little girl, jumping off a cliff to commit suicide because she had an illness that was dangerous to society. Or something like that. She's been a total downer throughout the rest of the game too. I'm ok with it since I'm sort of a depressing person to begin with, but it does shock me since the characters are so cute and colorful, and I wouldn't have expected such dark themes from a game that appears to be for young people.

Sometimes depressing games may have an uplifting message. Epic Mickey, which you are currently playing, is a good example. You can use your abilities to help everybody and fix the broken world where the game takes place. Besides, I will not spoil the ending for you, but you should expect something heartwarming, since it is a Disney game.

Also, most japanese RPGs tend to have a happy ending, regardless of how depressing the plot is. Since you apparently have a Wii, play Xenoblade. This is enough reason to do so:

[img][800:500]http://images.wikia.com/xenoblade/images/4/4a/ErythSea.PNG[/img]

I can't say I agree with the premise that video games are depressing. Maybe that's because I have a dark sense of humor. some story lines however are slightly hopeless. A example that comes to mind is fall out 3. that's a time to have a good cry.

Far Cry 1 and also the rest, very nice jungle setting while getting shot at.

I think the purpose of video games has changed throughout the years. When they first began, they are primarily a way to entertain, so the story line and theme were kept light and fun. But as the years progressed, graphics technology became more advanced, and as people began to embrace the digital era, video games began to turn into an art form as well as entertainment. And like any art form, there is happy art and sad art. So depressing video games, in my opinion, are a result of this digital "art movement".

Depressing video games? no video game has ever made me depressed, most of em' make me happy! some made me stress but that was years ago when I was a kid and had a harder time figureing out the games.

I know few would agree but, the games that make me feel the most pleased, are things like Twisted Metal, so much violence, so many good times, aahh how I enjoy a good dose of healthy vehiculer combat.

NiGHTS Into Dreams. Not too depressing.

Characters are deeper, stories are darker. A lot of videogames are serious stuff.

I remember a character being only a heavily pixelated gunman on 1997. He only existed to shoot. And 15 years after he is a very realistic drunken man full of complexities that remembers his old adventures while he suffers and tremble and shouts to the barman to get another drink.

Maybe he drinks because he miss the old days...

I've never seen a lot of depressing VGs before.......... except for the ending of Strider, which I will not spoil.

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