Morale Kombat

I'm not a big fan of morale choices. They are undoubtedly a mechanic that's growing in popularity in games these days but just becuase one guy does it doesn't mean everyone else should. It's for this reason that I approach morale choice systems with caution.

But that's not all: What I don't like about morality choices is the pretensions of challenging the player. Now I applaud any game that tries to break down the barrier between player and game and connect them at a level of emotion and thoughtfulness. BUT! With the morality systems in today's games I'm not getting that sense at all.
Let's compare Mass Effect with Shadow of the Colossus. In the former, the player is faced with key choices but the choices they make will have many a drastic repercussion throughout this universe Bioware have given us. Now there is a sense that these choices are meant to make the player think but strangely I don't get that sense at all: Instead I adopt the sense of 'make the decision and live with it as you can't go back'. Now there is nothing wrong with that approach but I doubt that was Bioware's intention.
Shadow of the Colossus on the other hand features a guy destroying a series of unique creatures for the sake of restoring a single life. The player has no say in this and they're just going along for the ride - And yet the game itself is far more successful at triggering an emotional reaction. I guess it goes to show that the less control you give the player, the more likely you'll have them embracing any point you give them.
It's a cruel equation: Give players more control and the more likely they'll mess things up, oblivious to anything you might have to say.

The other issue I have with morale choice systems is that it's one of extremes. Most often than not the player has the choice of being a complete bastard or a panzie goody-goody. Well what about some middle ground? Granted the choices offered by the morale system can shape the player character but what good is it when all the results of these choices are all in black and white? I've played through Mass Effect where my Shepard was a bastard to everyone but eventually made the right choices with the major missions. It was a fun roleplay action and it was most enjoyable. But alas, it annoyed me that it ultimately didn't mean anything at the end of the game. What's wrong with playing a 'grey' character? Anyone would think the game resents such players for being so stupid. And what's the point in being a roleplaying game if the roleplaying options are so restrictive?
That being said, the only I've played which did the morale system right was Red Dead Redemption. The implementation of the Honor/Fame system offers a lot more freedoms than ever before and finally allows the player to play a grey character: A true neutral who can do as many good things as bad things.

So in the end, I can see that morale choices as an interesting tool in shaping a character as the player sees fit. The more choices being offered to the player, the more freedoms they have in playing the game and building a character they can connect with. The honor/fame system in Red Dead Redemption is a step in the right direction and I hope that other developers take note. Because the more grey area there is, the more fascinating the player character becomes.
Because the world isn't as black and white as people would like to think it is (and I speak from experience).