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meglosthegreat · 6 months

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Cities in RPGs Poll

I'm sure many of you, like me, have encountered the following problem when playing an RPG: You get to a city, and all of a sudden, the pacing seems to slow to a crawl. You are bombarded with quests, NPCs, and places to visit, and are hit with an overwhelming sense of paralysis as you try and parse together what to do first, or at all.

So, I'm curious as to how the placement of such cities in the overall progression of the game affects this feeling. I would like to know which of the following options, in your opinion, is the most effective place to introduce a city in a game.

[Examples of each and propaganda below]

No Large Cities: This tends to spread the burden of quest hubs out to several smaller towns or locations. Pros - you avoid the above problem entirely (a.k.a. the coward's way out). Cons - big cities are cool, and this way you don't get to see any.

Early-Game City: Generally this approach dumps the player immediately into the largest city in the game after a short intro/tutorial section. Pros - reduces the above pacing drag by putting it right at the beginning. Cons - hard to make a city an exciting setpiece when it contains largely early-game content, plus you risk overwhelming the player very early.

Mid-Game City: This usually places the main city at around the 1/3rd mark of the game, after you've first been through a smaller quest hub, and when the story is starting to ramp up. Pros - balances the potential pacing drag with not overwhelming the player immediately. Cons - easy for players to get 'stuck' there and not know when it is time to move on to other areas.

Late-Game City: Here, the main city serves as more or less the final act of the game, and is generally where the main plot will be resolved. Pros - save the coolest location for last, cities make for good stakes to a conflict with so many potential innocent lives on the line. Cons - greatest chance of falling into the pacing trap, hard to either make players care about the side content with the stakes so elevated, or make them care about the main content with so much new side content to enjoy.

Game is Mostly City: Taking the opposite approach of the first option to achieve the same result, these games tend to pace their cities out in stages or change them over time rather than have every area accessible from the start. Pros - usually you get more depth out of the city this way, while bypassing the pacing problem. Cons - you don't get to see much *but* the city, and this can make the game feel smaller.

If you have another method not covered here, or further thoughts on the types above, be sure to rb/share in the tags as I would love to hear them!

#polls #my polls #game design #rpgs #crpg #video games #baldur's gate 3 #dragon age #witcher #pillars of eternity #divinity: original sin #baldur's gate #planescape torment #skyrim #the elder scrolls #rpg polls

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ikiradraws · 2 months

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0 days since the last time I thought of her

#planescape torment #Annah planescape torment #I can't believe I hadn't made any fanarts of this game yet

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vinegaring-out · 4 months

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bucking against this trend

#planescape torment #i think we're gonna have to kill this guy #dnd

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rolyleritae · 4 months

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*播放动物世界片头曲*

#fanart #my art #planescape torment #planescape #bg3 fanart #bg3 #baldurs gate fanart #baldur's gate 3 #baldur's gate iii

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thelureking · 1 year

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I had this idea to make a list of all the games I played in 2022, half as a recommendation list, and half because I struggle to remember when I played what. I have a really bad time ranking stuff, so I'll just list them chronologically (or, as chronologically as I can remember).

Note: Sometimes I dont have a lot to say about a game, but that doesnt mean I didn't like it or that it isn't good.

So, with that being said:

1) Our Life: Beginnings and Always

This game has put visual novels on another level entirely. How must I go on knowing that I will never be treated like royalty by any other game like this did. Our Life tells the story of your friendship and/or romance with Cove Holden, your new neighbor. This Visual Novel remembers an insane amount of stuff you choose, and it can put you in the state of mentioning something you did as a kid that you completely forgot about. I actually really liked how you can go the entire game as just friends, or choose when your character develops romantic feelings. I cannot overstate how well made this entire thing is. Can't wait to play the DLCs and for the sequel to be released.

Absolute recommend.

2) Iron Lung

If you have a computer, you can play it. It is not an option.

Claustrophobic above all, this game captures the pure dread of the unknown, building tension and atmosphere as you travel through this unknown planet's red sea. Highly recommended.

3) An Outcry

Amazing game that I don't see enough people talking about. The first game that made me actually physically ill while playing an alternative route. I don't know what hit me the most, the subject matter or the type of person I played in that route, a person I know exists and maybe I've met, a person I hope I never become. I knew what the game was specifically referencing, but I found it good that it was able to trigger that response on someone who lives in an entirely different place, with different historical events, but with enough similarities that made the feeling of dread and disgust that much real. Its message is clear and loud as it should be, and one that I think maybe now more than ever needs to be heard. I cannot recommend this game enough.

4) Stillwater

Now this is a Visual Novel that I really liked and would have loved for it to be longer, but I love it as it is. It left me wanting more about the world and its characters, and I think that's a good thing. It feels unfair that this is the one I typed the least about, knowing how much I liked it. It's really worth the read/play.

5) The Caribbean Sail

Have you ever wanted to be a sailor or a pirate? Have you ever wanted to grab a ship, sail into unknown destinations, encounter supernatural phenomenons and watch as your fellow crew members die of disentry five seconds after leaving your first port? Because if so, I have the perfect game for you. It's inspired by the Oregon Trail game, and that's literally what the gameplay is like, except on the sea. Which was enough of a selling point for me.

6) Carrion

My child, it has every disease. Loved the concept when I saw the trailer, forgot I can actually buy games now, and then proceeded to do that. Being able to live my fantasies of being a flesh creature that destroys and eats everything in its path was a delight. The creature is my child and I love it very much.

We need more games that let you play as the monster, I'm serious.

7) The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante

This game is both my beloved and the thorn on my side. Who would have thought that in a game like this you would proceed to suffer through life? I said to myself as if I hadn't known what I was getting into. You'll experience loss, you'll struggle to make a name for yourself, your family will fall apart, and you may never kiss your best friend Tommas who gave you a totally platonic ring to commemorate your friendship because the game doesn't want you to.

Or you'll have a different experience than me on my first playthrough.

You follow the titular Sir Brante from the moment of his birth to his last breath, exploring the world he lives in, full of injustices that at times made me go "I do not care about the lots, give me a fucking gun so I can take you to the fucking Twins". There are many branches regarding life paths, the fate of your family and that of the entire city you live in. But don't worry about it now, keep looking at those toy soldiers at the store as a little kid, I'm sure nothing will happen in the future.

8) Princess Maker 2 Refine

And apparently I didn't get enough of walking a kid through life.

Who looks at a game about raising a little girl by managing her monthly schedule and balancing her stats, health and money and says "yes, this is the game I'll play to destress"?

I do that. Don't ask why.

I have only reached two endings, in one my beautiful daughter became the royal painter, her art held as the most beautiful and inspiring in the entire world. In another, my girl made a name for herself by exploring the lands surrounding the kingdom, so fast on her feet nobody could even scratch her; she married a dragon prince and became the teacher of her own fighting school.

And even with all of that, her goddess mother was not happy.

So yes, this is the "divorced dad who got custody" experience.

9) Planescape: Torment

What can change the nature of a man? That is a question posed by one Ravel Puzzlewell, night hag of the Gray Wastes. It is one of the many questions that this game asks, intertwined by the many philosophies it presents. Planescape Torment does not stick to one question, it asks many, and it lets you answer.

It is a beautifully written game, one of the best I have ever read. There is one moment that I do not wish to spoil, but it still sticks to my head months after I experienced it. As a writer, I found myself fascinated by how a certain event was told, all because of the way it was presented.

It feels like an injustice to not talk in length about Planescape: Torment, but I seriously don't want to spoil anyone who hasn't played it yet. A blind experience is fully worth it. All you need to know is that this is the game that made me post for the first time here, two dumb memes for myself and one short analysis that sometimes reminds me that yes, people can interact with it. Shameless link to it here

10) Growing my Grandpa!

If I had to describe this game without saying too much, I would say it's "heartwarming horror". Two words that don't usually go together, but that they perfectly fit here. The story is, like the title says, about growing your grandpa, more like helping a girl grow her grandpa, but still. Strangely sweet and unnerving, I was tense the entire time, and even when I had to replay it to get the second ending (this was entirely my fault, since I could have gotten it way easier) that tension never left.

11) FAITH: The Unholy Trinity

I don't remember how I found out about this game, but I remember waiting patiently for it to get a steam release so I could buy it and play its three chapters all together. The day finally came, and all that waiting was worth it.

The gameplay is simple, yet the developers found a way to have me both crying in fear and frothing by the mouth out of anger every time I saw the game over screen (affectionately). In terms of difficulty, I would say the game is easy until it isn't, looking at you Chapter 2 and 3 Final Bosses, you bastards. Then again, I saw people say they struggled in places I didn't, so I would say it depends on the player.

The story is so interesting and it's still marinating in my brain please I need people to talk about how the prologue of chapter 2 and the one note in chapter 3 relate please. The cutscenes are also so well done, and I had to restrain myself from using one as a second picture because I didn't want to spoil any of them.

All in all, a must play, fully recommend it.

And remember:

GARY LOVES YOU

12) Inmortal Mantis

This is a tricky one. On one hand, the game starts off by basically spelling out every action you have to do, and suddenly it goes full on "fuck around and find out" mode. On the other, the game implements some interesting mechanics that I would love to see developed on a longer game, but I am not going to put the length against it while knowing how hard it is to make a game. And maybe being short plays in its favor.

13) Who's Lila?

This game is my King in Yellow. I cannot stop thinking about it. I finished it with all endings and achievements in a day, and it wont leave me alone. It is always there, forever crawling at the back of my head, stretching itself over my brain and weaving my thoughts into a spiral as easily as a spider weaves its thread. It made itself a home in my mind and I won't kick it out any time soon. I played it because the concept of controlling a character's face in place of a dialogue wheel was interesting, and the story and the way it's presented (hand in hand with the gameplay) lured me deeper and deeper. I cannot even describe it without giving it the praise it deserves. It takes full advantage of its medium. Playing this game is an experience that I can't recommend enough, and I'm surprised it hasn't gotten the recognition it deserves.

14) Someone stole MY LUNCH!

This visual novel is pure fun. The humor is so good I found myself reading the entire thing out loud while wheezing. I actually found out recently that it's made by the same people that made Stillwater, which, looking at it now I should have known. It's good and I'm not still over not seeing that one joke coming; well played.

15) MILK INSIDE OF A BAG OF MILK INSIDE OF A BAG OF MILK INSIDE OF A BAG OF MILK INSIDE OF A BAG OF-

... INSIDE A BAG OF MILK is a short visual novel about a girl going to the grocery to buy milk, and the challenge this seemingly small action can be. It is your responsibility to help her through this.

The steam page description perfectly summarizes it: "This is an artistic manipulation with word and form, only then - a game."

#already reblogged with three more games!#game recommendations #our life beginnings & always #iron lung #an outcry #stillwater visual novel #the caribbean sail game #carrion game #the life and suffering of sir brante #princess maker 2 #planescape torment #growing my grandpa #faith the unholy trinity #inmortal mantis #who's lila #whos lila #someone stole my lunch visual novel #milk inside a bag of milk inside a bag of milk #lilium post

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rpgchoices · 4 months

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Welcome to the pre-poll for the Bracket Tournament poll for "Favorite RPG romance", this one for female characters.

I decided to separate them as often male characters are more popular here on tumblr, and after asking on a poll here on tumblr, the majority of people voted to separate. It also made me realize that there are no genderqueer or non binary romances in rpgs?? none that I could find? So for now, I separated in two categories of characters who uses he/him and she/her (the Asari for example, all use she/her and that is their one and only gender).

I had 80 names so I had to reduce the list a little bit to get to a sensible poll tournament! So the first Round Zero is the elimination of most of these names, which I randomized with a List randomizer. I did my best to add as many characters from rpgs and rpgs as I could remember, so apologies if I forgot anyone or made any mistakes! Given this is the initial round, you can still ask me to join specific characters.

The tournament itself will have 32 characters! So for this round Zero I will choose the TOP 4 characters of every single poll. For example, in this specific poll post I will choose the first 4 characters for the tournament, same for the next etc etc. And then the 32 characters will all end up in a tournament!

*sorry I mispelled MINTHARA!

Here is the link for Round Zero, which is just a selection of the top 4 characters for each poll! Because of this all the selections are happening at the same time:

Poll 1/8

Poll 2/8

Poll 3/8

Poll 4/8

Poll 5/8

Poll 6/8

Poll 7/8

Poll 8/8

Or you can click at this tag for all the parts

If some characters end up with the same amount of votes (ex. characterA and B are the cleat top2 characters in the poll, but then there are other 4 characters with the same amount of %) then I will do a quick one day poll to choose among them!

#rogue trader #minthara #expeditions: rome #sera #dragon age #planescape torment #fallout 4 #baldur's gate #expeditions: viking #viking #rome #tournament of rpg female romances #round zero

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