Weaknessess of Computer RPGs

[BluWolf]

No matter how imersive eventaully ALL CRPGs eventually devolve into "klick-n-kill" sessions. Don;t get me wrong I like CRPGs and have played several of them but at some point and time when you are playing them game eventaully the window dressing falls away. Click this to kill this. There is very rarely any true strategy.

AND, no matter how many branches a CRPG can take they are still VERY limited in paths. I would like the ability in a CRPG to jump behind the bar abd pick up that bottle of Drwaven fire ale and smash the annoying random NPC over the head with it. You just can't.

Where they beat table-top is availability. They are always there.

 

[Dagger75]

Someone once asked what D&D is like? He played CRPG ,like KOTOR and stuff. I told him, you see all that background scenery of the city, in a table top RPG you can go there just because. See that robat walking down the street that doesn't say anything. He could be a messenger for a gangster, an assassin droind or any number of things.

Its the freedom to do what you want when you want.

 

[Sundragon2012]

I have never seen anyone, anytime, anywhere ever get emotionally involved in a CRPG outside of "damn, I just got killed." I have never seen real emotion, real intensity from anyone regarding the events of a CRPG. I think that once things are externalized onto a computer screen as opposed to in your imagination there is a disconnect that makes the downfall of a "hero" on a CRPG nothing more than an issue of reloading your last saved game....yawn....and playing the same encounter until you get it right....yawn....no real risk......yawn.

When I play video games I want a shooter or a Tom Clancy game for the pure exitement. When it comes time for a role-playing game, give me a table, my books, my setting, my notes, my friends and my imagination. I have yet to see a visual in a CRPG that trumped what I see in my mind's eye when I DM a game.

I jst don't see a group of friends telling and retelling the stories of their glorious CRPG characters the way they do about the characters they may have had for years....characters who have histories that are vivid and part of the shared oral history of your group.


Chris

 

[Wombat]

CRPGs -- I've played a few, but only one grabbed my attention and that was Baldur's Gate II. I felt I had a real reason to be on the quest (though the side quests got a bit odd after a while) and I loved the interactions between the PC and the NPCs (and the NPCs and each other!). I could care about Minsc and Boo (Boo, look, squirrel! Quick, throw nuts!) if no one else.

Overall I find crpgs to be fine for the strictly mechanical end of matters, but mechanics are not why I play rpgs in general, so that doesn't actually win any points with me.

I need a compelling story. I need character interaction and choice. Instead I find a lot of railroading, limited choices, and lack of motivation.

Guess I'm just a Method Roleplayer

 

[Umbran]

What aspects of D&D can't be (or aren't) in computer-based RPGs???

Computer RPGs simply cannot match D&D's flexibility. A computer can only handle those actions it has been programmed to handle, and if the programmer didn't think of it, it cannot happen. A real live DM can deal with unexpected events.

Computer RPGS simply cannot handle social abilities, and lack of facial expression, body language, and decent voice transmission means that most playing of the role personality is lost. Computers don't handle the "acting" aspect of RPGs well at all.

In what areas do computer-based RPGs beat D&D???

I can see an argument for fights being more interesting. I don't agree, but I can see the argument. Otherwise, I don't see them beating tabletop games at all.

 

[Hussar]

Well, I suppose the obvious answer to "In what areas to computer based RPGs beat DnD" is visually. I don't care how cool your diorama is, it's not really going to hold a candle to the best in computer graphics. The fact that crpg's can actually show movies of the action tends to make them more visually appealing than tabletop.

But, in the end, that's a pretty minor point over actual gameplay.

 

[Argonel]

Modern computer games are very good at showing the action so you don't have to imagine every axe swing. They can also show the confusion of combat where a single attack action might be several swings of a weapon and include a lot of minor movement that isn't shown on a battlemap. This can also be done when playing tabletop but being able to see it greatly compresses the description needed. Unfortunately this is rare in both tabletop and computer games.

The other strength of computer games is that they track the rules and 'crunch' of a situation very well. In a computer game you don't have to worry about tracking how long a spell lasts, situational bonuses such as higher ground, or synergy bonuses from skills. Unfortunately this also means that they lose on the 'fluff' aspects unless the programmers specifically planned them in advance.

Tabletop allows rulings on the fly for actions that are interesting and fun but may not be in the rules. (throwing skulls that do 1 point of damage and cause the target to be shaken anyone?)

 

[nethervoid]

One thing you can do in UO that you really can't do in PnP DnD is run your own shop. For a long while back in...2001? I ran my own smith shop. All I ever did was mine (dangerous due to PvP/PKs), make exceptional armor (difficult to make that exceptional plate chest piece), stock my NPC vendor (making it user friendly is a must), and talk to clients (building a clientele). It was a lot of fun! Another aspect of running the shop was competition. Building a name for yourself as a top smith was really fun and competative!

Doing that in PnP would be utterly boring.

I miss those days. =(

Anyway, here's what I see as what each has over the other:

PnP:
- Extremely dynamic
- More personal
- Much better environment for real roleplay
- Limitless

MMORPGs:
- Less or no time to prep
- Play whenever you want
- Don't like one dungeon? Go to another!
- Be a shopkeeper!
- Fight other nations in war against real people (Shadowbane)
- Items you earn are more tangible, as are characters (you can see them doing things and weilding that sword)

I think PnP will never be totally replaced by MMORPGs, but with every passing year, MMORPGs have a greater potential to be better and better. PnP has limits in that regard. Eventually, MMORPGs will be virtual, as if you, the player, are actually there. At that point, I think MMORPGs will overtake PnP.

*edit - contradicted myself in that last paragraph. lol Eventually, virtual reality will overtake PnP

 

[Zappo]

I'm going to chime in just to notice that IMO Planescape: Torment is every bit as good as BG2 for character interaction and then some.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

I'm going to chime in just to notice that IMO Planescape: Torment is every bit as good as BG2 for character interaction and then some.