Video games use advanced story shapes, too! Call of Duty 4 follows a branching storyline, much like American Graffiti or Traffic. This game allows you to play four different characters, all with interweaving storylines. In a business with too many first-person shooter war games to count, this is how you stand out.
You also stand out by making your action sequences have direct, global stakes. For instance, in one mission you are in charge of saving a missile silo that is about to kill millions in a nuclear blast. This is not just about saving your character. The creators of COD 4 really thought about one of the main story techniques, "What's Possible," and delivered a game that has been able to stand out amongst the masses.
Having witnessed this game in action, one minor aspect I found interesting was that, when fatally wounded, your character does not just drop dead. You are forced to witness your own death from your own POV -- stumbling around, growing weaker, sounds slowly blurring together, everything going white. It can be a slow and almost annoying process when you're ready to get back into the game, but this forces you to connect with your character and realize the consequences of your failure on a higher level than most other FPS games.
You also stand out by making your action sequences have direct, global stakes. For instance, in one mission you are in charge of saving a missile silo that is about to kill millions in a nuclear blast. This is not just about saving your character. The creators of COD 4 really thought about one of the main story techniques, "What's Possible," and delivered a game that has been able to stand out amongst the masses.
Having witnessed this game in action, one minor aspect I found interesting was that, when fatally wounded, your character does not just drop dead. You are forced to witness your own death from your own POV -- stumbling around, growing weaker, sounds slowly blurring together, everything going white. It can be a slow and almost annoying process when you're ready to get back into the game, but this forces you to connect with your character and realize the consequences of your failure on a higher level than most other FPS games.