I think the problem of story is that it's a "personal" story. I don't like how SWTOR and GW2 handle this, and now apperantly TESO. The idea behind them is that the storyline focuses on you, the player, and is meant to make the player feel unique and liek special snowflake.
Problem is, mmorpg aren't the place for that. Oh the masses will eat it up btw, because they do want SP in mmo's, but just think about:
Player A- "Dude, i just helped a legendary warrior defeat is nemesis and he gave his awesome sword. I even called me the greatest warrior he'd ever seen!"
Player B- "Oh yeah. I did that with my alt. If you choose the kill him, the path option is way cooler"
Now, this kind of stuff isn't new in mmo's, but what happens here is that cutscenes and stories and content is made just for this part. Also, i HATE my character being voiced.
TSW isn't all that much better. Atleast you're not the chosen one, but unfortunatly, the main story still takes center stage, which creates conflict with the mmo part (no TSW isn't an SP).
I think the best way to have story would be to treat it has lore. For example, the 6 player races all have an overall story arc that you can see by playing it. There's cutscenes, it's instanced, etc, however, your not the here trying to save anyone or anything like that. Lore is past. Story is present.
Simply make story secondary, don't make the player important and try to find a way to mix past and current events together without having to put a complete single playe in there. That my opinion anyway.
"Oh no, those terabibledibles are gowing in too much size, if we dont remove some of them their etheral force will consume the land causing the terabibledibles to be too numerous to others and cause great harm to the serenity of our spirit"
If the above does not effect you in any way...Tera may be the game for you. Personally...why would I care about doing the quest above? To get exp? Joy...
Even if all you care about is endgame...what are you doing that endgame for? Just because its an instance? What are you doing in the instance? Why are you doing it?
A game with no story is a hollow shallow thing with no actual meaning....just like a game with a great story with no actual depth to the rest of the game is a shallow thing...
I hope we shall crush...in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country." ~Thomes Jefferson
A lot of MMORPG's thrive off of impossible worlds. The real life comparison is a bad one for a set of reasons:
- real life doesn't have dragons, spaceships, people doing cleave attacks with swords, or whatever. Developers have to design all that. That's not a "tour guide" but a lot of people seem to confuse that with a tour guide;
- real life is very slow where you have to grow up, work 8 hours a day, study, whatever. It's the task of games to mitigate things like that, while a lot of games have themselves became a job that takes too much time;
- real life typically has a wide array of consequences. That's why people are not ganking each other left and right IRL, because police will get them.
Rofl? Has it ever crossed your mind that some people don't "gank" each other in real life because they feel it is ethically wrong to do regardless of whether or not they can get away with it?
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what
it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience
because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in
the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you
playing an MMORPG?"
Really sherlock? Really? I have only been around rpgs since 1974. I will defer to your "obvious genius".
Wow you were there at the very BEGINING!
I mean, to be one of the first 1000 people to ever play a RPG is amazing...you are AMAZING. Wait, are you the ghost of Gary Gygax!!!
Yeah...rethink your attempt to lay claim to credibility...or even the need for it. An opinion has weight, doesnt matter who is giving it but if you feel you MUST lend credit to what you are saying...think first.
D&D didnt even sell 10,000 copies before TSR was created 3 years after its first release.
And yes, D&D was the FIRST commercial RPG...and no, playing cowboys and indians does not count as a RPG.
I hope we shall crush...in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country." ~Thomes Jefferson
Player A :" Ok, I will Wait for it to pop and then I kill it and I will Save all the Lands"
Player B:" I just Done that"
If this kind of thing realy bothers you, rpgs aren't for you.
You do know that not all RPGs are MMORPGs?
Really sherlock? Really? I have only been around rpgs since 1974. I will defer to your "obvious genius".
Yet, your comment "If this kind of things really bothers you, RPGs aren't for you" makes sense if you refer current MMORPGs but not if you refer to RPGs as a genre. There are plenty of RPGs where the situation described with Player A & B is avoided.
Player A :" Ok, I will Wait for it to pop and then I kill it and I will Save all the Lands"
Player B:" I just Done that"
I think few cares about this type of logical when playing a game.
People don't mind it in Diablo 3. People don't mind it in WOW. People don't mind it in LOTRO. People don't mind it in GW.
For me as a player, I *do* mind when that heavily structured gameplay penalizes me for not following a very specific path. Where you don't get much XPs / rewards for not travelling and adventuring down a predetermined path. Because I chose to adventure in Area C instead of Area B, I don't follow that dog leash that we call Themepark Questing, and so I will miss out on bigtime XPs and rewards.
I do miss it in MMORPGs when they all pretty much allowed alot of viable ways to progress your character. Nowadays they tug you around by your ear or nose, forcing you down a specified direction. If you don't follow the carrots laid down already, then you will heavily lose out.
It's why I never cared much for big stories in an MMORPG, I was more interested in forging my own way. In the earlier days of the genre, the games used to allow alot more ways of playing, and this in a big way allowed a player to go his own unique direction and still not be kicked in the nuts for progress.
"I have only two out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I will hold." (First Lieutenant Clifton B. Cates, US Marine Corps, Soissons, 19 July 1918)
Rofl? Has it ever crossed your mind that some people don't "gank" each other in real life because they feel it is ethically wrong to do regardless of whether or not they can get away with it?
Like, what, .001% of the population?
Most people aren't nice. Law keeps them in check. MMORPG's prove that. Open up any sandbox MMO and see how many nice people in there. Read the various stories of EVE betrayals. And don't give me "we're roleplaying bad guys", you're not, you're just a fucking griefer.
Rofl? Has it ever crossed your mind that some people don't "gank" each other in real life because they feel it is ethically wrong to do regardless of whether or not they can get away with it?
Like, what, .001% of the population?
Most people aren't nice. Law keeps them in check. MMORPG's prove that. Open up any sandbox MMO and see how many nice people in there. Read the various stories of EVE betrayals. And don't give me "we're roleplaying bad guys", you're not, you're just a fucking griefer.
That's a pretty cynical view of your fellow human beings.
It's not really true either, most people are actually very nice, kind, friendly, well adjusted people who wouldn't have the capacity to kill another person.
Don't confuse the ~20% of the population who are sociopathic/psychopathic with the other ~80% who aren't.
That's a pretty cynical view of your fellow human beings.
It's not really true either, most people are actually very nice, kind, friendly, well adjusted people who wouldn't have the capacity to kill another person.
Don't confuse the ~20% of the population who are sociopathic/psychopathic with the other ~80% who aren't.
I don't see what's being nice, friendly, or especially well-adjusted has to do with being a good person.
If your definition of a good person is one who's not actively killing someone, who's being polite, etc., then, yes, most people will look nice to you.
If 99% of players in a video game are not trustworthy, and the 1% is your personal friends, that tells you something about the human race.
Player A :" Ok, I will Wait for it to pop and then I kill it and I will Save all the Lands"
Player B:" I just Done that"
If this kind of thing realy bothers you, rpgs aren't for you.
You do know that not all RPGs are MMORPGs?
Really sherlock? Really? I have only been around rpgs since 1974. I will defer to your "obvious genius".
Yet, your comment "If this kind of things really bothers you, RPGs aren't for you" makes sense if you refer current MMORPGs but not if you refer to RPGs as a genre. There are plenty of RPGs where the situation described with Player A & B is avoided.
*If you are a grammar Nazy don't read*
Btw, I played so many rpg that in the most of them resolves around a guy(usuallly from zero to hero) that becomes the savior/chosen One. There are exception and some good ones, like Planescape:Torment. But when it comes to story in mmorpg, almost all recent ones, resolves around The player as the Chosen One but for me is hard to fell total immersion in mmo story because there's always some guy waiting for a pop or "World First" player.
I played AO for years and I was a social player because there was no epic quest/story and I had no reason to fell like the ONE, but After AO I played several MMO and it seems there the more the mmorpg focus on story the more Solo game it becomes(you can Level from 1-50 in swtor without the need to team). The story may seem a good thing but it kills MM of MMORPG.
"you are like the world revenge on sarcasm, you know that?"
Player A :" Ok, I will Wait for it to pop and then I kill it and I will Save all the Lands"
Player B:" I just Done that"
If this kind of thing realy bothers you, rpgs aren't for you.
You do know that not all RPGs are MMORPGs?
Really sherlock? Really? I have only been around rpgs since 1974. I will defer to your "obvious genius".
Yet, your comment "If this kind of things really bothers you, RPGs aren't for you" makes sense if you refer current MMORPGs but not if you refer to RPGs as a genre. There are plenty of RPGs where the situation described with Player A & B is avoided.
*If you are a grammar Nazy don't read*
Btw, I played so many rpg that in the most of them resolves around a guy(usuallly from zero to hero) that becomes the savior/chosen One. There are exception and some good ones, like Planescape:Torment. But when it comes to story in mmorpg, almost all recent ones, resolves around The player as the Chosen One but for me is hard to fell total immersion in mmo story because there's always some guy waiting for a pop or "World First" player.
I played AO for years and I was a social player because there was no epic quest/story and I had no reason to fell like the ONE, but After AO I played several MMO and it seems there the more the mmorpg focus on story the more Solo game it becomes(you can Level from 1-50 in swtor without the need to team). The story may seem a good thing but it kills MM of MMORPG.
Bet you loved in in TSW where that NPC specifically tells you that "you are not the chosen one" and that theres "many just like you"
Found that to be a great thing.
Cant stand it when im the damn chosen one to save the world...or ...the one the prophicies tell of...ect...its like great...me and every damn player is the chosen one....the whole world is flooded with damn chosen ones...in fact theres more chosen ones in this world than there are people who are just normal people...
Specifically story is not role-playing, nor is it the mechanical aspect of placing points into attributes. Not to say that story is (or should be) absent from role-playing, but it is not (nor should be) the all-encompassing element that modern game designers seem to think it is. Role-Playing encompasses the acts and decisions that the player takes in order to make their character their own –the constructing their characters into a unique manifestation of their will. Role-playing a character in an RPG is no different from the processes we all went through as children playing with action figures. We created personas and personalities, histories and previous adventures which defined those characters’ natures. We invented adventures on the fly for them to participate in, with specific outcomes. Completing a static set of quests towards fufillment of a narrative, is not role-playing, it's a book piecemeal.
Story is defined as, “A usually fictional prose or verse narrative intended to interest or amuse the hearer or reader [notice it doesn't mention "player"].” The key word used in this definition is narrative, which is defined as, “Consisting of or characterized by the telling of a story.” The point here is that story is narrative, or narration, being that a story in of itself involves no interactivity in its experience. You, the reader or the participator are a passive participant, and therefore do not have any influence in the events that you are reading, seeing, or are otherwise witnessing. This is typical of film and literature, but has no place in an MMO(RPG). In fact they contradict each other heavily.
Cant stand it when im the damn chosen one to save the world...or ...the one the prophicies tell of...ect...its like great...me and every damn player is the chosen one....the whole world is flooded with damn chosen ones...in fact theres more chosen ones in this world than there are people who are just normal people...
Hmm ... we *are* normal people.
The point of a video GAME is to create the illusion that you are special. It is not very fun to play a normal blacksmith and make mediocre steel swords all day.
Cant stand it when im the damn chosen one to save the world...or ...the one the prophicies tell of...ect...its like great...me and every damn player is the chosen one....the whole world is flooded with damn chosen ones...in fact theres more chosen ones in this world than there are people who are just normal people...
Hmm ... we *are* normal people.
The point of a video GAME is to create the illusion that you are special. It is not very fun to play a normal blacksmith and make mediocre steel swords all day.
I find it's very satisfied when I know that the guild I supply my steel swords to managed to kill all the bandit grifters who keep killing low level players from the area.
Cant stand it when im the damn chosen one to save the world...or ...the one the prophicies tell of...ect...its like great...me and every damn player is the chosen one....the whole world is flooded with damn chosen ones...in fact theres more chosen ones in this world than there are people who are just normal people...
Hmm ... we *are* normal people.
The point of a video GAME is to create the illusion that you are special. It is not very fun to play a normal blacksmith and make mediocre steel swords all day.
Well for some people it is. When it comes to paying for MMORPGs, luckily they are a small minority, and their views are pushed to the side in AAA titles. Niche audiences like these are best served by indy companies.
As far as OP....I prefer story in my games. The more it engages me, the more apt I am to enjoy myself.
Asking Devs to make AAA sandbox titles is like trying to get fine dining on a McDonalds dollar menu budget.
Ideally, what you want in an MMO world is "news", not "story".
Perfect... I want the devs to give me the material to make "news" , not give me a prescripted "story" and tell me to go relive it with 1 million others.. I want my characters to make their own bio, not become one that is already written for me in advance..
Specifically story is not role-playing, nor is it the mechanical aspect of placing points into attributes. Not to say that story is (or should be) absent from role-playing, but it is not (nor should be) the all-encompassing element that modern game designers seem to think it is. Role-Playing encompasses the acts and decisions that the player takes in order to make their character their own –the constructing their characters into a unique manifestation of their will. Role-playing a character in an RPG is no different from the processes we all went through as children playing with action figures. We created personas and personalities, histories and previous adventures which defined those characters’ natures. We invented adventures on the fly for them to participate in, with specific outcomes. Completing a static set of quests towards fufillment of a narrative, is not role-playing, it's a book piecemeal.
Story is defined as, “A usually fictional prose or verse narrative intended to interest or amuse the hearer or reader [notice it doesn't mention "player"].” The key word used in this definition is narrative, which is defined as, “Consisting of or characterized by the telling of a story.” The point here is that story is narrative, or narration, being that a story in of itself involves no interactivity in its experience. You, the reader or the participator are a passive participant, and therefore do not have any influence in the events that you are reading, seeing, or are otherwise witnessing. This is typical of film and literature, but has no place in an MMO(RPG). In fact they contradict each other heavily.
Rofl? Has it ever crossed your mind that some people don't "gank" each other in real life because they feel it is ethically wrong to do regardless of whether or not they can get away with it?
Like, what, .001% of the population?
Most people aren't nice. Law keeps them in check. MMORPG's prove that. Open up any sandbox MMO and see how many nice people in there. Read the various stories of EVE betrayals. And don't give me "we're roleplaying bad guys", you're not, you're just a fucking griefer.
Bwalolololol. Laws keep them in check?? "Laws" don't actually exist, they are a social construct. A real world "law" is not comparable to an artificial game engine constraint that simply makes it impossible to do something.
someone mentioned early on that when you are developing a game, the contents that you create are made to be experienced by everyone, not just a select few. So having a story that changes over time, will infact be a bad developer decision.
That is why GW2's Dynamic events repeats, and the same with Rift's Rifts and weekly events that has to be weekly or monthly to allow all the players a chance to experience it.
But My main question is, is this a deal breaker, having an Event that only lasts a week or two week and thats it. Meaning all those that comes in afterwards or those that are busy, out on business trip will never experience.
For example: A war between factions, this event is a battle to take over a city, Faction A event is to push the NPC away from the city and hold the castle from constant onslaugh from Faction B and C, once the city is held and the event is over. New NPC, quests, dungeons are opened. If faction B and C managed to overthrew Faction A, they get a major bonus buff for a week.
If you weren't in that battle, you will not experience it again. sure another battle can happen again but its another village, different rules, different situations different layouts and different objectives. Will you feel left out and not in sync with the gaming world??
Or will this be alright with you as a gamer?
Life is a Maze, so make sure you bring your GPS incase you get lost in it.
someone mentioned early on that when you are developing a game, the contents that you create are made to be experienced by everyone, not just a select few. So having a story that changes over time, will infact be a bad developer decision.
That is why GW2's Dynamic events repeats, and the same with Rift's Rifts and weekly events that has to be weekly or monthly to allow all the players a chance to experience it.
But My main question is, is this a deal breaker, having an Event that only lasts a week or two week and thats it. Meaning all those that comes in afterwards or those that are busy, out on business trip will never experience.
For example: A war between factions, this event is a battle to take over a city, Faction A event is to push the NPC away from the city and hold the castle from constant onslaugh from Faction B and C, once the city is held and the event is over. New NPC, quests, dungeons are opened. If faction B and C managed to overthrew Faction A, they get a major bonus buff for a week.
If you weren't in that battle, you will not experience it again. sure another battle can happen again but its another village, different rules, different situations different layouts and different objectives. Will you feel left out and not in sync with the gaming world??
Or will this be alright with you as a gamer?
I would be perfectly fine with it but I suspect a ton would not. They wouldn't want to miss out on some content. From my point of view, having temporary or transitional content would be a way to keep some customers around as they don't want to miss out on a chance at it.
To a larger extent, look at swg vs wow. On wow, each server is the same. On swg, no two servers were the same. People built small communities. I think that should be something companies should think about. Not the housing part, but how servers can be different based on players actions or lack thereof.
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what
it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience
because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in
the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you
playing an MMORPG?"
Story in MMORPGs kind of reminds me of playing D&D 2nd edition back in the day. Often a GM would come up with this great campaign but the players wouldn't really want to do what the DM wants. They have the freedom of choice to take up a quest or ignore it and go do something else. A bad DM would try to force the players into the campaign while a good DM would adapt things on the fly for what the players actually wanted to do. The problem with these themepark mmorpgs is that they are bad DMs. Their is one story and nothing you will do will change it. You have no real freedom and making snarky comments on a dialogue wheel does not = choice.
A well made sandbox mmorpg is a good DM. They will let players make their own story and give them the tools for it. I've only ever played one well made sandbox and that is EVE. The world is beautiful and the freedom is pretty extensive. Often we see articles about the happenings in the EVE universe and even non EVE players enjoy reading them.
Are you a Pavlovian Fish Biscuit Addict? Get Help Now! I will play no more MMORPGs until somethign good comes out!
Comments
I think the problem of story is that it's a "personal" story. I don't like how SWTOR and GW2 handle this, and now apperantly TESO. The idea behind them is that the storyline focuses on you, the player, and is meant to make the player feel unique and liek special snowflake.
Problem is, mmorpg aren't the place for that. Oh the masses will eat it up btw, because they do want SP in mmo's, but just think about:
Player A- "Dude, i just helped a legendary warrior defeat is nemesis and he gave his awesome sword. I even called me the greatest warrior he'd ever seen!"
Player B- "Oh yeah. I did that with my alt. If you choose the kill him, the path option is way cooler"
Now, this kind of stuff isn't new in mmo's, but what happens here is that cutscenes and stories and content is made just for this part. Also, i HATE my character being voiced.
TSW isn't all that much better. Atleast you're not the chosen one, but unfortunatly, the main story still takes center stage, which creates conflict with the mmo part (no TSW isn't an SP).
I think the best way to have story would be to treat it has lore. For example, the 6 player races all have an overall story arc that you can see by playing it. There's cutscenes, it's instanced, etc, however, your not the here trying to save anyone or anything like that. Lore is past. Story is present.
Simply make story secondary, don't make the player important and try to find a way to mix past and current events together without having to put a complete single playe in there. That my opinion anyway.
BTW, i don't hate any of the meantioned games.
"Oh no, those terabibledibles are gowing in too much size, if we dont remove some of them their etheral force will consume the land causing the terabibledibles to be too numerous to others and cause great harm to the serenity of our spirit"
If the above does not effect you in any way...Tera may be the game for you. Personally...why would I care about doing the quest above? To get exp? Joy...
Even if all you care about is endgame...what are you doing that endgame for? Just because its an instance? What are you doing in the instance? Why are you doing it?
A game with no story is a hollow shallow thing with no actual meaning....just like a game with a great story with no actual depth to the rest of the game is a shallow thing...
I hope we shall crush...in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country." ~Thomes Jefferson
Rofl? Has it ever crossed your mind that some people don't "gank" each other in real life because they feel it is ethically wrong to do regardless of whether or not they can get away with it?
You do know that not all RPGs are MMORPGs?
Really sherlock? Really? I have only been around rpgs since 1974. I will defer to your "obvious genius".
Epic Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAigCvelkhQ&list=PLo9FRw1AkDuQLEz7Gvvaz3ideB2NpFtT1
https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos?&sort=-downloads&page=1
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you playing an MMORPG?"
Wow you were there at the very BEGINING!
I mean, to be one of the first 1000 people to ever play a RPG is amazing...you are AMAZING. Wait, are you the ghost of Gary Gygax!!!
Yeah...rethink your attempt to lay claim to credibility...or even the need for it. An opinion has weight, doesnt matter who is giving it but if you feel you MUST lend credit to what you are saying...think first.
D&D didnt even sell 10,000 copies before TSR was created 3 years after its first release.
And yes, D&D was the FIRST commercial RPG...and no, playing cowboys and indians does not count as a RPG.
I hope we shall crush...in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country." ~Thomes Jefferson
Yet, your comment "If this kind of things really bothers you, RPGs aren't for you" makes sense if you refer current MMORPGs but not if you refer to RPGs as a genre. There are plenty of RPGs where the situation described with Player A & B is avoided.
For me as a player, I *do* mind when that heavily structured gameplay penalizes me for not following a very specific path. Where you don't get much XPs / rewards for not travelling and adventuring down a predetermined path. Because I chose to adventure in Area C instead of Area B, I don't follow that dog leash that we call Themepark Questing, and so I will miss out on bigtime XPs and rewards.
I do miss it in MMORPGs when they all pretty much allowed alot of viable ways to progress your character. Nowadays they tug you around by your ear or nose, forcing you down a specified direction. If you don't follow the carrots laid down already, then you will heavily lose out.
It's why I never cared much for big stories in an MMORPG, I was more interested in forging my own way. In the earlier days of the genre, the games used to allow alot more ways of playing, and this in a big way allowed a player to go his own unique direction and still not be kicked in the nuts for progress.
"I have only two out of my company and 20 out of some other company. We need support, but it is almost suicide to try to get it here as we are swept by machine gun fire and a constant barrage is on us. I have no one on my left and only a few on my right. I will hold." (First Lieutenant Clifton B. Cates, US Marine Corps, Soissons, 19 July 1918)
SOME story is ok.
It should not be MAIN feature of a mmorpg.
Just a background.
Making story-based mmorpg will make it fail.
Well unless you can extend story by few hours every 3 days that it lol
Like, what, .001% of the population?
Most people aren't nice. Law keeps them in check. MMORPG's prove that. Open up any sandbox MMO and see how many nice people in there. Read the various stories of EVE betrayals. And don't give me "we're roleplaying bad guys", you're not, you're just a fucking griefer.
That's a pretty cynical view of your fellow human beings.
It's not really true either, most people are actually very nice, kind, friendly, well adjusted people who wouldn't have the capacity to kill another person.
Don't confuse the ~20% of the population who are sociopathic/psychopathic with the other ~80% who aren't.
I don't see what's being nice, friendly, or especially well-adjusted has to do with being a good person.
If your definition of a good person is one who's not actively killing someone, who's being polite, etc., then, yes, most people will look nice to you.
If 99% of players in a video game are not trustworthy, and the 1% is your personal friends, that tells you something about the human race.
*If you are a grammar Nazy don't read*
Btw, I played so many rpg that in the most of them resolves around a guy(usuallly from zero to hero) that becomes the savior/chosen One. There are exception and some good ones, like Planescape:Torment. But when it comes to story in mmorpg, almost all recent ones, resolves around The player as the Chosen One but for me is hard to fell total immersion in mmo story because there's always some guy waiting for a pop or "World First" player.
I played AO for years and I was a social player because there was no epic quest/story and I had no reason to fell like the ONE, but After AO I played several MMO and it seems there the more the mmorpg focus on story the more Solo game it becomes(you can Level from 1-50 in swtor without the need to team). The story may seem a good thing but it kills MM of MMORPG.
"you are like the world revenge on sarcasm, you know that?"
One of those great lines from The Secret World
Bet you loved in in TSW where that NPC specifically tells you that "you are not the chosen one" and that theres "many just like you"
Found that to be a great thing.
Cant stand it when im the damn chosen one to save the world...or ...the one the prophicies tell of...ect...its like great...me and every damn player is the chosen one....the whole world is flooded with damn chosen ones...in fact theres more chosen ones in this world than there are people who are just normal people...
I loved it.
"you are like the world revenge on sarcasm, you know that?"
One of those great lines from The Secret World
Story is defined as, “A usually fictional prose or verse narrative intended to interest or amuse the hearer or reader [notice it doesn't mention "player"].” The key word used in this definition is narrative, which is defined as, “Consisting of or characterized by the telling of a story.” The point here is that story is narrative, or narration, being that a story in of itself involves no interactivity in its experience. You, the reader or the participator are a passive participant, and therefore do not have any influence in the events that you are reading, seeing, or are otherwise witnessing. This is typical of film and literature, but has no place in an MMO(RPG). In fact they contradict each other heavily.
Hmm ... we *are* normal people.
The point of a video GAME is to create the illusion that you are special. It is not very fun to play a normal blacksmith and make mediocre steel swords all day.
I find it's very satisfied when I know that the guild I supply my steel swords to managed to kill all the bandit grifters who keep killing low level players from the area.
Well for some people it is. When it comes to paying for MMORPGs, luckily they are a small minority, and their views are pushed to the side in AAA titles. Niche audiences like these are best served by indy companies.
As far as OP....I prefer story in my games. The more it engages me, the more apt I am to enjoy myself.
Asking Devs to make AAA sandbox titles is like trying to get fine dining on a McDonalds dollar menu budget.
Perfect... I want the devs to give me the material to make "news" , not give me a prescripted "story" and tell me to go relive it with 1 million others.. I want my characters to make their own bio, not become one that is already written for me in advance..
Yeah, pretty much agree on that one.
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Bwalolololol. Laws keep them in check?? "Laws" don't actually exist, they are a social construct. A real world "law" is not comparable to an artificial game engine constraint that simply makes it impossible to do something.
someone mentioned early on that when you are developing a game, the contents that you create are made to be experienced by everyone, not just a select few. So having a story that changes over time, will infact be a bad developer decision.
That is why GW2's Dynamic events repeats, and the same with Rift's Rifts and weekly events that has to be weekly or monthly to allow all the players a chance to experience it.
But My main question is, is this a deal breaker, having an Event that only lasts a week or two week and thats it. Meaning all those that comes in afterwards or those that are busy, out on business trip will never experience.
For example: A war between factions, this event is a battle to take over a city, Faction A event is to push the NPC away from the city and hold the castle from constant onslaugh from Faction B and C, once the city is held and the event is over. New NPC, quests, dungeons are opened. If faction B and C managed to overthrew Faction A, they get a major bonus buff for a week.
If you weren't in that battle, you will not experience it again. sure another battle can happen again but its another village, different rules, different situations different layouts and different objectives. Will you feel left out and not in sync with the gaming world??
Or will this be alright with you as a gamer?
Life is a Maze, so make sure you bring your GPS incase you get lost in it.
I would be perfectly fine with it but I suspect a ton would not. They wouldn't want to miss out on some content. From my point of view, having temporary or transitional content would be a way to keep some customers around as they don't want to miss out on a chance at it.
To a larger extent, look at swg vs wow. On wow, each server is the same. On swg, no two servers were the same. People built small communities. I think that should be something companies should think about. Not the housing part, but how servers can be different based on players actions or lack thereof.
Epic Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAigCvelkhQ&list=PLo9FRw1AkDuQLEz7Gvvaz3ideB2NpFtT1
https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos?&sort=-downloads&page=1
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you playing an MMORPG?"
Story in MMORPGs kind of reminds me of playing D&D 2nd edition back in the day. Often a GM would come up with this great campaign but the players wouldn't really want to do what the DM wants. They have the freedom of choice to take up a quest or ignore it and go do something else. A bad DM would try to force the players into the campaign while a good DM would adapt things on the fly for what the players actually wanted to do. The problem with these themepark mmorpgs is that they are bad DMs. Their is one story and nothing you will do will change it. You have no real freedom and making snarky comments on a dialogue wheel does not = choice.
A well made sandbox mmorpg is a good DM. They will let players make their own story and give them the tools for it. I've only ever played one well made sandbox and that is EVE. The world is beautiful and the freedom is pretty extensive. Often we see articles about the happenings in the EVE universe and even non EVE players enjoy reading them.
Are you a Pavlovian Fish Biscuit Addict? Get Help Now!
I will play no more MMORPGs until somethign good comes out!