No dumb memes

[Dwarfare]

Humorous references are fine with me, so long as they are actually funny, none too overt and not destroying immersion. Icewind Dale II did a terrific job of this in the palisade camp of the prologue, referencing most of their other games (The poor fool they sent in after the wolf in the scrimshander's shop, the barn full of rats, trying to steal the illusion's equipment and being very disappointed when it vanishes) and tropes of the fantasy genre at the time (The thought of the random dead cat that you carry around for days solely because you think that a dead cat's corpse might be the key to some mystery because it exists will always have me grinning).

 

Some good referential humor could be a tremendous (okay, maybe not tremendous) boon to the game, but I think only so long as they keep it within the genre and not referencing stupid dances or the death star, the latter of which I highly doubt will occur.

[Brother Pain]

Memes have no places in game such as this. There were no pop-culture references in Torment for a reason.

 

One of the ones I mentioned was from Planescape: Torment and it had plenty more. "I'm the head of Vecna!" for one.

[YourVoiceisAmbrosia]

Memes are getting pretty obnoxious now. If you spam and repeat something even vaguely funny over and over again, it stops being funny and becomes annoying. The only difference is, the people repeating them often don't even know why they were funny to begin with-- they're just doing it because everyone else does.

[SophosTheWise]

I agree that keeping memes and the like subtle is a good idea, but keeping them completely out of the game? Nah, I trust the writing and world building skills of Obsidian enough to have them in without it becoming too much.

 

The question really is:

 

Can you do a medieval meme? :D

 

Yes.

 

[anubite]

Borderlands 2 was praised for its writing though. C'mon guys. Can't we have just one minecraft meme? Or how about one reaction image meme? Nobody will notice! Well, some will, and they'll laugh. Totally worth it.

[PsychoBlonde]

DA:O for example had a more serious tone and as such there really weren't any of these things, at least not that I noticed.

 

Are you KIDDING me?

 

In Lothering after the fight with Loghain's men, you can walk straight up to the bartender and say "Sorry about the mess . . ."

There was an (extremely) rare random encounter in the overworld map where you could find "The One Ring".

There was also one involving an axe stuck in a stump that could not be removed.

When trying to talk to a merchant about Sten's sword, if Sten would present you could turn to him and say "Rip his arms off"

 

There were at least a dozen movie and book references, if not substantially more.

 

I'm all for references. Granted, the degree of subtlety kind of depends on what you're doing at the time.

[Osvir]

Nor should dumb mimes be imprisoned in invisible cages.

 

Haha Planescape: Torment? I thought it hilarious :D

 

In Penny Arcade 2 I think you've got a long quest (AFAIR) in search for an invisible key.

 

In both of these cases the cages had deeper meaning, and were like a real wall/cage and not just some imaginative theatrics.

 

EDIT:

@PsychoBlonde: There is also the Superman meteorite, random area.

Edited November 10, 2012 by Osvir

[Sacred_Path]

In Lothering after the fight with Loghain's men, you can walk straight up to the bartender and say "Sorry about the mess . . ."

There was an (extremely) rare random encounter in the overworld map where you could find "The One Ring".

There was also one involving an axe stuck in a stump that could not be removed.

When trying to talk to a merchant about Sten's sword, if Sten would present you could turn to him and say "Rip his arms off"

 

I don't get any of these (except the ring one). But then I'm livng in backwards post-communist Europe

[Tamerlane]

Didn't DAO also have Lord Foreshadow show up at some point?

In Lothering after the fight with Loghain's men, you can walk straight up to the bartender and say "Sorry about the mess . . ."

There was an (extremely) rare random encounter in the overworld map where you could find "The One Ring".

There was also one involving an axe stuck in a stump that could not be removed.

When trying to talk to a merchant about Sten's sword, if Sten would present you could turn to him and say "Rip his arms off"

 

I don't get any of these (except the ring one). But then I'm livng in backwards post-communist Europe

"Sorry about the mess" is a line from the first Star Wars movie, said by Han Solo after shooting a man in a bar. I don't specifically recall it, but I'd imagine the last one is also a Han Solo line.

[Ignatius]

FO: NV is allowed a few zaniness since the FO series has always been a bit quirky/light with the heavy dark post-apoc, this game however, I don't even know how you imagine a gangam dance would make it's way in unless the team had spent 18 months sniffing glue.

[Sacred_Path]

"Sorry about the mess" is a line from the first Star Wars movie, said by Han Solo after shooting a man in a bar. I don't specifically recall it, but I'd imagine the last one is also a Han Solo line.

 

Ah. I need something a bit more obvious. Like this:

 

A wild Derpdragon appears! Your mom's a derpdragon. Is this real life?

"Come on bro, I've got tiger blood!", you shout. Our princess is in another castle because youre doin it rong.

 

Derpdragon hits you in the ass and leg o god its heavan. You kill it with fire. It's super effective! #Winning.

 

A princess appears, but how is babby formed? Buttsecks because she cannot into contraception. Raep time.

[Tale]

lol u tk him 2da bar|?

 

 

Memes are a fast evolving element of internet culture. Even the ones that don't get overused and tired quickly will become dated nontheless. And the third wall breaking is somewhat needless. I view using them similar to booger jokes, cheap attempts at a laugh from those with poorly developed humor. That criticism goes for jokes about airline peanuts, as well.

 

I'm not opposed to all references, mind you. But I do ask for discrimination in taste.

[anubite]

The only references I'd like to see would be to other IE games, but they'd have to be pretty indirect/sneaky references, given that Obsidian doesn't own the rights to do any direct references (like Drizzt showing up and asking for his stuff again or something ).

 

Given Brian Fargo's niceties, maybe we could have a Wasteland I or Wasteland II direct reference hidden in the game though.

Edited November 10, 2012 by anubite

[Sacred_Path]

Memes are a fast evolving element of internet culture. Even the ones that don't get overused and tired quickly will become dated nontheless.

 

But all aspects of the game do age. Graphics, sound, combat mechanics, quest design, even the story (unless it's totally original and never gets copied). That can be charming or at least a non-issue. Now the 4th wall is a different issue, it comes down to personal taste I guess.

 

I find it hard to play the old Ultimas just for the fact that the world is so unoriginal. Back then, that probably was less of an issue.

Edited November 10, 2012 by Sacred_Path

[Tale]

Memes are a fast evolving element of internet culture. Even the ones that don't get overused and tired quickly will become dated nontheless.

 

But all aspects of the game do age. Graphics, sound, combat mechanics, quest design, even the story (unless it's totally original and never gets copied). That can be charming or at least a non-issue. Now the 4th wall is a different issue, it comes down to personal taste I guess.

There's a difference between becoming dated and aging.

 

The Alien movies have aged. Max Headroom is dated.

[Sacred_Path]

The Alien movies have aged. Max Headroom is dated.

 

After Ripley, the lone tough alien/ zombie/ whatever fighting chick has become a trope I'd say. Kind of annoying when I watch it now. And internet memes don't have the longevity of some pop culture stuff like a line from Star Wars. They're not traded down to the 'next generation' and therefore they probably don't get that it's a meme, so no harm done.

[LadyCrimson]

The occasional pop culture reference as humor/homage/easter egg is fine. Too many and it becomes intrusive. Unless, of course, utter silliness is one of the points of the game (Borderlands, Death Spank).

 

I tend to prefer references in a game that refer more to the game's genre history, however, more than actual "real world" pop references. eg, easter egg reference to another IE game or rpg's in general, vs. a reference to Monty Python's spam sketch or Star Wars meme.

[TrashMan]

I'm all for references. Granted, the degree of subtlety kind of depends on what you're doing at the time.

 

If they require a special action to "unlock" then there is no need for subtlelty.

 

In all the mods/campaigns I made for variosu games I almost always put it in hidden easter eggs and jokes that can be "unlocked" to show. This turns the game into a comedy show and it's worth anothe playtrough alone

 

 

For example, for FS2 I made a very serious campaign with such things as:

- the Vorpal Bunny fighter that can only be killed with the Holy Meson Missile of Antionch III

- the GTVA Gigant(d)ick with is literally shaped like a giant, floating pecker.

- Ludicrus Speed

- ET calling home during a mission in which you are monitoring communications

- modem dialing sounds when establishing a sattelite upling. Foghor in the nebula

- "Captain, a plot hope is opening on our stern!"

etc, etc...

[Jotra]

How well memes work completely depends on the overall atmosphere. In games like Fallout(s) or Borderlands which are basically comedy you can throw in lots memes and they fit in fine. On the other hand in PS:Torment a Gangnam style dance off would have been pretty out of place(yes I know Gangnam style didn't even exist back then...)

[TrashMan]

"Sorry about the mess" is a line from the first Star Wars movie, said by Han Solo after shooting a man in a bar. I don't specifically recall it, but I'd imagine the last one is also a Han Solo line.

 

 

I hardly consider that an easter egg. That is a completely normal and expected response. Tons of character used that same line.

[TrashMan]

lol u tk him 2da bar|?

 

 

Memes are a fast evolving element of internet culture. Even the ones that don't get overused and tired quickly will become dated nontheless. And the third wall breaking is somewhat needless. I view using them similar to booger jokes, cheap attempts at a laugh from those with poorly developed humor. That criticism goes for jokes about airline peanuts, as well.

 

I'm not opposed to all references, mind you. But I do ask for discrimination in taste.

 

 

Plenty of memes age well. There is also an "Asceneded Meme" - a meme that persists. Like Chuck Norris jokes.

 

And if you go and say "but I dont' find it funny". Well, millions of others do. Too bad for you. And "old" joke to you is fresh and new to someone else.

[Brother Pain]

Another one from Dragon Age: Origins: The city of Lothering. L O the Ring or Lord Of The Ring.

 

These are exactly the type of memes I do want in the game. If you don't know them you never will, if you do, you might have a light chuckle or a even a hearty belly laugh over them.

 

That said, as long as they're not constantly referenced, I don't mind the silly ones either, be they Monty Python jokes or completely over used memes like arrows in knees or cakes being a lie.

[Hormalakh]

Who's Chuck Norris?

[Corvus Metus]

A (computer) role-playing game with absolutely no pop culture references is one that I don't want to play.

 

Not really, but they've been in the genre for ages. As mentioned, Baldur's Gate made the "Larry, Darryl, and Darryl" reference. In Icewind Dale II, there was a wardrobe which according to the hover text, bore the image of a witch and a lion. I'm pretty even Planescape: Torment (a game labelled "Serious Business" by its fanbase - unaware that most of the themes and "anti-cliches" are very part of the Planescape setting) made reference to the Head of Vecna.

 

Hell, even Warhammer 40k, which more or less named the "grimdark" trope is itself a reference to various other science-fiction and fantasy stories. People who take this stuff to seriously forget that at the end of the day this stuff is all about nerding it up.

[Death Machine Miyagi]

Other memes from BG2: The Umar Witch Project in Umar Hills. The second game was being made at right about the time the Blair WItch Project became such a surprise success.

 

This, I think, would be an example of cultural reference that isn't too obnoxious, mostly because its written in-universe style without a fourth wall break to be found...though still very, very tongue in cheek.

Edited November 11, 2012 by Death Machine Miyagi