3/8/2007 - Relevant Photos to this post under Photos section for this date.  

During the Game Developers Conference Microsoft held a panel discussion on “The Evolution of RPG Development”. In which some of the gaming industries most prolific names were gathered to respond to questions about the direction they thought the Role Playing Game industry was headed as well as elaborate on the direction they were seeking to improve on the genre.

The speakers consisted of Ray Muzyka (Bioware), Hironobu Sakaguchi (Mistwalker / Final Fantasy fame), and Peter Molyneux (Lionhead Studio / Microsoft Game Studios).

The panel seemed to have been well constructed as the three main identities on the Xbox platform originated from around the globe. This approach allowed for different perspectives and expectations for the future regarding their own individual design ideals.

I enjoyed reading the responses given by all the panelists, as I noticed there seemed to be a linear agreement between the 3 game designers. I would imagine that it would be hard to disagree with the other speakers since the genre is such a broad scope of elements. This made the statements about direction airy and less specific then would be humanly possible to describe in simple rudimentary terms. Which begs the question, was this panel constructed to simply fuel the gaming industry by supplying gamers a sort of dramatic intrigue for the future productions in development by these men, or was it really a codex of knowledge of biblical proportions? I’ll let you decide. 

I have decided though due to the fortuitous circumstances bestowed upon me by the powers of the blog, to answer the questions asked of the panelists from a fans perspective. In doing so I hope to define a singularity which is not particularly heeded when designing a game, this singularity is merely the expectation we hope designers aspire to when building games of this sort. I know as well as anyone reading this, it would be hard to accomplish all of this and I sure feel empathetic to these men in trying their best to do so.  

Before you read what I have to say please visit the link for the real Panelist responses.

http://www.xbox360fanboy.com/2007/03/06/liveblogging-microsofts-the-evolution-of-rpg-development-pane/

:: Places on designer shoes, with designer clothes, designer hat, shades….::

Ok I think I fit the part, I now imbue all the characteristics of a “designer”.

Q. “What is the difference between older and newer RPG’s, and how they have evolved?”

Troy Williams: To be honest there hasn’t been much change. With the invention of new hardware we have new ways to express the worlds we play in. Initially you could say that the majority of the RPG games that were made in the past had an element that is now lacking in the current iteration. When you play an older game there was a great deal of story element, to be honest the graphics were nothing grandiose to look at, so we were more compelled with game play and underlying story events no matter how linear they were and we continued playing and enjoyed placing ourselves outside our personal lives and in the persona of the hero. Now when there is a shift in focus to graphical demonstration I think some developers have lost sight on the complete synergistic package. An RPG is a compromise in all facets that make games great, this makes it incredibly difficult from a designer standpoint to tackle, however we try as much as possible. Simply put, some games that attempt to contain Role Playing ideals are more or less lacking what one would traditionally expect out of an immersive experience, tall tales, or emotional stories. I wouldn’t suspect that we would read books for illustrative purposes now that we are in our adulthood, that shouldn’t be to far from the truth with games, illustrations may speak a thousand words but it’s easy to get lost in the translation of these environments if not implemented correctly.

Q. “Is turned-based here to stay, or is real-time the way of the future?

Troy Williams: I believe that there is room for both styles of play. There is no clear distinction as to what would be a better platform for presentation. This has to be carefully considered when developing a game. The beauty of these styles is relative to the person playing the game. In the future I suspect that there will be a mold between the two, possibly something we can expect from Mass Effect.  

Q. Linear versus open ended?

Troy Williams: It wouldn’t be fair or in good conscience to alienate the individual premises as separate forms of game play. No matter how many times we attempt to segregate the two they end up comprising the gamut of elements inherent with good character and environment interaction. To provide a corollary between linear game play and the basic translation of unfolding events in a game would be to compare it with a book. Being part of the human race I can assure you that without motive, or goals, or reason for existence we could in essence be considered completely non linear in a fundamental sense. However to give yourself reason by setting goals or achieving ambitions we in turn set pseudo linear achievements for ourselves. Without a sense of reason or path of progression the game would become rather stagnant and boring. “What?  We aren’t saving the world; we just walk around having tea? Where is the grandeur of political intrigue I expected?”

I digress, tomorrow Ill have another personal blog about societies oblivious use of medication as a momentary crutch for social problems.

Thanks again

Troy w.