Imagine that you are in an art museum. Don’t ask me why you’re there, you just are. You move from painting to painting, taking in the works at your leisure. There’s a fat woman that keeps disgustingly clearing her throat behind you, and you didn’t really get that one painting showing a bleeding black square with a pierced penis, but whatever. You’re still having a good time.

Yeah this is nice… Real relaxing.

Without warning a guy comes up behind you, and in the most piercing, nasal, grainy voice you can imagine says “You’re doing it wrooooong!” You try not to stare as he puts his hands on his hips, glaring daggers at you. “Stand over here!” he says, pointing. You try to ignore him, but he just clucks his tongue and drags you to the point he indicated. “There! That’s where you’re supposed to stand! Now look. LOOK. Do you get it?” He stares at you, trying to monitor the reaction on your face.

His breath smells of shrimp and his hands have left an unidentifiable film on your clothes. Naturally you are annoyed and more than a bit creeped out, so you try to leave. “NOT YET,” he whines, pulling you back to the spot. “YOU HAVEN’T LOOKED LONG ENOUGH YET.” You sigh. ‘This is crap,’ you think. ‘This is no way to enjoy art. I should be allowed to view this how I want and take away whatever I will. This douchebag has no right to browbeat me into anything.’

And yet, video games do this all the time.

Any player who’s gone to the bathroom during a cut scene, made a sandwich during a lengthy, unskippable dialogue sequence, or sequenced the human genome during Metal Gear Solid is familiar with the times a game rips interactivity away from the player. The reasons developers do this are understandable. They have a story, it took them a long time to write it, and damned if players are going to go and skip something they put so much effort into. However, I am not interested in whining; it gets very little done. Instead, here are some examples of games that allow the player to explore the game’s content if they choose. Hopefully next year’s developers will take note.