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Storyboard: Skipping scenes
There are certain bits of roleplaying that I like to think of as mechanical. They're there, they're necessary, but they're not terribly interesting. They're like random battles in Bravely Default: kind of neat the first time, altogether forgettable all subsequent times, and never blessed with an abundance of fascinating stuff. You need to get through them, but you can't really look forward to them any more than you can look forward to the most routine-filled parts of your day. So the best bet is to say they happened without acting them out. Yes, I'm saying there are bits of roleplaying that are best acted out only in reference. And I'm not just talking about your characters' bathroom visits; I'm talking about things like dates and shared experiences. So when is it actually an advantage to roleplay by not actually roleplaying at all? How do you determine the scenes that you know happened and are important but aren't important enough for you to actually play them out?
Path of Exile previews its first mini-expansion, Sacrifice of the Vaal
The first mini-expansion for Path of Exile is coming out on March 5th, and it's meant to be a big one. This isn't supposed to just improve and expand the core game but to set the pace for the game's upcoming update structure and future expansions. So today is serving as the first preview of the update, teasing the lore behind Sacrifice of the Vaal as well as outlining the future reveals. Players will be set against Queen Atziri and the Vaal corruption she has spread throughout the land, as they try to harvest these malicious powers for their own ultimate ends. It's also hinted that players may have to sacrifice before the expansion is over if they want to put down this threat. The development team is hoping that Sacrifice of the Vaal will be the start of a four-month update schedule for the game, so players should keep their eyes peeled -- more reveals are coming before the March 5th launch date.
Defiance previews the next DLC pack, Gunslinger Trials
Some of the early story threads from Defiance's launch haven't been addressed. The nature of the Biodyne Project and control of the Earth Republic are both questions with no answer, but that's all changing in March with the release of the game's next DLC pack, Gunslinger Trials. Players will explore three new quest lines involving members of Von Bach Industries, leading to events that see both the revival of Biodyne and a look at the power gaining strength behind the scenes of the Earth Republic. The DLC content isn't limited to story developments, though. Players will also be taking on new four-person challenges in which a group of hunters struggle to reach the end of a course, killing and progressing as quickly as possible. And raw damage isn't all that matters; teamwork and coordination will play a major role in clearing the end. Gunslinger Trials is planned for release in March, so get your trigger fingers ready if this sounds like your sort of fun.
The Mog Log: Final Fantasy XIV's story post-2.1
Something kind of surprising happened in Final Fantasy XIV's first major patch: The story kept chugging along quite coherently. And not just through the main story quests, either. Yes, the primary focus was obviously there, but there were a lot of things taking place, wheels within wheels, building on the narratives established in 1.0 and seriously working toward the next major set of events rather than simply being a set of padding. I should warn readers, once again, that there will be spoilers for the game's story below. That includes both the patch story material and the main story from the core game. If you haven't finished the main story and unlocked the Crystal Tower yet, you may want to stay away. Or you can just read on ahead and be spoiled. I'm not going to tell you how you should enjoy your game stories. You should also finish the Hildibrand storyline, although I'm not spoiling that; it's just amusing.
Storyboard: Only mostly dead
Dead is dead. I can't stand when comics endlessly bring back dead characters, I can't stand when shows bring back dead villains, and I can't stand when death is treated less like the final note and more like a brief inconvenience. If you want someone to come back from the dead, don't kill the character in the first place! Death needs to be permanent to have any impact. So this week's article is all about ignoring that and bringing characters back from the dead anyhow because the only reason to have rules is to know when to occasionally break them. Roleplaying deaths are already rare, of course. I can count how many characters I've actually killed on one hand, and that's stretching back to roleplaying in Final Fantasy XI (abortively). But sometimes you decide that you want someone alive after all. And when it's done carefully, you can actually make the revival interesting again because you're not doing it for shock value so much as making a point.
Storyboard: Secrets that aren't helping
Roleplaying characters are often secretive sorts. This is understandable; a lot of people are secretive sorts. Sure, you're not deceptive, but you harbor a secret affection for Lady Gaga that you don't want to tell anyone about, or you secretly did forget to feed the cat that one time she broke into the cupboard and ate an entire bag of cat food, or you're secretly cheating on your girlfriend (but it's fine because she's cheating on you, you think). The problem is that in roleplaying, some secrets are just plain better than others. Keep in mind that I'm talking about specific secrets here, not just things that people might not know yet. There are certain secrets that are just plain counterproductive, and it's better to have these things stated outright rather than held in reserve for the future. Even if it's supposed to be a secret, some secrets are better revealed than kept because keeping 'em isn't doing you any favors.
The Soapbox: Stop ganking, you ganking gankers
For me, player vs. player interaction is a necessary component of any online game. The urge to engage with skilled human opponents is the reason I spent countless hours defending flags in World of Warcraft and likely the main motivating factor in my slide away from traditional MMOs and toward MOBAs like Dota 2 and Blizzard Entertainment's upcoming Heroes of the Storm. Simply put, I like a good fight. I especially like a good fight when it occurs unscripted and out in the wilds of the world. If you catch me unaware while I'm grinding out one of TERA's BAMs or plucking gold from an ore vein in Aion, I'll be more than happy to cross swords (or trade frostbolts) with you. Winning or losing isn't important to me; the constant threat of attack heightens my enjoyment of and connection to the game's universe. Unfortunately, open world PvP doesn't attract exclusively those people interested in fair fights. And in the games that make it possible, a certain small segment of players is working hard to ruin everyone else's good time. I speak, of course, of gankers.
Storyboard: How to say goodbye and mean it
So you know it's time to say goodbye. Your previous group of roleplaying companions just isn't filling that need you have for roleplaying, and that means it's time for you to pick up shop and move on. Great. Your metaphorical bags are packed, you're ready to pick up shop, and all that remains it to figure out where you're going to go. Right. That part. Where are you going to go? When you've been with one group of players for a while, it's tempting to see the game in pretty narrow terms because the focus narrows. The game is less about the whole server and more about the people whom you spend your time with in the game, naturally. But when you take away the group that you've been immersed in for so long, you're back to looking at an overall environment you hadn't considered. So here are some tips to make leaving as painless as possible.
Storyboard: Being who you aren't
There is, as I have discussed, a group of roleplayers for whom the game is the thing. If the game doesn't allow you to be a moisture farmer, then why would you want to pretend to be a moisture farmer? Similarly, if you're not actually a master of the marketplace or sitting on huge assets in the game, why would you want to pretend that you are? I am not one of those people. I'm playing a financial wizard partly because I am not a financial wizard. And it's not that I don't love games where that's a viable option, but that's a different discussion. However, this does raise the question of how you can pretend to portray something you aren't intimately familiar with. If I'm playing a doctor, I'm going to run into the simple problem that I'm not a doctor in real life (full-time writers rarely receive extensive medical training). All of roleplaying is some degree of pretending to be something you're not, but how do you do so when it's something that's a bit harder to fake?
The Repopulation begins lengthy lore series
Lore junkies are getting nearly a week-long fix beginning today as The Repopulation starts its new lore series. Chapter one of the short story Evening Star, centered around the landing on Rhyldan, was posted today, and a new chapter will be added each day this week. If you are wondering why the story is broken up, it's because this is no snippet of story; Chapter 1: Green Lights alone comes in at over 4K words. So grab a chair, settle in, and meet Ralf Hound as he starts the adventures off. As an added bonus for The Repopulation fans, Lead Developer J.C. Smith elaborated on a variety of topics in a recent interview, including siege system alerts, crafting mini-games, AI, and the ability to build underground. For more details, check out World Factory. [Source: Above & Beyond Technologies press release]
The Daily Grind: Would you prefer new story content or new features?
Say there's a big content update coming for your favorite MMO in the next month and a developer calls your phone, beseeching you to make a decision. The team doesn't have enough resources to deliver both new story content and new features, the dev explains, so would you kindly choose one of those for the team to deliver? In other words, if you had your way, would you prefer additional quests and stories and zones in your game, or would you prefer new game systems and features? Personally, that's a tough call to make. I love me some great stories, but new features and systems typically get me far more excited. I think the latter enriches and grows the game more than the vertical building that more zones provide. What do you think? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Storyboard: Maybe I should go
Friendships don't always last forever. The people who made great roleplaying partners a year ago might not make such great partners for you today. Sometimes it's time to stop hanging out with the same old crowd and start finding yourself a new group to call home. Maybe it's a clash of personalities. Maybe it's a change in characters. Maybe it's just that you know as long as Tim and Anna are your main roleplaying partners you're going to be doing the same three plotlines from here to eternity because Tim really likes those three plotlines. The point is, there comes a point when it's time to say farewell and move on to a new group. So when is it time? That's a slightly more difficult question. Obviously, the people you gather around you for roleplaying are people you like to roleplay with; otherwise, you wouldn't have them around you in the first place. Telling them that you just don't want to any longer is a bit of a step. So let's talk about the when, and in a couple weeks we can talk about the how.
2014 Writers Guild Awards video game nominees announced
The Writers Guild of America announced the nominees for the 2014 Writers Guild Awards Outstanding Achievement in Videogame Writing today. The writing teams for five games were nominated for the annual award, as follows: Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag Batman: Arkham Origins God of War: Ascension The Last of Us Lost Planet 3 Only games that launched between December 1, 2012 and November 30, 2013 were eligible for nomination. The 2014 Writers Guild Awards will be held on Saturday, February 1, 2014 in both Los Angeles and New York simultaneously. Past winners of the Outstanding Achievement in Videogame Writing award were the writers of the following games, who were also part of the guild in order to be considered: Assassin's Creed 3: Liberation (2013), Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (2012), Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood (2011), Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (2010) and Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (2009).
Storyboard: What housing does for roleplaying
Those of you who read the other meanderings that I post on the site already know that I am very, very unhappy about the mess that Final Fantasy XIV has made out of housing. You don't need to hear about it again, though. What's far more relevant is addressing a question that at once seems screamingly straightforward and yet barely gets answered: Why does housing matter so much for roleplaying? Pretty much no one argues with the basic premise that housing is a boon for roleplaying, but that discussion usually stops there. It's assumed that the reasons it's helpful is self-evident in much the same way that having a game that does not set fire to your face is desirable. But it's useful to examine why at least affordable entry-level housing in a game is important for roleplaying and how it can lead to benefits for the community as a whole.
Storyboard: Working without /random
Two weeks ago, you might recall, I ranted about using random rolls as a mechanic of resolution when roleplaying in MMOs. For those of you who can't be bothered to go back and read the whole thing now (which I totally understand; you probably have holiday games burning a hole in your pocket), the core point was that random rolls don't actually tie to anything for resolution and wind up coming off as an obvious and unfun kludge for the sake of random resolution. "Well, if you're so smart, why don't you come up with alternatives?" And I did. Readers also had some wonderful suggestions and feedback in the comments last week, which make the article even more worth reading, so really, go ahead and take a look at it. This week, I'm taking a look at how you're going to resolve conflicts in roleplaying without relying on what amounts to a coin flip. And as you may have expected, they're all taking tips from tabletop games.
Captain's Log: A Star Trek Online 2014 wish list
We're coming up on 2014 and staring Star Trek Online's fourth anniversary right in the face. It's an anniversary that many naysayers said would never come. Next week I plan on taking a look back at the past year in Star Trek Online, so this week I thought it would be fun to prognosticate on what we might see in the year to come. A few days ago, STO Community Manager Brandon Felczer wrote a blog post on the game's site, and buried within that post was the announcement that Cryptic and Perfect World Entertainment have slated another expansion for the game in 2014. The news was actually a bit surprising, and although there were no additional facts about what the expansion might entail, there has been a lot of speculation by the players. I am no exception to the speculation frenzy, so here's my own personal wish list for what I'd like to see in the upcoming expansion and other releases in 2014.
Snapchat iOS update discreetly adds replay, filters and overlays for weather, time or speed
And suddenly, moments shared over Snapchat were a little less fleeting. The service is known for only allowing you to watch a shared image or video once, and only for a second, but the app's latest iOS update changes everything: now you can replay pictures or videos. The feature is hidden in the application's additional services menu (and comes with no explanation of what it does, exactly), but it allows users to replay old Snaps at the rate of one a day. While this doesn't quite make Snaps public, it does make them a bit more enduring. Users who tend to create Snaps of a more ...personal nature may want to think twice before sharing. The application's other updates are a bit less game changing. Users can now apply "Smart Filters" to their images, which overlay your Snaps with data including current weather, time, or the speed they're traveling, along with new visual filters (swipe from right to left to activate them) and text options. The app has even added a "front-facing flash," but don't get too excited -- it just flashes a bright white image on your smartphone's screen as you capture a poorly-lit selfie. Itching to update? Check out that iTunes link below.
Storyboard: You ruined your own event
You're running a roleplaying event, and it's going well. It's lively, people are having fun, characters are playing off one another well, it's ideal. So you decide to push things a little further, to take things up a little more, and the next thing you see is people mumbling excuses and leaving until you're left with one or two people who remain less as a function of fun and more as a testament to bitter determination. What in the world happened? I'll tell you what happened: You ruined your own event. This has kind of been a week for me of people ruining good stuff, which makes this week's column unintentionally apropos. A lot of roleplaying events start out great, with everyone invested and happy to be present, but they quickly dissolve when a few well-intentioned but poor choices are made by the people running the event. And while I can't chronicle every possible pitfall, I can at least talk about the most common ones that I see again and again.
Storyboard: Don't fight with /random
Most of my Storyboard columns center on larger issues, providing advice in some way. This one does not. This one is purely about one of the elements of roleplaying in MMOs that I particularly dislike: using in-game random rolls to determine the outcome of actions during tense scenes (or out-of-game rolls in games that don't support /random or /roll or something similar). This is a time-honored practice in MMOs, but I've never had many nice things to say about it, to the point that I wrote an entire column about dueling without even discussing it. In practice, it makes sense, casting otherwise unresolvable situations back to the realm of tabletop gaming. What's not to like? Lots of things. Resolving conflicts with random dice rolls is unsatisfying and to be avoided at all costs. And if you want to compare it to tabletop gaming, you're making a lot of logical leaps that don't hold up under scrutiny.
Storyboard: Why am I still here?
Sometimes, the biggest problem you face isn't whether or not you can find dramatic roleplaying but whether or not your character has a reason to keep subjecting herself to it. I ran into the problem recently in Final Fantasy XIV. As a player, I enjoyed what was going on with one of the many organizations my character belongs to. The problem is that she wasn't enjoying it, and she didn't have any reason to keep subjecting herself to it. She didn't like most of these people, she didn't need money or resources from them, and she wasn't really deriving any benefit from it any longer. Obviously, I wanted her to stick around. But every so often you find yourself in situations where your character isn't happy and wants to leave... and has both reason and opportunity to do so. Two weeks ago I talked about getting someone out of your life; now it's time to talk about keeping a character in the mix.
