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Wasn't this game originally advertised as a sandbox/sandpark? Seems total themepark

MargulisMargulis Member CommonPosts: 1,614
in WildStar
I could have sworn there was quite a bit of talk at one point about how this game is supposed to have a lot of sandbox qualities to it.  Where?  Everything announced so far is all generic themepark fare really: dual faction, holy trinity combat, 40 man raids, same questing as ever made even more generic with the "130 characters or less quest text", instanced housing, level cap 50, instanced dungeons and pvp battlegrounds, etc.  yes the path system sounds interesting but it kind of just sounds like a small spin on adventuring like rift's rifts.  And the fact that you can only choose 1 path and experience the content of that one path on your character narrows the gameplay options even further.  Maybe I've missed some info somewhere?  How is this game sandboxy in any way?

Comments

  • IsawaIsawa Member UncommonPosts: 1,051

    Don't think enough information is out on the game to say much on the sandbox features/qualities. I heard people saying there is all sorts of information we don't know yet (from testers who know I guess).

    Maybe the path route of Settler (almost no information released on) and the seamless world are hints at such features. Different crafting too, no real information there either.

    Hopefully in 2 weeks time we'll have a bunch more to look over information wise.

  • DihoruDihoru Member Posts: 2,731
    At best it is an open world game, it is in no way a sandbox as it is too restrictive and a sandpark like archeage is also pretty far by what I heard.

    image
  • LoktofeitLoktofeit Member RarePosts: 14,247

    From the devs:

    Here is a quick summary of elements we combine to hunt down the "sweet spot" between sandbox and directed gaming:

    Sandbox gameplay:
    • Layered content mechanics: The more layers that interact together, the more opportunity for you to combine them. Find a minefield that's part of a found quest in the world, and lead nearby monsters into it to get extra damage.
    • Dynamic elements: The more of these that interact well with creatures and other content, the more you as a player get to look for opportunities to combine things like creature encounters and environmental challenges cleverly. Randomly find an ancient Eldan rocket-launching weapon and it can come with a mission to blow up creatures as fast as possible...and you can knock monsters back (say, into the nearest minefield).
    • Ecology layer: Creature AI can add a lot of interesting outcomes. Learn that beasts get hungry or thirsty and wander off, and a tough pack of mobs can be broken up to be made easier.
    Directed gameplay:
    • Strong story quest line: Each area has a strong storyline quest which takes you through the zone; often near other interesting content to help raise the odds you'll bump into the "off the rails content" but doesn't force you there.
    • Clear quest and challenge goals: Find that Eldan rocket launcher and get a timed quest to kill as much as you can as fast as you can. So you have a goal, but there's enough variability in HOW you pull it off that you're not held by the hand. Some areas might make the quest really easy or really hard to pull off, but you at least know what you have to do clearly to earn the rewards.
     

    There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
    "Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre

  • zevni78zevni78 Member UncommonPosts: 1,146
    Carbine are being very careful to reveal things in stages, there is a lot they havn't given us yet, compared to most mmo hype build up where we would know pretty much everything by now. They havn't even give us screenshots of the sandbox elements such as war-plots and the builder path yet. However I do think this will mostly feel like a themepark, but it should lack some of the more annoying elements that WoW now typifies, and if Carbine are smart the sandbox elements will be enough to stave of the content locust problem, if it allows players to generate enough content.
  • DihoruDihoru Member Posts: 2,731
    Originally posted by Loktofeit

    From the devs:

    Here is a quick summary of elements we combine to hunt down the "sweet spot" between sandbox and directed gaming:

    Sandbox gameplay:
    • Layered content mechanics: The more layers that interact together, the more opportunity for you to combine them. Find a minefield that's part of a found quest in the world, and lead nearby monsters into it to get extra damage.
    • Dynamic elements: The more of these that interact well with creatures and other content, the more you as a player get to look for opportunities to combine things like creature encounters and environmental challenges cleverly. Randomly find an ancient Eldan rocket-launching weapon and it can come with a mission to blow up creatures as fast as possible...and you can knock monsters back (say, into the nearest minefield).
    • Ecology layer: Creature AI can add a lot of interesting outcomes. Learn that beasts get hungry or thirsty and wander off, and a tough pack of mobs can be broken up to be made easier.
    Directed gameplay:
    • Strong story quest line: Each area has a strong storyline quest which takes you through the zone; often near other interesting content to help raise the odds you'll bump into the "off the rails content" but doesn't force you there.
    • Clear quest and challenge goals: Find that Eldan rocket launcher and get a timed quest to kill as much as you can as fast as you can. So you have a goal, but there's enough variability in HOW you pull it off that you're not held by the hand. Some areas might make the quest really easy or really hard to pull off, but you at least know what you have to do clearly to earn the rewards.
     

    o.O Some of the sandbox elements are themepark elements actually, dynamic events are in Guild Wars 2, Layered content is in World of Warcraft and th Ecology side sounds interesting and familiar to anyone who knew Ultima Online's beta (they had a similar idea) but it's likely not gonna see a full launch or even launch as a feature because it's gonna have Ultima Online's issue: Players decimate the ecology faster than it can regenerate so you'll never get to see the creatures interact or even get hungry for that matter.

    Direct gamplay is straight themepark, no need to go there.

    image
  • LoktofeitLoktofeit Member RarePosts: 14,247
    Originally posted by Dihoru
    Originally posted by Loktofeit

    From the devs:

    Here is a quick summary of elements we combine to hunt down the "sweet spot" between sandbox and directed gaming:

    Sandbox gameplay:
    • Layered content mechanics: The more layers that interact together, the more opportunity for you to combine them. Find a minefield that's part of a found quest in the world, and lead nearby monsters into it to get extra damage.
    • Dynamic elements: The more of these that interact well with creatures and other content, the more you as a player get to look for opportunities to combine things like creature encounters and environmental challenges cleverly. Randomly find an ancient Eldan rocket-launching weapon and it can come with a mission to blow up creatures as fast as possible...and you can knock monsters back (say, into the nearest minefield).
    • Ecology layer: Creature AI can add a lot of interesting outcomes. Learn that beasts get hungry or thirsty and wander off, and a tough pack of mobs can be broken up to be made easier.
    Directed gameplay:
    • Strong story quest line: Each area has a strong storyline quest which takes you through the zone; often near other interesting content to help raise the odds you'll bump into the "off the rails content" but doesn't force you there.
    • Clear quest and challenge goals: Find that Eldan rocket launcher and get a timed quest to kill as much as you can as fast as you can. So you have a goal, but there's enough variability in HOW you pull it off that you're not held by the hand. Some areas might make the quest really easy or really hard to pull off, but you at least know what you have to do clearly to earn the rewards.
     

    o.O Some of the sandbox elements are themepark elements actually, dynamic events are in Guild Wars 2, Layered content is in World of Warcraft and th Ecology side sounds interesting and familiar to anyone who knew Ultima Online's beta (they had a similar idea) but it's likely not gonna see a full launch or even launch as a feature because it's gonna have Ultima Online's issue: Players decimate the ecology faster than it can regenerate so you'll never get to see the creatures interact or even get hungry for that matter.

    Direct gamplay is straight themepark, no need to go there.

    Yeah, it does seem like they are going with a very liberal definition of sandbox and considering content that isn't specifically on rails to be sandbox. I'm not really seeing sandboxy stuff in that that list either.

    There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
    "Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre

  • IsturiIsturi Member Posts: 1,509
    Originally posted by Margulis
    I could have sworn there was quite a bit of talk at one point about how this game is supposed to have a lot of sandbox qualities to it.  Where?  Everything announced so far is all generic themepark fare really: dual faction, holy trinity combat, 40 man raids, same questing as ever made even more generic with the "130 characters or less quest text", instanced housing, level cap 50, instanced dungeons and pvp battlegrounds, etc.  yes the path system sounds interesting but it kind of just sounds like a small spin on adventuring like rift's rifts.  And the fact that you can only choose 1 path and experience the content of that one path on your character narrows the gameplay options even further.  Maybe I've missed some info somewhere?  How is this game sandboxy in any way?

    Sorry as far as I can tell and I have been following this game for ahwile now is that it never built itself up as a sanbox MMO. Do you have any link that may show that WS was spose to be sandbox?

    image

  • NikopolNikopol Member UncommonPosts: 626

    Thing is, no game developer will come out and say "Our game will be a themepark". :)

     

  • acidbloodacidblood Member RarePosts: 878
    Yeah, I think their definition of 'sandbox' is more 'emergent / dynamic' gameplay than 'open world housing sim', which is fine by me, because as much I as like the romantic notion of it, I still don't think open world housing is a good idea.
  • LoktofeitLoktofeit Member RarePosts: 14,247
    Originally posted by Isturi

    Sorry as far as I can tell and I have been following this game for ahwile now is that it never built itself up as a sanbox MMO. Do you have any link that may show that WS was spose to be sandbox?

    Scroll up?

    There isn't a "right" or "wrong" way to play, if you want to use a screwdriver to put nails into wood, have at it, simply don't complain when the guy next to you with the hammer is doing it much better and easier. - Allein
    "Graphics are often supplied by Engines that (some) MMORPG's are built in" - Spuffyre

  • red_cruiserred_cruiser Member UncommonPosts: 486
    I get the feeling that investors/producer types are skewing this game a lot more down the WoW clone path than was originally intended.  I was looking forward to this game quite a bit; now... not so much.  It might be good, but I don't see a lot to get hyped up over, that's for sure.
  • birdycephonbirdycephon Member UncommonPosts: 1,314
    Originally posted by acidblood
    Yeah, I think their definition of 'sandbox' is more 'emergent / dynamic' gameplay than 'open world housing sim', which is fine by me, because as much I as like the romantic notion of it, I still don't think open world housing is a good idea.

    Agreed, world housing in my opinion detracts from the natural zone design.

  • DihoruDihoru Member Posts: 2,731
    Originally posted by acidblood
    Yeah, I think their definition of 'sandbox' is more 'emergent / dynamic' gameplay than 'open world housing sim', which is fine by me, because as much I as like the romantic notion of it, I still don't think open world housing is a good idea.

    With open world FFA pvp it makes sense >:)

    -subscribes to the following image's school of thought-

    image
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