"So you're playing your dream RPG. When not questing, what are you doing?"

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"So you're playing your dream RPG. When not questing, what are you doing?"

https://twitter.com/TimePirateNinja/status/921832892522786816

Kyle Rowley asked this on his twitter page and I think that it's an interesting talking point.

So in our hypothetical dream RPGs, what ARE we doing when doing things for or against other people? That's assuming we don't keep our characters in a little box until there is a job to be performed.

I would be immersing myself in the world to the maximum, try to interact with it in all ways, going to bars to eat and drink, watching news broadcasts, sitting on a bench watching people go by, trying to take in the world as much as possible.
 
It is a good question, indeed. What to do when not questing.

I'd visit a gambling joint with much more exotic opportunities than just poker, though poker still present too - dice games, card games, puzzle machines, virtual betting...

I would to explore the gameworld and try to interact with it in all the ways it allows me to, and there'd be a lot of ways, and not just stuff that is "allowed to be done" but that it matters too in some fashion, that doing that stuff'd be mechanically interesting (a little bit of risk and reward through a skillcheck) and the results bear some significance (relative to what was done and how succesfully).
Gameplay opportunities such as those mentioned in here: https://forums.cdprojektred.com/foru...51#post9517351
 
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He sure is asking a lot :D

For me its basically what other games offer and/with something unique to it.
No real need to create completely innovative rpg in all aspects, since it is rpg and so should have boundaries of genre.
Just about some multiplayer as already stated, managing character and doing related things (spending coin, talent points, changing equipment, crafting equipment), mini games, modding.
 
I love to explore and fine beautiful spots, maybe with hidden secrets. Many developers fail to create a world that really invites you to explore, so that may not be as easy as it sounds. IMO Witcher 3 did a pretty good job here, so I'm optimistic CP will do great too.

I also enjoy solving puzzles in RPGs and Action-RPGs. Don't mind fighting but games that evolve too much around that bore me.

In fallout 4 I wasted a lot of time building settlements. That was kinda fun too :).

And of course mini games like Gwent can be awesome but I'm not always into that. Gwent has been a pretty unique case for me so far.
 
I'm a "poke in the corners" and "talk to NPCs" (assuming they have something besides 2-3 lines of dialog shared between 90% of them) type.
Finding Easter eggs is nice, but mostly it's "what's down there" for me.
 
Oh god, I know I've mentioned this but Mankind Divided nailed this. The world was like a giant puzzlebox of discovering all the connections between npcs, events and the setting... Worldbuilding<->exploration.

Also, network in Shadowrun was great, reading stories on what's going on in the world, while you're doing your own thing...made you feel only a small part of it.

Dialogue with "third party npcs"...this is what CDPR forgot to add in Witcher III. People who live close to the street ( beggars, hookers, cops, fixers, etc), kind of serving as a "bridge" between the player and quests/events/world. Don't like that "rpg feeling" when you see npc with a name and you immediately know: It's another quest!
Every section of the map should have a few of these, where you can strike some trivial/banal conversation what's been with you lately information on X, etc.

Discovering unexpected ways of interacting with the world, that "holy shit, it actually works!" moment, are very satisfying. In gameplay, "Immersive sims" are best at this...in Prey you can shoot and open door switch from a distance, such a small touch, but feels great. Or everything latest Zelda.
Same is with dialogue...let's say the game has on going popular radio show. What if you could, dial the actual number, completely unscripted, and have a talk with the host, at certain moments.
 
Well, since I intend to play a net runner (at first) I'd like to be able to jack into the net and explore all the net. Find cool resources, set up ICE and Black ICE. Script caches. Poke at other people's security. Things of that nature. Cyberpunk for me means lots of jacked in.
 
Ideally talking to the NPCs I really like and learning about their backstories and the lore of the world.

Although I would say that I really spent a lot of extra time fishing in Zelda Ocarina of Time and feel like it's a really fun little activity to include. Not very cyberpunk though. I think escaping into VR side activities would be cool. Maybe fishing in VR?

I thinking going to the club and listening to the newest indie band would be very CP. Maybe even getting to play if your a rockerboy.
 
Rawls;n9721591 said:
Ideally talking to the NPCs I really like and learning about their backstories and the lore of the world.

Although I would say that I really spent a lot of extra time fishing in Zelda Ocarina of Time and feel like it's a really fun little activity to include. Not very cyberpunk though. I think escaping into VR side activities would be cool. Maybe fishing in VR?

I thinking going to the club and listening to the newest indie band would be very CP. Maybe even getting to play if your a rockerboy.


If you're playing a rockerboy I would think that giging/recording would be very high your list of downtime activities. Playing underground clubs would be a great way to get leads for quests and things as well.
 
I know it sounds weird but I would just want to sit down and watch the world around me; maybe talking to someone sitting next to me.
 
What do you mean not on a quest? I'm always on a quest! /s

t. Dragonborn

Every joke has a bit of joke in it, but when I'm not on a quest, I'm still on a quest, the main quest If I'm not on a main quest, I'm either hack'n'slashing or loot hoarding due to poor gamedesign in modern rpgs. Witcher 3 is especially guilty in this.
 
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0248991;n9721201 said:
For me its basically what other games offer and/with something unique to it. No real need to create completely innovative rpg in all aspects

I'm of the opposite set of mind. Now, more than ever is a good time to push the envelope a bit. It's been kind of standardized that you can sit in bars and order drinks, craft something, have a racing or some other "sporty" minigame and a bit of gambling. Most games of this ilk have that. It's expected by default. But none of it offers anything really new or exciting, nothing new or intriguing, just business as usual.

This'd be a good opportunity to expand on the level of interactivity of these games. And looking at the market at hand, now's the best time to be all around innovative and create something extraordinary by comparison when most others seem to be stuck in a loop with their games and keep on streamlining.
 
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Ideally I'm imagining a side activities "create your own narrative" "campaign" where limited amount of players could play together, taking part of each role.

It would be "linear", ( netrunner hacks the net->acquired by fixer-> sells it to corporate->media...etc) like a play, but every role would have several outcomes at certain point(s) that would dictate how other player in line follow(s).

This could be something new and very popular on the market, and we've seen how GTA's "roleplaying sessions" are doing on Twitch.
 
Exploring the city, checking things out. Maybe scrounging around in some trash cans or helping some honest citizens against some thugs...you know, stuff.
 
Meccanical;n9720871 said:
https://twitter.com/TimePirateNinja/...32892522786816

Kyle Rowley asked this on his twitter page and I think that it's an interesting talking point.

So in our hypothetical dream RPGs, what ARE we doing when doing things for or against other people? That's assuming we don't keep our characters in a little box until there is a job to be performed.

I would be immersing myself in the world to the maximum, try to interact with it in all ways, going to bars to eat and drink, watching news broadcasts, sitting on a bench watching people go by, trying to take in the world as much as possible.


Ooh I love this question and it's always been important to me.

When not questing is just as much of the game as the questing. I dream of a game with all the action and combat and monsters, but I really want an RPG that lets you really sink into the world with lots of detail on clothing, hair, domestic stuff; cooking, homesteading, deep romance that isn't afraid of proving relevant animations and intimate moments (Which isn't just bedsheets, but nice romantic moments in general).

I don't want to settle down irl, not yet. But it's something to fantasize about all the same, and games are that outlet for fantasy.

I want to put dinner in to slow cook, tend a garden, then go out to slay some monsters and be back in time for dinner and maybe a date.

Imo there's a triangle, and no one point of the triangle has to suffer for the sake of another if they take the time. The combat, the exploring, and the domestic.

I'd love to be able to have an ingame job too, and different jobs or difficulties could have varying levels of realism and/or timeskipping.


How great would it be if you formed a connection with an NPC, and built up chemistry over time and you got proper dialogue surrounding it and animations to back it up. AS you're exploring with your lover or husband / wife, you see an amazing view and the two have some heart warming dialogue as they both take in the view together. Proper animations to back it up, hand holding, leaning against one another, ect. Not like how in Skyrim they just say crap at random.
 
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You mention an in game job Sirenapples, this leads me to think that a 'cover' life might be needed for when you need to disappear. That could be an interesting side activity, putting together these lives so that when things get too hot, you can drop out for a while as your main character and assume a completely different, yet temporary, role in the game.
 
Oh in addition to the other stuff I said before, taking pictures of scenic places.

Body modification related activities would probably be neat in a CP setting.

I also get a lot of joy from house/apartment/personal space creation & decoration in RPGs. I know home ownership is not super CP-ish ... but I think it would be pretty cool if you could go rent an apartment, but it cost 2000 dollars a month or something for a crappy studio apartment. Or actually buy a place if you have 200,000 dollars. Thus in the game your having the opportunity to eek out an existence on the edge. Would keep resources from piling up too. It would give an incentive to participate in the economy of the world. Sell items you don't really need, barter, cheat, play gigs, etc. Do all the other fun stuff that was part of the PnP other than questing.

Also puzzle solving is really great.
 
What I like most is when the game offers mundane activities that have a meaningful effect. Bethesda would be the obvious example, insofar as gathering ingredients for smithing / alchemy / enchanting / weapon-modding / power armor. At the same time, the flat increase in damage or garbage bags full of potions is a bit lackluster, if useful. I would really like to see a system sort of like (and bear with me on this example), Monster Hunter...where you craft gear for specific purposes or mix and match ingredients for meals that will have a decided effect on the next stage of gameplay.

When I get to do something immersive, but I also get something unique or exclusive in return (rather than simple "consumables" or a "timed buff"), that's really interesting and rewarding. Maybe rather than just being able to engage in activities whenever, you could have certain blocks of "down time" that you could use to pursue whatever activities you wished...but you would have to choose. So, I could spend that stage of the game hacking into computers to upload a detailed map of an area...or I could head to a shop and work on modding my weapons and gear...or I could hang out in a bar and schmooze with people to dig up some info on a character...or I could rob a few houses and fence the goods to generate some money...but not all of them. Only so many hours in a day. In return, I get something both unique and permanent for the next stage of play.
 
How about playing old dos games as your character. There would be something rather fitting about playing the old Neuromancer game in CP2077 as my character.
 
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