“It tells a story that you don’t even know is happening

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“It tells a story that you don’t even know is happening

Can anyone say that Todd Howard isn’t one of the most legendary developers out there? He’s the man responsible for Bethesda’s smash hits, such as the Elder Scrolls and Fallout franchises. Seriously, if it weren’t for his works, the RPG genre would’ve probably never achieved the heights it has.

What might shock many is that Howard also finds inspiration in other games. That’s right, the Bethesda head actively studies competitor games and identifies their best mechanics to nail down for his upcoming games.

Howard has a deep appreciation for one game in particular because it tells a story that players don’t even realize is happening.

The game that has earned Todd Howard’s respect

One might assume that Howard spends most of his time playing the best RPGs out there to fuel the next Bethesda titles. However, he’s a very dedicated gamer who enjoys a number of genres and games. While chatting with

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, the Bethesda boss opened up about his love for games and what he enjoys playing the most.

Howard explained the importance of player agency regarding his favorite game narratives. He believes that a game’s story shouldn’t unfold passively and involve players in shaping everything. According to him, Valve’s Portal excels in this aspect.

One of my favorite game narratives is the game Portal. I love the way it tells the story that you don’t even know is happening

If you still haven’t played Portal, it’s a game that doesn’t tell its story. Players must unravel the narrative through in-game tasks. Valve doesn’t make players silent observers; they have to go through all the exploration, puzzle solving, and interaction with the game’s world.

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Portal and BioShock for their narrative. (Image via Bethesda Game Studios)

It’s not just Portal that excels in the narrative aspect for Howard; even the original BioShock aligns with the Valve title in this aspect. BioShock also brings a narrative based on player discovery and involvement. Let’s hope Howard can bring this narrative element to his own titles in the future as well.

Bethesda boss believes this is the “best” game

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Tetris is a perfect video game. (Image via The Tetris Company)

In the same BAFTA conversation, Howard revealed that his all-time favorite game is Ultima 7. If you haven’t played this franchise, it’s considered to be one of the classic RPGs that influenced Howard’s own creations, such as Skyrim and even Baldur’s Gate 3.

While Ultima 7 is Howard’s favorite game, he doesn’t consider it to be the best game out there. For the Bethesda boss, that honor goes to Tetris, which he believes is genuinely the greatest game of all time.

He’s labelled Tetris as a “perfect video game”, and that’s not shocking considering it’s one of the most addictive games out there, thanks to its design and gameplay loop.

Howard is a big-time fan of sports games as well. He’s deeply in love with the NCAA Football series, now rebranded as EA Sports College Football. He’s spent more time playing the franchise than anything else.

With that said, do you agree with Bethesda’s boss’s view that the Portal delivers an incredible narrative experience? Let us know in the comments below.

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#tells #story #dont #happening

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