Ex-TSR and current computer game designer Warren Spector gave a talk at GDC this week. In it he said:

“If you think that story has no place in games, you’re crazy. If you think story is everything in games, you’re just as crazy. It’s all about balance.”

He’s talking about computer games but I think it equally applies to tabletop RPGs. The roleplaying part of RPG is important but the game part is just as crucial.

Gamespot story here: http://www.gamespot.com/events/gdc07/story.html?sid=6167016