Small suggestions. Easily implemented ideas, quickfire thoughts.

[JFSOCC]

Figured most of us have some ideas that don't need five page discussions but which you would still like to share.. (and if not then just let this thread die a quiet death)

 

I'll start:

I'd like to be able to name weapons I've crafted.

[Tamerlane]

Customizable grid-style hotkeys. Bonus points if you can change which set of hotkeys you're using with a single keystroke.

 

That'd be pretty baller.

[Lephys]

Figured most of us have some ideas that don't need five page discussions but which you would still like to share..

 

You're right... better make it 6, minimum. u_u

 

. But, for reallies, cross-class ability combos would be nice. I mean, if that were worked in pretty well throughout the combat system. I'm talking synchronized ability usages (from 2 or more characters at once) that create different/more potent effects. Not "You put a shield on me whilst I charged the crazy dragon and absorbed a bunch of damage."

 

Also, magic dual-wielding, as a means to access a different style of combat-casting, and not as a means to simply double your delightment with the right mint.

[AGX-17]

Figured most of us have some ideas that don't need five page discussions but which you would still like to share..

 

You're right... better make it 6, minimum. u_u

 

. But, for reallies, cross-class ability combos would be nice. I mean, if that were worked in pretty well throughout the combat system. I'm talking synchronized ability usages (from 2 or more characters at once) that create different/more potent effects. Not "You put a shield on me whilst I charged the crazy dragon and absorbed a bunch of damage."

 

Also, magic dual-wielding, as a means to access a different style of combat-casting, and not as a means to simply double your delightment with the right mint.

 

I like the idea, it was done in DA2 and not well, I'd like to see a more dynamic concept. Not quite on the level of dual/triple techs in Chrono Trigger, but more than just spells/skills that cause a brief status effect "window" that can only be exploited by one or two specific skills used by a specific class like in DA2 (another problem with that game: forcing you to take the "correct" party class composition in order to be able to succeed in combat rather than the characters you like.)

 

And the mechanic of combining different elemental spells for new and novel crossover spells was a lot of fun in Magicka, though I doubt they'll be going that route with P:E.

Edited January 12, 2013 by AGX-17

[GhoulishVisage]

I've mentioned it before, but I think that a butler who acts as your Alfred Pennyworth for the stronghold would be pretty cool.

He'll likely hang out in the entrance and give you the low-down every time you come to visit.

A dry and sardonic sense of humor would be a bonus.

 

 

Also, I prefer Sagani's design with the facepaint across her eyes than without, and I hope it's implemented in the final look of the character.

 

 

I was thinking about mentioning it in a topic about character designs (which I still might do) but I thought I'd post it here in any case.

Edited January 13, 2013 by GhoulishVisage

[Lephys]

I like the idea, it was done in DA2 and not well, I'd like to see a more dynamic concept. Not quite on the level of dual/triple techs in Chrono Trigger, but more than just spells/skills that cause a brief status effect "window" that can only be exploited by one or two specific skills used by a specific class like in DA2 (another problem with that game: forcing you to take the "correct" party class composition in order to be able to succeed in combat rather than the characters you like.)

 

Indeed. Ahhh, Chrono Trigger, 8D. Too tailored to turn-based RPG combat, though... you're right.

 

The funny thing with DA2 is that, as horribly as it was done in that game, almost the exact same concept was used in Mass Effect 2 and 3. And, especially in 3, it actually worked very well. You might have Garrus use Concussive Shot on an enemy against whom it isn't really very effective (won't hurt them too badly, and won't knock them down because of a shield or armor, etc.) in order to detonate a Warp field or an electric field from Overload. The combo might be extremely effective in that particular situation, damaging and knocking down a cluster of 5 or 6 nearby enemies or draining their shields, whereas simply using each ability as individually effectively as possible would only help you against 2 foes.

 

Personally, I like the whole Mass Effect series, but I think that worked really well for squad/party-based combat. I mentioned in another thread that playing 2 on Insanity difficulty was... well, insane. Even though 2 wasn't bad, the combos in combat was done the best in 3, methinks. And in 3, Insanity difficulty was a lot... not really easier, but, I felt like I actually had versatility in my options for adapting to different enemies and scenarios. I just think it worked really, really well.

 

Not that it's the only sad thing about DA2 (by any means), but it's sad that it wasn't done better in that game.

 

And the mechanic of combining different elemental spells for new and novel crossover spells was a lot of fun in Magicka, though I doubt they'll be going that route with P:E.

 

Yeah. It gets toyed with an awful lot, like in Fable and Skyrim. I've sadly never played a game in which it was actually done very well, but I've always loved the idea (I'm a Mage at heart). I might have to check out Magicka. We'll call it "research."

 

I love taking a big syringe and injecting game mechanics (especially ones that are done almost the exact same way for about 10 years) with 500CCs of dynamics.

Edited January 12, 2013 by Lephys

[Risen]

customizable interface... and tools for modding of course

[AGX-17]

Yeah. It gets toyed with an awful lot, like in Fable and Skyrim. I've sadly never played a game in which it was actually done very well, but I've always loved the idea (I'm a Mage at heart). I might have to check out Magicka. We'll call it "research."

 

I love taking a big syringe and injecting game mechanics (especially ones that are done almost the exact same way for about 10 years) with 500CCs of dynamics.

 

In Skyrim? No, they just let you equip one spell in one hand and another in the other hand, each spell did its singularly listed effect, there was no crossover or combined benefit outside of dual-casting a single specific spell for a slight bonus in exchange for dramatically increased mana consumption (magic is really bad in vanilla Skyrim.) Nothing like Magicka, which has individual hotkeys for each given element, of which there are many more than Skyrim's standard 3 and various ways of distributing the elements selected. It's rather complex, so it'd be better to watch videos or actually get the game (which plays sort of like a middle ground between an action RPG and a DotA-like.)

 

The idea of crossing elements has been done pretty well in other games, like Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, where the protagonist (who is uniquely a mage and a female,) equips a spell "glyph" in each hand (this game was released before skyrim,) and can do a sort of super spell attack that combines both hands' spells. If they're incompatible it'll just be sort of a sonic/air pressure blast that does slightly more damage than the equipped glyphs, but if you combine the same elements they'll (obviously,) do an enhanced spell of that element (i.e. two fire glyphs will result in a big flamethrower type spell that does extremely high DPS,) and if you combine two opposing elements they'll have a sort of matter/anti-matter type effect where the result is more powerful than two glyphs of the same element.

The most obvious instance is that the strongest spell in the game is performed by equipping a light glyph and a dark glyph and using them together, which makes a huge fullscreen cosmic-looking explosion that deals the highest damage in the game, and with all of these crossed element type spells, the damage dealt to any given enemy is variable, so if you use the light/dark one, and there's an enemy weak to dark but immune to light and an enemy immune to dark but weak to light on the screen, the damage inflicted to each will be what they're weak to.

 

There are also physical weapon glyphs that do slashing or blunt damage, which can be combined with another of the same phsyical type to basically do a huge version of that weapon, or combined with an element to apply that element to the weapon as well as doing much more base damage. i.e. If you equip a slashing weapon and a dark spell, the effect will be a big bloody scythe, light will be a bright white sparkling sword, fire will be a big flaming sword, etc.

 

 

I've mentioned it before, but I think that a butler who acts as your Alfred Pennyworth for the stronghold would be pretty cool.

He'll likely hang out in the entrance and give you the low-down every time you come to visit.

A dry and sardonic sense of humor would be a bonus.

 

 

Also, I prefer Sagani's design with the facepaint across her eyes than without, and I hope it's implemented in the final look of the character.

 

 

I was thinking about mentioning it in a topic about character designs (which I still might do) but I thought I'd post it here in any case.

 

The art on the left is so much better than the art on the right, I can't get over it. I really hope the game looks more like that visually than the brown/sepia concept art designs.

Edited January 13, 2013 by AGX-17

[Lephys]

^ Yeah, I know the only actual combo in Skyrim was "this does a little more damage and you get a slightly different kamehameha-type animation from your hands" when you used two of the same spell (AFTER choosing a friggin' perk just for that.) It was pretty crap. That's what I meant by "toying" with the idea. They might've grazed the edge of it. I just remembered them basically suggesting (before it released) that there'd be actual new effects and possibilities with dual-wielding magic. But, it turns out, you just got twice the casting ability. Go figure...

 

Fable II and III, I believe (didn't play the original much at all), had the dual-casting thing, but it was still very, very basic. What I will give to Fable is that you basically didn't really have specific spells, you had certain elements/magic types (Like fire, lightning, wind, etc.). I know the controls and targeting were different (console 3rd-person stick-movement and aiming), but, still... If you simply cast a spell with fire equipped, it was an AOE spell. No-direction meant, essentially, all direction. You got a radius emanating from your character. Even while holding down the cast (which would slowly charge up the spell to one of... 5 different tiers of power?), you could press a direction to target, and the spell would become a projectile/single-target spell. Once you let go of the cast button, you'd cast, based upon whether you were targeting a specific enemy in a specific direction, or not.

 

I can't remember which game had exactly what specifics, but I know in 3 you could put a different element (they were gloves) on each hand, and cast them together. But, again, this was "toying" with the idea. They literally just combined the spells and spell effects. In fact, some of them didn't even really change. One was Ice Storm, and its AOE was an AOE storm of ice shards around you. But then, if you single-targeted it, you fired a projectile... which, upon striking something, created an AOE ice storm. *facepalm*

 

So, yeah, about the only thing I can commend them for is that the sense of progression with your spells was pretty cool (even though the variety was terribly lacking, and the progression pacing was way off.) You could tell a very clear difference toward the end of the game when you could charge your spell to the 5th tier (and basically annihilate the crap out of stuff) in about 10 seconds, as opposed to the approximately 60 seconds it would take when you started. Again, it was just the exact same spell, but more potent, BUT, at least this provided you with A) a sense of progression with the same abilities (rather than just acquiring new, more potent abilities that made the old ones obsolete) and B) versatility in the usage of the spell. You might not want to spend 10 seconds charging it to max if you just need to get a few enemies off of you with some lightning real quick so that you can reposition and cast again from a safer spot.

 

I think just the feeling of manipulating the cast is better, in some ways, than just a set of pre-defined, static spells. They tend to make playing a caster feel more like operating a rocket-launcher. "When I set up and aim, and push this button, this fires an extremely deadly rocket." Being able to create 3 rockets, or make them move more quickly, or changing the effect of their detonation, etc... that feels like an actual ability, rather than a device or weapon you happen to be wielding.

 

Also, I never got to play Order of Ecclesia. I wanted to. I think that was on DS? I played Aria of Sorrow, which was awesome, but didn't have any cool glyph-combo systems in it. That sounds pretty amazing, really.

[Hormalakh]

Stores that allow you to change the color of your armor/weapons. It would cost money to "dye" the equipment, but you could do it if you wanted.

 

-mouse wheel usability

 

-hot keys

[TRX850]

A "quick load" function.

 

True min-maxable stats, rather than hardcoded minimums at character creation.

 

And a Character Builder in the toolset, similar to this NWN2 online app http://nwn2db.com/builder.php because at some point, you want to pre-test builds before you play them.

 

Ooh! Ooh! And dynamic lighting for those truly dark places we love to explore. So someone has to carry a torch or cast a light spell etc.

Edited January 13, 2013 by TRX850

[Hormalakh]

An easy-to-use portrait tool/method to allow players to import images quickly and easily.

 

Similarly with voices, sounds, and other character customization options. Make it easy to add-on these customization options later when modders develop them (or as DLC if OEI wants to).

Edited January 13, 2013 by Hormalakh

[Tamerlane]

Clear spell AoEs. I know a lot of people here are mixed on DAO, but that was one thing it got very right: not only did you know where the spell was going to land (see also: NWN2, the new Xcom), but you knew exactly what you were going to hit, provided none of your targets moved. None of that "oh, yeah, dude was 1/3 inside the blast radius, but his hitbox is actually 2/5 of the way into his body" bull****, y'know?

[TRX850]

Clear spell AoEs. I know a lot of people here are mixed on DAO, but that was one thing it got very right: not only did you know where the spell was going to land (see also: NWN2, the new Xcom), but you knew exactly what you were going to hit, provided none of your targets moved. None of that "oh, yeah, dude was 1/3 inside the blast radius, but his hitbox is actually 2/5 of the way into his body" bull****, y'know?

 

Some suggestions were made in the Spellcasting thread about this, because it does aggro a lot of players. It should also work for grenade-like and thrown weapons like flaming oil etc.

[TRX850]

More variation in dungeon and landscape topology to eliminate some of the "flat" areas that have a slightly artificial look to them. Because trees and vines etc can grow up (or down) through stonework structures and cause all sorts of irregularities in the same way as subsidence.

 

And in wilderness areas especially, the landscape could do with less flat areas. It's different in cities where there are man-made flat(-ish) landscapes. Out in the open, centuries of weather and erosion would have roughed up an already rough terrain. And I don't mean simple bump maps, but actual modelled roughage with proxy mesh that means characters walk over or around certain parts differently.

Edited January 13, 2013 by TRX850

[Pshaw]

Perks akin to those in Fallout. Meaning plenty of bonuses to skills but also fun quirky ones.

[TRX850]

Weather effects.

 

I absolutely love exploring wilderness areas when it's overcast and raining. Even to the point where it somehow seems "wrong" when the rain stops and the sun comes out.

[Kaz]

Ability to capture/store a custom formation after manually arranging your characters would be nice.

[TRX850]

Tabards.

 

For the discerning medieval gentleman.

[Lephys]

Cloaks, potentially with hoods.

 

They can possess magical attributes, provide pleasant character aesthetic choices, conceal your equipment to various degrees (affecting bluff, to a degree... Bandits try to rob you point-blank because they don't see that dragon-scale armor you're wearing until it's too late), affect your reputation with various characters/parties/factions (somewhat like the "uniforms" in Fallout, NV), support various levels of identifiableness (identifiability?) within a sort of incognito system (within the stealth system, sort of?), AND...

 

They can ward off the rain if they're regularly oiled and maintained, u_u...

[tychokepler]

The ability to get drunk in taverns.

While your party watches.

And some of them join in.

[JFSOCC]

tavern brawls.

[Oerwinde]

Tabards.

 

For the discerning medieval gentleman.

 

With the ability to import your own coats of arms for them and customize colors/patterns

[IndiraLightfoot]

I'd love to see more "random table" encounters while exploring larger areas, whether outdoors or some subterranean cave complex. And when the baddies do come at you, I'd like to see randomized variations in their height, width, strength, equipment, led by a leader, or two, or many other interesting combos, small variations in clothing, hairs, colour, etc, it would make everything seem so much more varied.

 

And a new take on "shops" and ambulatory salesmen. I just think they are too common, too well-stocked, open all-hours and for some reason I can dump all meaningless rusty swords at the tavern innkeeper over and over again! :D I want shopping that make a bit more sense, that is more restricted and varied.

 

Finally, avoid at all cost the so-called "junk loot" effect. I don't know how, but make it work!

[TheTeaMustFlow]

The Chapeau of Magnetic Inversion. That item alone made Arcanum awesome. See also: elephant guns, enchanted monocles.