Storybricks will be posting the video from the Game AI conference on You Tube sometime this week according to a Tweet last night. Hopefully it will be interesting.
EQ Never
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Convo
Ahn'Qiraj Raider
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I watched it live and it was disappointing to be honest, They could not show any actual footage so it was mostly slideshows. They had a Knight who wanted to "Gain fame" and they had a dragon who likes to eat Famous People. He clicked the "Gain Fame" button a few times then the dragon killed him. Again this was all in Text, Like a mud so it looked nothing like the AI Ponytail teased.
I'm sure it looks silly with just two NPCs but if you make a world with 10,000 NPCS all with there own motives then it may be interesting.
Also, to touch back on the AI system, Do you think it would be cool if NPCs could spawn with Variants? Like one in a hundred orcs spawn with different traits than normal orcs. Instead of liking gold he likes to kill Rangers so he wanders around looking for some.
Yeah man, didn't ya know. Food & Drink, Encumbrance, Item upkeep...scary stuffs!
I'd be all for that, variation/randomness are good. I'd like to see all named bosses be unique, so when you kill that dragon, the lair is empty until another Boss moves in, (Dragon, Orc King and tribe, Horde of Kobolds), but I don't think we'll see that for another decade the way MMO's are going. Plus, the nerd tears would flow in raging torrents over unique mobs.
Originally, They said you will never kill the same mob twice and that the raid scene will be nothing like normal MMOs. When I sat down with Georgeson he said that they want to do away with the weekly repeated raid groups to farm content till you get bored.
I truthfully don't know how they can do that and keep the amount of content to keep high end raiders happy. I hope they are not relying on the whole landmark building style to keep players interested because people can go to Landmark for that.
I would like raids to be ties to some sort of auto generated events, like those world quests they talked about. When the event is finished the raid stops spawning.
Daidraco
Avatar of War Slayer
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That dumb shit doesnt add anything to the actual difficulty of a game and is just an annoyance set there for a specific reason by the Devs. Weight limits keep you from hoarding every item you ever encounter, and also control the amount of incoming moniez a player can gain from an area within a certain time frame. While still letting an area have uncommon drops that add to the atmosphere of the area. Item Upkeep is a moniez sink that adds no real "Wow, that makes the game feel so real now!" Derp. Having to keep food and drink in your bags made sure that you visited your closest merchant within a certain time frame and it would often encourage you to visit your home city, pick up food, sell your wares to people etc. Im sure a developer can come up with a better reason for the players to visit trade hubs in a game outside of tedium and stupidity.
The shit DOES NOT add to realism.
I just took it in that they were going to try having raid mobs be random encounters. Sort of how WoW took away the whole camping a mob mentality, they were going to do that to Raid mobs. So, on average, your casual player would only ever see a Raid Encounter every once in a while. I am very skeptical about this, because this could be done very badly. Ie. an excuse not to have huge zones dedicated to just raiding.
Lithose
Buzzfeed Editor
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It doesn't add anything to realism in the scope of current MMO's, no. You actually need to design a gamearoundthose elements for them to be functional and engaging. If traveling to a destination was dangerous; and required planning and resources, then limiting what you could collect there would be part of alargerstrategy. And part of that larger strategy, would be setting up your characters to make the journey, within the framework of the limitations put on you by encumbrance and the need for certain resources (Like food and drink.) The developers could then make that area, lets say, richer in resources--but the "risk" of travel there is much higher and requires more planning--in other words, the difficulty would come from the strategy behind movement, the journey would present it's own difficulty, NOT just the destination.
A primitive example, you could say, would be Oregon Trail (Or Rogue likes that require resources and time to move; or slowly drain over time, like FTL)--part of what would make the game fun, is the strategy involved in theactual journey. NOT just what happens at the destination. This would absolutely not work in any modern MMO; because most modern MMO's are based purely around action at the destination--or, to use Oregon trail again, they've taken out the strategy portion and just let players gorge themselves on the hunting portion (Which, lets be fair, it's what most of us played anyway.) But that doesn't mean the strategy portion wasn't fun for a lot of us; and with the rise of Rogue Likes, where long term movement is becoming important again, and resource usage/stats provide a good strategic meta-game, I think thise kind of play is making a resurgence.
In any case, taking a larger view, you can see from games like the new Xcom--thestrategyportion of games was declared dead long before it's time. Planning, resource development, preparation--these can all be engaging and fun elements in a strategic sense. And if you design a game AROUND that, like say the Total War series does, or Xcom did, then I think you can have "action" and "strategy" elements in the same game. How would this work for MMO's? I'm not sure; it certainly wouldn't look like any MMO we've seen thus far. Developers would need to find a way to "abstract" things like travel and time better, so that journeys can have risk, and rewards for planning, preparation and supplies--without forcing the player to waste tons of time. I think it's totally possible, but just not in the current realm of what we are used to in our MMO's.
However, I don't think, at all, that such long term strategy "stuff" should be discounted. There are tons of equipment and weather mods in Skyrim that do ADD a lot to realism; and while some consider it "tedium", others LIKE that kind of play. Disregarding anything that asks you to plan, and think as "tedium" is just another way gamers often discount aspects of play they don'tpersonallylike. Which is fair for them--but don't assume we all feel that way. The "tedium" empire management, or team managment in games like Xcom, is the funnest part of the game for me. I'd absolutely love a game where I had to PLAN a journey somewhere, and prepare with food and water--and then am rewarded at my destination by having a new, open and fertile hunting ground (With exotic loot that will sell really well "back home"). That shit would get meROCK HARD. (And apparently, a huge portion of EVE plays just to haul shit like this around, they literally play for the strategy element of moving things).
Your taste may be different, and fair enough. I too, don't think we have the tech to quite pull off what I described above. But I ALSO think, if done correctly, it could really add to "realism" and, more importantly, enjoyment of the game--especiallyin a strategic sense. (Again again, this is all dependent on if this could be abstracted well enough. There is no current game where this model could even come close to working, so it's hard to imagine.)
Lenas
Trump's Staff
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You're right, I bet the whole voxel system is probably just a plugin they load when the engine starts and they call it a day. They probably don't have any new problems to solve and the technical issues are exactly the same.
Of course it doesn't add realism; it's a game with dragons, realism isn't a huge priority here. However, one players tedium and stupidity, is another players idea of fun. Odd as it sound, I actually like having to juggle inventory, worry about my food and drink, and other aspects of character management. Of your points, I can't see one as a negative.
Siliconemelons
Naxxramas 1.0 Raider
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It being a modded landmark makes sense, as it really is. EQN and EQL are the same thing- EQN is just "Their vision (tm) and game made with EQL" as EQL is the landmark to make content etc... eventually we should see that we will have "rpgmaker over 9000!" in EQL
Very much excited.
Agreed on this point. Things like food/water need/inventory management and travel all appeal to me and I think its starting to appeal to more and more people now as well.
Games like DayZ, Rust and H1Z1 are very popular or hyped along with POE and Darksouls and a million more "harder" games.
Hell, even Wildstar is supposed to be a "hard Mmo" I think with the collapse of swtor/ESO we really came full circle and making a game that doesn't cater to the lowest common denominator isn't career suicide anymore.
I'm not some Old Eq fanboy and I know that we can't expect that anymore and we should all realize that. But, if I can play a game where I can log in and choose from 100 random things to do from quests to camps to raids to reading in game lore books I'd be happy.
Quaid
Trump's Staff
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Food & drink mechanics, for the most part, are wasted IMO.
If I were designing an MMO, 'rest' would be tied to socialization. Being 'well fed' would be a buff (many different buffs for different meals) that you could only get from eating a 'hot meal'. You could only obtain these at Inns/restaurants. Players would use the facilities in these inns (stoves etc) to produce meals. You would have to speak to the players there to get them to make them for you. The meal despawns from your inventory if you try to take it from the inn. If no PC cook is present, there would be NPC chefs/innkeeps you could buy basic meals from, but the best buffs would come from player crafters. Consuming the meal would take time (2-3 minutes, you can move around if you wish) and the buff would last a significant amount of time (6 hours /played).
If I were designing an MMO, 'rest' would be tied to socialization. Being 'well fed' would be a buff (many different buffs for different meals) that you could only get from eating a 'hot meal'. You could only obtain these at Inns/restaurants. Players would use the facilities in these inns (stoves etc) to produce meals. You would have to speak to the players there to get them to make them for you. The meal despawns from your inventory if you try to take it from the inn. If no PC cook is present, there would be NPC chefs/innkeeps you could buy basic meals from, but the best buffs would come from player crafters. Consuming the meal would take time (2-3 minutes, you can move around if you wish) and the buff would last a significant amount of time (6 hours /played).
Kind of like a more Role playery version of WoW's rested experience. I would love Taverns to be spread around the world or even being able to be player owned and built. Inside the Tavern you can eat food prepared by NPCs(normal) or maybe prepared by the player owner( higher quality) you can buy/sell to the vendors there and log out there for a bonus the next day.
The Roleplayers would go nuts over the ability to run a functioning Inn, They could give your building 100 Talent trees they can buy with XP or gold or SC.
*Add Rooms
*Add NPCs
*Add certain stock to NPCS
*Increase "rest bonus" when players rest there
*Flight Point
*NPC Vendor that sells Players wares/Auction House.
*Player made Quest boards.
Plus the million and a half Landmark style props you can use to decorate it.
Would be a cool playstyle for players who don't like to raid/pve and since there are 40 classes they could easily make an innkeep class and give him some noncombat buffs or RP stuff.
Sorry to get off topic but that stuff could easily be programmed already in Next, and it would suck up TONS of hours for certain types of players while not cheapening end game content. This is the kind of fluff Next needs to be dominate.
Quaid
Trump's Staff
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The possibilities to expand that system are endless.
You could build a music composition system in game. Allow you to play player-made music in you inn. Players could sell their tunes on player studio and SOE could monetize them.
Mr. Georgeson you can make that cheque out to Quaid O'Quaid, 69 Quaid St., New Quaidia.
You could build a music composition system in game. Allow you to play player-made music in you inn. Players could sell their tunes on player studio and SOE could monetize them.
Mr. Georgeson you can make that cheque out to Quaid O'Quaid, 69 Quaid St., New Quaidia.
Siliconemelons
Naxxramas 1.0 Raider
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In PVP pull a legend of the red dragon- gatta bribe that barkeep to go in an take some people out for leet exp.
It's shit like Taverns and singing songs and stupid dance classes that make memories in these games honestly. Everyone remembers the first Trakanon kill not the 100th, But you can have tons of funny group stories over the years. It doesn't matter what people are doing it's that they are doing things together.
I would honestly give Next a lot of leeway in the raid department if they actually promoted socialization from start to finish. In current MMO's the only time you see other players are in instances or raids.
I would honestly give Next a lot of leeway in the raid department if they actually promoted socialization from start to finish. In current MMO's the only time you see other players are in instances or raids.
Inkeep pvp would be fresh, Innkeeps can hire bouncers/guards and if he is online he could probably ban people from entering. You could put up wanted posters for bounties in innkeeps for players who ganked someone and have a bounty would have to avoid popular meeting spots because they would get murdered.
Hell, a quest board would be a fantastic idea anyways. Right click the board and deposit 1,000 gold or even more interesting you can give some sort of XP from yourself to others. You give 10,000 XP points and every wolf pelt someone turns into the quest board they get a bit of that XP or gold.
10,000 XP for a max level Paladin who is looking for tailoring material is nothing, but for lowbies hunting in the area it would be welcome.
Of course EQN doesn't have "levels" per say so it would have to be some sort of other type of advancement.
zzeris
The Real Benny Johnson
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A lot of great ideas but some would be hard to implement in a large pop game. Would planning and preparing for a long trip into unknown territories be a fantastic idea? Sure, but how many modern players would do this with a realistic chance of failure? The chance of failure needed to make it viable? Is weight management a really good idea today? I think there can be better options like Quiad's idea. Give people a reason to visit town. Give people a reason to become chefs, and other artisans. Don't make copper such a common drop that you need to constantly drop it.
I really like any idea that encourages player interaction. As mentioned, we need to find ways to keep people playing besides toy acquisition. Leveling and gaining toys is such an outdated and lazy design structure now. True player development, a variety of other activities being pushed, and interactivity besides forced grouping to get toys are all steps towards moving this genre forward. We shouldn't be looking back with EQN, we should be looking forward and hopefully they are.
I really like any idea that encourages player interaction. As mentioned, we need to find ways to keep people playing besides toy acquisition. Leveling and gaining toys is such an outdated and lazy design structure now. True player development, a variety of other activities being pushed, and interactivity besides forced grouping to get toys are all steps towards moving this genre forward. We shouldn't be looking back with EQN, we should be looking forward and hopefully they are.
Daidraco
Avatar of War Slayer
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Basically, to me, if you have a mechanic that all players have to take part in (such as weight management, food and how its handled, and item repair) then it should be largely considered to beat leastof little matter to most people that they are doing it. If its fun, then great. But when a large group of people find what you're making them do is tedious, then its time to revisit the drawing board. You guys came up with great ideas that a player like myself wouldnt mind having to do and might actually find the joy that some of you do. (Im not a Miner in Eve and if I did play, I would probably never do it. Even though some people enjoy it, why would you make everyone do it. This is the kind of mentality that im trying to relate to you.)
The Weight Management made you think about what you were picking up and think about what you valued - I understand that this, to some, is enjoyable. But I think it would be more enjoyable over all if every fucking Gnoll didnt drop a Fine Steel Rapier that was worth picking up for a poor player. If, when you visited a Dungeon, the things you picked up in that dungeon were things you were actually going to USE. If you found something that was worth vendoring, then it would be worth a few hundred platinum and not 4 platinum. It would also be rare to uncommon. To me, shit worth your time shouldnt be so damn common that you have a 500 slot inventory full of shit that all sells for 2-3 gold when all the developer had to do in that dungeon was have an enchanted Bow and some Gems that are worth picking up. (example)
I can see some value in the ideas brought on by you guys about Food, however it wouldnt be enough to catch someone with my attitude. Im just not going to go to a tavern for a hot meal unless the buff is so damn good that its on the verge of being required. If you add in rested exp at an Inn, then it is required and I feel like thats bull shit. The only redeeming ideas I saw were that food buffs lasted more than 30 minutes (The 6 hours played idea) and the message board where players could put up their own quests. (The experience reward is way to easy to abuse. Its a good thought, but just being able to assign your own Gold value would be much easier for a developer, I think. Experience would have to be regulated. For Example: At the message board, search wolf pelts, click on that item ID and it would already have a predetermined amount of exp attached to it that wasnt able to be edited.
The moving forward bit sounded just like my Boss - but its true. Niche ideas, to me, sometimes spawn very awesome ideas and if it never reaches that point of being Awesome to a lot of people, then it might still be of value to have it, but dont make it required.
The Weight Management made you think about what you were picking up and think about what you valued - I understand that this, to some, is enjoyable. But I think it would be more enjoyable over all if every fucking Gnoll didnt drop a Fine Steel Rapier that was worth picking up for a poor player. If, when you visited a Dungeon, the things you picked up in that dungeon were things you were actually going to USE. If you found something that was worth vendoring, then it would be worth a few hundred platinum and not 4 platinum. It would also be rare to uncommon. To me, shit worth your time shouldnt be so damn common that you have a 500 slot inventory full of shit that all sells for 2-3 gold when all the developer had to do in that dungeon was have an enchanted Bow and some Gems that are worth picking up. (example)
I can see some value in the ideas brought on by you guys about Food, however it wouldnt be enough to catch someone with my attitude. Im just not going to go to a tavern for a hot meal unless the buff is so damn good that its on the verge of being required. If you add in rested exp at an Inn, then it is required and I feel like thats bull shit. The only redeeming ideas I saw were that food buffs lasted more than 30 minutes (The 6 hours played idea) and the message board where players could put up their own quests. (The experience reward is way to easy to abuse. Its a good thought, but just being able to assign your own Gold value would be much easier for a developer, I think. Experience would have to be regulated. For Example: At the message board, search wolf pelts, click on that item ID and it would already have a predetermined amount of exp attached to it that wasnt able to be edited.
The moving forward bit sounded just like my Boss - but its true. Niche ideas, to me, sometimes spawn very awesome ideas and if it never reaches that point of being Awesome to a lot of people, then it might still be of value to have it, but dont make it required.