DarkSign
Erudite
Should there be a heavy handed regulation for such times when gaming and metagaming become blurred? Or should it be a free for all fest?
Well our game is attacking this from several points. I think Human Shield said it correctly:
Make "real" infomation from inside the game mean something. Secret info would an in-game item that could give bonuses to attack....Also add alot of flux to the game so info on boards is always outdated
In our p-a game its going to be about hacking, spying, and bribing for info. Not just from players but from NPC groups. Vital commodities like technological information, natural resources, and troop/police movements will be random enough so as to be surprising...and plugged into our dynamic system enough that they can be had.
This also means that missions and quests should have multiple ways of completing them much like console games do. When you have a stealth option, a run-and-gun option, and a "wiseguy"/speech option for completing the same mission, players are more apt to roleplay than when you have a simple FedEx quest that is done the same way 9000 times.
What do you feel could be done to bring actual roleplaying into MMORPGs, or how to make it have a more pronounced role? Or are you of the opinion that in computer RPGs this is largely impossible and each game should have its own self-regulation methods?
Well one way is to give players a skill-driven system with roleplay ability. In our game for example, characters can start roleplaying their character by using say a pistol instead of a big gun. Thats a start, but it goes further. At different % levels, players will get to choose feats (yes i was a PnP geek) that help them roleplay. Say you're at 45% - choose between akimbo pistols or improved grip. If you're playing a wild cowboy type youd choose akimbo pistols - wild but damaging. If youre the cold, tactical character, youd choose improved grip. See how the skill choices themselves aid the roleplaying?
Another is to have a faction system that really means something. So your guild has 3 people that have pked one town to death? Not only will the NPCs not sell to you, they actually cringe when you come near. But such influence might not extend two towns away where they havent heard from you.
Still another is making the use of emotes actually useful! Emotes should be clues to the shading of meaning. If you're balling up your fist while you are asking for money from an NPC it should have a different meaning than if you are on your knees. Actually performing this manual dexderity feat might not be easy..but that should be worked on.
"who wouldn't want to roleplay in an RPG?" is an excellent question. I think most people dont do things that take extra energy. Its late. Youve had a hard day...why should you have to speak in "thee"'s and "thou"'s? (fortunately in PA we dont have to worry about that) But I think what you do is create opportunities for roleplaying when the user feels like it...and give them a carrot to guide them. For example. Let's say you you see your local arms merchant NPC at a bar...not at his store. If you buy him a beer he might give you a better deal next time you see him! See there...youve taken a roleplay action and given it a real use. (I wont go into my whole NPCs with goals and realistic schedules schpeel)
And what about the methods of interacting with NPCs? The game Fascade has shown that natural language parsing can be done and it can be done reasonably well. The more freedom you are given to roleplay your character, the more of chance you will do it. Vampire:bloodlines type emotional indicators arent bad either.
OK. Ive rambled on enough. Good thread here. But Ive fixed all these problems [/quote]