Pshaw
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Posts posted by Pshaw
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Well since this game will be on the low side as far as voice over goes it will be largely text translation. I know they said they're willing to take on help from people would like lend a hand in terms of getting the translations done properly so if you or somebody you know is feeling particularly diligent I'm sure they'd be happy for the help.
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PS:T --- Surprise! Layers and layers of truths that end up coloring other truths that uncover not only more of the story but the "nature" of the player character. Moreover, the plot presents some hard questions, some with no good answers. Interestingly, there wasn't an "antagonist" in the traditional sense. This was a real thinker's plot that didn't treat the player stupidly at all. Dodecahedron!
That's a good point. I haven't played through torment in years at this point and I had kind of forgotten it's almost complete lack of an antagonist to drive the story. So in addition to my previous post I'd have to say mystery is another great motivator. If you can make us want to know what will happen next and have us guessing what might be going on we will get sucked into the story. It's not something I think about much with RPGs since there's usually a villain but a good mystery plot works very well. I really enjoyed the first Resident Evil, Heavy Rain and Alan Wake because I really wanted to what the hell was going on as much as I wanted to beat an antagonist.
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For me it comes down to the characters. I love character driven stories, not only in games but books and movies as well. If you give me an interesting cast of characters that I care about I'm going to enjoy the game based on that alone.
I mostly feel this way because many of the over arching stories in RPGs go either 2 ways. One is that the main story gets lost in all the sidequests and various adventuring you're doing. The other is that they either keep you on a strict path or beat you over the head with main 'threat' no matter what you're doing in the world. You can strike a happy medium to be sure but I find most games do not. A key part of it, I feel, is to have a villain you hate enough to carry you through all the unrelated sidequests so you don't lose sight of them as your goal.
I will say that I think BG2 did a terrific job of balancing this. You established a very good reason to hate Irenicus in the first dungeon. Then your goal to pursue him is to gather up gold doing side missions so things aren't always focused on him but you're still working towards that ultimate goal even while doing entirely unrelated things. Then every so often they drop in a little reminder via cut scene or bad dream just to remind you why you hate this guy so much.
Add good characters to a story where you really want to beat the antagonist and you've got the winning formula. So long as the ending is good (there's another topic about this already so I won't go into here) then you're pretty much all set.
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Morrowind was amazing. I wish the game system was a little better but it was such an interesting setting that skyrim and oblivion still haven't really topped it for me. Reading this thread instantly put the title screen music into my head though, I hadn't realized that it had stuck with me at all until just now so I guess that says something about the music quality of the game right there.
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I've had the serenity table top RPG source book for awhile now but none of my friends ever really wanted to play it so it sits neglected.
I personally would love to see a firefly type RPG. Not so much set in the firefly universe but what I consider to be a low tech sci-fi rpg. I love the idea of a game like firefly where sure you have space flight but you're still using pistols and ride horses because most people can't afford to do otherwise is just intriguing to me. I also think it would need to be a mixed sort of RPG where not only would your crew need to be of use on the ground on missions but in keeping your spaceship in good working order. At the very least I'd like your ships upkeep to be a constant factor so you'd be forced to take jobs your character might not agree with because of the need to keep your ship fueled and working.
If this team or another team I really like wanted to do this sort of RPG I'd buy it/kickstart it in a second.
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X-Com is the most recent addition and I've been enjoying it but after my squad got killed on a mission I've been taking a bit of a break :-p
Beyond that I've been playing Borderlands 2 and FTL and completed a replay of Dragon Age: Origins and finally got up the will power to finish Dragon Age 2.
Tonight I've been considering starting up D3 since is was patched or playing through Bastion yet again but I probably won't do either.
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I love the amount of feedback this kickstarter has been giving out, it was very impressive and made me feel like my donation was really appreciated.
That said now that it's time to get to work I understand entirely if they don't have time for tons and tons of updates. So in answer to the poll I think once a month is a good amount but really as oftens as they have something they'd like to share is my real answer. I'm glad they're taking the feedback to heart as much as they are but I trust them to do their jobs well and they don't need to keep us up to date all the time.
A screenshot of the week/month (once it's far enough along to show off) would be greatly welcome.
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I like smaller ensambles for the majority of the music. Something that can set a mood without needing to be over powering. Of course for those epic moments a full orchestra with vocalization is always welcome.
Considering the different cultures seem like they'll play a large role I would like areas associated with each culture to have it's own unique sound if at all possible. I think it helps as you as a player develope a feel for a culture in game very quickly regardless of delving too deeply into their history.
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Fallout 2
Was tempted to go Torment but in the end I go back and play Fallout 2 more often.
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It was Baldurs Gate, Fallout, and Planescape that really got me psyched. Those are some of my favorite games of all time so to hear the same guys were thinking of doing another game in the same style was a big deal for me. I also really enjoyed New Vegas, more than the original fallout 3, as it felt more like what fallout should be to me. NWN 2 was a great game, better than the original in my personal opinion.
I skipped ToEE and Icewind Dale mostly because I don't like just having generic party members. I'm a character driven players and the idea of playing an IE type game but with me controling a whole party of customize characters with no dialogue wasn't anything that interested me. Arcanum I tried to play a few times but I felt the gameplay just wasn't polished so even though I loved the concept I could never get into it.
Mainly though I want to support this genre. I'm glad these seasoned pros are behind the game but I'd like to think I would have supported other developers trying the same thing. I pledged wasteland 2 as well because these are the sorts of games I want to see made again.
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I really got the impression that it will be a dungeon crawl. A varried one, with a bit of puzzles tossed in as well.
The only thing I'm curious about is if they'll make it need to be completed in 1 go. If you leave before completing it will everything respawn and need to be recleared? I can't decide if I'd like the challenge or just find the whole thing a bother to reclear.
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I personally like voice acting so long as it's done well. Mass effect did this the best in a game with choices but even so it had lots of ambigous dialogue that covered both the 'good' and 'renegade' choices in order to save on VO costs. Still I prefer it over DA:O or Kingdoms of Amalur where my main character stood around mutely while everybody else around him was fully voiced.
Still NWN and BG were just fine in terms of voice acting. I'd rather have it this way considering the budget as the VO costs would cut a huge amount of content.
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I prefer turn-based games. I mean I know that's not what this game is and it was known since day 1 so I'm ok with that. I wouldn't want them to change it at all though. They've made a promise to all their backers about it being real time with pause.
That said I really do love games like X-com, Valkyria Chronicles, and most especially fallout 2. I feel that turn based is a bit less slapdash than turn based with pause and I like the amount of control if offers.
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I'd prefer them not be in a 'fantasy' game. That said their inclusion won't really bother me. I hope that they do manage to differ from crossbows/bows and other ranged weapons though.
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I like the idea of whichever party member you have selected initiating the dialogue. It will use their stats/race/class to determine the choices for the conversation. But beyond that I think the choices should then be limited to something that character would do. So for example if you had a lawful good type character, who was an elf talk to an NPC that would only converse with characters that were also elves or had high charisma they then could not choose bullying options or evil options. Perhaps if said NPC mentioned something that the character would really disagree with you'd be left with not choice but to fight them. This is provided they're one of the predesigned party members, not somebody you recruited from the adventures hall.
I'd like this sort of option as it would give the main character a more unique role in dealing with people directly but also allow for other party members to have a chance to be active participants in conversations from time to time aside from just commentary.
Also 1 of the very few things dragon age 2 did right was give you an option to have a party member step in for a particular bit of dialogue if they were in your party. Somebody suspicious of you asking about mages could be put at ease by having your sister show off a bit of magic. Various could smooth talk the parties way out of tight spots. I thought that worked very well as it made it feel like your party was more present than simply just reacting to what others were saying all the time.
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I want to second what Kymriana has been saying. The basic problem with excluding romance options entirely is that if you enjoy that sort of thing you then need to rely solely on the mod community otherwise you will not having any of that aspect of the game to enjoy.
When it comes to development time everything else will already be included to some degree or another. All the party members will have dialogue and most likely quests as well that delve into their characters. The game will already have plenty of side missions and main quests. The world will already be fleshed out and fully realized. Adding romances to the game will not removed these elements of the game. All told they might lose a bit here and there but all those elements will still be present in the game for you to enjoy and experience.
I don't think cutting out a fairly simple to implement aspect of the game that many people clearly care about in order to have a bit more of what we'll already have tons of is in fact 'the best use of development time/resources' as some people are claiming. Granted it's just my opinion, perhaps I'm biased, but it just seems so close minded to want to have this aspect of the game cut so you have have 35 convestations with an NPC as opposed to 30 or perhaps 300 side quests instead of 280with the inclusion of romances.
Also quite honestly I love deep friendships in RPGs and find them important and all but even they only go so far. If you really want to know everything there is to know about a character it makes sense to me that you might need to me more than just friends in order for them to confide in you every detail of their past. I don't think it should be the case with everybody. I firmly believe that not every party member should be ready and willing to fall in love with your main character. However I do feel that in some cases it makes more sense to not delve too deeply into your party members lives without being involved romantically.
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While I do believe the stretch goals were designed to expand the team, so they could in turn put out more content in the same amount of time, I agree that 1.5 years seems a bit small. If they can get it done then by all means I'll be glad to play it sooner rather than later. However if it's not polished and complete just take more time. I'm sure budget will still be a concern though, they can't keep developement running forever on what they've taken in. Still I trust the game will be wonderful and if not I trust that the team will support it with additional patches after release until it meets their standards.
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I think joining guilds is always fun but every guild should have its bonuses as well as its downside. If you join a thieves guild you should not be able to then join a guild that helps enforce laws. If you join a religion that is the antithesis of what one of your party members follows or believes they should leave. If you side with a faction that leans towards privileged society maybe you should become a more common target for thieves when traveling or have commoner NPCs shout insults at you in the markets.These choices are always good but I prefer them to not just be straight up bonuses. Siding with 1 faction/guild should exclude you from others.
How far you go with such a thing is entirely up to the developers though. You could go all the way to Fallout NV type levels where the factions you side with affect the outcome of the game or just small bonuses and side quests.
I don't much like the idea of getting your stronghold from your faction though. I kind of want the stronghold to feel more my own than a guild house would. I like the BG2 style of retaking a fort from monsters then deciding to keep it. In elderscrolls games I prefer my own house to staying at any of the guilds you eventually run.
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Since I already touched on some of these in my posts in the previous thread I'll try not to ramble too much.
--what type of romance plot do you enjoy (tragic, happy ending, marriage/family)?
Honestly I think in this diversity is the best option. People all prefer different things but variety makes the path you DO like that much more special by comparison rather than having all the romance plots end up in the same place. I personally really enjoyed the Planescape Torment romances despite them being tragic and Morrigans romance from DA:O because she didnt give up on her goals (albeit powerhungry/evil ones) because of falling in love with the warden.
--are there particular game mechanics that you like to see when romances are included (complex questlines, cutscenes?)?
While I'm all for romances I'd have to say no to cutscenes. I think trying to show making out or sex detracts from these relationships more than it helps in most cases. I also think that any sort of 'approval meter' like in the dragon age series is a mistake. Hopefully you can tell how a character feels about you through dialogue without need for it to be so cut and dry.
Quests are nice - personally I think all party members should have quests that help you earn/lose their trust regardless of romance being involved. Though perhaps you should have to get them to trust you enough to even ask for your help in the matter. That said I don't think quests for the romance itself are needed. I'd gladly play through them where appropriate but I don't think the players who dislike presueing romances should feel like they're missing out on quests. Some people are complitionist and still don't want to romance somebody.
--what romances or relationship plots from other games did you enjoy that can serve as examples?
As mentioned earlier I think Morrigan in DA: O was an interesting romance. Viconia in BG2 was also interesting in that in order to successfully have a romance with her you had to do more than just be polite to her. Jaheria in BG2 was also interesting in that she started out married in BG1 and you had to help her get over that and in doing so you develope feelings for each other. Pointing out these isn't to say that their isn't a place for the sweet and nice romances, they just shouldn't be the only type around.
--What, even, is romance?
Romance, for me at least, in a game means having a more invested relationship between the main character and a party member/npc. This does generally involve some sort of commitment between the 2 characters. It does not need to include sex or marriage though.
Also seperately I believe that characters should have strong friendships that while not 'romantic' signify the bond and respect they've developed with your main character. Despite everybody bagging on Bioware (I guess it's just the cool thing to do) I believe that Garrus, Tali, and Wrex all had that sort of relationship with Shepard. Garrus was clearly pretty much outcast and alone but confided in and trusted Shepard more than anybody. Wrex grudingly came to respect Shepard as a warrior then as a friend and in the end considered you to be a hero to his entire race. Tali went from just being teenager who tagged along to get information that would help her people to a mature character who would trust you enough to serve along side a geth crew member and even assist you in stopping her own people from wiping out the geth race because you've changed how she saw things. Those were deep friendships built on trust and it made the games better for their inclusion. On the other hand if you didn't presue those friendships Wrex could die on a beach or be betrayed and killed by shepard. Tali could be exiled from her people or commit suicide or leave your crew entirely. I think these sorts of relationships are every bit as important as romance options.
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I'm curious why when discussions of romance come up it is an unwritten assumption that only companion characters qualify. Why? Is there some compelling reason why, out of all the people in the world, the only ones you can be attracted to/are attracted to you are the ones you adventure with?
Why not have have possible romances/friendships with non-companions, even non-adventurers? Maybe depending on the character background you've chosen your character is already married and/or already has children. Imagine what a difference something like that could make to characterization!
Also, having the 'romance pool' include more than the 8 companions has the following benefits that may otherwise be difficult to implement:
-They can have more realistic preferences. (only likes dwarves/mages/natives of a certain region etc)
-Doesn't require as in-depth writing. If you aren't in a romance with them they probably wouldn't have much to do with your character anyway.
-Can have plot consequences without breaking a major plot or gimping the party. (poor Heather Poe...)
Note that I am NOT asking for a skyrim 'Oh, you're wearing a plot coupon? Let's get married!' That was embarassing...
This is a very good point. I would love to see this sort of thing as well so long as the characters aren't all generic.
I say this because the only games that come to mind that allow you to romance anybody in the game with clearly set sexual prefences are the Fable games. In these games despite being a huge fan of romance in games I choose not to start a family the majority of the time. Mostly this is because everybody is the same and has nothing to set them apart from anybody else save their character model. I don't feel any sort of connection to whatever random shopkeeper or noble I see walking down the street as they're just a collection of pixels. As such I don't see any point in romanicing (if it can really be called that) them. Beyond that most story characters cannot be romanced - out of the whole world they're the only people immune to your advances which just seems odd to me. The end reasult being I tend to marry Lady Grey in fable 1, Zombie Grey in 2 and nobody in 3. I don't even like Lady Grey but at least there is something to her.
However their are plenty of other fleshed out characters in these sorts of games that are not companions. In the Baldurs Gate series, Fallout Series, and Planescape Torment their were dozens of very interesting characters where I would welcome the option to have started up some sort of relationship with them. So I feel that it would make perfect sense to be able to have NPCs outside your party to romance as well and might even help to break the mold of this companions only model romances have fallen into.
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I love detailed epilogues in RPGs, and I want to know that any choices my character made had an impact on the world. It's great to see a character's legacy after the bad guy is defeated and the world is saved.
Just, for the love of god, don't make the ending be a binary good/evil choice. Or any sort of binary choice at all.
Teuthida hit the nail on the head.
Unless there is going to be an expansion/sequel that takes place immediately or soon after the events of the game nothing is more important to me than hearing about what became of my companions and main character down the road from the 'end' of the game. Dragon Age: Origins did a pretty good job of reflecting on what your character did in the game as well as letting you talk to your companions to see what their plans for the future were. There is another game that I can't recall that told you what your companions ended up doing with themselves after the game, maybe it was valkyria chronicles or a fire emblem game, and I recall enjoying that as well.
But yes, let us know what happened to the people with us and those that played major roles in the story. Don't just leave us with the current state of the realm because to be 100% honest I always care more about the characters in the story than the world at large I'm fighting for.
I'm actually ok with multipul endings though I prefer the DA:O style for this over the ME3/Blood Omen style. I don't want a choice of which ending to watch, I want to have picked my ending already by how I played the entire game.
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Yes and no. Mainly I wish I had more free cash on hand to give more to the cause. Knowing that I couldn't have afforded anymore and probably shouldn't have even spent what I did I know it's a bit silly to feel that way. Still the kickstarter far exceeded what I thought was possible. Everytime a new reward tier unlocked I thought for sure, 'oh well that's probably the last one we'll reach.' Only it kept going up every time. I'd get an email update or just check the site and it was still climbing. The amount of money it brought in the last week was as much or more as it did in the first week which I thought was just amazing. So while I wish I could have given more I'm content knowing I gave what I could and regardless things turned out to be a huge success.
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I totally agree with you that character customization is key part of a game. I can't tell you the number of times I've restarted games in order to tweak looks that I decided didn't fit or did have the look I was going for with a character. However I think the main point you've made, perhaps without intending to do so, is the importance of making the game easily mod-able. There will come a point where they can't get the character models to meet everybody's needs but need to move on. The same goes for classes and races. Which is totally fine and reasonable. That is however where the mod community can pick up some slack however.
I love scrolling through elder scrolls mods and seeing people who felt the same way I did about something had the talent enough to create a mod that addressed something that bothered me as well. Then I can use that mod to enhance my gaming experience for the better. I don't expect everybody to see eye to eye on how a game should be, it's impossible to please everyone after all. Luckily the gaming world has a large group of very talented and generous people who devote their time to adding and adjusting these games to help it meet their idea of how things should be. So I think for this sort of level of customization they should do what they can to develop it on their own before release but make sure it's all easily moddable so that people who'd like to can have the option of changing things up to something closer to what they want.
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I see this system being the equivalent of most shield/health systems around today. You get hurt and your shields go down, if they get down all the way your health takes damage and doesn't regenerate without a consumable. While it's a bit tired at this point I can't deny that it works pretty well mechanic wise.
So personally I think it's just fine provided it's implemented well. I would for instance say that without specific skill/perk investments in order to regenerate endurance you should need to go a certain amount of time without attacking or being hit whilst staying in 1 place. I think melee classes should have a way to make it regen constantly in combat while still being hit and attack. Perhaps spell casters could regen endurance while attacking/casting but not while on the move or being hit. Perhaps rogues and agility classes could regen while moving but not while attacking or being hit. A bit of diversity might spice up the system a bit to help make it stand out from the standard shield/health combo.
Spanish Translation - Why Spain?
in Pillars of Eternity: General Discussion (NO SPOILERS)
Posted
Yeah I can't help you at all there. I learned European Spanish in college but that was more of a fluke than anything else as that's where my professor was from.
If it had to hazard a wild guess it might just be because Europe might be seen as a larger market on the whole over Latin America so they prioritize getting European languages in first. Then once they have a Spanish translation they aren't really keen on doing a second one.
If you're really curious shoot a tweet over to Michael Pachter ( https://twitter.com/michaelpachter ) he's an indusrty analyst that has a little show based around answering viewer questions. I think he does answer all the questions tweeted to him though and he'll probably have a much better grasp of this sort of thing than I do.