Ombrenuit on 18/9/2011 at 01:10
I love open world games. My favorite aspect of Thief 3 was it's "open world" feel with connected missions; but after the first few hours of robbing everyone, I got bored. There was virtually no incentive to explore further and money was pointless. Missions could be beat without any tools anyway (normal difficulty here).
Then I realized how much fun I was had in Oblivion. Upgrading and customizing your character was the best incentive for exploration / stealing. Money had a use for bounties, speechcraft, etc. Hell, I ignored the main question entirely and only played for the Dark Brotherhood / Thieves Guild missions. I loved the freedom and feeling like I really was who I was role-playing.
I think this style would lend itself splendidly to a thief setting. You have upgradable attributes; skills like lockpicking, leather armor, etc.; you start off to roam free in a city with story quests and missions and pretty much roleplay the way you want; not merely as Garrett, but as a character with a name of your choosing. Heck you could abandon the thief universe entirely and have magic. As long as it was dark and brooding, I'd have a blast.
So um...yes my first character's name in Skyrim will be Garrett.
Dia on 18/9/2011 at 12:50
I would dearly love to see a Thief universe created in the open world style of Morrowind & Oblivion! One of my favorite things to do is to explore, but in TDS there just wasn't that much of an opportunity. Hell, I've played T2 FMs that had more areas available for exploration than TDS. But yes; give me a large, rambling city with near-endless exploration options and I'd feel like I've gone to heaven! :thumb:
nbohr1more on 18/9/2011 at 15:58
The Dark Mod, since version 1.04 has a Procedural Content Generator (call the SEED system) which should allow for much more expansive missions. A few authors have taken up the challenge learn how to use it, but it's gaining traction. As far as RPG elements, I don't think they are planning to add too much of that but the scripting system is flexible enough to provide some nice options.
Have you tried any of the Thieving Guild mods for Oblivion, Ombrenuit?
Renault on 18/9/2011 at 16:01
Fyi, there was a "Thieves arsenal" mod for Oblivion, gave you water arrows, blackjack etc
(
http://www.ttlg.com/forums/showthread.php?t=112661)
I'm a bit torn on the open world debate - I love open world games too, but Thief has always been about individual missions with a briefing and very specific objectives. Since you're playing as Garrett, already a master thief, there should be no need to upgrade anything, thus the RPG elements of the game become pointless and unnecessary.
I think an open world game in the Thief universe could work for thieflike gameplay, but only if you were playing as the standard generic player (with some type of amnesia ;) ), and you're trying to work your way up the ranks in The City and in a thieves guild (like the Downwinders) and take on larger heists as the game goes on (similar to Oblivion). But as Garrett, it just wouldn't work.
theBlackman on 18/9/2011 at 22:21
I have to agree with Brethren. You have all the skill 'upgrades' you need. That is if you have taken the time to acquire them. You (Garrett) are a MASTER.
The specific mission concept with an open map suits the game, gives the player a huge amount of freedom in where to go and how to accomplish the objectives. Plus, the best part in my mind, YOU DEVELOP THE SKILLS. You don't buy them in a shop, get rewarded with a super talent when you kill the bad guy. You earn the right to call yourself a MASTER.
It's not handed you on a Silver platter. You actually have to WORK (nasty four letter word there) for your 'upgrades'.
gunsmoke on 20/9/2011 at 17:10
The Garrett storyline is done. It was told from start to finish. There is no reason a future Thief game cannot contain a new main character, one who isn't superman from the word go.
scarykitties on 20/9/2011 at 18:15
Granted, gunsmoke, but making Thief into an RPG is such a break from the original Thief formula, I don't think that a Thief game should be it.
If you want something like that, take an RPG and make it more Thief-like, not the other way around. Leave Thief to the formula that made it great. Hybridize with games inspired by Thief, not Thief itself.
Schwaa2 on 20/9/2011 at 18:32
That's the beauty with the Elder Scrolls games. That thiefy options are included. The games really fit a broad swath of play styles.
Oblivion definitely improved apon that aspect over Morrowind too. Having to sneak in houses rather than being able to freely run around/loot while inhabitants watched, etc... Lockpicking was more hands on.
Hopefully the new one will be even better in those respects, the lockpicking looks cooler though it's still a 'mini-game'.
Unfortunately I don't think the new one is going to have more in depthness as far as thieving quests goes. It really seems much more focused on dragon slaying.
It would be cool to see a similar game much more focused on Thievery, though it really is such a sub culture in gaming that I doubt it will happen soon.
Wandering around a truly open and immense city would kick ass. But it would be so much work for the devs.
TES games are easier in that respect because they are huge areas to roam, but a lot of that area is just open terrain. Much easier to paint out a landscape than to create a cityscape of the same size.
So a city version would probably need to be 1/8 of the size, and yet have just as much content to come out as well.
And I've posted before thinking about do more of a free roam mission where the player is less locked down to a story/objective. Just more free roam city go find loot. People just didn't seem interested at all.
Schwaa2 on 20/9/2011 at 20:04
That sounds great.
I remember doing assassin quests in Morrowind. Always wanted to get a one shot bow kill from a distance. But that would just piss them off and you'd have major combat to deal with after.
Which is hardly how an assassin would deal with the situation.
