most games today are sci-fi or fantasy based ?

[asher marquering]

i think most games today with a story line are fantasy or sci-fi based

and its easier to get your work to be produced as some form of game than anything else

wat you guys think

[Winters_Sorrow]

Hmm, difficult question to answer because in my opinion it usually depends on the genre the game falls into.

Most FP shooters are either modern day or futuristic setting. I'm struggling to think of a fantasy based one (unless you class elements of Thief or Morrowind as 'shooters' as they have a FP perspective)

Conversly most RPGs are fantasy settings, although most seem to have some mechanical or industrial sections as well.

So in answer to your query, I don't think there is a major swing one way or the other - the most common type of game appears to be movie tie-in, football, war sim or driving

[asher marquering]

unreal has a few magical items and weapons as well as opponents
and torok dinasaur hunter

i meant games with original story lines (eg fighting games, c/vrpg, some mmorpg, metal gear series)

simulations and movie-tie ins without of very little original storyline do not fall under these

wat you think ?

[Green]

Ok, here's how sad and bored I am right now...

I just went through this month's copy of PC Zone and made a note of the genres of (new, non-indie) releases for this month.

I reckon they come out as:

Sci-Fi 3
Fantasy 2
Modern(ish) War 3
Ancient/Historical War 2
Horror 0
Sport 1
(non-war) Sim 4
Other (including movie tie-ins) 3

I've included things like Civilisations at War in the Ancient/Historical war column. So by my reckoning (for this month, at least), the most common type of game is sim, eg The Movies, SIMS 2 add-on packs, Casino 3d, etc.

But Sci-Fi and Fantasy are quite popular as well And people like their wars.

[Winters_Sorrow]

If you're looking for originality in gaming you can join the queue!

The gaming industry is more & more unwilling to take chances with their products.

This is why we have had a FIFA game every year for the last 15 years and movie tie-ins will always be popular as clueless parents will recognise the brand/name and buy it for their progeny regardless of how good the game is.

Also sequels - they love sequels. Game X makes a fortune, therefore slight tweak of the graphic and release as Game X2.

The few innovative games which are released usually vanish without trace but with critical acclaim or do really well, get swallowed by the publisher and see "sequel" above.

Wow, I'm pretty cynical.

[asher marquering]

like i said simulations don't fall under my statement i made because they don't really have original story lines

and the modern war games i would classify as sci-fi because there is usually some form of government using some weapon to cause great destruction(if it has an original storyline if not and their based on past events i'd classify them as sims)

and those ancient/historical war i would classify as fantasy because they have most of the traditional fantasy elements all they really lack is magic(if it have an original storyline if not and their based on past events i'd classify them as sims)

what you guys think

[kyektulu]

I dont think most games are based on sci-fi or fantasy, however, the best ones are!

Setting games into the modern era are so restricted as our time is to politically correct, game makers have to watch for stepping on peoples toes, especially in war games.

Yet I totally understand most games being set on SFF, they are limitless lanscapes, being completely inagination based.

I do agree with you on 'aincent/historical' games being fantasy as they do have many charecteristics of fantasy games.

[Green]

If you're going to start defining "Historical War" as basically "Fantasy Without Magic", then of course you think that sci-fi and fantasy have a monopoly on games with original storylines. You can put pretty much everything under the sun into those two categories using a similar treatment. If you think Rome Total War is a fantasy game, and Battlefield Vietnam is a sci-fi game (or even a sim game, going off your definitions above), then what do you expect?

I don't think that historical war or ancient war is fantasy without magic, since that does the genre a huge disservice. It is not a sub-genre of fantasy, like epic fantasy or steampunk or some other such thing. In fact, these games strive to be as realistic as they can be, as historically accurate as they can be, and to me that seems to be the opposite of fantasy. Fantasy has trademarks of history, not the other way around.

All games have a unique storyline (there are very few original storylines these days), and this does not necessarily push them into the sci-fi or fantasy bracket as you seem to suggest it does. By that definition, all novels ever published would be sci-fi or fantasy.

[asher marquering]

ok good point green so you agree ?

lol just kidding but thats the way i think i guess

[Finnien]

Originally Posted by asher marquering

i think most games today with a story line are fantasy or sci-fi based

and its easier to get your work to be produced as some form of game than anything else

wat you guys think

I think one question would be, 'What do you consider a story line?' Role-playing games are traditionally the games with the deepest storyline, and they are typically fantasy/sci-fi. I can think of a few exceptions, but none that were really great games or landmarks.

I usually play RPG games, or sci-fi/fantasy strategy games, so my experience is somewhat limited. However, games like Madden football are trying to improve the story aspect, by allowing you to coach a franchise, play as a single player, etc. They're much more complex than they were ten years ago. First person shooters have more scripted encounters and in-depth single player modes, although, once again, the ones I play are mainly sci-fi, so it's hard to know if that is true of Battlefield 1942 or similar games. I mean, I believe that Max Payne or the original Metal Gear Solid had very good storylines for their genre type, but I'm not widely played in those areas.

How do the storylines of various games compare within the same genre? Do sci-fi shooters have better storylines than their non-sf counterparts? Does Command and Conquer have more of a storyline than Sid Meier's Ghettysberg? I really don't play them enough to give a qualified opinion, but it could be that sf&f suits itself more readily to role-playing games, and that is the genre best suited to the kind of storyline depth you're looking for. My hunch would be that it might have nothing to do with what reality the games are based on, and be more dependent upon the genre.

I imagine developers could make a very revolutionary modern-day crime-solving RPG, but personally, I'm happy with sf&f as the predominant genre of RPG's. The levelling progression basis just works well for me in a fantasy setting with magic, or technology that might as well be magic. Increasing my gas or bullet reserve as I level my marine isn't nearly as much fun as increasing the mana pool of my archmage. It may not be true for everyone, but I understand the reasoning behind it.

So, my guess would be storyline depth is genre-based, and sf&f lends itself more readily to the RPG genre. I primarily enjoy RPG's, and I primarily enough sf&f settings, so call me a happy camper.

Of course, the entire industry could be avoiding revolutionary games and huge risks out of a desire to avoid displeasing me personally, which is also very okay with me. Just please, enough with the angsty whiny male protagonists in RPG's. Really, twenty years of them is quite enough.

[Marya]

RPGs seem to be the genre of choice for the posters here. If you want something really different and like to play a platformer, I'd recommend Psychonauts. It was made by Tim Schafer (of Day of the Tentacle, Grim Fandango and Full Throttle fame).

Plot outline

In Psychonauts, the player controls Raz (short for Razputin), a mysterious new arrival at a training camp for Psychonauts — elite special agents who use their psychic powers to combat psycho-terrorism and retrieve information from inside people's minds. After honing his own mental abilities, Raz discovers that someone is abducting cadets from the camp with the purpose of stealing their brains. He must discover who is behind this sinister plot and stand against this evil.

Setting

The story is set in Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp, where students are trained to become Psychonauts. The history of the area is detailed on an annotated tree stump near the camp parking lot. The area was hit centuries ago by a meteor made of psitanium (an element which can grant psychic powers or strengthen existing powers), creating a huge crater. As Indians discovered the metal, they fashioned arrowheads from it. When other settlers began inhabiting the region, the psychoactive properties of the meteor slowly drove them insane. An asylum was built to house the afflicted, but within fifteen years the asylum had more residents than did the town. The government relocated the remaining inhabitants and flooded the crater to prevent further settlement, creating what is now Lake Oblongata. The asylum still stands but has fallen into disrepair. Five years ago, the government established the Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp near Lake Oblongata, since the high concentrations of psitanium can help psychically gifted youths to harness their powers and become Psychonauts. Excavated psitanium arrowheads are used as currency within the camp, both amongst campers and in the lodge's general store.
The local wildlife has been profoundly affected by the psitanium as well. Bears are able to attack from afar using telekinetic laws, and cougars are endowed with pyrokinesis.

Gameplay

Psychonauts combines traditional console platformer elements with the kind of strong storytelling, humor and dialogue found in adventure games. The game features ten levels, each of which let the player enter a different person's mind. Each of these levels therefore has its own unique visual design and set of challenges, related to the demons, nightmares and secret memories of the mind that Raz is exploring. Three other levels are set within the real world, making a total of thirteen levels, interspersed with several boss fights. As the player progresses through the game, Raz acquires new psychic powers, including telekinesis, invisibility, pyrokinesis, clairvoyance, and confusion. These are directly involved in the puzzle-solving aspects of the game, which tailor to the player's own playing strengths. The game's refreshing, seemingly kid-friendly style evolves into levels that seem more suited to teens and often laced with black comedy.

I've played a couple of levels but because I'm new at platformer games, I wasn't very good at it. What I played was loads of fun.

[Green]

I've heard only good things about Psychonauts

[Crymic]

Dark Messiah demo just came out. It's a Fantasy style FPS with talent points. You can choose between 3 different fields of abilities. Fighter,Mage,Theif. You don't haveta stick to just 1 tree.

[Saranalos]

I've only played the demo of Psychonauts, but I really enjoyed it still. The setting and beginning storyline made me want more. I never bought it though.

There are a few games that are good, but most of the new ones promise endless enjoyment but in reality give very little of what you expect. I'm heading backwards now, digging up the old treasures of games I've never heard of before. The older games(Not too old!) hold my attention for much much longer.

[Marya]

Welcome to Chronicles Saranalos. What kinds of games do you like?