Stop mindcontrolling MY character ZOS!!!

the1andonlyskwex

Reading this thread gives me a greater appreciation for how The Secret World handled dialogue. Your character was totally silent, which allowed you to imagine any reaction you wanted as a player. Interactions were kept interesting by having most NPCs come in pairs that would talk to each other. It was great.

Sylvermynx

the1andonlyskwex wrote: »

Reading this thread gives me a greater appreciation for how The Secret World handled dialogue. Your character was totally silent, which allowed you to imagine any reaction you wanted as a player. Interactions were kept interesting by having most NPCs come in pairs that would talk to each other. It was great.

Totally silent....

I would kill for that.

Reverb

Sometimes I long for a local, offline version of ESO that plays like a single player RPG. Then we could mod it to make quest NPCs non essential and kill them.

Ascarl

Same with Mazzatun and Heem Jas. I sympathize more with the monsters in there than that JJ Binks of ESO.

TelvanniWizard

SWTOR makes a way better rpg as it goes, giving actual options and, even if many story quests are fixed and one-sided, at least you get cool dialogue options to represent your characters feelings in a roleplaying friendly way.

Minyassa

I've felt this way about a lot of quests. Some of them are particularly bothersome, like that godsawful goblin-poisoning quest in Cyrodiil. It makes it hard for me to like my own character sometimes, if they're okay with people and actions that I'm very much not okay with. We all have our favorite and least favorite television or movie characters based on how they behave, that extends for many of us to role-playing games, and it's hard to take part in things that cause dislike.

kamimark

Every NPC-based storyline should have at least one "go f- yourself" response, where you can get rid of the NPC forever. Drive the plot some other way, or not at all, just unlock the quest delve and bosses so we can kill them in our own time.

Sai Sahan can stay dead, I'm the dragon slayer, he's a damned NPC follower. Tell Josejah she's a danger to herself and others, go collect the quest tokens myself, hand in the staff and collect my skull buddy without her boss fight.

miteba

It would be great to have some alternative dialogues, with at least 2 different endings based in our choices... at least in the main quest stories.

miteba

the1andonlyskwex wrote: »

Your character was totally silent, which allowed you to imagine any reaction you wanted as a player.

You have that feeling on the Dark Brotherhood questline, where sometimes you have that option to remain silent... But even there the NPC assumes something

the1andonlyskwex

miteba wrote: »

the1andonlyskwex wrote: »

Your character was totally silent, which allowed you to imagine any reaction you wanted as a player.

You have that feeling on the Dark Brotherhood questline, where sometimes you have that option to remain silent... But even there the NPC assumes something

The fact that remaining silent isn't a choice is important. Also, in TSW the NPCs mostly react to each other, not to you.

Greevir

This is how I felt when Sai Sahan ended up coming back. I purposely sacrificed him so I can have Lyris all to myself. And he ends up alive anyways! WTF? How can I compete with that beard!?

myskyrim26

Fischblut wrote: »

Why is the game "playing" my character for me? Why is the game forcing me to like this character?

I agree! I very rarely like main/important NPC characters, and yet most of time I'm forced to work with them/be friendly to them

Just this, in one sentence - thank you! I don't want to join any Allaince. I don't like Ayrenn, Emeric and Jorunn. I hate Naryu, I'm tired of Raz, I want to punch Lyris Titanborn. Yet I HAVE TO join some Alliance, be a dedicated servant of Ayrenn, or Emeric, or Jorunn, cooperate with Naryu, Raz and Lyris.... Why? Why can't I just tell them all to go to Oblivion? I wish we had several optional ways to do quests.

Araneae6537

the1andonlyskwex wrote: »

allhailskippy wrote: »

This is a problem with the way they designed quests from the very beginning.

Nothing matters. Period.
Your choices, regardless of what they may be. End up with the same footnote above a quest areas marker.

"Resolved the conflict present there"

Even the main storyline is like this. Choose the "wrong person". Too bad. Skyhook comes and brings them back regardless. At best, you'll get an extra line or two of dialog.

Hold up there. When ESO released, tons of quests actually had consequences and affected the world. The problem was that then everyone was dumped into a different instance based on the choices they made, which badly fragmented the player base and even prevented friends from playing together. It caused tons of problems and complaints, so they removed most of it over the course of the next year.

That’s a shame! I really wish they’d left the quests as they were then and perhaps found another way to better enable friends to quest together.

Aristocles22

I agree that quests are a bit too repetitive. Most of the non fetch-quests go something like:

1. I need your help to do X. I can't do X myself because of Y.

2. Thanks for doing X, but now something else has come up and I need you do to Z.

3. Now do A and this will be finished.

4. Thank you. Here's some pocket change and/or vendor trash. Enjoy the XP.

FlamingMeat

THE most egregious DLC for this is Morrowind imo. You're overly polite to a certain xenophobic ***, don't question why he's a part of the highest rank of Vivec's company, and also not able to press Vivec on huge lore dumps in his dialogue that don't line up at all with known lore in the game. Hell, in the some storyline dialogue they even mention the death of the Nerevar and the Dwemer, and the Dwemer come up in conversation with Vivec/Sotha Sil. Neither of which can be pressed for information, even if they have none like in other games. I'm expected to believe my character gets told about the single greatest mystery of the Elder Scrolls' universe and isn't able to mutter: 'what happened?' We could even get some hint hint, nudge nudges about The Tribunal using the heart for the source of their godhood from any other entity, making our character's view of them as conflicted as mine is IRL. But I assume this is so less lore enthused players don't have to be asking how The Tribunal, literally at the height of their power, 300 years before their power begins to dip, can't see someone they've known for a generation be replaced.

Sengra

The question is ... why do MMOs focus so much on storytelling anyway? The only advantage of video game storytelling over books and movies is that it's an interactive medium where you can be part of the story and make your own decisions. So if this isn't possible in an MMO, why have so many stories and so many lines of dialogue that force me to be passive and listen? For me an MMO should give the player the means to roleplay whoever they want to be in interaction with other players. If there is story, it should be an ongoing thing with characters I care about and where people who are dead stay dead (unless there's necromancy involved). The only thing I have a little bit of control over is how my character looks. It it kind of sad if you think about how ambitious the genre started ... virtual worlds where you can be who you want to be.

Thechuckage

Mages guild quest line. Depending on the choice you make...Shalidor barely cares. I think there is maybe, MAYBE one line of dialogue if you sacrifice Valaste for the skill points. Either choice you make you are still getting the eidetic memory from ole Shally.

There is no weight to the choice you make in that quest. Boils down to, do I get the extra skill points or not. From talking to guildies, the "good choice" is widely regarded as the worse of the two options. Losing on skill points for no appreciable gain.

Give the choices some weight or some kind of meaning. SWTORs imperial agent questline was amazing. In the end all the choices felt they had some weight or consequence to them. But when a pivotal NPC just ignores the choice you made 2 seconds ago.....

Ryath_Waylander

Fischblut wrote: »

Why is the game "playing" my character for me? Why is the game forcing me to like this character?

I agree! I very rarely like main/important NPC characters, and yet most of time I'm forced to work with them/be friendly to them

Don't get me started on Lyris Titanborn.... sheesh!

NotaDaedraWorshipper

This is not anything new. All Elder Scrolls games have very limited choice and dialogue options.

Iccotak

I just do not think that ESO will ever be a full on RPG - the MMO aspect holds in back in that regard

Elsonso

Iccotak wrote: »

I just do not think that ESO will ever be a full on RPG - the MMO aspect holds in back in that regard

Honestly, no computer game can be a "full on RPG". MMOs in particular, but this also extends to single player, like TES, Fallout, etc.

Iccotak

Elsonso wrote: »

Iccotak wrote: »

I just do not think that ESO will ever be a full on RPG - the MMO aspect holds in back in that regard

Honestly, no computer game can be a "full on RPG". MMOs in particular, but this also extends to single player, like TES, Fallout, etc.

True, but I think the format of an MMO just inherently presents more limits to the game's rpg capabilities. As opposed to a single player title.