The future of RPG's and other controversial topics

[rearviewmirror]

Concerning the dumb quest system of WoW: I agree on that. However, I also think there's another reason for these type of quests. Very few people actually read quest descriptions in WoW, let alone think about it. They have a friend or a guide which tells them where to go and what to do.
Even the solutions of new quests get spread-around the internet in a matter of hours.
So, in the end, why even bother with complexer quests?

Granted, this is only possible because of the huge influx of gamers who turn so easily to guide and being "rushed".

Yeah, In Guild Wars it was hard to get involved, because your story and speech included clicking on an NPC, reading a text bog, then doing something. It's so hard to get into something that makes you read to get any story. Not that I'm against reading in a game, especially in the context of a quest or puzzle. But I want to hear speech, and good dialogue. I want to know an NPC's character traits, not just that they are angry or sad. You can't get many emotions, in writing. You lose all of the good stuff, voices quivering, people crying, yelling, voices breaking, all of it.

[Loki[D.d.G]]

You can't get many emotions, in writing. You lose all of the good stuff, voices quivering, people crying, yelling, voices breaking, all of it.

Hence D20 games such as Baldurs Gate and NWN.

[GawainBS]

Yeah, In Guild Wars it was hard to get involved, because your story and speech included clicking on an NPC, reading a text bog, then doing something. It's so hard to get into something that makes you read to get any story. Not that I'm against reading in a game, especially in the context of a quest or puzzle. But I want to hear speech, and good dialogue. I want to know an NPC's character traits, not just that they are angry or sad. You can't get many emotions, in writing. You lose all of the good stuff, voices quivering, people crying, yelling, voices breaking, all of it.

I can't disagree more here. A good game, that's well-written, just makes you imagine the voices for each dialogue. Lots of the old classics, mainly SNES ones, didn't have the technical luxury of dialogues, yet they're better than most of the current games. Also, one of the most involved RPGs ever, PS:T, had a lot of dialogue that wasn't spoken.
Hhmmm, maybe worded it a bit too strong. Dialogue can surely help you get involved, but the lack of it shouldn't hold you back. If it does, it means the writing isn't up to par.

About Hellgate: I find it a great example of a dumbed down game, to be honest. Too much "Town-Killing Ground" dichotomy, coupled with an environment that is extremely cool, yet the same during the entire game. Compared to Titan Quest, it feels dull and boring after a while. It could have been so much better if you had more interaction.
Anyway, Hellgate isn't bad at all, it just could have been so much more.

Guild Wars, well... I really, really wished I could like this game. I like the settings, the art, the story, the writing, the graphics, but... I can handle more than 8 skills and 3 stats! Why make it so simple? I feel cheated when I play something that shallow. Coupled with the fact that your freedom is limited (No jumping of a metre high cliff for you, Skippy!), it feels so... cramped. Other factors of this are the lack of towns, or clusters of NPCs, in the wilds and the fact that you'll never "spontaniously" will meet other players while questing. This is because of its instance-system. Compared to WoW, this seriously detracts from the feeling of adventure.

On a side note: MMO's, especially the more PvP oriented ones, seem to attract the scum of the human race. Whenever I try to read and comprehend the average Guildwars character name (which looks more like it was written with an abaccus than an alfabet), I always sincerely hope that there isn't a powerful alien civilisation reading this, because it would give them full rights to nuke the entire earth. ;-)

Disclaimer: This also applies to, for example, WoW characters on PvP realms, but I never encountered many of these, since I'm on an RP-realm.

Disclaimer part deux: The last paragraph was meant as satire, so don't take offense.

[rearviewmirror]

Dialogue can surely help you get involved, but the lack of it shouldn't hold you back. If it does, it means the writing isn't up to par.

Guild Wars, well... I really, really wished I could like this game. I like the settings, the art, the story, the writing, the graphics, but... I can handle more than 8 skills and 3 stats! Why make it so simple? I feel cheated when I play something that shallow. Coupled with the fact that your freedom is limited (No jumping of a metre high cliff for you, Skippy!), it feels so... cramped. Other factors of this are the lack of towns, or clusters of NPCs, in the wilds and the fact that you'll never "spontaniously" will meet other players while questing. This is because of its instance-system. Compared to WoW, this seriously detracts from the feeling of adventure.

On a side note: MMO's, especially the more PvP oriented ones, seem to attract the scum of the human race. Whenever I try to read and comprehend the average Guildwars character name (which looks more like it was written with an abaccus than an alfabet), I always sincerely hope that there isn't a powerful alien civilisation reading this, because it would give them full rights to nuke the entire earth. ;-)

I have alot to agree with there. Lets start with the first part. I guess that the writing in GW wasn't up to par, and I just didn't feel any compassion for the characters. In fact, I barely knew their names. I did not care if they lived or died, so there wasn't much point in it.

I liked the 8 skills bar, because it added strategy. I had to choose skils that worked together, to become as powerful as I could imagine. There were lots of possible combos, so I didn't feel cheated, as much as if I was in a strategy-RPG. The problem is, after a while, that was the only thing keeping my interest.

I think that we can all agree with that last part, about the scum of the earth. The local chat channels are only for arguements, accusations, and heated political debates that consist of "F*** Bush!" and "No, F you!"
Not attractive. The level cap was what drew me in anyway. It meant more skill and less obsessive amounts of time playing to keep up with everyone else.