RPGs... If I wanted to read a Novel, I would have bought one!

[MTDEW]

Just gotta vent a little here.

With the power of PCs & the new consoles I was hoping to finally get to play RPGs where all the dialog is spoken with no need to read endless lines of text everytime you meet an NPC.

Needless to say, im doing more reading in Morrowind than actually enjoying the gameplay. (ALOT of repeated reading too!)

If youre gonna write a novel..THEN WRITE ONE & PUBLISH YOUR BOOK!

If youre gonna make an immersive interactive game, then AT LEAST have a narrator READ all that crap to me!

Reading is NOT gameplay!

Ok, im done venting...no need to write a novel about the subject..LOL

 

[StevenYoo]

Originally posted by: MTDEW
Just gotta vent a little here.

With the power of PCs & the new consoles I was hoping to finally get to play RPGs where all the dialog is spoken with no need to read endless lines of text everytime you meet an NPC.

Needless to say, im doing more reading in Morrowind than actually enjoying the gameplay. (ALOT of repeated reading too!)

If youre gonna write a novel..THEN WRITE ONE & PUBLISH YOUR BOOK!

If youre gonna make an immersive interactive game, then AT LEAST have a narrator READ all that crap to me!

Reading is NOT gameplay!

Ok, im done venting...no need to write a novel about the subject..LOL

hehe, reminds me of Xenogears for the Playstation

 

[pumpkinhead76]

You make a valid point and personally, if anything, I would prefer to have both. I always hate it sometimes when the dialogue is spoken, and done badly, the characters just stand there as the character speaks, and tends to speak REALLY slow(some intros to games come to mind).

I probably have a short attention span, but usually, I just read what they say quicker than they say it, and then push the button to shut them up. One of the few games I have seen do the voices well is Final Fantasy X, and they don't even do it for EVERY single dialogue. With a request like this, you have to be careful of what you wish for.

I'm not sure how long Morrowind has been in development, but imagine how much longer you would've had to wait if they recorded EVERY piece of dialogue into the game. Think about how much longer the game would take since you would be listening instead of reading, and also think about the extra few $'s they probably would've had to tack onto the final price due to the extra people doing the voices and also the most likely requirement to put the game on a DVD or two b/c there would be so much data. You have a good idea there, but it's really not very practical.

 

[datalink7]

I prefer RPGs with a lot of dialog. Planescape: Torment is my favorite of all time and sometimes playing that game was like reading a book.

I don't really like those so called RPG's that just focus on action (read* Diablo). They really aren't RPGs in my opinion.

 

[DaveSimmons]

Originally posted by: datalink7
I prefer RPGs with a lot of dialog. Planescape: Torment is my favorite of all time and sometimes playing that game was like reading a book.

I don't really like those so called RPG's that just focus on action (read* Diablo). They really aren't RPGs in my opinion.

Yes! Torment, Fallout 1-2, and Wasteland are my favorite RPGs, and all were booklike in their dialog at times. I prefer a good story to the 99%-story-free hack-n-slash of Diablo and Icenwind Dale, even though I'm playing IWD now. Torment might have required a set of 6 DVDs instead of CDs if every possible line were read aloud.

 

[MTDEW]

Im not much of a Diablo fan myself. (clickfest IMHO)

Im AM enjoying Morrowind, but lately I find myself not even reading the books i find in the game, I just open them in case i gain experience.

And when i meet a NPC Im thinking "god I hope this isnt gonna be another huge dialog tree to read".

I posted these same thoughts on another board & it kinda turned into a topic of cutscenes vs dialog.

Always struck me as kinda funny that in a game like Metal Gear Solid/ SOL for the PS2, people complained about to many long cutscenes with sparse gameplay in between.

While that may be true about MGS/SOL, I never heard anyone complain about to much written dialog in an RPG with sparse gameplay in between, yet it happens.

Id rather comfortably sit back & watch a cutscene than read a games dialog.


As far as Planescape Tourment...... Too much reading is why i quit playing it early on in the game.

Why is that RPG usually = lots of text to read?
Would a more accurate term be "Interactive Novel".
RPG is SUPPOSED to = Role Playing Game

Dont get me wrong, I like Morrowind & continue to play it, i just wish i didnt have to read so much, thats why i own a soundcard!
The Zork days are gone!

Im still gonna play it in doses, when i feel like reading.

Im stuck playing RPGs cuz, i have no desire to play another FPS with a tacked on story & "just kill anything that moves" gameplay.

A good story gives a game purpose & is entertaining, i just wish I didnt have to READ the story.

Anachronox was a great "yet underrated" example of a great story w/out alot of reading.

Which brings up a question ive been wondering.

Does Never Winter Nights have several novels worth of written dialog like Morrowind?

Im not against RPGs, just the "interactive Novel" type.


btw:Yeah FFXs story was good with a good bit of the dialog spoken w/out a ton of reading.
I just never cared for the "fight every 2 steps" gameplay. ( but i did enjoy the game anyway)

 

[DaveSimmons]

Hmm, you might like Jagged Alliance 2 since it's RPGish even though it's a squad-level turn-based tactical combat game.

Or maybe Grim Fandango?

 

[Skibby9]

Morrowind=WAAAAY too much reading.
Cutscenes=good.

Why don't they release games on DVD so they can cram all the cutscenes they want into the games?
All the books and the dialogue make it about impossible to play Morrowind casually.

Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate a huuuuge game, but come on, there have got to be over 100 books in several different series that are each up to and over 20 pages each. That, and getting around on foot kill all of the "instant gratification" generated by the beautiful environment, imo.