D&D 4E Find the Anime/Video games in 4e

[IanB]

The only thing that has really jumped out at me is the "quest" system with the cards and all.

 

[The Little Raven]

Also of note is that, in many videogame RPGs such as the Final Fantasy series, characters don't ever die.

And to every rule, there is an exception.

 

[Zaruthustran]

Also of note is that, in many videogame RPGs such as the Final Fantasy series, characters don't ever die. They get temporarily wounded or disabled, but they don't actually die in battle.

In Gears of War, when you or your team-mates get knocked down they go into a "dieing" state. They can be revived if you get to them in time. Don't get to them in time? Game over.

D&D works similarly. If a party member drops he'll bleed out over time. Many of the games in which I've played have greatly expanded the standard "dead at -10" rule to minimize the chance of an insta-kill. Don't get to your buddy in time? Adventure over, since you'll typically have to put a halt to whatever it is you're doing and instead head back to town/rest so you can prepare raise dead/otherwise deal with the dead party member.

 

[Scholar & Brutalman]

The most videogame-y element of all in D&D is the ease with which a PC can return from death due to the raise dead spell and other magical means.

I suspect raise dead will be a higher level spell in 4e than it has been in previous editions.

Which came first, Raise Dead in AD&D or its appearance in video games? I think it's rather the most D&D-y aspect of video games.

What seems to me to be straight from MMORPGs is character respec. I think it first came up in 3.5e in PHB II, well after it had appeared in video games. I've known some DMs that allow you to redesign characters if you didn't understand all the implications of a character generation process, but I don't recall it ever being an official part of the rule set. I think some degree of respec is a fine idea for D&D anyway.

 

[TwinBahamut]

And to every rule, there is an exception.

Or Tellah from FF4, or Galuf from FF5, or Shadow in FF6... I wasn't referring to plot deaths in that sentence, I was referring to "HP falls to zero". But, keep in mind, all of those plot deaths are absolute. You don't bring people back from the dead in FF games.

The bigger trick is keeping the dead from bothering the living in FF10, but that world is... unique.

 

[Rechan]

Which came first, Raise Dead in AD&D or its appearance in video games? I think it's rather the most D&D-y aspect of video games.

I think the point was more that it was an aspect of D&D that makes it more like a video-game feel of "I died? Oh, okay. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Yes, it came first. But it in effect cheapens death to a mere hindering annoyance, rather than, well, what death is.

What seems to me to be straight from MMORPGs is character respec. I think it first came up in 3.5e in PHB II, well after it had appeared in video games. I've known some DMs that allow you to redesign characters if you didn't understand all the implications of a character generation process, but I don't recall it ever being an official part of the rule set. I think some degree of respec is a fine idea for D&D anyway.

3.5 Bards can replace spells they know. Sorcerers can too in UA, I think. Simply so that when you have few spells, and get access to a "Better version" of a previous spell, you aren't stuck with both the weaker and stronger version. Or when you're 12th level, Sleep (only effecting 4 HD of monsters) isn't so hot.

I'm not sure if warlocks can do that, but I told the warlock in my game that she could.

 

[AllisterH]

The weird thing about what Doug McCrae mentions is that the first FF/Dragon Warrior RPGs ripped off D&D wholesale.

The "raise dead/resurrection" spells come straight from the 1E AD&D PHB and the various JRPG producers have always been open as to where they got this from.

Similarly, the +1 sword is from D&D.

I'm not sure a lot of people understand how much of an influence D&D has had on JRPGs in its infancy. D&D wasn't as big a hit in japan as it was in the states but conversely it gave rise to the "replay novel" which did become a huge aspect.

 

[Scholar & Brutalman]

I'm not sure if warlocks can do that, but I told the warlock in my game that she could.

Yes warlocks can as well, I just checked Complete Arcane. I agree that the 3.5 sorcerer and bard rules are an earlier appearance of the same idea, so that's back to 2003 at least. I don't know if that predates the idea in MMORPGs.

 

[rkanodia]

Agreed. The second most video-game like aspect is Weapon +1, Armor +1, Stat +2 item, Save +1 item, etc. And the "Go into dungeon, kill monster, take it's stuff, all so you can kill bigger monsters to take more powerful loot to kill bigger monsters to...".

Most video games have far fewer item slots than D&D does. And Longsword +1, +2, etc was already old when I started playing D&D, somewhere in the late 80's. You can't honestly claim that is an influence from video games.

In Gears of War, when you or your team-mates get knocked down they go into a "dieing" state. They can be revived if you get to them in time. Don't get to them in time? Game over.
D&D works similarly. If a party member drops he'll bleed out over time. Many of the games in which I've played have greatly expanded the standard "dead at -10" rule to minimize the chance of an insta-kill. Don't get to your buddy in time? Adventure over, since you'll typically have to put a halt to whatever it is you're doing and instead head back to town/rest so you can prepare raise dead/otherwise deal with the dead party member.

2E had rules for 'Knocking at Death's Door'; I don't know if any previous editions did, but either way, this is not something that D&D took from video games.

 

[rkanodia]

What seems to me to be straight from MMORPGs is character respec. I think it first came up in 3.5e in PHB II, well after it had appeared in video games. I've known some DMs that allow you to redesign characters if you didn't understand all the implications of a character generation process, but I don't recall it ever being an official part of the rule set. I think some degree of respec is a fine idea for D&D anyway.

This one might be a winner - I think respec is a great idea, but I can't think of any source for this other than videogames. Anyone with experience in lots of different RPG systems care to chime in?