The Evolution of Fantasy Role-Playing Games - Michael J. Tresca [93]
The game allowed customization of six characters from scratch, using standard second edition race and class combinations. Further customization included a choice of weapon skills, portraits, and even character voices. Dualclass, multi-class, and weapon specialization were all included in the game to good effect. Alignment and attributes mattered, too. Characters with various charisma attributes and distinct alignments garnered different responses from NPCs, while some actions reinforced a good character’s nature.
In 2002 Neverwinter Nights (NWN) was released by BioWare (Glenday 2008: 157). NWN was both a module creation tool and an adventure. It allowed players to download other adventures or make adventures and host them just like a “real” Dungeon Master. It was the closest thing to creating a graphical MUD—and could conceivably create a game bigger than most MUDs, with up to 64 players at one time. The adventure was compelling and massive, utilizing third edition rules. The campaign adventure series was surprisingly mature for its type, involving plagues, bad choices, murdered lovers, and vengeance. The combat system worked exceptionally well and even the trade system ran smoothly. Characters were more or less likely to be helpful depending on the character’s charisma. Characters with low intelligence even talked funny (“Me am strong!”). The monsters were beautifully rendered in threedimensional form, taking the static artwork from the Monster Manual to new levels. The game was, however, plagued with bugs.
The next age, our current age of gaming, is termed by Barton as the Modern Age—dominated by action, hidden game mechanics, and consoles that deemphasize typing and mouse use and optimize the controls for a gamepad (2008:365).
The year 2003 brought about Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes. I saw this game at Gen Con and bought an Xbox just to play it. The game played like Basic Dungeons & Dragons. There was no distinction of class, race, or gender, as the characters were pregenerated. The wizard was a female elf, the fighter a male human, the thief a female halfling, and the cleric a male dwarf. Characters started at sixth level. Additionally, the player characters had “ancestral weapons” that used the Japanese RPG-style “socket” technique to increase the weapon’s effectiveness. We’ll delve into sockets later in this chapter.
Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance II, a sequel to a sequel from Black Isle studios, used the same engine as Dungeons & Dragons: Heroes. The heroes journeyed from place to place to retrieve certain items at the behest of various employers, all of whom ultimately happen to be connected. Baldur’s Gate II was an inferior sequel that offered more of the same, only easier.
In 2004 came Fable by Lionhead Studios, a console RPG that prided itself on being solely focused on one character and giving incredible freedom of choice to develop him as the player saw fit. The game didn’t deliver on all of its promises but made great leaps in character customization.
In 2006, Elder Scrolls: Oblivion cemented the format of a sandbox fantasy role-playing game. Every character existed in its own routine, with a path it took each day; sleeping, eating and working. Although a plot was woven throughout the game, it was possible for a character to simply wander the world, interacting with the characters as they went about their daily lives.
Fellowship
The challenge of portraying an adventuring party in CRPGs was brought to light in Wizardry, which was enormously popular for its time. Unlike multiuser dungeons, games like Wizardry allowed one player