I've heard people on this forum call certain VNs "a good read," but when unlocking paths or getting different endings we call it a "play-through."
So, does one read a VN, or play a VN? Or both at the same time?

Here's something I've been wondering related to this - would you feel more like you were reading a book if the text and pictures were laid out differently (i.e., one part of the screen a "page" of text and the other side an illustration which changed in relation to the story)? Do you think in some instances it would would be a preferable format for KN stories over the traditional NVL format?papillon wrote:I say play because of the restrictions the medium places on the experience and the state of mind that puts me in. I can't read a VN like I'd read a book or a bit of web fiction, I can't control my progress through the story as easily, flip back and forth between favorite bits, etc. I'm progressing through a designed experience. The fact that I am reading most of the time is secondary.
I'd still say I was playing it, because I'm still trapped inside a computer program experiencing things at the programmer's whims.Here's something I've been wondering related to this - would you feel more like you were reading a book if the text and pictures were laid out differently (i.e., one part of the screen a "page" of text and the other side an illustration which changed in relation to the story)? Do you think in some instances it would would be a preferable format for KN stories over the traditional NVL format?
That lack of control makes me feel like I'm reading rather than playing though. Most visual novels let me make decisions that determine how the story progress, but I can't control how the character is going to do something. Like in Fate/Stay Night, I couldn't control how Shiro fought in the combat scenes. The VN held my hand and told me he did this, this, and this.papillon wrote:I say play because of the restrictions the medium places on the experience and the state of mind that puts me in. I can't read a VN like I'd read a book or a bit of web fiction, I can't control my progress through the story as easily, flip back and forth between favorite bits, etc. I'm progressing through a designed experience. The fact that I am reading most of the time is secondary.
Most video games include at least a little bit of reading. Watching fansubbed anime includes reading, but most people would still say they're watching it rather than reading it, even though they're clearly doing both. I'm reading the text that I'm typing right now, but reading isn't the primary activity I'm engaged in.
My problem with that argument is that the difference between, say, Fate Stay Night and Skyrim (or whatever RPG you choose) is the degree of control you have. Yes, there is vastly more control in Skyrim than your average VN but it isn't *universal* control. I can't decide to attempt a triple-back flip while tossing a dagger laced with a combustible poison that screams "Death to My Foes!" much as may want to. (Or without modding it in...)Llair wrote: As a summary, I feel the main difference is that even though VNs have interactive elements, I'm being told a story, and when I'm playing a game, I'm actually making my own story and experience.
Pfft, you're doing fine, no need to apologise!I probably said too much, and I apologize. >_<
But naming conventions also set expectations, which can be important. I know a lot of people that have tried VNs and been turned off of them because the VNs were defined or labeled as "games". Then they finished the VN and said, "That's the most boring, do-nothing game I've ever played! It was nothing but reading!" Because the VN was labeled a "game", they were expecting gameplay.Kylock wrote: I've never been comfortable with trying to so narrowly assign names to things, mostly because by defining something you're partially limiting what it could be (or could be perceived to be) which can be harmful for the medium as a whole. (Which isn't to say I'm against labeling things, just that we should remain flexible in the naming.)
I agree with this completely! This is why I was asking if VNs could be considered games in the first place xD Because the more I thought about labeling a VN as a "game," the less like a game it seemed to be :/ Is there a way VNs can be described so that the average person will understand what kind of experience you get out of playing a VN? I hate comparing them to choose-your-adventure books for the reason LateWhiteRabbit said about expectations coming from naming conventions. Back when choose-your-adventure books were somewhat known, they seemed to be associated with children's literature and dorkiness >___> Which brings us back to papillon's point about the category becoming more unfitting the more you try to categorize it...papillon wrote:Really, VNs are neither games nor books by traditional definitions, and the harder you try to push them into one category or the other the more it'll be obvious that it doesn't fit.
Interactive multimedia novels sounds good although it does sound a little "geeky".Reikun wrote:Is there a way VNs can be described so that the average person will understand what kind of experience you get out of playing a VN? I hate comparing them to choose-your-adventure books for the reason LateWhiteRabbit said about expectations coming from naming conventions. Back when choose-your-adventure books were somewhat known, they seemed to be associated with children's literature and dorkiness >___> Which brings us back to papillon's point about the category becoming more unfitting the more you try to categorize it...
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