Settings and their lack of differentiation

[Trash]

And how many of those have been isometric, Turn-based, multiple C&C driven, fully realized cRPgs? With engaging encounters, rich original Sci-Fi story, complex and difficult but rewarding combat.. Topped off with beautiful graphics that is tasteful and highly stilized and unique?

You did notice I mentioned a lot of games from way back? Well, if you want to judge them by the standards of their time? Then plenty. If by the standards of today, well, none. Which you know full well. The games I mentioned were often hits (or at least got good reviews) at their release. Mind you, a lot of those come from the late 80's to the mid 90's. When, like I said in the post, gaming was more of a fringe hobby and devs took chances and experimented a lot more.

 

[JarlFrank]

Telengard's rant about choosing hairstyles reminded me of that idea I had of an RPG where your hairstyle can actually affect the game, as in, make you associated with a certain social class or a faction because they tend to wear that, or allow you to infiltrate them.

For all the customization options we get nowadays, it's sad how completely superficial they are. I'd love a game where your appearance could actually influence things or at least get a reaction from NPCs, but nah, we don't get that kind of stuff. It would open up so many possibilities, like disguising yourself or impersonating something you aren't (rich dress + fancy braids -> you can pretend to be a noble and people will believe you, rags and messy hair -> lol nobody will believe you).

 

[Gord]

For all the customization options we get nowadays, it's sad how completely superficial they are. I'd love a game where your appearance could actually influence things or at least get a reaction from NPCs, but nah, we don't get that kind of stuff. It would open up so many possibilities, like disguising yourself or impersonating something you aren't (rich dress + fancy braids -> you can pretend to be a noble and people will believe you, rags and messy hair -> lol nobody will believe you).

True, but it would cause incessant whining from the (sadly very big) faction of players that just want to play a dress-up doll.
And you can't have secondary effects interfering with their carefully crafted character appearance.

 

[JarlFrank]

Interfering? That wouldn't be interfering but reinforcing.

"Oh look it's [CHARNAME] again, haha he still looks like a fucking freak!"

 

[Neanderthal]

Arcanum, beauty stat again innit, mechanical reinforcement and an in game reaction almost everywhere. Never happen nowadays, think most players would object to having to assign points to beauty, they'd expect to automatically be fucking gorgeous and attractive to everyone. Fuck me imagine uproar if an NPC said, "Nah i'm not gonna fuck you, you're an ugly bastard wi a small cock!" The squeers'd be crying on the forums like mad.

 

[FuriousGamer87]

Arcanum, beauty stat again innit, mechanical reinforcement and an in game reaction almost everywhere. Never happen nowadays, think most players would object to having to assign points to beauty, they'd expect to automatically be fucking gorgeous and attractive to everyone. Fuck me imagine uproar if an NPC said, "Nah i'm not gonna fuck you, you're an ugly bastard wi a small cock!" The squeers'd be crying on the forums like mad.

Especially when you realize how easy it is for anyone to pirate games these days. Also Steam Refunds.
Insulting or belittling majority of your customers no longer works. To put it simply, bad publicity is no publicity for games nowadays.
Most people play RPG type of video games to enjoy themselves by escaping from their reality, which is already either full of people ignoring or insulting them, so applying more insults to them in the game do not give them enjoyment.
It only give a slight enjoyment to the sadistic dev before he realized just how much good will that he have lost by doing that kind of stuff.

Then, remember that most well made RPG require more than two years to create and a lot of money and effort goes into it and then you will realize just how stupid it is to destroy everything you and everyone else have made for just some sadistic fun.

 

[Keldryn]

Nobody wants to play a character with stupid hair or hair that doesn't match the 2d portrait.

 

[V_K]

I'd love a game where your appearance could actually influence things or at least get a reaction from NPCs, but nah, we don't get that kind of stuff. It would open up so many possibilities, like disguising yourself or impersonating something you aren't (rich dress + fancy braids -> you can pretend to be a noble and people will believe you, rags and messy hair -> lol nobody will believe you).

Hard to be God reportedly had a mechanic like that, but was godawful otherwise.

 

[JarlFrank]

Hard to be God reportedly had a mechanic like that, but was godawful otherwise.

Apparently the only games that still do interesting experiments are Russian shovelwares, and they have shit implementation.

 

[Neanderthal]

Especially when you realize how easy it is for anyone to pirate games these days. Also Steam Refunds.
Insulting or belittling majority of your customers no longer works. To put it simply, bad publicity is no publicity for games nowadays.
Most people play RPG type of video games to enjoy themselves by escaping from their reality, which is already either full of people ignoring or insulting them, so applying more insults to them in the game do not give them enjoyment.
It only give a slight enjoyment to the sadistic dev before he realized just how much good will that he have lost by doing that kind of stuff.

Then, remember that most well made RPG require more than two years to create and a lot of money and effort goes into it and then you will realize just how stupid it is to destroy everything you and everyone else have made for just some sadistic fun.

I'm opposite, I go out o me way to find games that insult me. In Arcanum I dumped beauty because I knew I could talk folk around wi Charisma, looking forward to playing an Half Orc or Ogre. In Witcher I loved to be called a freak, scum or spat at as I passed by, filled my bitter black gut with a pleasant warmth. I wonder if i'm into that masochism shit?

Thinking about it I like punishing games an all, an plenty of failure states and narratives that don't overly lick your balls or state that you're the chosen one. Like w40k an all, game about inhumanity, failure and pointless futile struggle. Yep i'm pretty sure i'm the games gimp.

 

[V_K]

Apparently the only games that still do interesting experiments are Russian shovelwares, and they have shit implementation.

I think it has less to do with experimentation and more with not having a clue about what they're doing.

 

[Daedalos]

You did notice I mentioned a lot of games from way back? Well, if you want to judge them by the standards of their time? Then plenty. If by the standards of today, well, none. Which you know full well. The games I mentioned were often hits (or at least got good reviews) at their release. Mind you, a lot of those come from the late 80's to the mid 90's. When, like I said in the post, gaming was more of a fringe hobby and devs took chances and experimented a lot more.

I thought the thread obviously revolved around what games are coming out TODAY or in recent times. And as you correctly stated, yes, none have come out.

Which is the problem. Why? We have so many fantasy cRPGs coming out of the woodwork, yet no Sci-fi ones.

The only ones that come close is Underrail of course, which is the shining beacon of light in the dark masses of shit. And Wasteland 2 I suppose, but I wouldn't really call either of those games Sci-fi.

Then you have something like Shadowrun, which is to me, generic fantasy bullshit with cyberpunk elements thrown in for good measure. Boring and predictable.

 

[laclongquan]

Games have always been easy to pirate since day one. Twenty years ago people pirated it on usenet. Ten years ago on torrents.

 

[JarlFrank]

Then you have something like Shadowrun, which is to me, generic fantasy bullshit with cyberpunk elements thrown in for good measure. Boring and predictable.

wat

 

[Excidium II]

Which is the problem. Why? We have so many fantasy cRPGs coming out of the woodwork, yet no Sci-fi ones.

Commercial viability probably. CRPGs are already hard to sell as it is, add a setting without wide appeal and you're fucked to at least recover your losses.

 

[Daedalos]

Commercial viability probably. CRPGs are already hard to sell as it is, add a setting without wide appeal and you're fucked to at least recover your losses.

Which I would call selling out. But that's just me. Go with the safe thing, boring and shitty, but safe.

Meh

 

[Excidium II]

Which I would call selling out. But that's just me. Go with the safe thing, boring and shitty, but safe.

Meh

Well they can always go bankrupt I guess?

To get an idea how bad it is, see this poll: http://wickermangames.co.uk/polls/view/5

It's a website of a company making sci-fi game but high fantasy still wins by a large margin.

 

[likaq]

Well they can always go bankrupt I guess?

To get an idea how bad it is, see this poll: http://wickermangames.co.uk/polls/view/5

It's a website of a company making sci-fi game but high fantasy still wins by a large margin.

It is so sad.

 

[Haraldur]

Well they can always go bankrupt I guess?

To get an idea how bad it is, see this poll: http://wickermangames.co.uk/polls/view/5

It's a website of a company making sci-fi game but high fantasy still wins by a large margin.

If someone has never played a CRPG with another setting, this is the only way they can vote. If most of their favourites (likely) are High Fantasy, they will feel that they should vote for it. I suspect that, even here, that applies. Planescape probably counts as High Fantasy for that poll. Fallout is split between Post-Apocalyptic and Retro-Futuristic. Given that High Fantasy is defined, there, as "Magic, Elves, Dwarves and such", Arcanum and Shadowrun at least partially count. If most CRPGs, including favourites, are High Fantasy, then High Fantasy is probably you favourite setting. Only Post-Apocalyptic challenges it in the RPGCodex top 10 (http://www.rpgcodex.net/forums/index.php?threads/rpg-codexs-top-50-crpgs-results-and-reviews.89680/), and ony because of the existence of the Fallout series.

A problem with that poll is that there is only one "high fantasy" option, while the other genres/settings die a death of 1000 cuts: what if Hard Sci-Fi, Cyberpunk and Space Opera were combined into one category? They might win. They are certainly not mutually exclusive, if the Sci-Fi is a little less hard than diamond. Call it "Sci-Fi" and it would win. There is enough variety within High Fantasy to compete with Hard Sci-Fi, Cyberpunk and Space Opera (Planescape Torment, Baldur's Gate 2, Morrowind, The Witcher). Steampunk could be combined with Retro-Futuristic, as it is the same kind of thing.. Historical and Modern-day can be combined, too: if something is set in the 1980s, is that historical or modern (and does it matter how long after the 1980s the game was released?)? Even if Low Fantasy was combined with High Fantasy into a single "Fantasy" category, such a more condensed poll would probably give more interesting results.

 

[CryptRat]

Well they can always go bankrupt I guess?

To get an idea how bad it is, see this poll: http://wickermangames.co.uk/polls/view/5

It's a website of a company making sci-fi game but high fantasy still wins by a large margin.

I see 0 problem here. Saying that High Fantasy give the best games while most games are High fantasy is logical. For example claiming that modern or historical settings are better than high fantasy for an RPG seems really weird to me, based on what I have played.
We don't care about what's best, the problem is about diversity. For example I can't imagine playing many urban fantasy RPG, but one from time to time is OK.
I basically don't care, but I could say that High Fantasy is the best setting based on what I've played, I will still be far more enthousiast about the next turn-based space opera or steam-punk RPG because of the lack of such games.

 

[Excidium II]

I see 0 problem here. Saying that High Fantasy give the best games while most games are High fantasy is logical. For example claiming that modern or historical settings are better than high fantasy for an RPG seems really weird to me, based on what I have played.

That's because you are dumb.

 

[Lhynn]

What can a combatfag possibly say in a discussion about setting ?

Combat fags discard settings that they believe wont give them enough variety in their gameplay. Which is retarded as shit,

 

[CyberWhale]

Retard who has brofisted retarded opinions publicly shows his inability to differentiate between causation and correlation? Well who would have thought...

 

[Lhynn]

I did? which one?

 

[Excidium II]

I did? which one?

You two posted at the same time, he's replying to guy above