Hardly, I play lots of Visual Novels and JRPGs that have fantastic stories. I can think of far more games I found emotionally impactful than I can movies. I don't think it's fair to compare the worst stories in games to the best of movies. It's just disingenuous.
(....)I'm not saying one can't like movies, but Video games can be just as good or even better on a case by case basis. It's too difficult to generalize.
Agreed. While game design has evolved to include more 'cinematic' features over time, games have long been taking cues from books and movies. I can't remember if it was Shinobi or Ninja Gaiden (or maybe both), but things like cutscenes, visual aids, and narrative have played significant roles in game design in one way or another.
At the same time, however, it's a medium that has it's own advantages and disadvantages. The most obvious advantage is interactivity- players can become invested in characters and worlds in a way that films and books just can't reproduce, because they lack the interactive element. It can create feelings and moments that the other mediums lack- imagine COD's "No Russian" mission without the interactivity. I probably could have sat and watched that in a movie, but it's a completely different experience to put a controller in someone's hand and tell them to perform the deeds themselves. One other good example is the ending of Arkham Knight- no spoilers, but the feelings and experience that last little bit creates just couldn't be reproduced by reading a comic, book, or movie.
There's a lot more to be said about it, but I think Baileykun is particularly right about something. There's a lot of great games with really powerful stories - if you're looking for suggestions for game experiences that might change your view , I'm sure plenty of people could offer up suggestions.
Full disclosure- I'm also a visual novel fan and like when a good story moves things along haha.
