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Complex Game/Never End Game

5 replies [Last post]
Thu, 01/08/2004 - 18:30
Anonymous

I am currently working on a game (untitled) that is very complex and never ends (like an RPG). The game has many items(and I mean MANY), stories (quests), many creatures, many different character combinations, and more. It plays on a Monopoly sized board that has many different movement possibilities. The game is meant to be a game you play every week or something normally, with the same people.

The thing I am worried about is, will anyone play it? It is complex and requires record keeping, a lot die-rolling, card drawing, ect. and I am worried if anyone would want to play such a game.

I would greatly appriciate feedback (and if anyone could think of a name...)

Thanks

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Thu, 01/08/2004 - 19:28
#1
Anonymous
Complex Game/Never End Game

Call it Moebius.

Matt

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Thu, 01/08/2004 - 19:36
#2
Anonymous
Complex Game/Never End Game

Will any one play? Without some more details that's a tough question to ask. I've heard of people that will play 1 game of chess over many days, weeks, or even months, so there is a form of precedent. If the game is heavy on strategy then there might be some interest, but if at a point one (or more) players know there is no hope in winning the game (can you win a never ending game? :D ) then they will stop playing and ruin it for the others. Game balance in this type of game is important so all players will have a chance to win until the very end.

My two pence,
- Geoff

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Thu, 01/08/2004 - 19:39
#3
Anonymous
Complex Game/Never End Game

Hmmm, that's a good point. The game would have to be designed in a way so new players could join or leave at any time. Not to be a worst-case scenario kinda guy or anything, but what happens if a player in your game is eaten by a tiger in a freak accident at the zoo? Not to be horribly callous, but man, would that screw up your game session.

Matt

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Thu, 01/08/2004 - 19:41
#4
sedjtroll
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Complex Game/Never End Game

Sounds like D&D, but with a board. Heck, some DMs already use boards (hex maps) anyway. Personally I think just about every genre of RPG has been done to death, and in a variety of different ways. Unless you have a really unique method of "keeping track of all the stuff" which is somehow better than d20 or GURPS, then I don't see the point.

Note, these games are really just storytelling, with rules for "keeping track of stuff."

- Seth

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Fri, 01/09/2004 - 00:29
#5
IngredientX
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Joined: 07/26/2008
Re: Complex Game/Never End Game

Sounds like a "campaign"-style game, where each gaming session is a series of encounters, but all the gaming sessions have a single story arc running through them. Lots of wargamers do this too; check out games like Starfleet Battles, Advanced Squad Leader, and Harpoon for ways you can keep your players returning to the same campaign. Talisman isn't a campaign game, but it is a fantasy-themed board game with a long running time.

A few more thoughts...

- Theme, theme, theme. Theme is your friend here. I know, all of my posts previously have been about how much more important mechanics are than theme. And that's true, for a game that begins and ends in the space of 30 minutes to a few hours.

But if you're going to design a game that is made to be played in evening-long sessions over the course of a few months (or longer!), then one thing you'll have to devote time into is making the game world come alive. Design the hell out of every nook and cranny. Let your gamers smell the dungeon. Feel the weight of the sword. Leave no stone unturned. As Seth alluded to, D&D is a marvelous precedent here; its theme is one of its most important factors to the game.

- Since it sounds like you'll have a fantasy theme to your game, be aware just how many seperate fantasy worlds have already been created (Tolkien, Jordan, McCafferty, Rawn, hell, even Pratchett). All are painstakingly detailed. Be ready to add your own detail. I'd imagine that once you get to a certain point, the world will start to invent itself.

- Give your players lots of flexibility. Make sure they can do just about anything they want to, from slaying dragons to kicking dwarves.

- Consider whether you want the game to have a seperate referee, as someone who would control the actions of the monsters; or if those will come from cards or dice. Also, how will your players "remember" the positions of the game state (pawns on the board, health status of characters, decks of cards) between gaming sessions?

Best of luck!

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