Game completely instanced?

Discussion in 'General Discussion' started by Lord Bannor, Jun 30, 2014.

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  1. Lord Bannor

    Lord Bannor Avatar

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    I have to agree with Noctiflora.
    This is why i am against it (same as Noctiflora).
    Lets say you want to get somewhere, and you get stopped at random times by encounters
    killing some spiders or pirates or something else.
    Fun the first 10 times maybe but the 500th time?
    I can tell you it wont be fun anymore, you just want to get to wherever you were going.

    Chris spoke about that one reason why they went for the instance option was that for a player to have to find their way over the same mountain would be boring after a couple of times.
    Random encounters would be even more boring.
    But perhaps they will incorporate it in another way then how i picture it.
     
  2. Borg

    Borg Avatar

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    I can see the budget and development advantages of the "scene caned" version of the world. But for the people
    that already tasted the freedom of an open world MMO this is just a step backwards.
    On the other side I can see the potential of this system and it has so many advantages.
    As they explore Unity capabilities I can imagine a changing world that gets improved over time.
    The game is at very early stage so lets see what this system can offer.
     
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  3. Bodhbh Dearg

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    What I proposed before (and someone in the Dev team, forgot who, actually said it was an interesting and possibly feasible idea) is that when you reach the edge of a hex, you just go in to the next one as seamlessly as possible (just assume the player double-clicked the adjacent hex), but if you wish to travel longer distance, you take out your map (double-click it) and move to the overland map view for navigating between towns. Of course, when you're traveling with your nose in a map, you can always bump in to someone unexpected (get sucked in to a hex)
    To me that seems a much more logical approach, which would require very little change (yes, I have a pretty good working idea of how much) compared to other options, while still allowing both styles of play. It would also eliminate the boring requirement to find the edge of your hex that has the "exit". Obviously you cannot use a map while in combat. You'd be chopped up (together with your map) if you did... ;)

    A bit more work, esp. in view of optimizing and server load, to improve immersion would be if after entering a hex, the persistent content of surrounding hexes could be preloaded in the background. When you enter from the map, that would be 6 hexes, but when going from 1 hex to the next, it's only 3 hexes...
    Biggest issue there would be that the surrounding hexes may change while you're traipsing around your current one, and the correct instance would need to be selected when you enter the next hex, or at least when you get really close to it's border, to allow for loading the instanced content...
     
  4. draykor darkale

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    Good call bodhbh, that would be quite interesting.
     
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  5. Tartness

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    I don't think it is going to be quite as bad as everyone might imagine. Have a look at the Galaxy map in Star Trek Online as an example in how this may work. I think it is pretty cool, and in these days and ages you have to have fast travel for the less "into it" types of gamers. Even though I may choose to walk from hex to hex without the map myself if it were an option.

    STO also has "random encounters" on their fast travel galaxy map, though you choose to engage them, they do not "suck" you in. I believe that is what will be the case as this stuff works its way out. In the past Lord British has always been about choice, so I can't see this being any different. Oh look, there is a Gypsy Wagon being attacked by Zombies, do I save them or do I watch them feed. Over there, a Crossroads town under siege by evil forces, do I help break it or do I watch as my own town prospers from the lack of trade competition.

    I don't see random encounters forcing you into an instance, I'm pretty sure the majority of gamers would not enjoy that. This one included.
     
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  6. Bodhbh Dearg

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    I've been sucked in to a hex a few times, but you always have the option to do a roundabout turn and hightail it outta there! ;)


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk.
     
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  7. Kabalyero Kidd

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    I didn't like it at first because I wanted an open space where I can fly my starship freely but it eventually grew on me... LOL
     
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  8. Gretchelle

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    I have to agree that the world map is currently a buzz killer. I can also see a fun side of it's involvement in the future to come. Keep in mind that most likely there might be other methods of travel such as the Moongates or Recall spells. Maybe they'll have a means where you can obtain flying mounts or air balloon travel. Drink an invisibilty potion. Flying Carpets. All of which could be used to avoid such land encounters, which I completely agree, would become a nuisance if your just trying to get from point A to point B for whatever reasons. Be positive and think outside the box. Imagination is a key quality in game designing. World events could also take place there, weather you wish to participate in them or not (hence, the flying dragon as mentioned above, burning down player paid villages and homes. Okay... that'll never happen, but it was a funny thought). You get the picture! At least let them try it out for the time being. Might be fun. I think they'll be able to squeeze in a lot more housing into the game as well. Makes for a much more larger community which most modern day MMO's lost their luster for. This is a sandbox MMO, not a level crunching one.
     
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  9. Lord Bannor

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    Using Star Trek online as a positive example hoe SotA will work...I don't know, I found it very repetitive and
    I felt boxed in and steered/controlled by the game.
    If anything it raises my doubts even more regarding this instanced world.
    But lets see what comes out on the other end before judging.
     
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  10. chunderbun

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    What if only major paths were the seamless hexes? Say you're moving between towns and don't want to run into random encounters in the lands to the sides of the paths: You would naturally stick to the road. Each hex would be roughly the same with different surroundings depending on the environment and locale in the overworld. Forts, outposts, camps, aforementioned wagons, etc. could be present in that hex randomly or in fixed places whilst being shown on the overworld map. This would save people travel times if they chose to run hex to hex instead of using the overworld map. It would also allow players to branch off of these roads into the wilderness. NPC storyline arches for both SP and MP modes could be placed on these roads at random or specified locations, offering quests and advice to any passer by. These roads could also be seamless with key points of interest scattered around the final lands.
     
  11. Lord Bannor

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    Would also work I guess if you stuck to the main roads in the overworld map to avoid encounters and if you wanted encounters you would choose a more dangerous path. Or just a setting in options, encounters, yes/no.

    I'm not hesitant regarding encounters in the overworld map, I'm hesitant towards random encounters because it will annoy you when it happens for the 1000th time and you just want to get to your destination.
    It will be a, ahhhhhh common boooooring, kind of feeling.

    If I want an encounter in the overworld map, have a dragon flying around at random times for example or a rare mob
    on the map so I actively move towards it, click it, and feel excited and happy that I was lucky enough for it too spawn.
     
  12. Time Lord

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    "The Current Price for Ever deeper Ultima"
    I think I heard Darkstarr talk about this in a vid.... if I'm not mistaken he was talking about how the server lines in UO were a bit jerky at first... (I remember that a server line could cause you to not be flagged from the previous server line)... then said that SotA's Instancing would get allot less time lagged than it currently is.

    I also believe that with the coming wave of cash that will come from public release #1 and later public releases, that SotA's tech will get much better all the way around. So, I'm not to worried, because it's in Alpha... and I do think we will have some things to deal with when it goes to public release #1 (Beta)... but as money hits SotA's technology and being able to develop more with that cash, I think once we are "use to it", then the added content will offset those bad hex feelings as well as just us "riding the new bicycle" end of growing accustomed to it.... I think it will remain an ever evolving project between the creator and the player, where "everything will always be getting better".

    It's a New Ultima and New Britannia, so there's bound to be many new things coming that will push us out of our old comfort zones and if it's not..."Then I'll Be Disappointed By It"...Ever Deeper Ultima is worth a bit of discomfort ;)
    ~Time Lord~:rolleyes:
     
  13. smack

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    In the overland map thread, Chris made a great post on scene to scene travel, encounters, etc.
     
  14. majoria70

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    Yes I also wanted to just travel the world not a map and explore but I am hoping the devs will work it out and surprise us. This was the very first rendition of the new map nothing much was on it from what Chris said. He also stated that they will try to stitch some hexes together. I'm sure it will work out to have a much different feel. We'll see much more I hope in R8 to give feed back on ;)
     
  15. Mitara

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    This is really a shame. It is probably becuase of the limitations of the standard Unity engine, but it really was one of the greatest things about UO, the one-world-wonder.

    To think that the now 16 year old UO engine will be more advanced than the totally new SotA :)
     
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  16. Sir Seir

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    Another KS game that I've backed is using Unity and doing a version of smart scene loading in the background (to keep the world seemless and without load screens). The world is broken up much like SotA; maybe this is something we could slate for a later episode. This is not without it's own set of issues and I'm not sure how well it would work in a full, multi-player game.

    Not sure how much (if any) tuning has been done on the scene loading...
     
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  17. Bodhbh Dearg

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    But UO is NOT a one-world-wonder! It is a many-many-worlds patchwork...
    I'm sorry Mitara, but you apparently don't understand the rationale... :eek: Dividing the world in to hexes allows for instancing only where/when needed, allowing a single persistent world that is the same for everyone (if you place and decorate a house, everyone will see the same decorated house!).
    This is much more advanced than they did in UO. If they did it UO style, they'd need 'shards' again! That is what it is all about, preventing the need for shards by instancing...

    Could they have done some things better? Yeah, absolutely, but to say the UO engine is more advanced than SotA is a completely incorrect assessment... :)
    I don't find the overland map disturbing, but I too would like to possibility to go from hex to hex... (See my earlier proposal here)
    Pretty much covered that in my earlier post... ;)
     
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  18. Wagram

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    Well the max you will see is about 100 max and they will be your friends, guildmates or someone you may have already met so shards would not be that big a deal especially if in a completely different time zone.
    Is the desired max for a PvP guild about 50 otherwise in a siege you may only see your team and none of the opposing Guild.
     
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  19. Horton Irongate

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    I think we should keep an open mind about the map. Although I prefer the open 'sandbox' method of running non-stop around the world from one section to the next, this would must make it like all the other MMOs... Its time to reserve judgement for a bit longer.
     
  20. abovenyquist

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    I am inclined to agree with you -- but we are vastly outnumbered.
     
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