There is nothing more destructive to the story than a DM temper tantrum, which explains why players have such enthusiasm for causing them.
(Also, for the benefit of readers who check out the comic but don’t read the rest of the site: I want to point out that I was interviewed on Fear the Boot. Tune in to hear some behind-the-scenes info on the comic and a bit about myself and my experiences playing D&D.)
– Shamus, Friday May 4, 2007 Continue reading ⟩⟩ “DM of the Rings XCVI: An Errant Arrow”
This week I’ve been too busy to really play anything between work and Halloween. All I’ve done was finish the Borderlands 3 DLC I was playing last week. The DLC was fine, no complaints, though I have found that I’ve been procrastinating on playing the game itself as time goes on. I originally intended to do everything, but it’s becoming a slog and I might drop the game soon.
So, how’s everyone this week?
I wrote out the prologue of The Old Republic smuggler story a couple of weeks ago. What I left out was the characterization. For all characters, the player is presented with three responses to every dialogue option with few exceptions. There are actually several different characterizations that could be represented in these interactions; they don’t always align to the same three concepts. That’s in addition to choices that can affect your Light Side/Dark Side alignment, *and* the occasional option that can raise the influence level with your companion. Light Side/Dark Side and companion influence choices are *mostly* consistent, but I’m pretty sure every companion has some nonsensical options. And for what it’s worth, former writers and producers of the game have confirmed some of these as mistakes that got missed on play-testing. The remaining dialogue can be used for character-building, if that’s your thing. As a reference, the Imperial Agent can repeatedly choose options that establish her character as (in my case): Pro-Imperial/Bureaucracy, Anti-Sith, opposed to the Empire’s xenophobic policies, in favor of quick, practical assassinations as solutions to problems, independent and dismissive of anyone other than her own subordinates, and supremely confident. And that’s just the subset.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “SWTOR: The Smuggler WAHOG”
Whenever you introduce a new creature, you should be very specific in your descriptions so that players know if this is something for them to fight or have sex with.
Shamus, Wednesday May 2, 2007
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “DM of the Rings Remastered XCV: You Could Get a Splinter”
This week is more Borderlands 3.
Not anything new with the base game. I still think the main story sucks, and the combat feels squishy. But, I started some of the DLCs, and so far I’ve been pleasantly surprised.
I played through Moxxi’s Heist of the Handsome Jackpot fully expecting the villain to just be some AI version of Handsome Jack, but was happy to find out that the only version of Jack you find is one of his Doppelgangers that’s been trapped and doesn’t want to kill you. The writing is good enough; I didn’t even watch something on my other screen just to make it through.
I also started the Guns, Love, and Tentacles DLC. I’ve only played a little bit, but so far it’s looking good. You even get to see Gaige return which is delightful.
So, what’s everyone else doing?
(As some people noted, it would not have made sense to re-introduce Merry & Pip as players. Each of them goes off on his own. It would have made a three-way party split, which is confusing enough. Worse, most of the humor comes from the players ignoring NPCs and talking to each other – something the Hobbits wouldn’t be able to do. I could have made them players, but I couldn’t make them funny.)
NPCs do enjoy such an odd status as second-class beings. Players will talk amongst themselves as if the NPC wasn’t there. Players will walk away in the middle of a conversation if they realize an NPC is of no use to them. Players expect NPCs to be available at their whim to provide information and dispense rewards. This applies even if the players are nobodies and the NPC in question is a King. In fact, if NPCs ever turned the tables and treated players as they treated others, it would most likely lead to violence.
This is as it should be. Imagine how tedious a story would be if every extra and minor character you encountered tried to shove out in front and make themselves into a main character.
Nobody wants that much realism.
– Shamus, Monday Apr 30, 2007
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “DM of the Rings Remastered XCIV: For The Shorties”
Greetings fellow humans! I simply ran out of time to write anything this week. The non-stop litany of broken household appliances and cars hopefully choked out it’s last gasps of desperation this week as we transition into the better part of the year, in my opinion. (I’m in the southwest right now, so Fall and Winter are truly better than Spring and Summer.) Very few activities I have engaged in require more than a sentence or two, so I’m taking this week off. There are a few Star Wars: The Old Republic screenshots in the expanded post.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Nothing From Me This Week, Thanks…”
What is this silly word, why did some people get so irritated by it, and why did it fall out of use?
This is a horrible narrative that undermines the hobby through crass stereotypes. The hobby is vast, gamers come from all walks of life, and you shouldn't judge ANY group by its worst members.
Why killing you might be the least scary thing a game can do.
This mess of dross, confusion, and terrible UI design is the storefront the big publishers couldn't beat? Amazing.
This series explores the troubled history of VR and the strange lawsuit between Zenimax publishing and Facebook.
A horrible, railroading, stupid, contrived, and painfully ill-conceived roleplaying campaign. All in good fun.
This is why shopping for graphics cards is so stupid and miserable.
A video Let's Play series I collaborated on from 2009 to 2017.
I'm not surprised a fighting game has an absurd story. I just can't figure out why they bothered with the story at all.
Sometimes in-game secrets are fun and sometimes they're lame. Here's why.
T w e n t y S i d e d
