Just me, or...

[D]

Why is it neccesary that seemingly eleven of every ten CRPGs has to be set in some lame, homogenised tolkien and/or AD&D world? If I see another game with even a single phrase containing "elves" or "dwarves" or "planes" or even "bastard sword +1", I'm going to eat more ears (and kidneys) than I did yesterday when somebody sitting next to me compared WoW to Fallout.

Generictastic 'omfg teh elfs and dwarves and orcs and humans lawl' RPG worlds are seriously starting to piss me off. Is it really that hard for game developers to have a tiny little bit of creativity in their worlds and actually do something different for a change?

The Fallout series, for instance. Or the Jagged Alliance and System Shock serieses. None of these worlds could be considered remotely inspired by Tolkien or AD&D, and funnily enough, they're all fucking awesome. But it seems like asking for a CRPG that doesn't involve orcs, elves, dwarves or a combonation of the three (and outside of a crappy medieval environment) is completely impossible, if the next lineup of CRPGs (most of which I will salivate at the thought of hitting the bargain bin the instant they come off the production line) is anything to go by.

Furthermore it seems like every RPG being made now seems to go on and on about having a 'big game world', yet doesn't even make these worlds quarter as full as even bethesda does.

Edit: Incidently, if anyone can suggest any RPGs that aren't based off AD&D, tolkien, or set in lame medieval worlds, please do so.

 

[Twinfalls]

http://rpgcodex.com/phpBB/viewtopic.php?t=12895

 

[Lumpy]

Actually, I found Morrowind's setting preety original. Yeah, it had elves, but otherwise, it was different enough from typical fantasy.
Arena (I guess), Daggerfall and Oblivion were preety much generic fantasy, sadly.
Planescape Torment is also one of the few fantasy games different from Tolkien.

 

[Levski 1912]

I just want more steampunk/cyberpunk, but it doesn't look like that's about to happen.

 

[Gnidrologist]

It's probably one of those market research things that advises publishers to make yet another fantasy crap because it's familiar to most people and will sell at least reasonable amount of copies, whereas making new and unexplored setting might be a risky deal.
The same goes with music or cinema. Most people ar too stupid and narrow minded to accept something that does not resemble to something they alredy know, even if it's shite. And also, I think there's enough freaky geeks who will buy anything with D&D slapped on the box, so it's relatively safe affair to make these kind of games. Those who are open to something different are minority. Always have been.

 

[bryce777]

It's difficult to make a whole world on your own, so only people who are pretty ambitious in the first place usually even try.

 

[ad hominem]

It's probably one of those market research things that advises publishers to make yet another fantasy crap because it's familiar to most people...

Bingo. There's no explanation, no need to spend a lot of time on lore or explaining what an elf is, what a dwarf is, etc. It is lazy, but I think so many people expect it now that truly original and creative things don't sell all that well.

 

[bryce777]

Nah, the biggest issues is licenses. You can't get an rpg made without it being some sort of sequel or it using a license. In fact, you can barely get a pc game made without one, period.

 

[don_tomaso]

well if you want a new cyberpunk rpg, then I guess this is what youre looking for
http://www.omega-project-rpg.com/forum/index.php

but they havent updated since like february or mars, so the project has probably died :/

 

[Saint_Proverbius]

One reason is the excuse that players know what a bastard sword is but don't know much about the differences between guns or something. It's easier for players to find a Bastard Sword +3 and know it's better than a Bastard Sword +1, but not so easy when the same thing is applied to guns for some reason.

 

[ad hominem]

Nah, the biggest issues is licenses. You can't get an rpg made without it being some sort of sequel or it using a license. In fact, you can barely get a pc game made without one, period.

The sequels I will grant you (have there been any original IPs in the last two years?), but licenses? That's idiotic. It wouldn't be generic if it were licensed. The only licensed RPGs that immediately come to mind are the LotR and KotoR. Pretty much everything else out there was at least original IP at some point.

 

[bryce777]

Nah, the biggest issues is licenses. You can't get an rpg made without it being some sort of sequel or it using a license. In fact, you can barely get a pc game made without one, period.

The sequels I will grant you (have there been any original IPs in the last two years?), but licenses? That's idiotic. It wouldn't be generic if it were licensed. The only licensed RPGs that immediately come to mind are the LotR and KotoR. Pretty much everything else out there was at least original IP at some point.

It is more like what isn't a license, these days. The ultimas and wizardries and darklands are far in the days of yore.

Nwn, BG, icewind dale, pst, por II - all of these are recents licenses.

The only original IP I can think of of the top of my head that's still around is oblivion, and I would not call that an rpg any more at all.

When was the last nonsequel, non licensed, honest to god rpg that came out? Arcanum?

If you want to be liberal in your definition of an rpg, maybe dungeon siege I?

 

[Imbecile]

Arent we tying up two issues into one?

A game can be derivative and good, and original but shite. Originality alone, does not a good game make.

 

[golgotha]

Originality alone, does not a good game make.

But it goes a hell of a long way. The name of the game is immersion, yet if I feel as if I've played through said world hundreds of times before and I have yet to finish the game based around said generic world, how is that a good thing for immersion?

 

[Imbecile]

Originality alone, does not a good game make.

But it goes a hell of a long way. The name of the game is immersion, yet if I feel as if I've played through said world hundreds of times before and I have yet to finish the game based around said generic world, how is that a good thing for immersion?

I'm not sure that (for me at least) originality adds to the immersion. Its more lilkely to appeal to my curiosity. Its going to feel fresher, and Im not going to be instantly comparing it to anything else.

Many of my favourite books are part of a large series. Because theres so much written, it means that there is the capacity for more depth and content to be added, which can make the world feel more real and immersive. This can be the strength of sequels (and I guess unoriginality) if its done well. It can build on whats gone before.

 

[bryce777]

Immersion is just a bullshit buzzword.

 

[ad hominem]

Many of my favourite books are part of a large series. Because theres so much written, it means that there is the capacity for more depth and content to be added, which can make the world feel more real and immersive. This can be the strength of sequels (and I guess unoriginality) if its done well. It can build on whats gone before.

Yeah, that makes sense. It's like re-reading the Lord of the Rings after having waded through the Silmarillion....there's just so much more depth and weight behind it. But you're talking about the great creative work of individuals who have probably been fomenting these worlds for decades before they're finally written down and fleshed out...quite a different scenario from a dev team of people who very possibly only communicate once a month with a strict deadline where most of the effort is put towards teh sh1ny.

But this is what cracks me up about everyone automatically assuming any sequel will automatically suck. It's going to take a span of several games to really build any appreciable depth and backstory; I think if you tried to cram it all into one game it would be overwhelming...it's fun to see something that's just mentioned in passing and not really expounded upon get it's own game later. Now granted, there are a lot of really terrible sequels out there who are merely created to capitalize on something's success, but a sequel in and of itself isn't an inherently bad idea.

But then there's FF....