There’s a new blog entry over at Bioware that goes into some detail about how they set up skill trees in Dreadwolf. It’s a little more in-depth than I would have expected from them, and they have some pretty interesting notes as well:
Past Dragon Age ™ games have all handled RPG systems, such as the player’s progression, differently, so naturally, we’re being just as experimental on Dreadwolf , taking the learnings of the past while also trying something new.
Mark Darrah is returning as a consultant to get DA4 across the finish line, along with the Mass Effect gang.
Not sure the correct thread for this.
Certainly bodes well!
Man, Gaider left way back in 2016? That was a million years ago. BioWare might as well be rebranded as EA Edmonton Studios at this point.
I have definitely seen that attitude he’s talking about from programmers and artists. It’s just surprising to hear that seeping in even at Bioware. Probably a consequence of the two founders leaving. Leadership at the top can make a big difference on company culture.
I’m a huge fan of writing in games. I want more dialogue, more story, just more, more, more. But I get why writing has been a sore point for execs for so long. It comes down to the players. I would say there’s a solid majority of players out there that only want the fast-paced, reward-heavy, gameplay with lots of instant feedback and emotional boosts that keep them coming back for more. Story and dialogue, or even a well-planned plot threaded through the entire game, are not going to give those players their injection, and that makes them a harder sell.
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good game that has no to little writing required, too. This isn’t to say there isn’t a place for them. Only that if you are betting a load of time, effort, and cash on a game, are you going to bet on the hook of writing or the insta-grab of a slots win?
I’m so happy that there are those out there that fight to keep skilled writing in AAA games, not to mention all the indies out there that put their collective shirts on the line to share a story that’d never get told otherwise. But it’s always going to be a battle only a minority will survive.
I think we’ve got to a stage where ‘good writing’ is essentially impossible to execute evenly in a single AAA title. In large part because all these games are now ‘open world’ and that structure just doesn’t lend itself well to well-crafted tight storytelling.
There’s always this chasm of quality between what you experience in the main questline vs the optional open world-y sidequests. Horizon Zero Dawn really highlighted that for me; I loved the writing in main story there but the sidequests left me completely cold. Like, depending where you are in the main story some of them are just so tonally inappropriate, or wrap up too neatly, or are kinda low-stakes boring, or have some gimmicky mechanic ‘for gameplay variety’, or any of a myriad other related issues which just… really take you out of where Aloy is supposed to be.
Dragon Age Origins handled this reasonably well because you essentially get locked into an area until you complete its entire narrative ‘chunk’. You generally don’t have the ability to quit halfway through, travel to the other side of the globe and enter a time trial or something equally spurious. There are sidequests, but generally they’re scoped and themed to the area and feel appropriate to the story its telling.
So I think there’s inevitable friction from trying to deliver two fundamentally incompatible ideals in one package; how can anyone deliver an engaging narrative when players can disengage from it whenever they choose? You just ain’t writing around that sorta nonsense, no matter how good you are with a quill. Factor in also that smaller/narrower indie titles are consistently picking up ‘best story’ awards and yeah, I can see the resentment of the big studios losing out to that despite how much money they throw at the writing. The writers get blamed but they’ve effectively been set up to fail from the start.
(I recently wrapped up Dying Light 2 and it was so, so bad for this! About the only game(s) that pulled this sort of stuff off was Saints Row 3/4, and the only reason it worked there is because of how aggressively (enjoyably) flippant the narrative was anyway).
Writing elevates a game but it’s more important for RPGs that have quests, characters, a narrative. Although Valve famously hired a writer/book author for Half-life 1 (Marc Laidlaw) and I think that game would not have been as great as it was without him.
I can’t wait for Dragon Age 5 to be written by ChatGPT.
As much as I love open world games the writing is forced to be very generic by its nature. You can’t have a story with too much detail because the player is likely to miss large parts of it. Maybe you could argue that would add to replay ability but it is rare enough to see good action and good writing.
For open world, I often think back to the Ultima V remake Lazarus mod using the Dungeon Siege 1 engine. It really showcases how the Ultima games were open-world with lots of writing/story beats. And with the Siege engine there isn’t a single loading screen between areas. It’s a totally seamless world with vast underground dungeons, story events, NPC schedules, side quests, etc. Kind of amazing and almost no one makes games like this. Bethesda and Piranha bytes come close but there’s usually some wall somewhere. For the latter it’s the enemies. New Vegas after you get to New Vegas might be the closest.
I dislike modern open world games that use the GTA model or silly as fuck Ubigame where you need to climb towers to display icons on a portion of the map, then activate those “icon” to start a “mode/mission/mini-game”. It’s dumb, cheating, and oftentimes gamey or just content filler busy work mini-game trash. 2007’s Assassin Creed is virtually 90% this. Open world games like Elden Ring are closer to the right idea, but the Ultima games are still my gold standard.
Who needs to wait? Maybe they’ve already done it!
INT. GRAND LIBRARY OF VAL ROYEAUX - DAY
The circular chamber is filled with the diverse group of individuals, their eyes focused on Sira, the young elven woman at the center.
SIRA
(earnestly)
Thank you all for coming. We stand on the precipice of a new era, a time when Thedas faces threats unlike any we’ve seen before. The balance is shifting, and it’s up to us to restore order.A burly dwarf, Galdric, crosses his arms skeptically.
GALDRIC
(skeptical)
And what makes you think we’re up to the task, lass?Sira meets Galdric’s gaze, unwavering.
SIRA
(determined)
Because we are the remnants of the Inquisition, those who have faced demons, dragons, and gods. We’ve seen the worst this world has to offer, and we’ve triumphed. But now, a new darkness is rising, threatening to plunge us into chaos once more.An imposing Qunari warrior, Ashira, steps forward, her voice commanding.
ASHIRA
(gravely)
You speak of darkness, but what form does it take? What enemy do we face?Sira takes a deep breath, her voice filled with urgency.
SIRA
(matter-of-factly)
The Veil grows thin, weakened by forces unknown. And from the depths of the Fade, a malevolent power has awakened. Demons roam free, ancient evils stir, and rifts tear across the land. We must find the source, uncover the truth, and put an end to this threat.A human mage, Alric, raises an eyebrow.
ALRIC
(skeptical)
And how do we plan to do that? The Inquisition disbanded years ago. We lack resources, influence…Sira interrupts, her voice resolute.
SIRA
(firmly)
We start anew. We gather allies, reforge alliances, and search for answers. The world may have forgotten the Inquisition, but it hasn’t forgotten us. It’s time to rise again, to reclaim our purpose, and protect Thedas from the encroaching darkness.The group exchanges glances, their expressions a mix of determination and uncertainty.
SIRA
(looking at each of them)
Who’s with me?One by one, they nod, their resolve hardening.
GALDRIC
(resolute)
I’ve seen enough to know that doing nothing is not an option. I’m with you, lass.ASHIRA
(steely)
I swore an oath to protect. Count me in.ALRIC
(determined)
I may be one mage, but together, we can make a difference.The rest of the group voices their agreement, their commitment unyielding.
Sira smiles, gratitude shining in her eyes.
SIRA
(optimistic)
Then let’s bring back the Inquisition and face the shadows head-on. Thedas needs us now more than ever.As they prepare to embark on their new journey, the group stands united, ready to confront the looming darkness and shape the fate of Thedas once more.
FADE OUT.
As a lover of open world games I gotta agree with you here! That setup is… fine? Like if Ubisoft had one franchise like that, no problem. My problem is that it’s everywhere. Like somehow a lot of designers feel that’s what an open world game is now.
Not to derail, but I felt the same way with World of Warcraft’s approach of migrating from one punctuation mark to another. It was certainly different and kept players moving around instead of camping mobs like in EverQuest. It wasn’t exactly my cup of tea especially when each alt’s leveling experience became identical, but it was fresh at the time and I had some fun with it. I didn’t want the entire MMO genre to become clones to the point where yet again, designers had this idea that’s what an MMO was. And given the success of WoW, it shows up in other kinds of games too!
Yeah, WOW kinda of ruined MMOs, in that the design space was reduced to…just be like WOW.
Ultima strikes again. Ultima Online, so good. Classless, leveless. You could always play with your friends. Explore any place together. (except some areas required a boat to get to)
Eh. For my tastes WoW was much better than all the MMOs that came before it, and to the extent the genre took it as a baseline that was mostly to the good. Certainly you’d never catch me playing anything remotely like Ultima Online.
Before WoW, everyone was trying to be like EQ. However, there were some attempts to be different, but it was rare. Post WoW though, its all the same.
That is the problem with MMOs or games in general. No one wants to take chances on new designs that much. Content, is where they vary, but game mechanics? Not so much. Minor differences at best.
I’d like to see a modern take on Ultima Online. No levels and no zones by level. You can go anywhere. When I played WoW I could never actually play with my friend who was at a higher level then me. It was a kinda lame. Quit at like level 36.
Lots of MMOs have had systems to alleviate the level disparity issue. WoW just never has that I know of. I grant that that’s not quite the same thing but as someone who really enjoys leveling up and almost never finds alternative advancement systems nearly as satisfying, I feel it’s worth the tradeoffs.
In WoW everything scales to your level now while you’re leveling. After that the scaling is removed.