Role-play and storyline.
Posted: Sun Jun 05, 2005 4:02 pm
This only my oppinion, and - of course - I'd like to know what do you think about that. Just keep in mind that my english usually sux and you are supposed to understand the ideea of the post, not to missinterpret my words.
Since I start playing here I figured that you have to "dig" to know the story. But not in game. In forums, on site and so on.
Imagine a player, a n00b. He downloads the game, install the patches and starts it; creates a character and press play. Cool, isn't it? He knows nothing. He sees some helpers around a central building, he sees the quest window "Talk with X". That X tells him the basics, and gives him a couple of tasks. Fortunatelly, the newbie is smart enough to understand what he needs to do. The first refference at story comes when he visits the magic trainer, but that's all. "We are good, they are evil". Is he supposed to chew this just because he was told to? Guess so.
Let's move on. He reaches a decent level, he leaves the noob island, he's doing the first rite... just to learn about amber cubes. Nothing about story.
Soon he loses any interest in finding what's behind teleporters and tribes and goo. He becomes interested only in leveling and at a point gets bored and quits. End of story.
In my oppinion roleplay should be enforced a bit. Don't jump out of the chairs!
The helpers should tell a story to the player, and the player should not be able to go to the mainland until he proves his knowedge. In this way, the storyline is linked to game advancement. You can say "I'm a Fyros, I worship Kami and I hate Karavan" but if I come and ask "Why?" you'll shrug helplessly.
If the missions and rites and all the game advancements would be tight linked of the storyline and Atys, maybe all the things will get a better understanding and the players interes for the game will increase. Let me explain this a bit. There are mission mobs everywhere, but you are delivering an order from mob x to mob y and this does not make any sense for you.
Certain asignments should be triggered by players. Like player A is killed by the goaris, he respawns in Pyr, and the "deliver message" becomes available, because the message contains informations about goaris closing of the city. In the same way, if a player gets hurt by gingos but not killed, he can receive the "count animals" asignment ("see if are any gingos..." etc).
Also player SHOULD RETURN TO QUEST MASTER to receive the reward. You are told to kill X mobs, you do that, and in the middle of nowhere you receive money. That's not magic, is crap.
Rites should be way harder to acomplish. And the rewards should be really cool. Any idiot can finish them (well, I finished them and according to forum oppinion I am an idiot :P ) and the rewards are whortless. The advancement in game is unhurt, no matter you have the rewards or not. You should be stuck without a rite. "Only the best ones can finish the rites" If you ask me, only the lazy ones did not done them. They should require extended knowledge about Atys and lore. And this knowledge should become available to player with each mission he acomplish. Basically more missions -> more chances for rites.
I've done way too many missions (my fame vs all races is +100, -100 karavan +64 kami, vs all NPC tribes is positive exept a few). But all were mindless missions. You were grinding on levels, I was grinding on missions, hoping to understand the lore. I did not succeeded.
That's why I come and say: any brainless player can kill 2 gingos and craft 5 anklets. That not makes him - or her - a better player. Or an expert in Atys lore.
Every little aspect of the game should be redesigned and rebuilded acording to lore and game imersion. Game was designed for team play and grind. That's the truth and you cannot change that. But improvements can be made. Is a huge potential here, and we all know that, but is wasted. Is all I wanted to say. Now I'd like to know your oppinions.
*where the heck I put that fireproof suit?*
Since I start playing here I figured that you have to "dig" to know the story. But not in game. In forums, on site and so on.
Imagine a player, a n00b. He downloads the game, install the patches and starts it; creates a character and press play. Cool, isn't it? He knows nothing. He sees some helpers around a central building, he sees the quest window "Talk with X". That X tells him the basics, and gives him a couple of tasks. Fortunatelly, the newbie is smart enough to understand what he needs to do. The first refference at story comes when he visits the magic trainer, but that's all. "We are good, they are evil". Is he supposed to chew this just because he was told to? Guess so.
Let's move on. He reaches a decent level, he leaves the noob island, he's doing the first rite... just to learn about amber cubes. Nothing about story.
Soon he loses any interest in finding what's behind teleporters and tribes and goo. He becomes interested only in leveling and at a point gets bored and quits. End of story.
In my oppinion roleplay should be enforced a bit. Don't jump out of the chairs!
The helpers should tell a story to the player, and the player should not be able to go to the mainland until he proves his knowedge. In this way, the storyline is linked to game advancement. You can say "I'm a Fyros, I worship Kami and I hate Karavan" but if I come and ask "Why?" you'll shrug helplessly.
If the missions and rites and all the game advancements would be tight linked of the storyline and Atys, maybe all the things will get a better understanding and the players interes for the game will increase. Let me explain this a bit. There are mission mobs everywhere, but you are delivering an order from mob x to mob y and this does not make any sense for you.
Certain asignments should be triggered by players. Like player A is killed by the goaris, he respawns in Pyr, and the "deliver message" becomes available, because the message contains informations about goaris closing of the city. In the same way, if a player gets hurt by gingos but not killed, he can receive the "count animals" asignment ("see if are any gingos..." etc).
Also player SHOULD RETURN TO QUEST MASTER to receive the reward. You are told to kill X mobs, you do that, and in the middle of nowhere you receive money. That's not magic, is crap.
Rites should be way harder to acomplish. And the rewards should be really cool. Any idiot can finish them (well, I finished them and according to forum oppinion I am an idiot :P ) and the rewards are whortless. The advancement in game is unhurt, no matter you have the rewards or not. You should be stuck without a rite. "Only the best ones can finish the rites" If you ask me, only the lazy ones did not done them. They should require extended knowledge about Atys and lore. And this knowledge should become available to player with each mission he acomplish. Basically more missions -> more chances for rites.
I've done way too many missions (my fame vs all races is +100, -100 karavan +64 kami, vs all NPC tribes is positive exept a few). But all were mindless missions. You were grinding on levels, I was grinding on missions, hoping to understand the lore. I did not succeeded.
That's why I come and say: any brainless player can kill 2 gingos and craft 5 anklets. That not makes him - or her - a better player. Or an expert in Atys lore.
Every little aspect of the game should be redesigned and rebuilded acording to lore and game imersion. Game was designed for team play and grind. That's the truth and you cannot change that. But improvements can be made. Is a huge potential here, and we all know that, but is wasted. Is all I wanted to say. Now I'd like to know your oppinions.
*where the heck I put that fireproof suit?*