anyone know? please help couldnt find any other source.
Whats a linear game?
Débuté par
No Shoot Mi
, mars 12 2010 06:08
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#1
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 06:08
No Shoot Mi
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i hear a lot about DA:O being or not being linear. what does this mean, and can there be a quadratic game? from what i can piece together a quadratic would be hard!
anyone know? please help couldnt find any other source.
anyone know? please help couldnt find any other source.
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#2
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 06:14
Remmirath
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It's not a linear/quadratic thing. It's more linear/open or free.
A linear game would be where you have to go from one place to another with no variation. Say, you must go to the starting village - doing the same quests in the same order, progress through exactly three forest areas always in the same order, and kill the king.
A more open game would be you go to the starting village, can do whatever quests there you want, can visit any of the three forest areas, and can either kill the king or not kill the king.
And then at the extreme there's sandbox, where you can do whatever you want and could completely ignore all the quests if you chose.
That may have been a somewhat screwy example, but it's the best I could come up with at the moment.
A linear game would be where you have to go from one place to another with no variation. Say, you must go to the starting village - doing the same quests in the same order, progress through exactly three forest areas always in the same order, and kill the king.
A more open game would be you go to the starting village, can do whatever quests there you want, can visit any of the three forest areas, and can either kill the king or not kill the king.
And then at the extreme there's sandbox, where you can do whatever you want and could completely ignore all the quests if you chose.
That may have been a somewhat screwy example, but it's the best I could come up with at the moment.
#3
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 06:54
Panderfringe
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Every game is linear if it has a beginning and end.
#4
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 07:26
Remmirath
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Not necessarily. If there are several different possible ways to complete it, then it isn't a line (and so not linear). The paths go out from the starting point, could meet at several places, and then regroup at the end point (or several end points). It's more of many intertwined lines. Every time you play the game, you'd trace one line through the possibilities (albeit a twisty one), but the structure of the game wouldn't be linear.
At least, that's how I see it.
At least, that's how I see it.
#5
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 08:37
superimposed
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Linear game: Halo
Not Linear: Oblivion.
One forces you in a single direction, towards a single goal. In an 'open world' game you can essentially just waltz around with your pants around your ankles and the massive, threatening evil will wait for you to pull them up.
Not Linear: Oblivion.
One forces you in a single direction, towards a single goal. In an 'open world' game you can essentially just waltz around with your pants around your ankles and the massive, threatening evil will wait for you to pull them up.
#6
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 08:40
jsachun
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In scientific terms it's distance versus displacement. It's not really about theres a begining and an end. But how you get to the end.Panderfringe wrote...
Every game is linear if it has a beginning and end.
Modifié par jsachun, 12 mars 2010 - 08:40 .
#7
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 08:42
Busomjack
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If you want to know what a linear game is play Final Fantasy X.
#8
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 02:35
medlish
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Linear is always relative. For example DA:O and Mass Effect are both very linear compared to Oblivion or Morrowind for example. It's not always about the space you can explore but about actions but most people mean space if they talk about linearity.
#9
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 03:59
MerinTB
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Linear is a subjective term.
A true absolutely linear game would be a straight-on 2D side-scroller, that you clear level after level, and you cannot even walk backwards.
A true absolutely non-linear game would be one with a lot of stuff you can do, a lot of places you can explore around, but it has no main storyline and nothing pushing you forward in any given direction over time. Even GTA 3, Spider-Man 2 and Oblivion fail this as they have a linear storyline you can follow.
What people tend to mean when they say the game is "linear" is that there weren't enough options for them. The missing options usually involve freedom to go explore where you want when you want, or the freedom to ignore quests in favor of doing whatever you want. For some people, however, they'll cry "linear" whenever a game forces them to do something they didn't want to or prevents them from doing what they want to (why can't I kill the Princess in Super-Mario Bros. / why do I have to become a Grey Warden in DAO / why do I have to be a criminal in GTA) A very small group of people will call a game "linear" because it has become a buzzword for games to be considered "bad" if they are too "linear" and therefore if they don't like a game they'll toss out "linear" like so many people will toss out "the dialog sucks" or "the acting sucks" or "the graphics are bad" just because they don't like something.
Conversely, some people will call games "non-linear" or "open world" or "open-ended" for similar but opposite reasoning. If they like the game, calling it "non-linear" is generally deemed praise. If the game let's the player make choices the player cares about it can be considered "non-linear."
Oddly enough, when it comes to a story-line, even the games considered "open world" tend to be "linear" if you follow the main quest (BG2, Oblivion.) And some games that many would consider "linear" since the levels you explore and the quests you are given arrive more or less in a set order, can have some of the most "open ended" story lines / endings (VTM: Bloodlines, MUA.)
A true absolutely linear game would be a straight-on 2D side-scroller, that you clear level after level, and you cannot even walk backwards.
A true absolutely non-linear game would be one with a lot of stuff you can do, a lot of places you can explore around, but it has no main storyline and nothing pushing you forward in any given direction over time. Even GTA 3, Spider-Man 2 and Oblivion fail this as they have a linear storyline you can follow.
What people tend to mean when they say the game is "linear" is that there weren't enough options for them. The missing options usually involve freedom to go explore where you want when you want, or the freedom to ignore quests in favor of doing whatever you want. For some people, however, they'll cry "linear" whenever a game forces them to do something they didn't want to or prevents them from doing what they want to (why can't I kill the Princess in Super-Mario Bros. / why do I have to become a Grey Warden in DAO / why do I have to be a criminal in GTA) A very small group of people will call a game "linear" because it has become a buzzword for games to be considered "bad" if they are too "linear" and therefore if they don't like a game they'll toss out "linear" like so many people will toss out "the dialog sucks" or "the acting sucks" or "the graphics are bad" just because they don't like something.
Conversely, some people will call games "non-linear" or "open world" or "open-ended" for similar but opposite reasoning. If they like the game, calling it "non-linear" is generally deemed praise. If the game let's the player make choices the player cares about it can be considered "non-linear."
Oddly enough, when it comes to a story-line, even the games considered "open world" tend to be "linear" if you follow the main quest (BG2, Oblivion.) And some games that many would consider "linear" since the levels you explore and the quests you are given arrive more or less in a set order, can have some of the most "open ended" story lines / endings (VTM: Bloodlines, MUA.)
Modifié par MerinTB, 12 mars 2010 - 03:59 .
#10
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 05:31
Skynet877
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One that has a chronological non-changeable order of events.
#11
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 06:00
I Valente I
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Keep in mind that Linear doesn't necessarily mean it's bad. Baldur's Gate II is really linear after Chapter 2. It would not have been nearly as good, or captivating, if it was more like Oblivion and you could simply fast travel from the Underdark to the main city to sell all your crap and then come back. Alot of people these days are convinced that linear=bad, which is not always the case. There are good linear games (jrpg's mostly) and there are good non-linear games(morrowind). So what if someone says Dragon Age is linear? Or KOTOR? I didn't buy it so I could boast about it being completely free and open, I bought it because it's a great game that tell a great story. Most non-linear games can't accomplish that....cough..Oblivion...cough.
#12
Posté 12 mars 2010 - 11:23
Baracuda6977
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linear : Final Fantasy XIII (the maps are straight lines!)
nonlinear : WoW (to my limited knowledge)
linear means that there is a story you are watching with characters that are not you, you simply go through the motions for some great battle mechanics and a good story
non linear is where you play yourself in a 'living' world where you can screw the rules and ignore impending doom to go find out just how a rare a drop is. If you can influence the outcome of events, the order of dungeons and interactions with the npcs then it is non-linear to whatever extent
linear games are a dying breed unfortunately, those who speak are the ones with something to say, so everyone who didn't like Nero DMC4 blindly running after his gf got mad that they couldn't kill her and take over the world, linear was never a bad design really
nonlinear : WoW (to my limited knowledge)
linear means that there is a story you are watching with characters that are not you, you simply go through the motions for some great battle mechanics and a good story
non linear is where you play yourself in a 'living' world where you can screw the rules and ignore impending doom to go find out just how a rare a drop is. If you can influence the outcome of events, the order of dungeons and interactions with the npcs then it is non-linear to whatever extent
linear games are a dying breed unfortunately, those who speak are the ones with something to say, so everyone who didn't like Nero DMC4 blindly running after his gf got mad that they couldn't kill her and take over the world, linear was never a bad design really
