PixlBit

Half-Life 2 and its unique take on story telling proves influential for the Japanese game designer.

Fumito Ueda is best known for his work on the PlayStation 2 titles, Ico and Shadow of the Colossus, two games noted for their attention to detail and emotionally involved storylines. Considering Ueda's track record, it was interesting to hear that one of the most influential games of all time for him was the FPS, Half-Life 2.

In a TGS interview with G4 earlier last week, Ueda discussed why Half-Life 2 has had such an impact on him, and why he would take inspiration from the game itself were he to ever make an FPS of his own.

According to Ueda, it was Valve’s storytelling ability that really drew him in. He stated, "usually, you have to incorporate storytelling with constraints, but the way [Valve] implemented constraints was something different that I enjoyed, compared to other games."

Ueda went on to say that he appreciated that cutscenes were fashioned so that they didn’t merely rip players out of the gameplay mid-action, but rather allowed the drama to unfold around them. According to Ueda, this allows players to stay completely in the moment by simply making them the camera. "That kind of game is something that I don't want to see... you're in the middle of play, in the middle of the game, then all of a sudden you're in a cut-scene [and] you're not supposed to operate at all -- that's not the kind of game I want to do. If there is some other techniques that will not give them that kind of feeling, that's something I want to implement."

Finally at the end of the interview came the big kicker for all Ueda fans when he clearly stated, "I have an interest in making first-person games."

Ueda's secret passion for shooters is out there now for all to see, but only time will tell whether gamers will ever see an exclusive Ueda FPS.