So its come to my attention that everyone wants to make mmorpgs or RPG, fantasy themed style games… But why?
I gather this data from observing some of the most popular forum topics, and top selling assets. I just can’t figure out why the majority of unity users want to create mmorpgs, RPGs, or any Fantasy themed game for that matter.
I’m not at all saying this a bad thing, its fine… Just curious why the interest is so much higher for these types of games, while there are so many other themes and styles we could target and create.
I blame it on WoW. Because it inspired so many knock offs which were in turn played by a ton of people, who in turn want to make a better version of their favorite game for themselves.
RPGs have a fantasy lineage, mostly due to the first pen and paper RPGs like Dungeons and Dragons that were inspired by Lord of the Rings. Even though RPGs divided into two genres - the Eastern RPG and the Western RPG - due to cultural projection onto the basic formula, the fantastic inspiration is at the core of what makes these games who and what they are.
RPGs have been adapted into Sci-Fi (Star Wars: The Old Republic) and rarely into modern (Earthbound) settings, which proves that they are doable in non-fantasy settings. But, as said before, fantasy has the fewest restrictions on what you can and can’t do - “A Wizard Did It” is a very effective handwave in a fantasy setting because there really are wizards, one of which who probably did “it.”
but hmmm when I think Fantasy I usually think and picture mostly Medieval Themed Games, or a twist of Medieval someway. Mostly when I search for Fantasy MMORPGs, or RPGs, Medieval is usually the primary sub-theme that comes up along side it…
So how is that considered “no real boundaries” if Fantasy MMORPGs, or RPGs are somehow always tied to Medieval themes at it’s core?
all Medieval based at it’s core… if not Medieval then Ancient Asian Dynasty, or Mythology Influenced or something, I don’t see how this is considered “no real boundaries” when developers seem to continue to make Fantasy Games surrounding these kinds of Sub-Theme because of the preconception of what a Fantasy MMORPG or others Fantasy games in General should be possibly.
I sometime wonder how the heck do people make up their mind of which of these Fantasy MMORPGs they are going to blow all their time on next… as they all look and or feel the same with few exceptions.
Fantasy opens the door for two important things: magic and mythical creatures, which in themselves can unlock untold content.
If you took away mythical creatures, that leaves us with humans… sure there’s a tonne of speciality each human could branch into, but really it is still limited compared to the RPG/MMO that has a handful of different creatures, each with its own ‘home area’ and special abilities (which are often in some way magic)
If you then take away magic, again you have cut your options quite a bit… you are left to mechanical devices at best (depending on the era of your game)
So quickly you see the reason why they go Fantasy. It just makes everything you can imagine, possible.
I don’t consider fantasy equals medieval. Sure a lot of fantasy is based around castles/dungeons/etc, but that is really the only association.
That might be the rationale, but it’s not the reality. It’s relatively rare that a fantasy is something other than a Tolkien clone.
Also, people often get the setting and the genre mixed up. You can have medieval sci-fi and you can have fantasy set in space. For instance, I argue that Star Wars is actually more fantasy than sci-fi, because despite being set in space and having space ships there’s never any “what if…?” discussion about the advanced technology, which in my opinion is the core of sci-fi. Instead everything is good vs. evil, revolving around specific hero characters running around with swords and magical powers dealing with things that are larger than themselves, which are very fantasy oriented. (As an aside, even the simpler idea that “fantasy is in the past and sci-fi is in the future” supports this position, given the whole “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” thing.)
Gotcha! OK so would you consider Star Wars Fantasy? It seems to be the only Movie/Game that comes to mind the blends both Fantasy and Sci-Fi as it includes Creatures, and I guess some Magic of sorts? I forget I have not seen or played Star Wars related stuff in a long time, but seems like a good reference for what your getting at…
If we just go Sci-Fi, or more Realistic Earthbound we become Limited to Content in a Sense, but if we with fuse Fantasy and say Sci-Fi/Technology like Star Wars it somehow becomes limitless in a sense based on imagination and how well we can put them together.
yea, that’s exactly what i was getting at with my original post! like WHY are sooo many people stuck on creating clone fantasy Games… but I guess squared55 might have explained it with that video! WoW messed it all up!! LOL!
Haha, I know you weren’t asking me in particular, but see my edit.
Also, I once found a magazine interview with George Lucas from fairly early on in the Star Wars franchise where he himself described Star Wars as being fantasy rather than sci-fi. And until The Phantom Menace and the ham-fisted introduction of “medichlorians” (or whatever they’re called) as a pseudo-scientific explanation for “The Force” I don’t think that there was really any sci-fi anything in it. The only potential relation it had to sci-fi at the time was having space ships and being set in space, which was really used as nothing but a part of the setting. (If you replaced space ships with horses or sea ships and space with large oceans or something you could in fact have the exact same story, just “skinned” differently. With “what if…?” sci-fi, you can’t.) There was an army made via cloning, I guess, but that wasn’t actually explained until the prequels either. It was a straight up (and reasonably good) fantasy romp that just happened to be set in space.
Im not sure where the distinction comes between these two genres is though… ie what makes it sci-fi as opposed to fantasy… I guess sci-fi is the ‘techy’ version of fantasy that could one day be reality…
We might invent spaceships one day, but we will never invent magic.
My understanding is that science fiction revolves around some kind of “what if?” based on… well, science, and that fantasy is wish-fulfilment based on stuff that isn’t real. So yeah, there’s absolutely no reason that something can’t be both. But there’s also no reason that either have to be tied to particular settings.
I don’t know that they are boring. I tried Travian and it was interesting figuring it out. Even knowing there were established OCD Travian players with a lot of money to waste I still spent about $50 to figure it before I decided this is not a hobby I want. They maintain interest longer than an FPS once you complete your first FPS game those really become boring with interest maintained only becoming a warped gross fest. Travian such are really way too expensive.
I’d like to claim that that’s a bit harsh, but I can’t think of any recent counter-examples. I used to be heavily into tactical FPSs, Rainbow 6 and the like, but even they’re becoming less tactical and more action-movie these days.
I really enjoyed the new Bioshock, but I can’t claim that it wasn’t a “warped gross fest” since some aspects of the combat really were graphic to a degree out of kilter with the rest of the game. (Eg: attacking people with the skyhook, or making them commit suicide after possessing them.)
While that might be true, its not really magic. Its the appearance of magic. Magic would be doing something without the aid of science… something that even science perhaps couldnt explain.
Our science today would be magic to men 1000 years ago.
