I've got a couple of games that I wish existed, but I'll just go ahead and type this one out since I've seen the Acronym WoT thrown around a lot today. Be warned, there might be some Wheel of Time spoilers, if you care. I just don't know how to types this out without actually throwing in some spoilers.
I want a game based in the Wheel of Time universe. I want the game to be sort of canonical, but I don't want to actually be one of the main characters. I don't even want to be one of the hundreds of secondary, or even tertiary characters in the books. I want the hero/ine to be a completely player created thing. I want you to be able to see the actions of the main cast of the books as the story progresses, but I don't actually want you yourself to be able to change any of the big events. I want to see the Dragon Reborn meet his destiny at Shayol Ghul, I want to see him be recognized at Toman Head. I want to watch him go from tall, gangly farm-boy to resplendent king with all of his laurels, and then into the man he finally knows to be himself.
However, I don't just want this to be a movie. I want to have some interaction with the plot. I wouldn't mind making the character as an unsung hero, having a dabbling hand in everything, but never being seen. My thoughts on character creation ran something like this: You start by choosing the location of your birth. Be it Tanchico, Emond's Field, the Tri-Fold Lands, or even Seanchan itself. Maybe even a Seafolk, though their entire caste system is weird as crap. You would then choose your gender, and customize your appearance and such from there. You would be donned in the natural garb of where you came from, and then whether or not you want to be able to touch the one power.
For those of you who have read the books, you know the one Power to be either saidin, for the males, or saidar, for the females. You also know that if you were to choose a male and be able to touch saidin, well you know that most factions, including your own, would probably hunt you down. The Aiel would voluntarily walk into the blight, to fight until death, and the Sea-folk willingly give themselves to the sea if they can channel. For the men of course. The females would become damane or their handlers, Aiel women could become Wise Ones, Seafolk women might rise in rank to become a Windfinder, or they could join the White Tower and become Aes Sedai.
Depending on your origin that you choose, you would then choose where you fit in with the culture and place of the story. Seanchan would be interesting to start in, because you'd have to deal with their political structure, and their laws regarding channeling. You could become one of the Queen's Guards in Andor, or a Farmer in Emond's Field, you might even start as an associate for the Tower of the Ravens from Seanchan. You could pick on which link of the chain that is the social structure of each country/place to start on, and from there you'd begin your game.
Gameplay would begin as you within your set background, giving you a brief history of what's been going on, some of the rumors that have been going on, and possibly a glimpse of where the main cast currently is in the story itself. Depending on where you're located, you might actually run into the characters of the books extremely early, or possibly never even see them. Say you're a man who lives in White Bridge, maybe even an innkeeper. It's possible that you could see Matt, Rand, and Thom Merrilin being chased by the Myrddraal when they go through White Bridge the first time. You'd see the boys bolt off towards the countryside while Thom tackles the Myrddraal and gets crippled for it. You'd be able to keep up with where the story was via the rumors and glimpses of the main cast. The world would change over time as the casts' actions were more and more grandiose and world-breaking.
Your character would have to have a goal of course, or else the game wouldn't be anything more than an interactive/3D novel. The simplest thing that I can think of is adding a Forsaken for you to fight, or some political gains for you to grab. Having the character as an unrecognized ta'veren, who is still grandiose in his own way, but born in the wrong age. If you had been born anytime earlier or later, you probably would've been the most recognized person of the era. But while the main cast overshadows you, you can still become a force to be reckoned with. You might even change the ending of the series if you set it up correctly. So a major goal could be anything to changing the country/world, making sure that everything progresses correctly, or possibly even setting yourself up in direct opposition of the main cast (although this one would be rather boring if you killed off Rand or Moiraine too early).
Gameplay would have RPG elements, mainly in the sense that the longer, or more you do something, the better you get at it. Skills could be anything from sword fighting to stealth, to conversing politically (convincing or defaming, or otherwise), to better wielding the One Power. As you leveled up in these areas, you'd be able to use your skills more efficiently, being either stronger, faster, or more charismatic. Having main attributes such as Strength, Swiftness (or dexterity if you so wish), Constitution (which would be your general health and stamina (which is used with regular fighting along with weaving spells)), Willpower (how strong you are within Tel'aran'rhiod), Wisdom and Charisma (both would go in hand so you could see the political undercurrents and be able to use your silver tongue to pounce on them), and even possibly a ta'veren stat (which would act like luck in most things, but have a much more obvious reaction to most entities (people find themselves selling their land for a fifth of their original price, marriages happen everywhere, a tile flies off of a roof and kills a man)).
Eventually your fame and prowess would see you reach the highest rank possible, becoming an Asha'man or an Aes Sedai, recognized as a blade master even across the Aryth Ocean, known to be a shrewd businessman, or a leader of a legion of men. You would become strong enough to change the world or political structure as you see fit, but the main cast is still going on with the story. As the Last Battle draws near, you might decide you've had enough of living in the main casts' shadow, and decide to oppose them. You could decide to see that the world continues and side with the cast. You could even decide to just be heroic enough to bind yourself to the Horn of Valere. There could be a man who is vying to become one of the Forsaken, you yourself could aim to become one of the Forsaken. You might even want to become recognized as a Great General and lead the armies during the Last Battle. The game wouldn't have to have one particular ending. You could even attach yourself as the guard of one of the main characters, if you so wish, and watch the books play out while you interact with the cast and help them reach their destinies.
Controlling your character during combat would be pretty intricate, sword fighting could be done through automatically using stances and certain techniques, or you yourself designating them. The better you are in your skill, the more techniques, stances, and your speed are. Weaving (spells) would consist of finding out a weave by either being taught it, or pure experimentation. Once you find a weave the game could bookmark it for later use, adding it to a sort of mental spellbook. Stamina would be used through exertion in fighting and weaving, as it is depicted in the books as being mentally and physically exhausting. If you are a male and begin channeling before saidin is cleansed, the taint will rub off on you. Too much weaving would leave you insane, dealing with mental threats, along with the added threat of the Red Ajah being sent to still you.
Political characters will have to be thought on, I'm much more action-ey than political-ey.
Eventually you would end the playthrough, your character would have an ending (one of many, many open endings), and things would wind down to a close. I myself am a big fan of NG+ run throughs of games, and wouldn't mind throwing a NG+ option into this. You would keep your attributes and skills, be able to change your aesthetics (and gender), and then you would be able to choose a new homeland if you so desire. Depending on your stats, you might open up new options to start from. You could be a blade master teacher from the Borderlands, or you could even be a False Dragon. You might decide you wish to start with land from the most profitable area in Cairhien, or even a claimant for the throne of the Seanchan Empire. Whatever you choose, the story starts again, with you spun back into it by the Wheel.
P.S., if you see something that doesn't make sense, or my grammar is just god-awful, tell me and I'll fix it.
Author
Topic: Games you wish existed (Read 970991 times)