What is your ideal game?

[Elcura]

I was reading an article about the direction of the gaming market and development and I was wondering, what kind of game would be your ideal game? That is to say, what kind of things do you like in a game and what kind of things would you like to see in more games?

Do you like things like accessibility, customizability, story, atmosphere, fun-factor, replay value, multiplayer etc? What would you say is your favourite feature?

For me, it would have to be atmospheric games that are fun to play and have replayability. Mostly the kind of games that are like SoTC. Customizability is great as well, I love making my own characters and putting them into a story and having that story center on that character. Most of the time you're allowed to make a character the story is very generic. I'd like to see you able to choose personality types that would influences reactions and story a lot more.

[Kyo]

I would like an RPG, with a setting like Fable, fully customizeable character, long epic story, hundreds hours of game play, deep skill trees, be able to make my own armor and weapons, be able to fish, have a wide array or weapons and be able to customize them.
basicaly almost a blend between fable 2 and fallout 3 I guess.

[izembo]

a game like shining force 2, strategy rpg with lots of characters to chose from, good story, class promotions/options, and cuts out to a seperate graphic window for attacks/spells like this http://www.consoleclassix.com/info_i...creenShot2.jpg

[Hiryo]

For me, my tastes usually swing between Action titles and platformers. Games with a load of playability and difficulty. Some of my favorites are things like Shinobi, Tenchu, and ZoE, especially the last one. <.< Some of the more recent action titles do have the degree of speed, difficulty and platforming that I want, but none of them have really captured my feelings as much as ZoE and lolGunz Online. I'm kind of looking forward to Xblades, it may have the kind of gameplay that i'm looking for, fast paced and 3dimensional action. I love being able to freaking dance around enemies as I kill them(especially in both the X and Y axis ugh gimme zoe3)

[Not Kuno]

I like games with alot of customization. I'm also a big fan of open ended games, as those usually tend to have alot of replay value (provided they dont suck).

[Avanarius]

normally I suppose I wouldn't care about graphics very much, but lately I've been finding I generally want something a little better then cell shading / anime / ps2 / other comic-bookish style.

Just a realistic art style in a fantasy world with deep rpg customization would be a refreshing change..

[Natallon]

Story is really important to me.

If it can really suck me in and make me spend hours on it and not even realize or care, then its a winner in my book.

[Roranora]

If the online communities (at least the HC Realm communities) within the Diablo games could stay at least 99.9% legitimate and reaching the level cap is more like it was pre-LoD, that would be my ideal game. Although I suppose it's good that the dupes eventually ruin the economies because then I don't play the game forever; either way, D3 will be near ideal for the first 6-9 months at least.

With that being said, it's pretty obvious the feature I think I enjoy the most is treasure hunting. I love the feeling when you find a big-time item, especially since it should be something that doesn't happen very often. Whether it's gambling a 6/7 dual leech ring or a +2/prismatic/life/mana amulet or identifying a perfect Vampire Gaze, few games replicate such an enjoyable feeling.

[Elesirdur]

Incomming serious tl;dr

I really enjoy games that give me, as a player, the freedom to author my own experiences. Games like System Shock 2, Deus Ex, the Elder Scrolls Series, Fallout, KOTOR(s), and Fable (to a lesser extent) all have that quality.

God-games and resource-management games like SimCity, Spore, Civilization, or 4X games give this kind of ability too but without a strong narrative that the player follows, instead creating the narrative through their choices and their own imagination.

Games like Mass Effect and Fable have a set narrative, but through character customization and interactions with NPCs give the player a chance to shape a unique story based on their actions within a limited and pre-defined set of actions.

I really loved adventure games back in the day (the Tim Schafer days) because, despite their linearity, the attention to the story based on development of their lovingly crafted characters drew me into their world and made me laugh, empathize, and even shed a tear for their scripted fates. (The ending of Grim Fandango with the violin tango solo gets me choked up)

The thing is that storytelling doesn't have to be sacraficed in games where the player has a large amount of control over the actions of their character(s) - unfortunately it does make the developer's job a lot more difficult. I will refer to Mass Effect again as a great example of a game that combines an open-ish world where the player gets a great deal of freedom to act or not to act, but still ends up being the hero that the narrative story demands. On my first play-through of ME, the point at which Shepard learns of the fate of the Protheans from the Vigil AI on Ilos filled me with a sense of pathos and wonder I never really expected from a video game. I will hand it to the story writers at BioWare for their sensitive and touching tale of the fate of the Protheans, especially those last few who remained and attempted to break the reaper cycle. It is those kinds of moments great games can and should strive for; ones that transcend action and destruction to reach out to the emotions and beliefs of the player and ask of them to reflect on what is being presented and how their (virtual) actions have both created and are a result of this situation.

Long story short, I'm asking for nearly the impossible; an open world with opportunities to do and see and experience whatever whim strikes my fancy as a player, but to be bound within a touching and engaging storyline that drives and motivated the player in a multitude of ways. Giving the player freedom must be a daunting task in game design, but when it is implemented properly it puts that game on another level. Beyond the linearity of simple shooters, action-adventure, and many RPGs (both Japanese and Western) there is limitless opportunity for great design; it only takes the vision to create, and the resources to realize it to make something wonderful and meaningful to games and humanity as an form of art in a new experience.

[BRP]

I would need a couple ideal games, not just one. Sometimes I love a very interactive and customization game, but other times I want a cinematic game.

[treelo]

They were already making it, then it got canned due to reasons I can't even remember.

The Dune MMO/strategy game that was in production a few years back. Probably the only thing that could drag my sorry ass away from FFXI for more than two weeks.

[Deejay]

I'm still waiting for someone to make a Kingdom Heartsy-Diablo type game.

Whats so hard about making an action-dungeon crawler, packed with enemies that actually require coordinated attacks (real time) and combo's to kill?

I just hate when games that have wonderful action-RPG gameplay are bound to retarded/drawn out/sequenced stories. Especially when 90% of it consists of recycled garbage from the PS1 era.

[Krandor]

Whats so hard about making an action-dungeon crawler, packed with enemies that actually require coordinated attacks (real time) and combo's to kill?

Go get Monster Hunter Freedom 2G

[LD]

Hmmm.....In terms of story and gameplay, Vagrant Story was probably my favorite. ...Well Chrono Trigger is my favorite, but as a 'game I'd want made' VS has everything I want in future software. The story and gameplay elements encompass everything I like about video games: An epic, yet modest story (something with just enough flash to get your attention and a pace that builds to each conclusion). Gameplay that mixes mental and physical abilities. Atmosphere you can taste (excellent level design, enemy design, music, and sound effects).

Something I'd like to see more in games is a stronger link between the movements on the screen and the movements on the controller without making the latter too complicated. The Wii is obviously ahead there, but it's not necessarily impossible for the old style controllers. A fighting game, for example. It'd be nice if the big flashy combos weren't a bunch of complicated button presses you have to study and then cull from your memory. A system that comes naturally to the player based on the movements of the character when they perform a move. In a phrase, 'Control as ergonomic as our controllers.'

[Yuri-G]

I want a stylized 2-d platformer with a female main hero. Odin Sphere's graphical quality and style with a heroine similar to Velvet and Castlevania gameplay with a unique control gimmick would do the trick. A really great story with well-developed characters to keep me interested in progressing would be nice too.

I'd also want the game to be challenging, but not bullshit challenge, real challenge. The problem with a lot of games is that they give you a ton of tools, abilities, etc. but don't give you the opportunity to use them, or maybe a couple of abilities are so overpowered that the rest are pointless even if they're cool. I want to be given a ton of resources and I also want to be forced to use every single one of them, I want the game to be designed so that I have to know what my character can do inside and out to succeed.

Lastly, the game needs to be rewarding. One of the reasons Mario and Zelda games are so popular is that Shigeru Miyamoto was a master at providing rewards to the player. Item boxes, chests, etc. - they're all spaced out perfectly in his games so that you never feel like you're progressing for nothing but at the same time, rewards aren't so common that they feel cheap and pointless. He is a master at manipulating the player in this manner. The "Castleroid" games are similar, there are so many random items and pieces of equipment just laying around that you want to keep playing a little longer to see what you'll pick up next. I want a game like that.

[Dohorehn]

Go get Monster Hunter Freedom 2G

qft. a lot of people will bash this game and it's difficult learning curve. but in the long run it's very rewarding (if you have friends to play with)

[Kaylia]

a game like shining force 2, strategy rpg with lots of characters to chose from, good story, class promotions/options, and cuts out to a seperate graphic window for attacks/spells like this http://www.consoleclassix.com/info_i...creenShot2.jpg

Why they call those game Tactic/strategy anyway? They are as mindless as any other type of rpg



My ideal game is one with awesome cinematic and good character/story (ie: xenosaga, Metal gears). I also appreciate when the environment look beautiful during gameplay sequence (doesn't have to be next gen to look good...old game like Chrono Trigger are still great graphically)

[Kenai]

Well, no game can have absolutely everything I want in it. Sometimes I want my Bust-a-Move esque puzzles, other times oldschool Shining Force strategy rpgs, other times more anime-type jRPGs, or open ended Oblivion type games. Sometimes I get surprised by games I didn't even know I wanted til they were out, like Elite Beat Agents, Trauma Center, or Sam and Max.

But since this is a pie-in-the-sky thread, I would kill for a well-done Pokemon MMO. KILL.

Edit: I'm curious Kaylia, have you played a good round of Fire Emblem? Shining Force is good, but Fire Emblem is far more brutal and (yes!) difficult. You don't mindlessly beat Radiant Dawn, let me tell you. >.>

[Kaylia]

Never played a Fire Emblem game.

I said mindless because they generally don't involve any planning other than your typical action/reaction behavior that is present in every rpg. You could build a simple algorithm that could win every fight without knowing anything about the enemy other than its movement speed and attack range.

The only difference with "normal rpg" is the positioning on the battlefield, but 99.9% of the time, you will simply try to single out enemy's unit, and avoid losing multiple unit to AoE.

[Correction]

'Ideal' depends on the context of your current gaming schedule.

When I'm in crunch mode and working 16 hour days at work, my 'ideal' game is turn-based and leisurely without a whole lot of 'omfg I just died to something completely random. Civ II and my DS Mahjonng (the real game of Mahjonng, not the match-the-tiles solitaire) game fit this niche because I can play for 10 minutes or 10 hours and require very little concentration. It's ideal because it's relaxing.

When I have all the time in the world and don't feel like going casual the definition of 'ideal' broadens. But when I commit 4-5 hours to playing any game I definitely don't want to sit and watch cutscenes for half of that, so most 'cinematic' games are straight out, be they JRPGs or MGS4. This is probably why I'm so drawn to games like Castle Crashers, fighting/driving games and shooters. The ideal game for my 4-5 hour play cycle gives clear goals, rewards skillful play and most importantly does something that sets it apart from the rest of the titles in the genre. They aren't the types of games that you want to play for only two hours, can be multiplayer if I want them to be and introduce a series of 'learned' skills. This is probably why I'm pretty excited about Left 4 Dead. It seems to match all my criteria for my hardcore gaming hours.