[Grammar] This video shows the bad ending since not enough keys were collected ...

[kadioguy]

On a Youtube page, the creator writes:

This video shows the bad ending since not enough keys were collected to get to the Pleasure Dome.

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a. This video shows the bad ending since not enough keys were collected to get to the Pleasure Dome.

b. This video shows the bad ending since not enough keys is collected to get to the Pleasure Dome. (my sentence)

I think that (b) also works, because the statement "not enough collected keys" still holds true, while (a) indicates the action "collect" happened in the past before the ending.

Am I right?

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(Source) At 56:32
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3AYa6FGjcs&ab_channel=arronmunroe

 

[kadioguy]

[...] but not for 'are [STRIKE]is[/STRIKE] collected'

Sorry for the mistake. I will be more careful of the subject-verb agreement.

 

[Tdol]

All your base are belong to us

This is a popular phrase from an old Japanese computer game that has entered the language.

Don't expect linguistic perfection from computer games. They are computer games, not formal letters, and often written by non-native speakers.

 

[kadioguy]

No. You could make a case for 'have been collected' but not for 'are [STRIKE]is[/STRIKE] collected'

Here is a hard question for me:

The film is adapted from a Michael Crichton novel.

https://www.usingenglish.com/forum/threads/278050-The-film-is-was-has-been-adapted-from

Why is this one OK while the following doesn't work?

This video shows the bad ending since not enough keys are collected to get to the Pleasure Dome.

I assume that the key is "since". Am I right?

So, I'll rephrase it, removing "since" and hope the sentence will work.

Not enough keys are collected to get to the Pleasure Dome, so it shows the bad ending.

Does it sound OK now?

 

[Tdol]

And, frankly, the world of English would be poorer without gems like All your base are belong to us.

 

[GoesStation]

Not enough keys are collected to get to the Pleasure Dome, so it shows the bad ending.

Does it sound OK now?

No. "Shows the bad ending" is utterly unnatural.

 

[kadioguy]

No. "Shows the bad ending" is utterly unnatural.

How about this one?

Not enough keys are collected to get to the Pleasure Dome, so the game comes to the bad ending.

 

[emsr2d2]

How about this one?

Not enough keys are collected to get to the Pleasure Dome, so the game [STRIKE]comes to the bad ending[/STRIKE] ends badly.

I have changed the unnatural part above but, to be honest, it's still not great. Surely at the end of the game, a player either wins or loses. I would refer to that.

 

[kadioguy]

I have changed the unnatural part above but, to be honest, it's still not great. Surely at the end of the game, a player either wins or loses. I would refer to that.

It is hard to tell if the player wins or loses at a bad ending. Take this game for example: the players certainly finish all the stages, beating the final boss. However, they fail to collect 220 keys, so they still can't get to the Pleasure Dome after all. They are not completely successful, but I wouldn't call that "lose".

 

[jutfrank]

Okay, another question about present/past. Where to start this time? ...

1) since has nothing to do with this.

2) The text you refer to is a comment referring to a text on screen, so the principles behind the choice of tense used by the game writer and the choice of tense used by the commenter are different.

3) The game writer could easily have used a present tense (not enough coins have been collected) because the focus is clearly on the present situation. If the game writer had used a present tense, it would be best to add a perfect aspect to create a present perfect sentence (as above). A present simple sentence would not create the desired effect, which is that the present result is a direct result of the past actions of the player.

4) The commenter could also have used a present tense (not enough coins have been collected) but it was more natural for him to use a past tense to focus on the past, since, as a commenter commenting on a past result, he's a further step away from the text at hand.

 

[kadioguy]

Thank you, jutfrank.

It is hard to tell if the player wins or loses at a bad ending. Take this game for example: the players certainly finish all the stages, beating the final boss. However, they fail to collect 220 keys, so they still can't get to the Pleasure Dome after all. They are not completely successful, but I wouldn't call that "lose".

In this reply I tried to use the 'commentary' use of the present simple. Just like summaries of narratives (books, articles, movies, plays). Do you think that is OK? Or should I use a past tense or the present perfect?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

How about this one?

Not enough keys are collected to get to the Pleasure Dome, so the game comes to the bad ending.

It's confusing. Why the present tense are? And why the bad ending? What bad ending?

The phrase bad ending is, itself, unnatural in the context of losing a game. We'd just say you lose.

But all in all, I wouldn't worry about it. Game programmers usually can't write English well, even if it's their native language.

 

[kadioguy]

It's confusing. Why the present tense are? And why the bad ending? What bad ending?

The phrase bad ending is, itself, unnatural in the context of losing a game. We'd just say you lose.

1. jutfrank told me in post #11 that "were collected" or "have been collected" is more appropriate.

2. Please look at 55:53-56:45. You will get to know what the "bad ending" is. I think that it is a little different from "you lose".

 

[tedmc]

How about an unsatisfactory ending instead of a bad ending? It is an ending which you would not be happy about.

The present perfect is appropriate since it is about the past situation which has relevance to the present.

 

[kadioguy]

Thank you, tedmc.

What do you think about my post in #12?

What kind of tense would you use in the following?

It is hard to tell if the player wins or loses at a bad ending. Take this game for example: the players certainly finish all the stages, beating the final boss. However, they fail to collect 220 keys, so they still can't get to the Pleasure Dome after all. They are not completely successful, but I wouldn't call that "lose".

 

[Tarheel]

I would prefer:

It was neither a win nor loss.

The ending was unsatisfactory.(as Ted suggested).

 

[kadioguy]

Hello, members. If you don't mind, could you please help me with the last two questions in the thread?

1. What do you think about my post in #12?

2. What kind of tense would you use in the following?

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It is hard to tell if the player wins or loses at a bad ending. Take this game for example: the players certainly finish all the stages, beating the final boss. However, they fail to collect 220 keys, so they still can't get to the Pleasure Dome after all. They are not completely successful, but I wouldn't call that "lose".

 

[GoesStation]

What [STRIKE]kind of[/STRIKE] tense would you use in the following?

--------
It is hard to tell if the player wins or loses at a bad ending. Take this game for example: the players certainly finish all the stages, beating the final boss. However, they fail to collect 220 keys, so they still can't get to the Pleasure Dome after all. They are not completely successful, but I wouldn't call that [STRIKE]"lose"[/STRIKE] "losing".

See corrections above. Your tense choices are all correct and natural. I still don't know what "at a bad ending" means.

 

[kadioguy]

I still don't know what "at a bad ending" means.

Does this sound better?

It is hard to tell if the player wins or loses when getting an unsatisfactory ending.

 

[tedmc]

How about:

It is hard to tell if the player wins or loses when the final result is undecisive​ ?