69 réponses à ce sujet

[Hathur]

I've been playing Bioware RPGs since Baldur's Gate 1... and many other types of RPGs before and since that game.

Romances in RPGs are relatively common (especially Bioware games).... but these are minor, ancillary events. They occupy perhaps 5% or less of the content of a game (in terms of dialogue choices) and are almost never relevant to the plot.

Yet when you look at these forums (and the old ME2 forum).... nearly 1/2 or more of discussion are about romances in game.

Really? I mean.... really? Is this what passes for as important in a RPG? Not the over arching plot, characters and side stories? People obsess over minor romances?

I just don't understand this... I don't even think much, if at all, about what the romances in a RPG will be.... I wonder more about what world shattering events will occur... which character friends of mine might die? What unique places will I visit? What will the plot villains be like? Etc.

But romances? Ugh.  It's just kinda creeps me out to see that this is something that so many people in forums obsess about in ME2... seriously.. read some of those posts... it's insane to the point of being sad.

[marshalleck]

It's one of the last contentious issues to which there is no clear answer from the developers. Of course it's going to garner a lot of attention.

Once the game comes out people will go back to discussing the real impact of the changes and start speculating about where the story could be going for ME3.

Modifié par marshalleck, 18 janvier 2010 - 04:19 .

[Naltair]

People like to have relations.

[Sacae]

Romances or not, I'll like the game.



But, I look at it as this. Roleplaying is taking the role of someone's life. Yes, a more epically important and awesome life than normal, but a life. And love is apart of life.



Its human to want to love someone, so it creates interest. You get to roleplay those romances you read in books, no matter the kind. Hero gets girl at end. Heck, harry potter even had it, lord of the rings had it.



Just my two cents.

[Fates end]

The "Minor" romances, as you call them. Have to do with the Characters. And it seems to me that Character personality is important to an RPG.

[Zomg_A_Chicken]

Don't really care much about the romances



Although if there's an achievement involved, I will pursue it

[Handren]

marshalleck wrote...

It's one of the last contentious issues to which there is no clear answer from the developers. Of course it's going to garner a lot of attention.

Once the game comes out people will go back to discussing the real impact of the changes and start speculating about where the story could be going for ME3.

This.

If the devs had told us who was romancebale and who wasn`t, I guarantee you that many of the LOVE threads would either not exist or be far less high in traffic.

We used to speculate about who would be the last 2 party members until it became obvious that it was garrus and Legion. That's why no one talks about that anymore.

Since we have no more clues or things to speculate on the story, this topic is the most p[opular in debate.

[baardhimself]

I think the fact that people read books and comic books about an imaginary universe based on a computer game is crazy enough!

[izmirtheastarach]

People want to know where the story is going to go with these particular characters. The romance in ME1 was much more tightly integrated into the story then in some other games.

[ZelaineGW]

Many of are just talking smack while we wait for the game.

[DaeJi]

Romances are the last thing to really talk about before the game launches. Trust me, there were plenty of threads about ammo and exploration and combat just a few months ago.

[Hathur]

Look I'm not saying that games shouldn't have romances.. they're welcome, they add SOME character development... it is not the be-all and end-all of development.. in fact, romances are quite limiting in scope as far as development goes.



Developing non romantic relations with characters can be far more fascinating... coping with unique or sometimes challenging aspects of one's personality.... learning to like someone despite their flaws or odd behavior.



Developing friendships in RPGs is far more rewarding... as it leaves infinitely more diversity... just like real life. People are all odd in their own way and learning to accept them or work with them despite that is part of what making friendships is all about. These are the kind of in game relationships that are genuinely interesting.



I think specifically of Alistair from dragon age origins. As a male character yourself, you can truly develop a great relationship with him as a trusted friend, even a brother almost. His quips and attitude as you gain trust with him are genuinely rewarding, and I feel as if he has my back in a fight... he's my bud, my wingman.



Same deal with Sten.. that's a truly difficult yet rewarding relationship.. so much of his belief's go against my own.. yet I trust him implicitly... you develop a great friendship with him in the game (or can anyway if you want to).



Romances are certainly interesting to have in game.. I welcome them as it adds just 1 more layer of relationship to develop... I just find it odd that it is the focus of so much discussion (and I mean truly overwhelming discussion.. there are countless threads on it).



I'm not decrying romance in game... I'm just puzzled at the obsession so many people have about it. Perhaps I'm just wired different.... I don't feel overly needy about being loved to the point I obsess over who will love my character in game

[asaiasai]

Nothing sells like fear or sex.

It is not gamers only it is an epidemic effecting all of the hairless monkeys.

Asai

Modifié par asaiasai, 18 janvier 2010 - 04:36 .

[cpolisch]

So because we like personalized options in a game... that makes us weird? Romance is just the thing that we can speculate the most on because trying to guess the whole plot would be ridiculous.

[marshalleck]

Hathur wrote...

I'm not decrying romance in game... I'm just puzzled at the obsession so many people have about it. Perhaps I'm just wired different.... I don't feel overly needy about being loved to the point I obsess over who will love my character in game

And I think you're mistaking boredom over every other topic that has been argued to death for obsession with romances.

Modifié par marshalleck, 18 janvier 2010 - 05:03 .

[IccaRa]

Well it's either that or argue cyclically over ammo and heatsinks.

[Willowhugger]

With all due respect to the original poster.  Yeah, it's pretty much the most important part of the game to me.  Or, at the very least, it's one of the absolute most important parts of the game to me.  I think he's being narrow minded in his perception of what people like and remember most about the RPGs.

Baldur's Gate?  People are STILL ****ing about the fact there's no Imoen romance.  Imoen was the original Tali, btw.  They also talk about the merits of Viconia versus Aerie versus Jaheria.  Do you see many topics about the third game's villains?  Irenicus still occasionally gets some talk time, but that's because he's the Ra's Al Ghul of Forgotten Realms.

What do people discuss most about Dragon Age I've found?  Morrigan's baby, Leliana, the lack of a gay Alistair romance, who ends up with who, and so on.  The interpersonal relationships element is a lot more important than discussing "So, how exactly did you beat up the Archdemon?  What was your time?  Did you use Archers or Mages?"

This is because that a lot of the games are fundamentally built around killing things.  There's not much to say about the Broodmother other than "Man, that's some freaky s----" or "she killed me a lot."  In many cases, the romance story-arcs are the best part of a game because they're the most personal choice that your character can make.

You can certainly befriend Alistair.  But you can't romance Morrigan *AND* Leliana *AND* Zevran without losing one.  It says a lot about your character and you as a player when you make a choice like "who does my character end up with?"

[JakePT]

I'd probably have less issues with people discussing romances if they weren't discussing them with this thing:


I'm totally with the OP on this. Romances are a great aspect of the story, but it seems like no one (at least not the people posting endless threads about them) gives a damn about that.

I also hate the term 'Romance options', it treats that aspect of the game as gameplay, as opposed to the story, which is where I strongly think they belong.

The romances should be a natural extension of how your character develops their relationship with other characters, not a goal or a tick on the box, which is how people are treating them when they say "Why can't I have a relationship with an ME2 character without cheating on my ME1 love interest?". Why did you romance them in the first place if you didn't want your character to develop a proper relationship with them!? Because all you wanted to do is bed the blue alien chick, way to miss the point.

I have to say though, BioWare is just as guilty as everyone else. The whole reason Thane and the drell exist is to let players bone a male alien. How about developing a race and character so they fit in the universe and story instead of making a virtual sex doll, hm?

Modifié par JakePT, 18 janvier 2010 - 05:11 .

[ODST 3]

Yeah, and most of them revolve around who's gay and whether we get m/m or f/f romances. Ridiculous, will it mean that much either way? It's a video game!

Modifié par ODST 3, 18 janvier 2010 - 05:08 .

[Arrtis]

People here are not that serious.Is what I believe.

[Willowhugger]

ODST 3 wrote...

Yeah, and most of them revolve around who's gay and whether we get m/m or f/f romances. Ridiculous, will it mean that much either way? It's a video game!

Well for a lot of players, I assume it's a very personal decision.  The gaymers onboard this board have expressed.  "I'm irritated I can't romance who I want because they're straight."  Which is something that hurts their enjoyment of the game as much as the discussion of ammo.  The Tali fans have the same basic complaint, only its about a character they want to romance.

It's no different than complaining about the ammo because it reduces your gaming experience.  It hurts the power fantasy that is at the heart of many gamer's play of video games.

[Ettecoud]

JakePT wrote...

I'd probably have less issues with people discussing romances if they weren't discussing them with this thing:


I'm totally with the OP on this. Romances are a great aspect of the story, but it seems like no one (at least not the people posting endless threads about them) gives a damn about that.

I also hate the term 'Romance options', it treats that aspect of the game as gameplay, as opposed to the story, which is where I strongly think they belong.

The romances should be a natural extension of how your character develops their relationship with other characters, not a goal or a tick on the box.

Id hit that 

[Willowhugger]

Eh, I don't get the Garrus love myself.



But then again, maybe it's meant to be a love that's more on personality than species.



After all, Beauty and the Beast is a timeless story for a reason.

[DaeJi]

JakePT wrote...


I also hate the term 'Romance options', it treats that aspect of the game as gameplay, as opposed to the story, which is where I strongly think they belong.

Romances are gameplay; you have to play them.

[Hathur]

Willowhugger wrote...

What do people discuss most about Dragon Age I've found?  Morrigan's baby, Leliana, the lack of a gay Alistair romance, who ends up with who, and so on.  The interpersonal relationships element is a lot more important than discussing "So, how exactly did you beat up the Archdemon?  What was your time?  Did you use Archers or Mages?"

This is because that a lot of the games are fundamentally built around killing things.  There's not much to say about the Broodmother other than "Man, that's some freaky s----" or "she killed me a lot."  In many cases, the romance story-arcs are the best part of a game because they're the most personal choice that your character can make.

This is simply not true. Look at all the character relationships in ME1 or Dragon Age that have nothing to do with romance. Many of them are interesting examinations of that character's past history.. what he/she has done in life.. what problems they face.

Garrus? He had a very difficult relationship with his father, he constantly struggled to prove himself as a C-Sec officer... we learned of his frustrations with how C-Sec operated.. that he desperately wanted to do more to stop criminals but felt confined by C-Sec. This permeates frequently throughout the game... we even get a whole mission about it.

Wrex has some seriously messed up family issues to deal with. He has a fascinating, detailed and troubled past which we get to ultimately help him out with.

Alistair has significant "family" issues... his sister and other members which I won't mention due to possible spoilers.

The warrior priest from Baldur's Gate 2 (forgot his name), the paladin of helm.... all these people had lives of their own which involved it's own baggage... we got to help them out with it and become a part of their lives beyond the dungeons and monster slaying.

If you bothered to stop and think for a moment, you'd realize how much character development there was in all these stories of theirs.

Ashley from ME? We learn a lot about her philosophical thinking, her beliefs. Her past. All of these are learned without even romancing her whatsoever. You can play a female sheperd and become her friend and learn a great deal about her past and become friends, comrades in arms.

Romancing her does NOTHING to develop her character.. it does not gives any further insight into who she is.

The same applies to romance options in Dragon Age, Baldur's Gate, etc... romancing does not develop their plot or character stories further in any way... we still learn just as much about them and help them with their troubles if we simply stay as their comrade/friend.

Friendship breeds the character development.. not romancing them... romancing them is just a little candy to go on the side of it all... but it adds nothing substantive.

That's not to say it doesn't have it's place.. but don't go fooling yourself it is somehow a powerful character development device of some sort.. it is not. Getting the characters to either be your friend or to hate you.. now that develops their character... it affects their goals, decisions and behavior in game.

Romancing just adds a few brief minutes of dialogue--- it does not flesh out the character any further.

Modifié par Hathur, 18 janvier 2010 - 05:27 .