But it’s reasonable that some would not find this enough. That, too, is up to debate considering that most VNs offer visuals to accompany text. Of course there is the video aspect which we discussed in part earlier. So, what is it then that defines video games so specifically to exclude visual novels? After all, the term “game” encompasses a whole host of things from board games to card games to other non-video pursuits. No, they are not video games, but they certainly are a game media. That brings up another point which is that adventure books are considered games. VNs are, if nothing else, far more sophisticated than any adventure book could be. Many games are known for having a great deal of complex paths as well as a multitude of endings. Where things change are when you look at how each choice can split players off down very divergent paths. Of course, this still may sound like an adventure book. Many span dozens of hours and offer tremendous amount of player selection. This is a fairly accurate assumption until you realize that most VNs offer more than one choice. To some, a VN sounds much more like a Choose Your Own Adventure book than anything else. It definitely isn’t as interactive as a typical video game that most are used to playing. So, you can basically consider it to have the “video” component of games - but what of actual game elements? For example, some of these titles have only one choice throughout the entire play time! Does that really count as interactive? In either case, the average game tends to have static images of characters and backgrounds to accompany the text. With that said, a great deal of VNs offer very few player-prompted choices at all. Yep, they were using Mass Effect style conversation wheels long before that series even existed. Playing one consists of reading a great deal of text and sometimes selecting choices for the character to make or what they will say. For the unaware, a visual novel is a lot what it sounds like. Because of that, many even question whether they can even be classified as games. The visual novel (VN) is something which has remained very similar throughout the history of gaming. Not all genres have modernized in such a way, though. As technology increased, the vast majority of video games switched over to visually intensive experiences filled with expansive worlds and copious interactivity. In the 80s, we saw some graphical titles but also a swarm of so-called text adventures which featured copious descriptions and no visuals. The very first games such as Tennis for Two and Spacewar! utilized massively powerful computers to draw rudimentary graphics for players to interact with. Video games began very humbly in the 20th century.
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