Kevin Lynch wrote...
NG+, the idea of starting a new game with the character that finished a previous game (so they are high-level) is good for those that like to continue to push their character to the maximum (if I'm thinking of NG+ the same way as others). The unfortunate side-effect is that it can get boring very quickly if there's nothing new about that game in terms of character development (no room to grow), new loot, new options, new opponents, etc. If it has to be different, then it's going to be a lot of extra development time to rebalance for a high-level play through, too. Not sure if I'd be interested in that, even if some would be.
Perhaps those that like the idea can comment why it'd be good and what you'd need to make it so.
Very well. A short list:
1) Immersion: The number one consideration is that you're supposed to be a legend. In Mass Effect (both installments) you are told that your Shepard is a hero; he was capable of all kinds of nigh-superhuman feats of strength of skill that elevated him far above the common soldier or mercenary. Gameplay-wise, however, he could barely move a pencil with his biotics at the outset, and even as an infiltrator could barely hold his rifle steady. New Game+ actually lets you live up to the hype, enhancing immersion.
The same is true for Dragon Age. My mage passed his Harrowing and graduated from Apprenticehood despite only knowing two spells. Alistair has a single Templar skill when you meet him, yet somehow he is able to teach others how to become one. Leliana is a master bard who knows one song etc.
2) Common Ground: In a game with scaling enemies (Mass Effect, Dragon Age etc.) this gives us a clear baseline comparison for every build, gear, class and party combination for strategy purposes. This settles all the "Sleep is an awesome spell!" "You were only using it at level 10; past Lothering it sucks!" "Person B is right, don't waste points in it" disputes that arise on forums. You can try any build at all points of the game, rather than only being able to test them at specific points of the story.
3) Catharsis: Remember That One Boss that gave you so much trouble because he kept spawning minions? If only you knew any AoE spells back then that you could use to clear out the peanut gallery en masse, or a giant glyph you could slap down to keep them funneled in a nice chokepoint to your off-tank blender teammate. How about the time you had to escort that NPC and you kept running out of mana/stamina (you had no points in your passive skills yet, you see) and could only watch as he was minced, time and again?
Revisiting those hair-pullingly frustrating points of the game with a beefy PC isn't just fun, it's good game design. Yahtzee wrote an article
on Revenge in RPGs that illustrates my point. (The first half of his article, anyway.) In a single-player story-based RPG, NG+ is the best way of providing that feeling of accomplishment, because often-times you just aren't able to revisit those early areas. Even if the enemies are scaled up to match you, theirs is a linear progression - yours is quadratic, because not only do you have more health and mana, you also have far more tactics available to you via new spells, new talents etc.
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