-
Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.
Spiderman (PS4 Exclusive) from Insomniac
- Thread starter iNvid02
- Start date
- Status
You know, I don't want the black and white choices that games like inFAMOUS provide players.
Give us a more greyed out sense of morality. Like, a choice between going to visit Mary Jane's stage play whilst knowing that there MIGHT be an attack on a bank as you've been following a few criminals, etc.
Basically, make us choose between being Spidey and Peter. Make us make those difficult decisions he makes about choosing heroism over his personal life or vice versa.
Am I the only one who is intrigued by this?
darkwing-buck
Member
The Cretan
Member
This would be very interesting and it's something very essential of the mythos of Spider-Man.
I like it. Not sure I trust anyone to do it right.
TheBlueBomber
Member
Okay, now THAT is a great idea for a choice system, that could be super interesting, that's always a big part of the comics too so it would fit well, just needs to be done well
SargerusBR
I love Pokken!
You. I like you.
Permanently A
Junior Member
Great idea. Only question is how to "gamify" this sort of thing. Like for example, what is the effect of ditching MJ? Is it just a couple of changed lines of dialogue? Or will MJ get fed up and stop inviting you to things? And on the flip side, what happens if you go to the bank and there really is no attack? How does that play?
All in all a wonderful idea that I think would be really hard to execute deftly.
Well, Spidey is voiced by Makoto Yuki in this game.
It's pretty simple actually. Think of morality to be an invisible meter, filling up towards Peter and Spidey. And our goal, as the player, is to get that perfect balance. As you select more of Peter, the city perishes with increase in crime, loss of life, etc and the Daily Bugle will continue lambasting Spider-man as being the criminal they think he is. Basically people will start reacting differently to Spidey. No more, "YOU'RE AWESOME SPIDERMAN" chants from random pedestrians. It'll be replaced by people screaming, "WHERE WERE YOU WHEN MY FRIEND/MOM/WIFE were ROBBED/KILLED/BEATEN UP, etc.
Similarly, the more we pick Spidey, his friends start to stray away from him. His relationships with girls will hit the dust, he'll become more of a loner, etc. And it'll all affect his behavior as well, becoming more aloof, etc.
So yeah. Come to think of it, it's a LOT of work. It can be done, but needs a LOOOOOT of time/blood/soul put in. *fingers crossed*
There's also something that was addressed in Spectacular Spider-Man. Whenever Spider-Man fights the big bad guys, the actions of the small-time crooks sometimes go unchecked. Tombstone tried to pay off Spider-Man for just looking the other way in terms of these crooks. Obviously Peter would never go for that (& in his right mind, he shot down Tombstone's offer), but what if you just focusing on the bad guys & forgetting to take care of the thieves factors into the story somehow?
Nightengale
Member
The former is a bit too on-the-nose, I feel. The whole "city hates you" mechanic can be pretty cheesy without some actual story or character gravitas.
The latter is pretty interesting, but that would demand the game has deep character relationship mechanics. Not at Persona's level, but definitely need something that is more of an RPG than an open-world sandbox to do that right.
Sounds ridiculously difficult to built.
The latter is pretty interesting, but that would demand the game has deep character relationship mechanics. Not at Persona's level, but definitely need something that is more of an RPG than an open-world sandbox to do that right.
Sounds ridiculously difficult to built.
Haha, yeah. Looks like Insomniac might need some help from Quantic Dreams for this.
I'm kidding. Or am I?
Sigh. Wishful thinking. Nothing more.
Good.
Duebrithil
Member
Yeah, that's one of the aspects I like about Spider-Man. He's successful as a superhero not only because of his superhuman physical abilities, but because he's also a great mind (even if lazy, sometimes).
I've always liked that panel where Spidey tells Pym he designed his trademark tracers (similar to the tech Pym has in his helmet and spent years developing) when he was 15 years old.
That'd be something I'd be willing to play with in a Spider-Man game, but it seems it would be difficult to get right. Still, good idea!
Please no. "Morality systems" (with binary good/bad gauge) were a fun novelty 10 years ago, but now appear terribly archaic because we've seen many times how limited they are.
It's definitely the only part of Infamous Second Son that had me feel like I was playing a game from 5 years earlier. We've all seen beyond this now, and the manicheism of those things just doesn't mix well at all with the nuanced storytelling those games are now trying their hand at. Funnily enough, it didn't bother me that much in Infamous 2, even though it was limited in the same way.
I would go as far as to say that even "binary choices" such as the ones in Far Cry 4 of permanently "choose between two characters, get scolded by the other one, rinse and repeat" just serve to make you story and characters look bad and heavy handed, because you see the ropes too much and the whole thing is just too systematic to be believable.
So imagine if you add some gauges on top of it.
Edit : Really, any other sort of "subtle" or "progressive" thing you guys describe would still make it hell to not be dissonant with the established storyline/cutscenes/writing, unless you're making Mass Effect or Witcher, but that's the commitment of those games. This sounds like way too much headache, money and time, that could be put somewhere else. That's just my opinion of course, but I'd rather leave those things to "Telltale's Spider-Man" if we ever get that, and have Insomniac focus on the ridiculous amount of work they cannot chose to avoid when trying to make a good and polished Spider-Man open-world game.
Nay of course. Spider-Man is a hero, no reason to implement some shit because its cool.
Leave that stuff to games where you define a character and dont use a established character.
TimFL
Member
You the MVP, exactly my dream Spidey game.
I always thought some kind of GTA V friend system would be fitting for a Spidey game. They call you occasionally or you call them and meet up. If you fail to go there in time they start to call you lazy & wont call anymore (and potentially tell you they're busy when you want to initiate something).
Of course totally optional and no need for Peter missions, a simple fade to black upon approaching them is enough.
I personally would love more fleshed out quests like that though: walk around with Gwen (as Peter) on a festival, stuff to interact etc (like TLoU Left Behind, just to have a bit of slow paced gameplay inbetween the high velocity Spidey missions/gameplay, for the people who want that). But that'd get too technical and would probably take away resources from the Spidey experience.
I don't think a typical morality system works in a Spidey game. It should be something that's processed under the hood:
You solve a lot of crimes:
- People are happy, they love you (cheering, news reports on the big screens calling you a hero etc)
- The city looks clean
- Less petty crimes (like muggings or 1 on 1 drug deals in alleys cause criminals know you're watching somewhere)
You ignore crimes:
- People start to hate you, news reports call you a menace
- City has a darker look (trash cans filled up and trash littered everywhere etc)
- More smaller, annoying petty crimes (muggings, 1 on 1 drug deals etc)
Could spill over into the Peter part of the game too, MJ talking about how she thinks Spidey is dangerous etc. Flash being disappointed that his hero seems to not care about the citizens and so on.
Everyone wants a good (Waifu) war...
If they do an panel for it on Saturday, I will so try to get there.
See now people are already moving the goalposts....
And to the petty "bookmarks" and replies I've gotten. Yes, I've played Insomniac games. Ratchet and Clank was the first game I bought for my PS2 and I've finished all the Ratchets. I'm well aware of their capabilities...
peanutbutterlatte
Member
No... no they don't
lucebuce12
Member
I can live without the morality system but that relationship system though.
Hypothetically you approach it like a Witcher game, you're playing a set character so you get differing options within the bounds of what that character would do or say.
The morality system should incorporate Daily Bugle articles. You're doing a bad job; you get bad articles. You're doing a good job; you still get bad articles.
Clearly they should roll in that Stacy/Norman relationship everybody loved.
That'd be great, if your actually doing a bad job the reporting is accurate, but otherwise it's like "Is Spider-man an alien terrorist?"
That'd be great, if your actually doing a bad job the reporting is accurate, but otherwise it's like "Is Spider-man an alien terrorist?"
DriftingSpirit
Member
lol
Sibersk Esto
Banned
It was pretty dope IMO. Lots of combos to unlock.
Sibersk Esto
Banned
As for a morality system, 'evil spider man' always comes off as ridiculous.
SmokedMeat
Gamer™
That doesn't sound like a difficult choice. Save lives or go see a play.
AgentChris
Member
Not a fan of the morality system but it could work if they introduce the symbiote.
Vital Tundra
Member
I vote for a Persona type system of raising Peters and Spidys Slinks.
orthodoxy1095
Banned
Totally forgot his job. He definitely needs to either be working the Bugle or at ESU.
Yep. Works for me.
lucebuce12
Member
Nice one lol. Either you get articles calling you an incompetent hero (good choice) or a purposefully "evil" one (bad choice)
TimFL
Member
Dependson how you play the game. I usually get fully immersed with Spidey games (even if they suck, Spidey is my fav hero). Imagine you were Spidey and your personal life takes a heavy hit due to saving lives. That's what a Spidey game should be about, balancing 2 lives so you don't miss out on anything.
That's why Spidey 2 (the movie) is well regarded IMO and the Webb franchise failed miserably, if you look past most bigger issues (hipster Parker always got what he wanted, minus the cop out TASM2 ending for added "weight").
I initially thought I'd be up for a morality system but I think I'd take a strong, well-defined story arc over the illusion of choice.
Also, I know I'm a few posts behind but I'm also not in favor of special web fluid. I feel like there's enough in the "purity" of Spider-Man to fill a game's worth of mechanics. Special web fluids feel like the gimmick you put into the 3rd or 4th game when you're out of ideas to keep the base mechanics fresh. I saw somewhere in the E3 coverage a mention of Spidey's improvisational combat style and I'd much rather have to use the environment to lure say, Electro to a hydrant or water tower than use some special web fluid against him.
Also, I know I'm a few posts behind but I'm also not in favor of special web fluid. I feel like there's enough in the "purity" of Spider-Man to fill a game's worth of mechanics. Special web fluids feel like the gimmick you put into the 3rd or 4th game when you're out of ideas to keep the base mechanics fresh. I saw somewhere in the E3 coverage a mention of Spidey's improvisational combat style and I'd much rather have to use the environment to lure say, Electro to a hydrant or water tower than use some special web fluid against him.
My problem with trying to incorporate Peter Parker into the gameplay is that most ideas I see sound very boring and would completely break the fast pace of the Spider-man gameplay. I feel it's enough for Peter's life to play a big part in the story, but we do not need to actively play him going on a date with Mary or whatever. Though having some side missions where you have to take cool photos of yourself for the Daily Bugle would be neat.
demosthenes
Member
If he was in high school they could have gone the persona route :lol
- Status