First person vs. Third person

[23skidoo]

I had an interesting debate with a friend of mine who told me he hates first-person games, much preferring third person perspective. He says he can't move around properly, has no idea where he is, and generally cannot function when he plays a game in first-person perspective. Yet put him in a game where you're following the guy from behind, and he can play it like mad.

I'm the opposite. I hate third-person games (or at least those that don't give you a first person option), for much the same reason. Aiming is a bitch, I keep falling off things, I get lost easily, and most importantly I'm unable to get "into" the game.

Yet it seems to me there are more games coming out that are third-person only. Being a fan of Postal2 (guilty pleasure, so sue me) I was disappointed that Postal3 was Third Person only, so much so I ignored it when it came out. I've never really gotten into Tomb Raider because I find it impossible to do the puzzles in third-person view (and looking at Lara's ass gets old after awhile). This is an OOOLD example, but Duke Nukem lost me when it went to third person as well.

So my favorite games are those that truly immerse me into the action via first-person perspective - Half-Life and its sequels, Thief, Doom of course. I was doing the Second Life virtual world thing (until I decided it was a waste of time) and I usually kept the view settings in first-person there, too.

I blame the Commodore PET. Waaaaaaaaaay back around 1979 one of my favorite games was something called Ratrun, which was a first-person perspective rat-in-a-maze game. Later, when I graduated to the Apple II, it was Akalabeth with it's first-person dungeons. Of course back then I'd never have dreamed of anything like Half-Life2 or Halo.

I can understand the appeal of third-person. People DO like staring at Lara Croft's ass, after all. But I feel in some way it's not as progressive as first-person. Almost as if they came out with Half-Life3 and decided to make it a side-scroller (is that "second-person"?).

So are there people like me who prefer the true immersion of first person, or is this an old-fashioned attitude and I should get used to looking over people's shoulders in video games?

Alex

 

[Icemizer]

Much prefer 1st person to the point where I cannot play a driving game unless I am behind the wheel of the car. Any outside view and I find the car completely uncontrollable.

As a first generation gamer(pong on the Odyssey) I have played 1st, 3rd, side, you name it but much prefer 1st person.

 

[Jadzia]

It depends on the nature of the game -- with third person I get the impression that I'm supposed to be watching the movements of the thing I'm controlling. I don't really like that if the game is supposed to be immersive. (role play or driving, for example)

third person is better for god games, by which I mean non-immersive. Where the player thinks of them self as a remote commander of <something>; not role playing the <something> that is part of the the game world.

 

[Mistral]

Much prefer 1st person to the point where I cannot play a driving game unless I am behind the wheel of the car. Any outside view and I find the car completely uncontrollable.

As a first generation gamer(pong on the Odyssey) I have played 1st, 3rd, side, you name it but much prefer 1st person.

It depends on the nature of the game -- with third person I get the impression that I'm supposed to be watching the movements of the thing I'm controlling. I don't really like that if the game is supposed to be immersive. (role play or driving, for example)

third person is better for god games, by which I mean non-immersive. Where the player thinks of them self as a remote commander of <something>; not role playing the <something> that is part of the the game world.

Agreed. I play COD MW2 and it has both modes. While 3rd person is fun, in 1st person I eventually get buried in the game, so that all I really see is what's on the screen-not even the tv frame. That does it for me. Third person is like playing with models or something.

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

I like both perspectives and have no control problems with either. Certain styles of game play necessitate one perspective over the other. For example, an acrobatic platform game - like Tomb Raider or Prince of Persia - needs to be third person.

 

[FordSVT]

I like both perspectives and have no control problems with either. Certain styles of game play necessitate one perspective over the other. For example, an acrobatic platform game - like Tomb Raider or Prince of Persia - needs to be third person.

I was going to say this in reference to the OP's mention of Tomb Raider. Platforming tends to be incredibly difficult and cumbersome from the FP point of view because of the limited viewpoint. Could you imagine trying to beat Super Mario 64 in first person?

 

[Caliburn24]

I very much prefer 1st person games, but sometimes 3rd person views do allow more creativity in game play. The movement and cover dynamic in Gears of War would not have worked at all from 1st person, but in 3rd person it works very well.

 

[backstept]

I hate driving in third person . . . I usually pick the 'hood' view
cockpit view blocks too much of the track outside
third person view makes keeping to a line too wibbly wobbley (not timey wimey . . .)
bumper cam is too low so I can't see far enough ahead

 

[Canadave]

Generally, I much prefer first person, but there are certain games where third person makes sense, such as the aforementioned platforming games. Another, at least for me, is stealth-based games... I find that first person games where stealth works well are relatively rare.

 

[LightningStorm]

It depends on the nature of the game -- with third person I get the impression that I'm supposed to be watching the movements of the thing I'm controlling. I don't really like that if the game is supposed to be immersive. (role play or driving, for example)

third person is better for god games, by which I mean non-immersive. Where the player thinks of them self as a remote commander of <something>; not role playing the <something> that is part of the the game world.

I more or less agree with this. Though I also think the control scheme also matters a great deal. For example Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion had a way to switch between 1st and 3rd person but I felt the control system (and to some extents the nature of the game) for that game was not suited to 1st person at all so I played it in 3rd.

Also for as much as I love Resident Evil and I get what they're trying to accomplish with their 3rd person perspective, I think that game would benefit from being 1st person with first person style controls.

 

[Brikar99]

I'm also in the 'it depends on the game' camp. I love me a good FPS, but on the other hand, I can't imagine playing anything like 'Tomb Raider', 'Uncharted' or 'Arkham Asylum' in first-person.

And I'm not sure I'd want to play a sports title in first-person, either. Although, I can see it being kinda fun in a football game at parts...

 

[Owain Taggart]

You know, it's interesting. As far as adventure games go, I prefer 3rd person where you see the person walking around, and I absolutely loathe the first person variety that started out with Myst. It of course doesn't help that in those, there's hardly any character interaction. For the most part, you're alone in a claustrophobic place and the movement often feels unintuitive. In 3rd person adventure games, you get to interact with other characters.

For other types of games though, I prefer first person shooters to third person shooters. It just feels more natural.

 

[Shazam!]

It depends on the nature of the game -- with third person I get the impression that I'm supposed to be watching the movements of the thing I'm controlling. I don't really like that if the game is supposed to be immersive. (role play or driving, for example)

third person is better for god games, by which I mean non-immersive. Where the player thinks of them self as a remote commander of <something>; not role playing the <something> that is part of the the game world.

I'll buy that.

 

[Aragorn]

I think NFL Gameday (or some such now-defunct title from two generations ago) tried first-person football once. That didn't work out too well.

 

[Out Of My Vulcan Mind]

Fighting games are also obviously far better suited to a third person POV. Trying to flip around and do combo attacks in first person wouldn't be fun at all, and of course seeing the combo attack play out on screen is a big part of the appeal of fighting games.

Personally I also prefer point and click adventure games to be third person rather than first person. Most of the better stealth games have been in third person, too, although the Thief series demonstrated that a first person POV can be very effective in a stealth game.

Shooters are usually much better in first person, although the occasional third person shooter is a nice change of pace if it's a quality game (like Max Payne). Driving and flying games are likewise usually best in first person.

 

[BillJ]

I think NFL Gameday (or some such now-defunct title from two generations ago) tried first-person football once. That didn't work out too well.

NFL 2K5

 

[Jax]

It all depends on the game for me and sometimes its best maybe to have a mix of both...

Stealth games work best in 3rd person but if you enter any shooting action then a switch to first person is great, something Metal Gear Solid did a little with 2,3, & 4. Pure shoot em up games like L4D, F.E.A.R, COD etc are designed for first person as feeling you are the character increases enjoyment. F.E.A.R was a perfect example of bringing you into the game using the first person view because the way he moved and looked around the environment in cut scenes or how the environment acted interacted with you the player made you feel you were the character and not looking at the view through a camera.

 

[Mr Light]

I prefer third person yet ironically I really love the Halo games and Bioshock.

 

[Blamo]

I prefer third person but as others have said it does depend on the game.

A game that require little interaction with the level is probably best suited to first person. If it however requires the player to have a high awareness of their surroundings, third person.

I'd also say it depends on how much the character you're playing is involved in the game. For example if it's a faceless grunt, first person. If it's an RPG where you step into the shoes of a character, third person. If it's a game where the character is one of it's defining traits (apart from gameplay), third person.

 

[Reverend]

As others have said it really depends on the game though I don't think it relates at all to immersion. Fpr example, the new Ghostbusters game for example wouldn't have been nearly as fun or immersive if you didn't have that proton back taking up a quarter of the screen and I don't think any of the valve games (HL, L4D, Portal etc.) or I suppose the plethora of WWII shooters out there would feel anywhere near as immersive if they were 3rd person views.
Some games like FO3 and MGS allow you to switch between the two modes with varying levels of effectiveness but when it comes to platformers like Tomb Raider or for that matter any game that requires a high degree of spatial awareness, 3rd person is essential.

What might also be a factor is the platform on which a game is being played. PC games lend themselves better to FPS with the traditional mouse & keyboard controls while trying to play an FPS on a console with a gamepad always feels clumsy and restrictive (to me anyway.) Likewise third person games always feel more natural with a pad, though the disparity between that and a mouse & keyboard is significantly less pronounced.