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[Draco18s]

Actually, I noticed the path changes even in the L4D2 demo.  There will indeed be slight changes now and again.

The tricky part is just that...  It's exceptionally difficult to notice small changes when you're being hounded by a pack of rabid zombies.

Duly noted.  I'll try and play through Parish1 a few times later and see if I can find it.

In any case, its far, far more subtle than Chet implied.

BUT I do feel I need to correct something here... I know that garage, and it's not actually randomly open, it's a spawn point for hordes; when any zombie spawns in there, the door magically disappears.

That would imply that as a hunter I should have been able to break it; I could not (I waited around for several minutes, attempting escape, and never had anything happen).

However, I will admit that there exists the possibility that you are correct, I just haven't witnessed it.

In any case, there are random elements, I've heard that a truck smashed through a wall (making a hole with a grill the survivors can see) exists sometimes, though I'm not sure where that is.

[Timst]

You also don't notice the awesome little graphical things while you're playing unless you take a moment to walk around and enjoy the scenery. If you're blasting aliens you tend to not notice the perfect sheen on the water created by three layers of semitransparent texture, realtime lighting with reflection / diffraction / diffusion ...

(...) It's a tradeoff in storage memory, CPU and video card processing, and development time and money. If they spend an extra 200 hours working on graphics that's 200 hours they could have saved (making the game cheaper for everyone) or spent adding features.

While this is probably true for money, I don't think it is for development time. It seems probable that big game companies have different department for graphics and gameplay... it would be rather strange that the same team that create shaders or particle effects is also the one that write dialogs or create armor type. Both can work on their respective job at the same time, it's not like developers had to cut their "game play work time" to make better graphics.

[CobaltKobold]

Then, consider the division of money between these hypothetical graphics and gameplay depts. and you're back to the same tradeoff, in a way.

P.S. Does Tetris need graphics?

Here I would like to add another bit to the discussion- I think that Music is an important game element, far more than graphics. (again, see Tetris.)

[Rowanas]

Music is important, but nothing is more important than gameplay. I often turn music off just so that I can listen to my own over the top, while keeping the SFX. Fallout 3 is much better when you have Mr Crowley blaring out over the speakers.

[Nintenlord]

Gameplay is overrated. Whether you are swinging light-sabres in distant future is completely different from swinging a steel sword even with exact same gameplay. Games are all about content.

[Shima]

Gameplay is overrated. Whether you are swinging light-sabres in distant future is completely different from swinging a steel sword even with exact same gameplay. Games are all about content.

By that logic, Dragon Age and Dwarf Fortress aren't so different after all, since both are medieval, have Dwarves and Elves and Humans, and both can be seen as, in a way, an RTS.

[Nintenlord]

I never claimed that gameplay doesn't make games different. Content just does it much better.

[Shades]

I never claimed that gameplay doesn't make games different. Content just does it much better.

I think you mis-understand what gameplay and content are. Any content that adds to the game is by definition a gameplay element.

[shadow_archmagi]

Nintenlord seems to be saying "Setting and context" but saying "Content"

"Content" means anything that adds to the game, be it new models, new characters, new levels, new weapons, new graphics for existing weapons, etc.

[Shades]

Nintenlord seems to be saying "Setting and context" but saying "Content"

In which cause he is still wrong as there is a large number of games, especially film tieins, that have tones of setting and context style content but are all still crap.

[Draco18s]

Sigh

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTJtbOcF36M

Also

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOVFed4ULt8

[Chutney]

Gameplay is overrated. Whether you are swinging light-sabres in distant future is completely different from swinging a steel sword even with exact same gameplay. Games are all about content.

aahahaha you're right. Gameplay doesn't matter in a game. What matters is whether you're a jedi or a paladin.
Gameplay is the number one defining feature of a game. It does not make chess different whether you use the normal chess pieces or hand-crafted wooden dragons on a board that looks like the inside of a cave. It is still chess because it plays exactly the same. The content does not magically redefine it to a new game.

edit: Thank you Tarn!!!

[Nintenlord]

Just to make it clear, I define content as what happens in gamers head when he plays the game. Everything else is just bits and pixels.

[Sizik]

Just to make it clear, I define content as what happens in gamers head when he plays the game. Everything else is just bits and pixels.

Since this is different from how most other people define content, I'm not suprised that people misunderstood you. Perhaps "immersion" or "the gaming experience" would illustrate your point more clearly?

[platypus]

Just to make it clear, I define content as what happens in gamers head when he plays the game. Everything else is just bits and pixels.

That's a very unorthodox interpretation. I guess you must consider DLC - downloadable content - a misnomer altogether.