Every game feels a bit broad. Even if just for the sake of development, I’m okay with story-focused games having pre-built characters. Especially if we’re not actually meant to like or agree with the character we’re playing as, such as Martin Walker in Spec-Ops: The Line.
Give me one good reason I shouldn’t be able to have a customizable PC in Tetris.
Seriously: I think narratives in games should be based on player choice. To me, that’s the difference between a game and a book or movie. To choose your own path instead of passively following one.
But clearly I am a minority here. Some of the biggest games are linear set-piece things with no choice in the narrative structure. Even open-world games tend to be linear narratively.
To use your example of Spec Ops: The Line: there is significant player choice that the main dude did not have to be a rigid character. They could have been as customizable as V from Cyberpunk 2077, and the effect would still land.
