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CommieDog
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CloseSo I've been kicking around the idea of making an RPG in a modern or near-future setting. So far, so boring, right? I've seen and played several amateur RPGs with settings that fit the description. But I've noticed that most if not all such projects create their own worlds, complete with ficticious geography and history, rather than use the one we live in, even though doing that requires creating more a backstory and history for the world. I haven't really decided on whether to do that myself or to try basing my world on the real one.
So this is what I'm wondering: what are the advantages and disadvantages of each approach?
So this is what I'm wondering: what are the advantages and disadvantages of each approach?
Bonehead11
170
In my opinion advantages are that you dont have to come up with lore, history, nitpicking etc. etc. you have believeable world,development will be faster, some interesting choices.
For disadvantages you wont be able to make original world, lore etc. you wont have so much room for your own interpretation as in fantasy setting, you will have far less options available.
For disadvantages you wont be able to make original world, lore etc. you wont have so much room for your own interpretation as in fantasy setting, you will have far less options available.
Real world settings are hard to get right because people tend to complain over small details. If a person is a history buff they're sure to point out your flaws. Plus, real world settings have the problem of being tied to what's happening in the real world, and you also have to be an absolute nut to try and make a world map of Earth.
I tried. Though I did try to make it to scale, heh. Now THAT was dumb.
I tried. Though I did try to make it to scale, heh. Now THAT was dumb.
StarSkipp
2007
In my opinion there is loads of room for different options you can take. Take for example the resident evil series, it has a real world setting but it has it's own fictional universe of what could happen even if it's very unlikly.
Take a quick look at movies, most of them are set in the real world but arn't hindered by storytelling possiblities. If your worried about histoical accuracy then don't mention current events and just tone down the scale of the game to a small setting. Of course having a adventure that spans the whole world is where things get tricky, but it never stopped Hideo Kojima ;)
Take a quick look at movies, most of them are set in the real world but arn't hindered by storytelling possiblities. If your worried about histoical accuracy then don't mention current events and just tone down the scale of the game to a small setting. Of course having a adventure that spans the whole world is where things get tricky, but it never stopped Hideo Kojima ;)
Shinan
4314
Yeah I guess the disadvantage is if you get something so very wrong that it's just insane, such as getting geography or language completely wrong (for example saying that city x is in country y when it really is in country z).
The advantage is that you don't have to have a fifteen-minute scrolling text detailing your world's background. Basically there's loads of backstory to work from and most of it you don't even have to tell the player (everyone knows that WW2 happened).
Of course a disadvantage is... or I guess not. But don't save the fucking real world. If you use the real world it's easier to make a small personal story, use that advantage. In made-up worlds it's a lot more tempting to tell all of that backstory you've created and obviously that means you have to travel the world and eventually save it.
And finally. When using the real world you can still use made up locations. Plop down a fictional city (see Grand Theft Auto games or Resident Evil games) into what is otherwise our regular world.
The advantage is that you don't have to have a fifteen-minute scrolling text detailing your world's background. Basically there's loads of backstory to work from and most of it you don't even have to tell the player (everyone knows that WW2 happened).
Of course a disadvantage is... or I guess not. But don't save the fucking real world. If you use the real world it's easier to make a small personal story, use that advantage. In made-up worlds it's a lot more tempting to tell all of that backstory you've created and obviously that means you have to travel the world and eventually save it.
And finally. When using the real world you can still use made up locations. Plop down a fictional city (see Grand Theft Auto games or Resident Evil games) into what is otherwise our regular world.
Radnen
1806
I noticed that horror games tend to not be in a totally fictional world, they are more or less modern.
There should be no issue putting a story in real world settings.
I wouldn't mind the opposite actually. Look at independence day, I think saving the real world can be done, you just need to be a good writer.
@nessiah: it could bring races together.
@krysty: People always nitpick, anyways, a good developer knows when to close their ears (of course, not in a bad way), but Duke Nukem wouldn't have been made if someone said "whoa, I think you've got a lot wrong with your game" and they listened.
But, there is also a reason to not do the real world, controversy:
Traditionally, fantasy worlds do reflect our real world. Elves and elven alienages in Dragon Age do reflect upon racial prejudices in the real world, while not being so blunt or forthcoming about it. Because their (fictitious) elves, it softens the direct controversy while still making you feel you ought to help them in some way. There was also slavery in Morrowind with the beast-like races of the Argonians and Khajiit. The game was never banned.
There should be no issue putting a story in real world settings.
author=Shinan
But don't save the fucking real world. If you use the real world it's easier to make a small personal story, use that advantage. In made-up worlds it's a lot more tempting to tell all of that backstory you've created and obviously that means you have to travel the world and eventually save it.
I wouldn't mind the opposite actually. Look at independence day, I think saving the real world can be done, you just need to be a good writer.
@nessiah: it could bring races together.
@krysty: People always nitpick, anyways, a good developer knows when to close their ears (of course, not in a bad way), but Duke Nukem wouldn't have been made if someone said "whoa, I think you've got a lot wrong with your game" and they listened.
But, there is also a reason to not do the real world, controversy:
Traditionally, fantasy worlds do reflect our real world. Elves and elven alienages in Dragon Age do reflect upon racial prejudices in the real world, while not being so blunt or forthcoming about it. Because their (fictitious) elves, it softens the direct controversy while still making you feel you ought to help them in some way. There was also slavery in Morrowind with the beast-like races of the Argonians and Khajiit. The game was never banned.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
If you make a true real-world setting, you as the designer have to physically go to all the locations you're including in your game, take pictures so you can make the maps exact recreations, talk to the people there so you can include their correct names and appearances and personalities... It's like filming a movie, except instead of just recording everything that happens, you have to meticulously recreate it.
If you just make some of that stuff up, it's far easier. So you create an imaginary city that doesn't exist. Then you can just put the buildings wherever is convenient, include characters who add to the story, instead of making sure everything is true to life. A lot of movies and TV shows do this too, because the viewers don't really care.
A lot of other movies and TV shows claim to be in a real city but make up imaginary locations within the city - this is perhaps less glaring since only people who are familiar with the real city will know that you're not being accurate. It works best in very large cities because you can make a building that could easily fit in New York and might very well actually be in New York, and unless you give the address no one is really familiar enough with the entire city to prove you made the location up.
If you just make some of that stuff up, it's far easier. So you create an imaginary city that doesn't exist. Then you can just put the buildings wherever is convenient, include characters who add to the story, instead of making sure everything is true to life. A lot of movies and TV shows do this too, because the viewers don't really care.
A lot of other movies and TV shows claim to be in a real city but make up imaginary locations within the city - this is perhaps less glaring since only people who are familiar with the real city will know that you're not being accurate. It works best in very large cities because you can make a building that could easily fit in New York and might very well actually be in New York, and unless you give the address no one is really familiar enough with the entire city to prove you made the location up.
Zephyr
1241
The World Ends with You is a real world setting, this being Tokyo's Shibuya. Locations there are taken from real life as well.
The difference is that it takes place on another dimensional plane and that all locations are renamed.
They take real life, change it enough and the setting still works.
The difference is that it takes place on another dimensional plane and that all locations are renamed.
They take real life, change it enough and the setting still works.
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