MechScape Post #17 - 27 June 2009, Editorial: Influences on MechScape Rating Options

[mike470]

Issue #17 - 27 June 2009

Influences on MechScape
Written by Psioptics

Hey, I’m Psioptics and in this, the seventeenth edition of the MechScape Post, I’ll be sharing with you my thoughts on what I’d like MechScape to be influenced by and any clichés or plot-holes I’d like Jagex to steer clear from. The science fiction genre has been interpreted in a multitude of ways throughout recent history in almost every medium, be it book, film or video game. As such when anyone goes about creating something new they’re always going to be influenced by what’s around them and what came before.

From what we’ve been told MechScape is to be a game based around “the tension among four playable species, each with their own look, abilities and back stories”. Beyond that however we’ve largely been kept in the dark and as such, my first hope for MechScape is that each species isn’t just introduced or set out as ‘good guys’ or ‘bad guys’. I want to see an interesting and intricate back story for each of them that reveals understandable motives along with questionable flaws, rather than some spoon fed situation where the high and mighty Humans go gallivanting across the universe saving helpless aliens from the evil Pliigi, who destroy entire civilisations ‘for the lulz’. It’s an exaggerated scenario, granted, but you get my point.

Basically there needs to be a careful compromise between giving a species a specific history and philosophy whilst keeping them believable and relatable. That goes for how they all interact with one another as well, along with the premise as to why they’re in the situation they are, be it in conflict, alliances or a mix of both. That’s another key plot aspect we don’t fully know; have the four species merely stumbled upon each other and the resulting gameplay is how we decide to interact, or is there a catalyst involved such as a sought after resource supply, powerful technology or something of the sort. The story could easily fall flat if we’re given a cheap excuse though, an example of which that immediately comes to mind for me is the 2008 film Hancock, a decent superhero comedy film soured by the second half’s attempt to flesh-out the plot via unnecessary and bizarre character development. As long as Jagex don’t take the easy way out and use an illogical plot device I think we should expect a solid storyline, especially seeing as so much emphasis has been put on it.

Going back to what I touched upon at the beginning, I wouldn’t want to completely rule out the possibility of there being a theme of good and evil, as long as we’re at least partially given a choice as to which way we want to go. There are a few games such as Mass Effect and Fallout 3 that manage this decision based gameplay well, allowing you to choose how your own character turns out through the decisions you make. Take Fallout 3 for example, in that you have a karma meter which can either go up or down in accordance to any good or evil actions you commit; NPCs will react differently towards you depending on if you’re good or evil varying from simple dialogue changes to only offering a quest if you meet certain karma related requirements.

The other large aspect of these games is that the decisions you make have lasting effects on yourself, your surroundings and the storyline. If you let certain companions or followers die they won’t respawn, attacking ‘friendly’ NPCs can cause other NPCs to become hostile towards you and in extreme cases you’re even posed with the option of destroying entire cities, which of course leaves you unable to return there. This could be somewhat trickier to incorporate into an MMO but isn’t totally unfeasible. Even now within RuneScape we see quests and storylines that are primarily a single player affair, opening up new areas or abilities for yourself without directly altering the game for anyone else. In terms of MechScape, we’ve even been informed that the alliances we choose will ultimately shape the path of our adventure, but to what extent is unknown. Hopefully we’ll be posed with a lot of choices to make throughout the course of the game, both small, seemingly insignificant ones and large meaningful ones that truly do affect the outcome of the storyline or the game as a whole.

The nature of the MechScape universe along with the way it looks and feels could manifest itself in one of many different ways. The only official image featuring terrain we have to go by is the concept art poster kindly given to us by Jagex depicting an industrial city sitting amongst a relatively barren grassy and mountainous landscape. For some this probably throws up similarities with the likes of Star Wars, something which can only be considered a good thing in my eyes. In the Star Wars films we’re exposed to a whole host of different planets and worlds with differing terrain, climates and ecosystems. The harsh desert planet of Tatooine with its subterranean dwellings directly contrasts the impressive planet of Coruscanti which is almost one giant city containing skyscrapers as far as the eye can see. Nothing feels too out of place creating a sense of realism.

This attention to detail and variety is continued when it comes to alien species in terms of both how they look and interact. We’re shown native creatures that reflect their surroundings along with weird and wonderful looking aliens that have their own mannerisms and languages, demonstrated perfectly in the Mos Eisley Cantina scene in Star Wars Episode IV in which we see the hustle and bustle of a bar scenario inhabited by an array of different aliens. Hopefully this level of thought and development has gone into MechScape, because if there’s something I’d rather not see it’s aliens that are ‘humans with pointy ears’ or ‘humans with large foreheads’, a la Star Trek. Going by the concept art of the organic, plant-like Pliigi structures and suspected character art it seems that Jagex have more than just taken these points into consideration, managing to produce intriguing yet believable creatures and settings. The variation doesn’t have to and shouldn’t stop at each species though. In real life, Humans come in all manner of different colours and sizes - if the customisation confirmed to be available in MechScape is up to scratch then I’d expect the four playable species to have a range of alterable features about their appearance rather than having a single set look for each.

Though MechScape is sure to have its own unique feel to it, Jagex have stated they’ve taken inspiration from a number of different sources. What these sources are remains to be seen but if any of what I’ve described regarding the variety in planets, aliens and the creation of a solid gameplay mechanic and plot are present then I’ll be a happy gamer.

What would you like MechScape to be most influenced by? Are there some aspects of science fiction you think are overused? Do you think MechScape will retain enough originality to be a success?


MechScape and Community News

Henrique Olifer's Twitter
Henrique Olifer's (Head of MechScape) twitter account has been found and he has made small hints about MechScape on it. He also left a post for us in the topic discussing his twitter. (Read more)

Previous Issues:
MechScape Post #16: MechScape Moderation
MechScape Post #15: The MechScape Environment II
MechScape Post #14: The Community of MechScape
MechScape Post #13: Codename MechScape
MechScape Post #12: The Importance of Music to MechScape as a Game
MechScape Post #11: How MechScape Will Appeal to an Older Demographic
MechScape Post #10: "Dynamic" Combat in MechScape
MechScape Post #9: Freeplay in MechScape
MechScape Post #8: The Future of MechScape World
MechScape Post #7: Situational Awareness: How the Concept Applies to MechScape
MechScape Post #6: Removing the Need To RWT
MechScape Post #5: The Hype Surrounding the Release Date of MechScape
MechScape Post #4: Gerhard's Influence on MechScape and Jagex
MechScape Post #3: A Great MechScape Flood?
MechScape Post #2: The MechScape Environment and Concepts
MechScape Post #1: MechScape Clan Leadership

Footnotes
Contributors: Brenden, Ren (Content Research Team); mike470, Pipinowns, Psioptics(Writing & Editing Team).
Disclaimer: The views expressed by members of staff do not necessarily represent the view of MechScape World.

[Miriado]

I've been reading these recently and I think they're all great.

Small error when mike copied this though I think.

Reduced: 85% of original size [ 598 x 150 ] - Click to view full image

There's just that and not a picture.

I agree with you that it would be cool if the plot was somewhat based on a "karma meter" like the ones in Fallout and Knights of the Old Republic. Although I hope that they don't just rip off things from Star Wars. I really hope that MechScape is very customizable in that you can make your character based on several factors no matter what race you are. People tend to like lots of customization, if MechScape has this (and I think it will seeing as how you start off with 4 races) I think it will be a great success.
The thing you said about destroying cities and or planets wouldn't be a good thing in my opinion. That tends to lead to an unfair advantage to some people and Jagex seems to be very against that. For example, when PvP worlds came out in RS pures could just hide in the mansion in Ardy because after finishing the quest you can't re-enter. If this were placed in MS and there was an intergalactic war occurring then people could just hide in the world that you destroyed and you wouldn't be able to get them. (this is all just speculation of course)

How do you get the chance to write one of these topics? Do you have to be a mod or something?

This post has been edited by Miriado: Jun 27 2009, 04:36 PM

[ForeverOath]

I just hope that Mechscape won't be like Fable 2 in the sense that if you eat meat, you are corrupt and get fat. Such a pain! I had to know where all of the vegetable stands were in every city, LOL. I could only buy tofu and celery in that game. I'm hoping that you'll be able to set your weight in the beginning of the game and not have to worry about it later. Again, that comes into the whole customizable thing... Hmm, I guess what I'm saying is that I hope Jagex doesn't go TOO overboard with the whole customization thing... But I hope that we have lots of ways(like different weight) to set our characters apart from everyone else's.

Great post, by the way! Can't wait for the next one!

This post has been edited by ForeverOath: Jun 27 2009, 06:27 PM

[Psioptics]

Miriado: When mentioning the destruction of cities I was mainly referencing to an event in Fallout 3 rather than saying I'd like to see that directly appear in MechScape, but the sentiment of me wanting to see consequences for actions within MS still stands. :)
ForeverOath: I agree, I'd like to see more customisation but don't want Jagex to overdo things.

On a side note: Yes, there were meant to be a few pictures included in the editorial. Just gotta wait for an admin to come online to edit it. ;) As for who writes them, we have a subsection of the staff dedicated to content writing at MSW, a list of whom can be found here.

[Miriado]

Miriado: When mentioning the destruction of cities I was mainly referencing to an event in Fallout 3 rather than saying I'd like to see that directly appear in MechScape, but the sentiment of me wanting to see consequences for actions within MS still stands. :)
ForeverOath: I agree, I'd like to see more customisation but don't want Jagex to overdo things.

On a side note: Yes, there were meant to be a few pictures included in the editorial. Just gotta wait for an admin to come online to edit it. ;) As for who writes them, we have a subsection of the staff dedicated to content writing at MSW, a list of whom can be found here.

How did you get that position, is it by writing good or something? A few of them barely have any posts that show up when I look.

[Ren]

How did you get that position, is it by writing good or something? A few of them barely have any posts that show up when I look.

A while back we put out a very public call for people to send in applications, got around 50 applications for various staff positions, and chose the most promising applicants. In terms of the writing staff we actually had a two-stage round of the recruitment process. Next time we go for recruitment I'm expecting we'll do it in a similar manner.

[Alex]

How did you get that position, is it by writing good or something? A few of them barely have any posts that show up when I look.

A while back we put out a very public call for people to send in applications, got around 50 applications for various staff positions, and chose the most promising applicants. In terms of the writing staff we actually had a two-stage round of the recruitment process. Next time we go for recruitment I'm expecting we'll do it in a similar manner.

Hi guys! :P But seriously, what way up do you hold a pen?

Basically, for the applications we had to fill in a form with why we wanted to be staffers, and what skills/experience we had. After that, if we wanted to be writing staff, we had to do another step - a timed piece about RS or MS. Post count doesn't matter, it's all about the app.

And, y'know, if you pass that then welcome to the house of fun.

As for the next round of apps, I dunno when they'll be - we're pretty well staffed at the moment.

On topic, I particularly wonder about how the technologies in MS will try and sound scientific - I know there will always be nitpickers but will Jagex go for the arcane or the scientific in the explanations for how stuff works.

[Ren]

will Jagex go for the arcane or the scientific in the explanations for how stuff works.

According to Janaway (MechScape Associate Producer) "We respect our players and don't want to fob them off with utterly improbable plot devices/justifications. So we spend a lot of time ensuring that the science in our science fiction has at its roots in science fact/theory. We want to keep it real and that goes for the characters who populate the game."

[Lord John]

Yes! I totally agree. I personally think that interesting game lore can really make or break a game. Games that are so unrealistic in plot tend to be boring for me no matter how great gameplay is.

I hope they get the whole "atmosphere" right. The thing I hate about Runescape quests is that most are directly aimed at kids. Your trying to rescue someone from a ferocious monster and next thing your immersion is destroyed as you and another character waste 5 frames of text as one of you says a horrible pun. Yes, the puns might be funny but they totally don't suit the situations. If I was on the brink of death, would I be making puns?

I'd also love to see various environments like you said in relation to Star Wars. From bustling cities to planets of jungles with dangerous beasts. Now that'd be cool ;)

[Pliigi]

Great article. I definitely agree with your ideas about how the backstory needs to be well thought out

[SuperStevee]

I hope they get the whole "atmosphere" right. The thing I hate about Runescape quests is that most are directly aimed at kids. Your trying to rescue someone from a ferocious monster and next thing your immersion is destroyed as you and another character waste 5 frames of text as one of you says a horrible pun. Yes, the puns might be funny but they totally don't suit the situations. If I was on the brink of death, would I be making puns?

If you were Captain Jack Sparrow you would. XD

[Mcharger]

I think there should be alot of influences from other Sci-Fi movies, games, and books , but not very specific ones. Influences from games and movies like Halo, Gears of War, Star Trek, Dune, and Star Wars should be used sparingly, such as having geneticly altered "super humans" in advanced armour (Spartans from Halo) or a few space ships that explore the galaxy searching for other civilizations (Star Trek), and of course mutant monsters from underground that are slowly taking over one (just one) of the human planets while outnumbered humans defend their last strongholds (Gears of War). Stealing the weapons, plots, and races from any "influence" would ruin the game in my opinion. I don't want to play Mechscape as the Master Chief against the Covenant horde carrying around a Battle Rifle while Darth Vader chops off Luke's hand with a light saber a few galaxies away, Dom of the COG chainsaws a Locust on Terra, and Captain Kirk commands the Enterprise. But using vague influences, for both plot and content, such as the ones I listed at the top would be acceptable and would only better Mechscape.

[melook]

I hope they dont put lightsabers in the game.
Dont know why but when i think of pliigi I think of grunts from halo3

This post has been edited by melook: Jun 29 2009, 12:58 AM

[Dear]

I hope they dont put lightsabers in the game.
Dont know why but when i think of pliigi I think of grunts from halo3

I doubt they put Lightsabers in lol.
Thatd just be the crappest game ever :P

[Bladepaul]

You guys are getting so overboard. These things are hard enough to do on a console based game with a full team of developers, millions of dollars, and state of the art hardware available.

Jagex may have good resources ( a large enough, skilled dev team and money) but they are working with Java. You fit it in your browser for freaks sake. They cannot do the same things you can on consoles. All of these elaborate choices the OP wrote about, the customization, none of it will be in the final game and I can guarantee that. Why? Because it's just not feasible in Java.

I could be wrong though. Maybe you might see something like this. But it just sounds so fun on paper, and all of the speculation and "what-if's" that are barely possible today on cutting-edge platforms, and you don't even see half of these features all in one game anyway. Just don't get your hopes up people.

Mass Effect, for example, felt unrealistic at times. The immersion was killed right after a seemingly elaborate choice-based conversation in which I had control and things felt so real, because I pulled out my gun, shot at the wall, and the NPC's around the room did not even react. That snapped me out of the moment and made me realize that they aren't as advanced or realistic as I thought, but just decorations in a virtual environment made to look convincing until you scrutinize them any closer. Games like GTA are more convincing because doing absurd things to try and break immersion will yield somewhat convincing responses from the environment, but it too is not very advanced and rather primitive.

[Ren]

Don't underestimate Java, it can do a lot more than you seem to be indicating.

[Miriado]

All of these elaborate choices the OP wrote about, the customization, none of it will be in the final game and I can guarantee that. Why? Because it's just not feasible in Java.

You can already customize your RS character pretty well. Hundreds of wieldable items leads to millions of different combinations.

This post has been edited by Miriado: Jun 29 2009, 06:26 PM

[Larewkid517]

I'm definitely hoping for something Starcraft-esque. Blizzard has some of the best lore for their games, and I think that Jagex could pull off something similar.

[Chronocommand]

I believe also that that back story is important to games. One huge flaw in my opinion with the small few Star Wars games I've played is the observation of each species' customs. For example their greetings or good byes. Customs in my opinion is a huge part of back story individually to each race in a story. I think that two my best examples of customs are in the books: Dune (and the rest of the book series) and Eragon (including the book series as well). Something I'd like to see in MechScape is the observation of customs, at least in a small way. Customs could possibly be made part of the dialog from time to time. It could be used as an obstacle for the player to overcome in order to communicate with certain characters. I think that customs should however be something that are learned over the course of a player's game experience, and should also be something that becomes more important to a player's interaction with varius NPCs and possible players as well, if the game mechanics allow for it. I do think that as a player begins playing the game, customs should be extremely forgiving and in a way that subtly tutors the player in the customs of the four races of the game world.

I would like to warn against 'cheesy' customs that do not reflect upon the race's background and story. This could be something to ruin the game.

I hope this message gets to Jagex.

[Ren]

I agree Chronocommand, if different species and even different planets or sects have their own customs then that would certainly add to the depth and realism of the game.