How do you "play" RPG games?

[mattperiolat]

Having experience from WoW, KOTOR and Dragon Age and looking into games like Mass Effect and LA Noire, I was curious to see how some of my fellow FANs preferred to play. Do you just play the game and the choices and characters you play not matter or do you get into the stories and actually weigh how you act in the game, choosing to be a bad guy, morally ambiguous or a hero?

For me, I do have alts on WoW, most of them heroic, one (my Undead 'Lock) is when I'm in a bad mood and just want the world to die. KOTOR I always play the redemptive hero, since that is the story that makes the most sense to me.

And you?

[Deleted]

Basically any time a game gives me a choice in an action, I'll usually opt to be moral about it. Like, in GTA4 when you have the choice to let someone live I take it, in Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life the times I've gotten the goat I still keep feeding it even after it stops being able to produce milk, and that sort of thing. Also in Paper Mario I never get Whacka's Bumps no matter how good of healing items they are.

That being said, if put in a position where being sadistic is pretty much your only option, I'll happily bust out Fatalities left and right.

[Mozenrath]

Depends on the game, but I typically play pretty "light" with my choices, in regards to humanity, while sometimes treading a fine line when it comes to choices relating to money.

[FinalGwen]

I normally do a playthrough just reacting how I would naturally react, then with future playthroughs and a little more knowledge of what the game and its universe involves, I write up a full history and profile of my new character, and use that as the guide for how they would react. Even when, say, I want to do a purely renegade playthrough in Mass Effect, there are some things that I'll do paragon actions for if it makes sense for the character.

[The Ichi]

One good playthrough followed by an evil playthrough.

[jagilki]

Mass Effect, Star Wars KOTOR and such games I've always wanted to do a "bad guy" run, but have been unable to do so.

[Legion]

Usually I 'cheat' and read up online what the best option is as it relates to best rewards/further missions from a character.

[Goldenbane]

SPOILERS warning I guess.

For games like Dragon Age Origins, I usually try to stick to being a good guy. I just can't bring myself to ally myself with those insane cultists who worship the dragon, for example, nor can I bring myself to allow the innocent mages in the tower to be slaughtered by the Templars.

In games like Star Wars KOTOR, I also tend to be a good guy. I want to be evil...but the type of evil they will only let me be is the dumb blood lust thug. I want to be a little more like Palpatine...corrupting others to my evil and vile ways of thinking. Instead of slaughtering a useful character like Mission, I'd rather say "Think Mission...mwa ha ha ha! Who has lead you? Who has been your friend and guided you this whole time? Who helped you find your brother? Come now, join with me! You said you know I'm not evil...and I'm not, of course I'm not! Trust me, young girl...what I'm doing is the right thing...heh heh ha ha MWA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

But no, I have to shove my lightsaber into her stomach. That works too, I guess. Could have used her...if not for her skills at least for a meat shield or something. It's one of the small things I liked about KOTOR II better over KOTOR I (even though the story/character in KOTOR I is infinitely superior).

[Mozenrath]

Mar 24, 2013 13:36:15 GMT -5 jagilki said:

Mass Effect, Star Wars KOTOR and such games I've always wanted to do a "bad guy" run, but have been unable to do so.

It really can be difficult to do. I love that The Old Republic gives you darkside options that aren't ludicrously stupid.

-Light: Donate your winnings
-Collect Payment
-Dark: Assault toddler

[A Platypus Rave is Correct]

Usually I go for the sarcastic ass responses... as for like good/evil I usually end up leaning towards the good guy but in Kotor I managed to pretty much stick firmly neutral

[Kevin Hamilton]

Always skew evil if possible. Not RPG, but on Spider-man Web of Shadowa for ex. Straight up embraced the symbiote.

[Deleted]

First playthrough of any RPG I usually make a character that resembles myself, and carry out decisions that make sense to me personally. On additional playthroughs I usually make up characters and adhere to behaviors I establish for it.

[Zaq "That Guy" Buzzkill]

Going evil is always fun, but I usually do a good play through after that...or switch partway if being a good-guy is worth my time more.
My current Skyrim character is an asshole Khagiti assassin-thief who I see as always lying and would gladly stab you in the back for no other reason than simply not liking you.

[mattperiolat]

Mar 24, 2013 14:12:25 GMT -5 Zaq "That Guy" Buzzkill said:

Going evil is always fun, but I usually do a good play through after that...or switch partway if being a good-guy is worth my time more.
My current Skyrim character is an asshole Khagiti assassin-thief who I see as always lying and would gladly stab you in the back for no other reason than simply not liking you.

Thanks for the reminder about Skyrim. How could I forget about the RPG aspects of that behemoth? Wonder how TESO will play. And there is Marvel Heroes coming up, but I expect fewer choices available there.

[Deleted]

Idk how I play role playing game games, but for Role playing games, I usually make a character and a personality, and RP them in accordance. My Femshep started out a friendless asshole, but by the end of ME3, they were just kind of a dick. By contrast, my Maleshep was Bipolar.

[Brother Nero....Wolfe]

I choose "Whatever is funnier at any given moment." I usually did things the nice way out in Deus Ex but I made a point to punch out the person who gave me the quest at the end anyway. You know, to balance things out.

[Talent Name]

The one thing I really like about the Walking Dead game is after you complete an episode it lets you know how many people went with your choices, some of the choices you make in that game are so hard to pick

[Deleted]

I only do singleplayer RPGs, and usually I choose a "good" path because the "evil" one usually doesn't make much sense in the games that I play. Depends on the character though. In Mass Effect, I usually go 80 percent paragon, 20 percent renegade, helping out innocent people but remorselessly killing villains (pushing mercs out of windows, gunning someone down for aiming a gun at Shepard, etc.). In something like Skyrim, where there's more variation, I'll go the "evil" route more often if I'm playing a barbarian or necromancer or something.

[Michael Coello]

Good first, evil second, and I usually alternate with gender and class types, if applicable.

[Koda, Master Crunchyroller]

Well, for starters if a game lets me create my character from scratch, I always create a female character. Namely because of 2 things:

1) There needs to be more female leads in games, so this lets me fill in that goal a bit.

2) It actually lets me get into the character and the story. Otherwise if I play a male in RPGs with creatable player characters, I just end up playing as myself with cool powers, and that isn't role playing, imo. That is a power fantasy. Two totally different things in my eyes.

Then there is the whole be a dick or not be a dick thing. Well, it changes from game to game. Even within a series. Take Mass Effect for instance. In ME1 I was nearly pure Renegade. In ME2, I was dead even between Paragon and Renegade(you kind of need to to ensure the entire party survives the suicide run), and in ME3 I was pure Paragon. And this was all with the same Shepard.