600lbpanther

I used to be a forum warrior until I took an arrow to the...

Wood Elf.

Some like finite arrows. Some like infinite arrows. I like limited arrows myself but I see how infinite arrows benefit other people's playing style. They both make sense to me. The Logic That I am Right I am sure we have all been around long enough to know that when arguments reach the point where "logic" is thrown around as the defining reason I am right and you are wrong it tends to build a wall rather than a bridge. To paraphrase Stephen Covey: "Is it logical that 2 people can leave an argument both convinced that they are the right one? It's not logical. It's psych-ological." Questions & Concerns: Can a solution be implemented that allows people of both extremes to enjoy the solution being presented? (Or is it the win-loss scenario where "I win" and "you lose" with maybe a snide remark like "deal with it"? Maybe it is...a lot of times it seems win-loss is the first and only negotiation strategy we employ. However, sometimes lose-win is a good strategy on something that isn't really that important to the person doing the "losing". How important IS having infinite / finite arrows to you and, especially, the game.) How detrimental is it to run out of arrows while in mid-combat? (While one can argue it adds a level of excitement to run out of arrows and have to use a sword to cut a path out of harm's danger... it isn't fun if the ranged character's sword fighting ability means they die instantly.) How many arrows does one need to carry before they run out? (Does 100 arrows last me quite a while or 15 minutes from town?) Edit: Jarrakul your idea of a "quiver of x arrows" that "once it runs out you have to take time to refill it but you never run out of refills" is a very neat idea to me. It helps the infinite arrow people out while those who like finite arrows (at least I am speaking for myself here) can justify that they were refilled by their errand girl, finding them on bandits, passing through the woods, over to grandma's house, etc.

A lot of well constructed arguments everyone. I want to applaud all of you, however, chainmail bikini for women and steel thongs for men will be in the game. Hopefully they won't be cartoony and fake looking and the artists really get that tight & snug look down pat. Does anyone know if there will be zoom in this game? The trees and rivers look so beautiful.

I agree with Eurhetemec's suggestion that quests should start out with minimal information and branch out. My suggestion on quests is that they also have fun quests like puzzles or mazes (feel free to add your variation) to break up "sneak in" or "kill this" quests. To me: A lot of quests are like a lot of posts in a forum...walls of text that I sometimes read and if I do I will skim on through. Brainmuncher has a great idea about diversity and unexpectedness in combat. I hope adversaries have their own life and culture that could cause surprise clashes not only between the player but between NPCs as well. The opposite of this is to have NPCs standing around in a forest or cave waiting for you, and only you, to come within 10 feet of them.

As thy gaze rests upon this cold slab of stone, This life can make one chilled and weary to the bone, My tale was of pure devotion – of love and of fate, This girl laid gently below – My precious wife Kate, Through her I found passion, Through her I found lust, Through her I found a mate, One who will keep me straight, Her smile is so kind, Her body and charm radiate, Of course I mean Sarah, Best friend of my Kate,

In order to be Chose They all avoided Prose They all said some rhymes and some unfunny lines Because everyone did So they did as well to write some poem on a stone that they would read alone

I am not quite sure that simulating bows and ammo down to a T was the original intent of the author. However, maybe I am the one misunderstanding the original intent of the author so this next sentence isn't meant in a hostile way but, rather, an observation (which could be fundamentally flawed). The way I read the quoted sentence strikes me as a Straw Man argument (i.e. the misrepresentation of the author's position and subsequent invalidation due to how ridiculous it seems). Like most of the topics on here there seems to be multiple, viable solutions based on the playstyle of that player. Personally, I like a nice balance between 100% management and 0% management: Like: Rare arrows being limited and having to be managed. Normal / Non-Rare Magic Arrows coming in batches of 50. Being able to carry multiple batches of arrows. Special quivers with stats but not useable with rare arrows. Don't Like: Recovering arrows because it seems like work. Quivers that never run out of arrows. Normal / Non-Rare Magic Arrows that come in batches less than 50. Being unable to carry multiple batches of arrows. In Summary: It would be nice to have options in controlling the level of investment players have in regards to arrow management. "Recovery of Arrows" or "Unlimited / Limited Arrow Quiver" options would seem to be a good start in helping to bring together a solution that affords people of varying playstyles the options they desire.

To me: It is more resonating to have an average person who did something heroic gifted a memorial rather than a fabled warrior or King. - "Here lies my daughter, our village's potter, whose young life was cut short while rescuing her sister. I will never forget you. - Mom" - "The resting place of my love Athena who could fold herself into a pretzel and hop around." In summary: I like the Guild Wars 2 examples...nice, short, and sweet...but not necessarily the ones that rhyme.

I am for limited quivers (in general) as arrow management is now important and a little more realistic to the ranged character. However, I also realize that some people do not even want to deal with this minor issue as it may prove more of an annoyance than adding any fun factor. That is where magic quivers (unlimited arrow quivers) come into play so long as rare arrows are still of the limited quiver kind.

Hi Everyone, I found out about Pillars of Eternity just last week so when I saw the conversational UI it was news to me. To me, it seems a little claustrophobic. The design seems to have places that the party members could easily go or even icons to click on (such as buying/selling icons). In Summary: I think the conversational UI is a part of the game that the player will become intimately familiar with and so I hope it is a little tighter and cleaner in the final version.

Hi Everyone, Pretty polarizing topic...I understand that. It's interesting that we can fantasize about slaying oversized rodents or toothless bandits with a glowing sword or a fireball but fantasizing about romantic encounters in the same game is "weird" or perhaps a sign of desperation. That was just an observation not an accusation. Marrying/Dating characters in game or having romantic relationships never really enticed me though observing characters in romantic terms was. Maybe I'm just a pervert who likes to watch couples but I do believe romantic stories between other characters would add a nice balance to the game. It seems like it would provide a stark contrast to the murder and mayhem we'll find on our adventure. Romance between characters also provides the potential for a more sympathetic reaction from the player when one of them dies. In summary: I do not need another girlfriend, especially a demanding snake eyed virtual one, but I would like to watch a NPC's girlfriend.

Great answer AGX-17...Sounds like I missed the boat on the real impactful game design discussions though I trust you all put a good word in for me on the small, but fierce, cod pieces.

What I define as "The Flow of Continuity" (applying to cRPGs) are: The consequences of actions and the affect of events on both people and environment that sustain our suspended disbelief throughout the story. These actions and events are permanent changes to the gameplay, story outcome, environment, or any combination of those 3. When you look at leveling up in skill, receiving better weapons/armor, or learning new spells you see that these are all vehicles to show progression through a story. These work on the micro level (say the protaganist) which help facilitate the sale that the character is getting stronger and will eventually solve the macro level problem (say the antagonist). A lot of times you will grow in strength, power, intellect, etc. and the world around you (people, direction of story, environment) remains relatively unchanged throughout the game. When you finish a game then you may see (i.e. via cut scene) the ramifications of your decisions and a lot of times these decisions are really just the decision to defeat the antagonist (generally regardless of if you were a warrior, a politican, a "good" person, or a "bad" person while you did it). What would help a game-world's story are actions that have consequences (ranging in severity) and events that have permanent, lasting affects (also ranging in severity). These actions and events are affected by the path of the character and happen over the course of the game as opposed to just being seen in end game cut scenes. These actions and events can be immediate or accomplished over a set duration of time. ACTIONS: These happenings can be triggered by a single action or triggered by multiple actions. In the multiple action option the end consequence is still being decided until the final triggering action is chosen then based on which actions were chosen together the attending consequence is levied. EVENTS: These happenings can be triggered by actions or by cataclysmic events. In summary, a lot of emphasis is put on the micro level (the character) to make them feel special, unique, or at least more competent at the end of the game. A lot more emphasis should be put on the macro level (the game world) and how the micro level (the character) is directly / indirectly affecting it.

I like what everyone is saying about making communication carry more weight in the game world. During Elder Scrolls Online Beta testing I am not sure I fully read one quest nor cared (and most of the time didn't know) who I was ultimately benefiting in completing said quest. However, I did know where to go due to magically appearing map markers. I wish I cared about the questing system (another conversation) but thankfully the map automatically marked where I needed to go or I wouldn't have had the foggiest. I believe if the quests are engaging then the player will care to read and find out where to go. I want that also but, hell, if I had a tough day at work, drank a bottle of wine, or just can't think straight *I* might want a map marker at that point in time. I am not sure why a toggle to turn map markers off / on is such a big (or bad) deal. Also, having a journal that auto-updates the necessary gist of info you need while offering a basic text editor (that saves user inputted notes pertinent to that quest) would speak to a vast majority of gamer's playing style.