Interesting read: A new recipe for the roleplaying game formula

Guido Henkel, producer of the RPG Planescape Torment, writes what he thinks modern RPGs are lacking. There are really interesting thoughts.

For example: "But what if you don’t wish to fight an opponent? Why should you feel a need to attack every single breathing being in the wilderness, just because they appear unfriendly? What if you want to barter with a troll instead of gutting him with a spectacular finishing move? What if you’d rather charm your way out of a situation? What if you would prefer to sneak up to and steal any quest artifact without having to kill the enemy? Very few games will offer you any of these options unless they are specifically part of the desired solution path."

Or: "After completing your favorite CRPG and beating the ultimate bad guy, do you feel like you really made a difference? You closed rifts, killed evil warlocks, killed their dragons, but do you feel that you truly made that world a better place? That you have actually achieved anything of value? I usually do not. I feel unfulfilled because there is no social awareness of my achievements in the game universe... Real social awareness would recognize the player’s deeds and the world around him would react to it. People would talk about it, ask him about his experiences, tell other people about it in taverns, actually creating an in-game reputation for the character based on his actual achievements rather than sporadically, along predetermined lines."

You can read it here:
http://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/Guid...w_recipe_for_the_roleplaying_game_formula.php

 

I would like and tried to make a deck what can avoid combat and gather.
I thought this would be possible with Nightwalk and Animal Charm or Mesmerize etc. but it's not possible.
Some skills for Harvesters and Crafters who dont want to fight, but need to gather an avoid combat.
Or a build that you allow to protect you 100% and makes you invulnerable, but also unable to do anything until mobs loose aggro from you and go away. think of a spells that shape me into a Stone Statue until the Wolf let of me, bit a mage would maybe kill me with just one fireball and melee and Archers cannot hurt me, because i am stone. They sometime let me be, loose aggro and walk away.
Whats about Systems that give you Adv xp without having to fight?
Some other things to develop and dont only pve fight related things?
Like exploring or things like that.
Why i didnt get xp for publishing a Book.
Ofcourse because abusing it or just because it's hard to value such actions.

 

The Fallout games had that option with Charisma stat and the Speech skill.

 

Thief. Well the early ones - you could solve the game without any kill

 

Listening to the ESO podcast about upcoming Morrowind expansion, and they are removing the faction rivalry allowing you to be in all factions. This is because they do not want to listen to whiny rage quitters about missing content and having to reroll to experience the other side of the content. Even though this is the reason people still play Morrowind fifteen years later, is that every character can be different with a different path because the game has choice and consequences.

This youtuber calls this trend More is Less


You would think rerolling would be desirable for MMO players sticking around, but the game is tweaked for players that want it all on one week long run, thus the modern MMO expansion formula of coming back every quarter for the new week long story to play.

Nowadays the priest faction quest that had you walk from one end of the map and avoid interaction because you are a pilgrim seeking spiritual enlightment has no place in modern RPG.

That is why Fallout4 should not be considered an RPG, it is a mission based FPS with very few blockers.

 

While I absolutely LOVE if we had the options like this, I also know that the resources it would take to do such things would cost far to much for developers to make today. Things like this would take MASSIVE resources.

The reason why people like RG/MMO have had to go to crowd sourced projects like SOTA is the general break down of the gaming industry right now.

It now costs hundreds of millions to make a MMO/RPG and many many many years. Chalk it up to advances in computers. The need to make massive 3D environments and such. Heck, I still wish they were making games in the style of Say Ultima V example yet put 200 million into it and get these kinds of RPG features.

But the skinny is that this model is failing, companies are putting hundreds of millions in games and then they flop, so they just arnt doing it.

SOTA is actually the best you can hope for. You can only hope that this game comes out as adequate (with 11 mil) and in 5 years is great as long as they are constantly funded and can continue to work on things very much like this for 5+ years (with 100+ mil).

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arcanum:_Of_Steamworks_and_Magick_Obscura

http://arcanum.wikia.com/wiki/Endings