TOP 12 MUST HAVES for SOTA

**Please list 12+ or less clearly written things you want to see in SOTA. Think of it like it's like a resume for a job, very important the Devs get your points.**

Think about, could this just be printed and will it give a clear picture of what is being said. Thinking less is better, don't bog thoughts down. So what is it that you want to say.

***Please be respectful and considerate. You are posting an important thing, don't waste it whining. Have your comments make a difference to this game.***

*****Ok there are rules:*****
1)Get to the point, That would be, what is the bottom line in what you want to express?
2)Fact verses Story, be factual, even though it is still your opinion, it is true to you, not drama/story
3)Let this post read so the development team could look at it and say;"oh I get what they want."
4)Keep comments to a minimum, sorry I'm no fun , well this time, I guess I'm a bit serious
5)Pictures can be included as examples or videos also. Truly get your point accross.
6)After writing the post at the bottom list 3+ games or less that influence your choices or ideas
For example:
1- Elder Scrolls online - for combat style and graphics
2- WOW - Reliability and character skills, best looking dwarf character
3- Lord of the Rings - Visually interesting, deep lore system

Consider these types of things when posting your thoughts:
It's All About Story or is it ?
Experience is What Makes The Perfect Game ?
Cohesion - mixture of gameplay and great story ?
Games that are not worried about trying something new ?
Games that create a memorable environment and gameplay ?
Is the game immersive, consistantly fun - visually pleasing, like art, and audio ?
Has some type of reward and motivate system in place ?
Has a variety of Systems in place in a game- crafting, fishing, boating, taming, treasure hunting, pvp,
housing, exploration features (hidden doors, secrets). What's important to you?
Character design - customization
Interactivity - with items in the game and the environment, with others (community/guilds) ?

Ok ready, set, GO......... P.S. **I will post my 12 later

 

I understand these might not be available in Release 1:

1) rideable mounts
2) combat on mounts
3) full loot PvP areas
4) customizable bodies for avatars
5) dyeable cloth (I know this is coming)
6) rideable boats
7) combat on boats
8) customizable coat-of-arms for armor/house decorations
9) rares found on monsters
10) efficient online trading spot for in-game items
11) constant flow of unique items/rares which give no advantage in combat/crafting
12) new house types with more roof area/decks
13) ability to ban someone from your property
14) could go on and on and on ..............
15) I have trouble with rules so now I have 15 items which is more than Majoria wanted .........
16) Overland map view that tilts upward more so we can see more of the world

 

1. Population. The ability to make friends.
2. Resources. More common in some map regions.
3. Interaction. Offline/Online folk due to timezones.
4. Exploration. Just explore .
5. Joyness. Funimity factor.
6. Forum. Forum fall.

I am being sarcastic here, and love majoria70's OP.

 

1. A balanced combat system that doesn't promote "best builds".
2. The ability to knock on doors to get the attention of people inside of a home.
3. A more robust and sophisticated magic and combat system that isn't built on DPS.
4. Meaningful PVP that allows for winners and losers on multiple levels (guild, group, solo). Don't make me join a guild to survive day to day pvp encounters.
5. Reagents required for all spells.
6. Regional economies supported by limited travel, limited storage, and regional resources (advantages/disadvantages).
7. Reasonably unique Player Owned Towns.

 

1. Compelling story line
2. Character progression should keep pace with the story. I should not have to stop and grind levels to continue the story.
3. Alternate paths through the story. We all start in the same place, and maybe we end up in the same place, but how we complete the story should depend upon our choices.
4. No forced interaction with other players. There's supposed to be a solo mode.
5. Everything necessary to play the game should be discoverable in the game.
6. The best gear in the game should be crafted by players, not dropped by monsters.
7. The number of things I can learn should only be limited by the amount of time I wish to spend learning.
8. It's ok to have monsters that can't be harmed by magic, and others that can't be harmed by melee, but let those monsters not block the story.
9. Stealth is not magic.

I can live with just 9 must-haves.

 

1. Intuitive combat UI. (UO, AA)
2. Non-random skill availability.
3. More interesting, tactical glyph/skill options.
4. Dynamic combat (positioning, maneuvering) with enhanced mob AI (special moves, dodging, ambushes).
5. Ship combat/boarding.
6. Immersion and interaction with the environment.
7. Customizable clothes, armor, weapons (dyes, mix-matching gear)
8. Fishing, SOS, sunken treasure or treasure hunting of some kind.
9. Meaningful, consequential virtue/karma/reputation system.
10. Meaningful, consequential GvG/RvR/POTvPOT territory or warring system (ransoms, looting, raiding treasuries, changing losing town's music lol, etc.).
11. "Rare" collecting/pixel crack gathering.
12. Random instances to explore by wandering the scenes or overland map (see rares above).


Ultima Online - UI, combat, rares, ship combat, looting, Guild/town wars and factions, fishing/SOS/t-mapping, reputation/crime, immersion.
ArcheAge - UI, combat, ship combat, factions, fishing, reputation/crime.
Fallout series - exploration, virtue/karma/reputation, dynamic combat, immersion.
Ultima series - exploration, virtue/karma/reputation, immersion.

 

1. A wide variety of clothing
2. A huge dye color palette
3. A nice array of playable musical instruments (not just one of each category, but various instruments, each with their own unique timbre and look)
4. Coats of arms for player-owned townships/town groups
5. Coats of arms for guilds
6. Layered clothing
7. Curtains, blinds, or other items with the express purpose of dressing windows (player crafted and dyeable, of course)
8. Mannequins for displaying outfits, weapons, various accoutrements
9. Public lots for community events that don't require sacrificing a lot deed - controlled by town owner
10. Swimming pools (hot tubs are JUST the beginning!)
11. The ability to customize servants (Knight / Lord / Lord Marshall / Baron) with clothing and hand-held items, and also their physical appearance (except Lord Marshall)
12. A wide variety of housing styles (some can be the same houses with different wall / roof / floor material reworks, others would be entirely new floor plans)

 

It's really hard to make such a list considering that I'd be happy with the current feature set of R16 so long as everything is polished. I'm not talking about "ready to be released" polish, I'm talking "this is equal if not better than Blizzard Entertainment" polish.

Nothing turns me off more than a fully released game that runs and plays like an pregnant cow.

Games:
- Diablo & WorldofWarcraft: Ease of use. Clean and functional UI. Colorful visuals.
- The Elder Scrolls: NPCs interaction and (in Oblivion/Skyrim) move around based on schedule.
- Ultima: Player influence and interaction with the world, exploration.

 

Events
1) R17 week 1, slimes attack PaxLair (Friday night)
2) R17 week 2, cave wrasse attack on PaxLair (Friday night)
3) R17 week 3, All Wolf varities " " " "
4) R17 week 4, All Bear varieties " " " "
5) R18 week 1, All Spider varieties " " " "
6) R18 week 2, All Elf varieties " " " "
7) R18 week 3, All Kobold varieties " " " "
8) R18 week 4, All Skeleton varieties " " " "
9) R19 week 1, All Humanoid varieties " " " "
10) R19 week 2, All Elemental varieties " " " "
11) R19 week 3, All Lich varieties " " " "
12) R19 week 4, Dragons.

Nothing like a good GM lead event. I loved invasions of mobs in UO. LORE: All mobs on strike for being tested upon.

PaxLair because the force is stirring there and so many groups will be represented.

 

1) A communications system that fosters community and a sense of a present population - Global chat
2) Combat that involves more choice over which battles to fight rather than surprises and constant agro generation while traveling
3) Combat that offers more tactical choices. E.g., CC management of small mob groups, better use of card combos to deal with scenarios.
4) Combat that directs attention to the fight, not the cards being drawn. More responsiveness to visual and audio cues, less card praying/watching.
5) Shareable recall locations to /home, so that couples who share a home can travel home together
6) Arbitrary skill selection as opposed to hierarchically ordered skill selection (which currently requires taking skills I don't want in order to get skills I do want).
7) Addition of true craftsmanship to crafting, ability to differentiate products based on unique skill deployment of the crafter, not just time spent grinding
8) Trade routes and caravans to support strong regional economies that provide incentives for cross country trading and open world piracy.
9) Farming - ability to grow or raise harvestable resources with regional differentiation to support players making more diverse choices of home location and to support trade routes
10) More goal oriented dungeon crawls in interior locations with random surprises at the end (not gear, but rare resources for example).
11) A variety of mounts that differ only in appearance, not stats, offering a small overland travel speed bonus.
12) No forced solo content. I duo with my wife and do not want to be forced to separate from her to do a story component.

Three games that influence my decisions:

1) ArcheAge - Loved it, hated it, mostly loved it. Certainly spent way more money than I wanted to!
2) ESO - Bug city, but loved the explorability, randome discoveries, and small mob group combat
3) SWG - True craftsmanship in crafting! Usage based skill advancement! Useful housing!

And I will make one last point that I know is heresy in this community. Less reading, more doing. I love story, my favorite RPGs were heavily story based (e. g., Planescape: Torment) but they were all single player games. Invest more story content into the soloable or single player episodes, but allow multiplayer mode to move more smoothly through the action and less dependent on dialog. The problem is that reading, while one of my favorite activities in life, simply is NOT a multiplayer experience. People read at different rates, players in groups feel pressured to rush through dialogs even when they want to read, players who have already read the story are bored waiting around for others, there is just a general awkwardness to reading moments in multiplayer gaming. My two cents.

Thanks, Majoria. Great thread!

 

1. Justice system (Oracle sees all, and punishes law-breakers)
2. Death system (more penalty than short run to rez-point or short timer)
3. Alternatives to combat (let me talk my way out, or pay the toll. or disguise as the enemy, or cast magic that distracts the guards, Example: Break into a castle: 1.Get arrested to break into a castle via the dungeon/2. swim in through the moat & sewers/3. scale the wall at night/4. disguise as servants & walk through the front gate)
4. Daily/Weekly Rentable 'servant-drawn carts' to help carry gold, loot and resources to home/bank/market from dungeon dives.
5. Setup camp anywhere on the world map, to rest, chat with companions, eat, drink and post a guard through the dangerous nights.
6. Meet at least one companion NPC in each 'virtue' city who understands the respective moral concept and over time is willing to join me on my quest.
7. Non-Combat Magic to have several practical uses outside of combat: talk to animals, move/manipulate objects/start fires/control weather within a zone/shrink self and party to miniature size, to fit through otherwise inaccessible places (tiny doors/holes in trees/caves).
8. NPC love-interests who must be courted, each of which reacts differently based on my moral character.
9. Celestial objects with 'phases' that can be observed and tracked over time to predict the seasons, time of year (shorter days & longer nights in winter) etc.
10. Farms! Hexes surrounding big cities should have huge outlying farms with farmers actually working their fields based on the seasons. (I should be able to steal their food, or help them carry it to market).
11. Most basic 'instrument' in the game should be my ability to whistle. Also, all animal calls should be unique 'whistles' I, as a master, can set to each pet. (once set, I get the 'icon', and every time that icon is pressed, everyone hears the unique whistle I set as I call that pet!)
12. Observable Effects for eating and fitness habits. They should be tracked, so when I get hungry, my stomach should rumble, when I am thirsty/overheated, I should begin to blackout, if I eat while already full, I should begin to get fat. If I never eat, I should begin to get skinny.
13. ***Cannibalism!***

-----------3 games------------
Quest For Glory - Many ways to solve a problem/quest, NPC love interests, non-combat magic, justice system
Harvest Moon - NPC love interests, Seasons and farming
Fable - Moral-based interactions, NPC love interests, Justice system, diet and actions affect appearance

***Disclaimer, #13 was added after the fact, is over the 12 limit, and thus can be ignored, though it shouldn't be!***

 

1.) minigame Fishing
2.) Boats and sea encounters. "Sea content"
3.) minigame crafting
4.) Rare, intimidating world encounters (Giant dragon omgwtfbbqthatsbiG!JKDJH)
5.) PvP territory control mechanics
6.) dynamic nodes or "nodeless" gathering
7.) freeform and Diverse combat system
8.) Ability to ban jerks from towns, particularly all towns
9.) Regional economy and trade
10.) ME
11.) visual deterioration effects on armor and weapons
12.) smoother animations/camera effects/collisions that give a feel of forcefulness in combat.

 

1) Full control of my character in combat and conversation. I get to decide what they're thinking, not the game.
2) Cohesive systems. Playing one system shouldn't feel like it belongs in a different game from the rest.
3) A game world that feels like a world. "We create worlds" was a motto that inspired players.
4) A truly open ended story arc. Ala U3-5. Some things had pre-requisites, but your path to victory was yours to make.
5) Minimal UI. Every piece is a distraction from #3.

 

1) everything I see (where it makes sense) I should be able to interact with. (If I have the appropriate skills).
2) (almost) all objects should be craftable. The game should supply us with resources, not as many finished objects. [protect our local SotA crafters from cheap dev imports].
3) (almost) all UI tech to be gear/magic based. The compass should be an actual compass object. The journal should be notebooks. Etc
4) multiple choice storyline with multiple outcomes. That matters in episodes to come
5) fun mini games. Crafting, fishing, treasure hunts, gambling, etc.
6) monsters some that one actually fears, some that can be tricked, some that acts intelligently, etc.
7) magic/tech that can be used outside of combat, sometimes for utility others just for fun.
8) companions/mercenaries/guides/helpers/servants, to fill the world with life for the single players
9) player created missions/work lists/contracts to create more cooperation/content for the multi players
10) caravans/traders/refugees/roaming monsters/none shall pass knights/bandit hold ups etc to bring the overland to life
11) temporary housing, NPC inns, player renting out rooms, lease a deed, etc
12) Community enabling features, like Event Holder powers, like broadcast/advertising, like companies/groups/organizations to compliment guilds, like local scene Aether amplifiers, like donation boxes

Edit
Almost forgot : three games ;
1)
Ultima VI
2)
Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magick Obscura
3)
Sims : Medieval (Yes I'm kidding, but it would have been nice with some of the budget and polishing)

 

I am particulary in support of Spoon's number 2 !!!

 

I am in full agreement with these needs/bows and salutes...
Also, it would be nice if all of us could be a part/there is no excuse for upper pledges sitting around waiting for a chance to play/while others complain they have no deeds.

 

Okay, I'll be a little abstract.

1. Real consequences to all of your actions, whether its story-related actions or game-related actions. Death is meaningful, not a 30 second hangup. If you commit crimes, your criminal status doesn't time out in 5 minutes. If you bring five changes of armor with you, you can carry less loot on your way out of the dungeon.
2. A living, breathing world, that feels like its a real place. Day and night matters, seasons matter, weather matters, people travel from place to place on business. NPCs should feel like real people.
3. Everything in the game can be used, and everything in the game can be crafted. The only exceptions would be rares of course, but everything else you see should be craft-able.
4. Crafting as a meaningful activity. Rather than dragging / double-clicking ingredients over and over.
5. A large world to explore. A game world with all sorts of nooks and crannies to find and discover, and not just a few predictable places.
6. A travel map that is more than about getting from scene to scene. That means the ability to set up camps and invite in other players, non-combat random encounters, weather conditions shown on the map, lines of visibility.
7. Encounters that have thought behind them, rather than mindless grinds. Encounters should have reasons for being where they are, they should act and respond intelligently, and in many cases, the player should be able to deal with them in other ways than through combat.
8. Problems that can be solved through improvisation rather than min/maxing. Whether combat situations or obstacles.
9. Rich lore behind everything. So that nothing in the game feels random.
10. The ability for users to create their own content and stories. Whether this means something as simple as writing books and starting shops, or something complex like a players being able to create their own scenes and their own NPCs so other players can go through custom content. I'm thinking about something like the Foundry in STO.
11. The tools for players to represent their own character in the game and express themselves. Lot content creation, coat of arms, character customizability, clothing layering.
12. Meaningful contexts for PvP. Not just friendly duels for sport, or "capture the flag/capture the fort" games. PvP that actually is connected to the game world and the choices players are making.

Games that are positive influences for me,

1. Ultima VII, for its creation of a rich, living world.
2. Ultima VI, for having a lot of options for improvisation.
3. Ultima V, for its feeling of open-ended exploration and adventure.
4. Ultima Online, for many things including its skill and clothing system and giving tools players needed to express themselves in game.
5. Thief, for its complex stealth-oriented game-play.
6. Darklands, for having completely non-linear quest lines and generated content, as well as different ways to solve problems.
7. UnReal World, for showing that realistic, hardcore, detail-heavy, survival-based role-playing is fun.
8. Skyrim, and other TES single-player games, for creating a world that feels huge and immersive.
9. Star Trek Online, mostly for its user generated content system.
10. Shadowrun, for its tactical combat, lore and story, and easy ability to create UGC.
11. Wizard's Crown, for its tactical combat.
12. Terraria, for its fun spelunking and sense of discovery.

 

1. Fishing a la UO - fishable treasure chests, sea monsters, SoS bottles, zone specific fish
2. Ability to drop items into the environment - also from UO, to be able to drop an item on the ground that others can pick up. (this may be a pipe dream, but it is something I genuinely miss about UO)
3. Dynamic Sea Voyage - Not as many ship battles as say Pirates of the Carribean Online obviously, but ship to ship battles, sea monsters, rogue waves, water spouts
4. Inns and rentable rooms/Camping (maybe even renting a room from larger player houses with specific permissions for their given room only) - could lead to "well rested" bonus when logging in or "safe log out"
5. Bulletin Board in town centers where players can post local events/crafting requests/quests also random NPC quests appear
6. Meta-map Random events - caravans wit merchants, random quests (i.e. brigand camps with NPCs to rescue, broken down cart on side of road), roaming rare mobs
7. Diversity of player vendors - ability to customize/dress vendors as bartenders, healers, armorsmiths so it is evident what they're selling without clicking every one. Ability to hire certain NPCs for player-run establishments - Dealers for card games (and a card game system), Hired guards to prevent theivery in "malls", etc.
8. Well-implemented rogue/thief/treasure hunting skills - Diguises, smoke/flash bombs, trap disarming, lockpicking, pick-pocketing.
9. The tools for guilds/PoTs to hold events - larger stadiums in cities that can be "rented" by guilds for a limited time like 24 real world hrs for battle royal events/chicken chases/bag ball/whatever, travelling NPC troupes of performers that can be rented by towns for festivals, central squares in PoTs where Town Owners can designate booths that can be rented by players for events or more generally for sales if desired
10. Farming/beekeeping - Public lots as well as ability to farm on player lots, bonus to harvests if bees kept in certain distance. Bonuses to crops grown in appropriate zones/biome specific crops - dates in the desert oasis, rice in swamps, coconuts along tropical beach lines
11. An integrated Bank - there I said it. If there's a universal maximum number of things the bank can hold, I should be able to universally withdraw them. How would one town know how many items I had stored in another town's vault? I can see if you're tearing down housing to make someone withdraw items from that specific town to prevent the ability to "move house" without moving your items, but gold and items put into the bank should be accessible anywhere. If we had open PvP I could see restricting it because people would strip down and go naked from place to place to prevent thefts, but we don't have that.
12. Properly implemented Bardic system - fully functional instruments, ability to play on contract for NPC establishments or receive tips from NPCs on the street. Pre-programmed songs to "learn" as well as the ability to free play your own tunes

 

I only have one for now. I consider this the most important:

1. Story.

Quests should have good, detailed stories that will keep players entertained for many hours. Hopefully each episode will have at least one main plot line that is very engaging. Quests like "Oh no, the kobolds stole my family heirloom! Can you retrieve it for me?" are simply not good enough.

 

Ok without having really looked at other people's list and in no particular order.. (and also not all for EP1)

1: Item breakage (not just degradation)
2: Book crafting. (Richard knows what I'm talking about )
3: RP/Social skills and tools. ie Dancing (not just emotes)
4: Event tools & props for player run events
5: Multi-denominational currency (Bronze, Silver & Gold coin)
6: Weighted currency
7: Well designed (and implemented) Justice & Bounty system.
8: Tournament games & contests.. ie Archery targets, Jousting (and all that implies)
9: Cultural Lore (holidays, common events & practices)
10: Lore based, regional rares / collectables
11: Regional economies
12: Balanced economies
13: All spells require reagents.

Games.. hmm
Not many games I can point to for specific ideas but influences I'm consciously aware of. (Also in no particular order)

1: Ultima 0-IX + Worlds and Underworlds
2: Any and every old Sierra game with "Quest" in the title.
3: TES: III-V
4: Majesty
5: Defender of the Crown
6: Galactic Imperium II
7: StarFlight
8: Fable I-III
9: Pirates!
10: The Sims I-III
11: Wing Commander Series
12: Civilization (Beginning with Empire Deluxe) through Civ IV & Alpha Centauri
13: Dark Age of Camelot
14: Stronghold Crusader

The list goes on but I think that's enough.