First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
I thought that Portal/Portal2 had a story that was as good, if not better, than many great books and movies. I think that video game developers are quite capable of writing a story as good as books and movies.
Probably even better since the player can have an opportunity to change the story.
Vault-Tec analysts have concluded that the odds of worldwide nuclear armaggeddon this decade are 17,143,762... to 1.
Bioware will be put to the Blizzard stress test no matter what everyone says. No previous record, no ME,or Kotor fond memories, no storytelling mambo jumbo analyses, nothing will save Bioware, not even Lucas Arts for pulling the plug on SWG, not even the company's fame, if the whole package that will be launched, does not please the masses, that are waiting for 7 years, finally a rest, an alternative for God's shake from WoW, the current King.
The Community wants democracy, but awaits in vain till now for a new King to challenge the throne....If the throne is not challenged, there will be no forgiveness from the masses neither for ToR, neither for Bioware, neither for their fierce supporters, hyping another AoC, Rift, for example to WoW status but delivering the same old defrost of the same food.
If Bioware and Lucas, with such an IP, under EA cannot pull of a Blizzard Throne Challenge, who can? Titan and Blizzard again?
Thus to the OP i say, that ToR is not a Bioware story, it is George's story, and even a 7 year old can describe it so nicely, Bioware won't?
It's the whole package that will fail or succeed, not it's individual parts. And for that, we have to wait for the launch to really know....everything then will be revealed, and either we will witness a new Challenge, or Blizzard will sit on it's throne, stronger than ever before.
WoW may claim ultimate victory, without a single new story to tell, if Bioware fails to deliver one of the best stories in movies and gaming told. And the MMO genre will have to wait again for Blizzard to claim the throne from itself....All talk without a single contender for 7 years....is thin air....gone with the digital wind....not in in a galaxy far far away, but in this one, we are now:P
Goodmooooorning MMORPG!
Fully supporting STAR CITIZEN by the Legendary Grandmaster of the Space Game Genre, Chris Roberts.For Captain Eisen's memory.....For Squadron 42...For the Space Genre....For the PC....I pledge! Star Citizen TOG Star Citizen-Join Us
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
I thought that Portal/Portal2 had a story that was as good, if not better, than many great books and movies. I think that video game developers are quite capable of writing a story as good as books and movies.
The point being an unrealistic expectation for something that is considered beyond the normal. Game companies can make good stories, but I've yet to play one that would rate Best Selling Novel, let alone the OP's expectations.
Turbine does a decent job with Lord of the Rings Online, but they wouldn't even compare to the movies, let alone the books and yet no one actually expects them to. Bioware makes good and fun stories for my tastes, but I'd still take a good book if Story was the only thing I was looking for.
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
The reason why there's so much criticism on the story with regards to this game, is because Bioware has by their own admission made story the focal point of the game.
Aside from heavy focus on story, the game really doesn't look to be all that different from the bulk of the rest of the MMOs released in the last six year. If story is the only reason to play this game over a game like WoW, and if the storytelling becomes stale for this game, then this game will no longer have an edge over other MMOs aside from the IP. A popular IP alone however, has proven several times to not be enough to keep people interested in an MMO.
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
I thought that Portal/Portal2 had a story that was as good, if not better, than many great books and movies. I think that video game developers are quite capable of writing a story as good as books and movies.
The point being an unrealistic expectation for something that is considered beyond the normal. Game companies can make good stories, but I've yet to play one that would rate Best Selling Novel, let alone the OP's expectations.
Hmm.. its strange because a lot of things that started as games, now have books written about them, like GoW, HALO, ...(KOTOR doesn't really count cause it started as.. well the comic, then the games, then the books)
But I would say some games have pretty great stories if you take into account the actions that you partake in as you progress. GoW, ME, LA Noire, I thought Max Payne was an awesome story, and just an overall awesome game.... not so great of a movie though.
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
The reason why there's so much criticism on the story with regards to this game, is because Bioware has by their own admission made story the focal point of the game.
Aside from heavy focus on story, the game really doesn't look to be all that different from the bulk of the rest of the MMOs released in the last six year. If story is the only reason to play this game over a game like WoW, and if the storytelling becomes stale for this game, then this game will no longer have an edge over other MMOs aside from the IP. A popular IP alone however, has proven several times to not be enough to keep people interested in an MMO.
Yes and more people would disagree with you than agree. Putting down other people's tastes because they don't fit yours is really quite rude.
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
I thought that Portal/Portal2 had a story that was as good, if not better, than many great books and movies. I think that video game developers are quite capable of writing a story as good as books and movies.
The point being an unrealistic expectation for something that is considered beyond the normal. Game companies can make good stories, but I've yet to play one that would rate Best Selling Novel, let alone the OP's expectations.
Turbine does a decent job with Lord of the Rings Online, but they wouldn't even compare to the movies, let alone the books and yet no one actually expects them to. Bioware makes good and fun stories for my tastes, but I'd still take a good book if Story was the only thing I was looking for.
My favorite stories are the ones I create for myself in my imagination when I'm playing Fallout 3. Many are better than a lot of books i've read.
Vault-Tec analysts have concluded that the odds of worldwide nuclear armaggeddon this decade are 17,143,762... to 1.
The reason why there's so much criticism on the story with regards to this game, is because Bioware has by their own admission made story the focal point of the game.
Aside from heavy focus on story, the game really doesn't look to be all that different from the bulk of the rest of the MMOs released in the last six year. If story is the only reason to play this game over a game like WoW, and if the storytelling becomes stale for this game, then this game will no longer have an edge over other MMOs aside from the IP. A popular IP alone however, has proven several times to not be enough to keep people interested in an MMO.
Not to be an ass, but who couldn't figure that one out? As they've said all along they're sticking to classic MMO game-play, with an added layer of story. If the story is no good, overall the game will be meh.
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
I thought that Portal/Portal2 had a story that was as good, if not better, than many great books and movies. I think that video game developers are quite capable of writing a story as good as books and movies.
The point being an unrealistic expectation for something that is considered beyond the normal. Game companies can make good stories, but I've yet to play one that would rate Best Selling Novel, let alone the OP's expectations.
Hmm.. its strange because a lot of things that started as games, now have books written about them, like GoW, HALO, ...(KOTOR doesn't really count cause it started as.. well the comic, then the games, then the books)
But I would say some games have pretty great stories if you take into account the actions that you partake in as you progress. GoW, ME, LA Noire, I thought Max Payne was an awesome story, and just an overall awesome game.... not so great of a movie though.
Yes the IP's are and can be popular, but I bet the stories in the books tend to be more engaging than in the games, from a purely literature point of view.
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
The reason why there's so much criticism on the story with regards to this game, is because Bioware has by their own admission made story the focal point of the game.
Aside from heavy focus on story, the game really doesn't look to be all that different from the bulk of the rest of the MMOs released in the last six year. If story is the only reason to play this game over a game like WoW, and if the storytelling becomes stale for this game, then this game will no longer have an edge over other MMOs aside from the IP. A popular IP alone however, has proven several times to not be enough to keep people interested in an MMO.
Yes and more people would disagree with you than agree. Putting down other people's tastes because they don't fit yours is really quite rude.
Please enlighten me as to where I was ever putting down anyone else's tastes in this thread. I don't believe I ever did, and in almost all of my posts I stated my criticisms prefaced that they were my opinion, and never once implied that those who dissagreed were wrong to have their own opinion.
As per those who would disagree with me, that's their choice. I've read a few first impressions from reviewers that have said as much about the mechanics being nothing new.
Bioware are pretty overrated imo. Rockstar, Obsidian, and Remedy are all better in terms of storytelling.
Kotor has some nice characters and plot twists, but the pacing was way too slow in the middle part.
Mass Effect 1 has pacing issues as well and the character writing wasn't that great either. But overall, i thought it was pretty good anyway. ME2 on the other hand is flat-out terrible. And don't even get me started on that giant terminator-baby at the end. Wtf were they smoking?
Didn't bother with Dragon Age, since the story is said to be kinda cliched and predictable.
The reason why there's so much criticism on the story with regards to this game, is because Bioware has by their own admission made story the focal point of the game.
Aside from heavy focus on story, the game really doesn't look to be all that different from the bulk of the rest of the MMOs released in the last six year. If story is the only reason to play this game over a game like WoW, and if the storytelling becomes stale for this game, then this game will no longer have an edge over other MMOs aside from the IP. A popular IP alone however, has proven several times to not be enough to keep people interested in an MMO.
Not to be an ass, but who couldn't figure that one out? As they've said all along they're sticking to classic MMO game-play, with an added layer of story. If the story is no good, overall the game will be meh.
The person I was quoting was asking why there's so much criticism and high expectations concerning the story... which is why I pointed out what I did...
First of all, why would you even expect amazing stories from a computer developer. That's what books are for. What they do produce are good stories that fit within the game context and flow well with the game play. They may not be Best Selling novelists, but they still write darn good tales and within the context of the game, they are entertaining.
Either you are expecting way too much for a computer game or you are searching for any way to put Bioware down, along with the rest of the crazies of the MMORPG.com crowd.
The reason why there's so much criticism on the story with regards to this game, is because Bioware has by their own admission made story the focal point of the game.
Aside from heavy focus on story, the game really doesn't look to be all that different from the bulk of the rest of the MMOs released in the last six year. If story is the only reason to play this game over a game like WoW, and if the storytelling becomes stale for this game, then this game will no longer have an edge over other MMOs aside from the IP. A popular IP alone however, has proven several times to not be enough to keep people interested in an MMO.
Yes and more people would disagree with you than agree. Putting down other people's tastes because they don't fit yours is really quite rude.
How and where exactly is he puttin down the opinions of others? By the fact that he is stating his own? The problem is that a lot of people here can not accept any opinion different from their own. Therefore they will see those oposing opinions as direct threats or attacks on their own opinions eventhough this is not the case at all. People here tend to disregard any opinion that oposes their own as invalid or unreasonable, eventhough most of the time people actually do have valid argumentation when it comes to explaining their opinion.
Bioware have done great stories. Baldurs gate 1 & 2 and Neverwinter nights have among the best stories I ever seen in games, particularly the last.
On the other hand didn't I thought their later games (ME 1 & 2, DA 1 & 2) were that special, they were ok but not great.
KOTOR was fine but below BG 1 & 2 and NWN.
I will have to wait and see what I think of TORs story until I played the game, but Bioware can or at least could make an excellent story and I hope they are getting back their shape to what it was in late 90s & early 00s.
Judging Biowares competence for writing story just on the mass effect games isn't fair, OP. You have missed all their best games. Their take on Neverwinter nights is 9 years old now but still worth playing through (the expansions were nowhere near the original story however).
Bioware are pretty overrated imo. Rockstar, Obsidian, and Remedy are all better in terms of storytelling.
Kotor has some nice plot twists, but the pacing was way too slow in the middle part.
Mass Effect 1 has some bad characters writing and pacing issues as well, but overall, i thought it was pretty good. ME2 on the other hand is flat-out terrible. And don't even get me started on that giant terminator-baby at the end. Wtf were they smoking?
Didn't bother with Dragon Age, since the story is said to be kinda cliched and predictable.
I've always found Rockstars stories to be overly cliched and predictable, especially with the GTA and RDR franchises, "You killed ma, PA". Or in GTA's case it's the same story in any crime laced action flick. Where as GTA:SA was basically Boyz in the hood.
Obsidian's NWN 2 was terribad in the story department IMO, though their story while still cliche in NV was a little better than the story in FO3.
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
Bioware are pretty overrated imo. Rockstar, Obsidian, and Remedy are all better in terms of storytelling.
Obsidian? No way.
If you want to compare them and Bioware, just look on Neverwinter nights 1 & 2, Biowares game were miles better than Obsidians version (but NWN 2 was still better than Dragon age).
In the end when you are max level and the gear grind begins will the story part of the game even matter? How many times will I have to kill the same boss and care about the story?
I am not bashing TOR just making an observation. I think TOR will be a great leveling experience. Probably the best in any MMO to date. I just dont know if the story will really matter at end game.
Bioware are pretty overrated imo. Rockstar, Obsidian, and Remedy are all better in terms of storytelling.
Obsidian? No way.
If you want to compare them and Bioware, just look on Neverwinter nights 1 & 2, Biowares game were miles better than Obsidians version (but NWN 2 was still better than Dragon age).
Haven't played the Neverwinter nights series, unfortunately... But Kotor 2 was as good as the first imo, sometimes even better. Execept that it's obviously unfinished. And Fallout: NV was way better than FO3 (Bethesda is kinda overrated as well, Oblivion just isn't that great either)
Bioware are pretty overrated imo. Rockstar, Obsidian, and Remedy are all better in terms of storytelling.
Obsidian is known for being a poor quality studio, with lackluster writers.
Rockstar is very decent, and they definitely produce some worthwhile and entertaining stories. However, rehashing the same basic design over and over and over is doing them more harm than good. They need to show some innovation if they plan to remain competitive.
Remedy is mediocre at best, in all areas.
I personally think Bioware absolutely crushes the three studios above in terms of storytelling and overall entertainment value. The scope of TOR is essentially the size of every game they have ever produced combined. That alone speaks volumes about the effort they are putting into this title. The story elements are top notch, and imho, are higher quality than any single player or multiplayer roleplaying game released in the last decade.
I have to agree here. Bioware stories really aren't anything impressive to me. Everyone always talks about their "amazing story telling" and stuff, but I just don't get the hype. It's no doubt that the main focus of their games is the stories...but I just never played one of their games and thought, "that was an awesome story."
It's not really an insult directed towards bioware, it's just that most video game stories suck anyway. And some of their games may have a decent story compared to other fantasy video games, but thats not really saying much. And to be honest, I think story-wise within the video game categroy, there's action and horror games that are more original and interesting than bioware and the whole fantasy/rpg cliche filled genre.
Also, bioware plot twist are kind of bad and they've become more predictable within their own games over time. But they are good at developing characters I suppose.
Bioware's stories are decent and definitely a cut above most other games. Mainly because they give them some thought and at least try make them engaging. But they are still just video game stories and not all that memorable or engaging when compared with actual books. Still, they get a "B" for effort.
I think the last memorable character from a game I played was Sassan (necro) from Ego Draconis. Prior to that would be Shodan from System Shock. Nothing else really stands out for me, even from games that I thoroughly enjoyed. It's not an easy thing the make a player give a fuck enough about the characters in a story for them to be engrossed in it beyond the level of mere gameplay. Bioware certainly doesn't do it, but rarely does anyone else in the game industry. But I can at least appreciate their attempt.
Bioware are pretty overrated imo. Rockstar, Obsidian, and Remedy are all better in terms of storytelling.
Obsidian is known for being a poor quality studio, with lackluster writers.
Rockstar is very decent, and they definitely produce some worthwhile and entertaining stories. However, rehashing the same basic design over and over and over is doing them more harm than good. They need to show some innovation if they plan to remain competitive.
Remedy is mediocre at best, in all areas.
I personally think Bioware absolutely crushes the three studios above in terms of storytelling and overall entertainment value. The scope of TOR is essentially the size of every game they have ever produced combined. That alone speaks volumes about the effort they are putting into this title. The story elements are top notch, and imho, are higher quality than any single player or multiplayer roleplaying game released in the last decade.
Just my 2 credits.
A lot of people hate on Obsidian but I really don't understand why. IMO NWN2:Mask of the Betrayer was one of the best CRPG stories I ever played. I thought New Vegas was solid as well. Obsidian is also run by the same person that ran Black Isle before Interplay went under, and Black Isle had some of the best CRPGs ever.
Whether its a "Blight" or a...whatever they were called in Mass Effect.
I feel that Bioware's over-arcing stories are their weakest parts. I feel that their strongest parts are their characters. I find the character stories to be more intriguing than the main plot of any Bioware game. Problem with that is that the character story missions are rushed and as much fun as a cheaply produced "DLC" expansion.
Buuuuuuuuuuuuuut, i'm always in the minority when it comes to my opinion on big bad Bioware.
While I've enjoyed many of their games, I've never found their storytelling to be anything better than above average. Funcom does better stories. Squaresoft does better stories. Sierra does better stories. Microid does better stories. I would even say that Turbine does better stories (some of the stuff in LotRO is really well done). Bioware is above average at best.
WRONG! Funcom's story telling is why I left AOC. I felt totally disconnected from the boring story after level 20, managed to get near 50, and couldn't take it anymore.
I've never even played AoC. I'm talking about their single-player endeavors, in the form of The Longest Journey and Dreamfall.
Comments
Probably even better since the player can have an opportunity to change the story.
Vault-Tec analysts have concluded that the odds of worldwide nuclear armaggeddon this decade are 17,143,762... to 1.
Bioware will be put to the Blizzard stress test no matter what everyone says. No previous record, no ME,or Kotor fond memories, no storytelling mambo jumbo analyses, nothing will save Bioware, not even Lucas Arts for pulling the plug on SWG, not even the company's fame, if the whole package that will be launched, does not please the masses, that are waiting for 7 years, finally a rest, an alternative for God's shake from WoW, the current King.
The Community wants democracy, but awaits in vain till now for a new King to challenge the throne....If the throne is not challenged, there will be no forgiveness from the masses neither for ToR, neither for Bioware, neither for their fierce supporters, hyping another AoC, Rift, for example to WoW status but delivering the same old defrost of the same food.
If Bioware and Lucas, with such an IP, under EA cannot pull of a Blizzard Throne Challenge, who can? Titan and Blizzard again?
Thus to the OP i say, that ToR is not a Bioware story, it is George's story, and even a 7 year old can describe it so nicely, Bioware won't?
It's the whole package that will fail or succeed, not it's individual parts. And for that, we have to wait for the launch to really know....everything then will be revealed, and either we will witness a new Challenge, or Blizzard will sit on it's throne, stronger than ever before.
WoW may claim ultimate victory, without a single new story to tell, if Bioware fails to deliver one of the best stories in movies and gaming told. And the MMO genre will have to wait again for Blizzard to claim the throne from itself....All talk without a single contender for 7 years....is thin air....gone with the digital wind....not in in a galaxy far far away, but in this one, we are now:P
Goodmooooorning MMORPG!
Fully supporting STAR CITIZEN by the Legendary Grandmaster of the Space Game Genre, Chris Roberts.For Captain Eisen's memory.....For Squadron 42...For the Space Genre....For the PC....I pledge!
Star Citizen
TOG Star Citizen-Join Us
The point being an unrealistic expectation for something that is considered beyond the normal. Game companies can make good stories, but I've yet to play one that would rate Best Selling Novel, let alone the OP's expectations.
Turbine does a decent job with Lord of the Rings Online, but they wouldn't even compare to the movies, let alone the books and yet no one actually expects them to. Bioware makes good and fun stories for my tastes, but I'd still take a good book if Story was the only thing I was looking for.
The reason why there's so much criticism on the story with regards to this game, is because Bioware has by their own admission made story the focal point of the game.
Aside from heavy focus on story, the game really doesn't look to be all that different from the bulk of the rest of the MMOs released in the last six year. If story is the only reason to play this game over a game like WoW, and if the storytelling becomes stale for this game, then this game will no longer have an edge over other MMOs aside from the IP. A popular IP alone however, has proven several times to not be enough to keep people interested in an MMO.
Hmm.. its strange because a lot of things that started as games, now have books written about them, like GoW, HALO, ...(KOTOR doesn't really count cause it started as.. well the comic, then the games, then the books)
But I would say some games have pretty great stories if you take into account the actions that you partake in as you progress. GoW, ME, LA Noire, I thought Max Payne was an awesome story, and just an overall awesome game.... not so great of a movie though.
Yes and more people would disagree with you than agree. Putting down other people's tastes because they don't fit yours is really quite rude.
My favorite stories are the ones I create for myself in my imagination when I'm playing Fallout 3. Many are better than a lot of books i've read.
Vault-Tec analysts have concluded that the odds of worldwide nuclear armaggeddon this decade are 17,143,762... to 1.
Not to be an ass, but who couldn't figure that one out? As they've said all along they're sticking to classic MMO game-play, with an added layer of story. If the story is no good, overall the game will be meh.
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
Yes the IP's are and can be popular, but I bet the stories in the books tend to be more engaging than in the games, from a purely literature point of view.
Please enlighten me as to where I was ever putting down anyone else's tastes in this thread. I don't believe I ever did, and in almost all of my posts I stated my criticisms prefaced that they were my opinion, and never once implied that those who dissagreed were wrong to have their own opinion.
As per those who would disagree with me, that's their choice. I've read a few first impressions from reviewers that have said as much about the mechanics being nothing new.
Bioware are pretty overrated imo. Rockstar, Obsidian, and Remedy are all better in terms of storytelling.
Kotor has some nice characters and plot twists, but the pacing was way too slow in the middle part.
Mass Effect 1 has pacing issues as well and the character writing wasn't that great either. But overall, i thought it was pretty good anyway. ME2 on the other hand is flat-out terrible. And don't even get me started on that giant terminator-baby at the end. Wtf were they smoking?
Didn't bother with Dragon Age, since the story is said to be kinda cliched and predictable.
Hype train -> Reality
The person I was quoting was asking why there's so much criticism and high expectations concerning the story... which is why I pointed out what I did...
How and where exactly is he puttin down the opinions of others? By the fact that he is stating his own? The problem is that a lot of people here can not accept any opinion different from their own. Therefore they will see those oposing opinions as direct threats or attacks on their own opinions eventhough this is not the case at all. People here tend to disregard any opinion that oposes their own as invalid or unreasonable, eventhough most of the time people actually do have valid argumentation when it comes to explaining their opinion.
Bioware have done great stories. Baldurs gate 1 & 2 and Neverwinter nights have among the best stories I ever seen in games, particularly the last.
On the other hand didn't I thought their later games (ME 1 & 2, DA 1 & 2) were that special, they were ok but not great.
KOTOR was fine but below BG 1 & 2 and NWN.
I will have to wait and see what I think of TORs story until I played the game, but Bioware can or at least could make an excellent story and I hope they are getting back their shape to what it was in late 90s & early 00s.
Judging Biowares competence for writing story just on the mass effect games isn't fair, OP. You have missed all their best games. Their take on Neverwinter nights is 9 years old now but still worth playing through (the expansions were nowhere near the original story however).
I've always found Rockstars stories to be overly cliched and predictable, especially with the GTA and RDR franchises, "You killed ma, PA". Or in GTA's case it's the same story in any crime laced action flick. Where as GTA:SA was basically Boyz in the hood.
Obsidian's NWN 2 was terribad in the story department IMO, though their story while still cliche in NV was a little better than the story in FO3.
For every minute you are angry , you lose 60 seconds of happiness."-Emerson
Obsidian? No way.
If you want to compare them and Bioware, just look on Neverwinter nights 1 & 2, Biowares game were miles better than Obsidians version (but NWN 2 was still better than Dragon age).
In the end when you are max level and the gear grind begins will the story part of the game even matter? How many times will I have to kill the same boss and care about the story?
I am not bashing TOR just making an observation. I think TOR will be a great leveling experience. Probably the best in any MMO to date. I just dont know if the story will really matter at end game.
Haven't played the Neverwinter nights series, unfortunately... But Kotor 2 was as good as the first imo, sometimes even better. Execept that it's obviously unfinished. And Fallout: NV was way better than FO3 (Bethesda is kinda overrated as well, Oblivion just isn't that great either)
Hype train -> Reality
Obsidian is known for being a poor quality studio, with lackluster writers.
Rockstar is very decent, and they definitely produce some worthwhile and entertaining stories. However, rehashing the same basic design over and over and over is doing them more harm than good. They need to show some innovation if they plan to remain competitive.
Remedy is mediocre at best, in all areas.
I personally think Bioware absolutely crushes the three studios above in terms of storytelling and overall entertainment value. The scope of TOR is essentially the size of every game they have ever produced combined. That alone speaks volumes about the effort they are putting into this title. The story elements are top notch, and imho, are higher quality than any single player or multiplayer roleplaying game released in the last decade.
Just my 2 credits.
I have to agree here. Bioware stories really aren't anything impressive to me. Everyone always talks about their "amazing story telling" and stuff, but I just don't get the hype. It's no doubt that the main focus of their games is the stories...but I just never played one of their games and thought, "that was an awesome story."
It's not really an insult directed towards bioware, it's just that most video game stories suck anyway. And some of their games may have a decent story compared to other fantasy video games, but thats not really saying much. And to be honest, I think story-wise within the video game categroy, there's action and horror games that are more original and interesting than bioware and the whole fantasy/rpg cliche filled genre.
Also, bioware plot twist are kind of bad and they've become more predictable within their own games over time. But they are good at developing characters I suppose.
Bioware's stories are decent and definitely a cut above most other games. Mainly because they give them some thought and at least try make them engaging. But they are still just video game stories and not all that memorable or engaging when compared with actual books. Still, they get a "B" for effort.
I think the last memorable character from a game I played was Sassan (necro) from Ego Draconis. Prior to that would be Shodan from System Shock. Nothing else really stands out for me, even from games that I thoroughly enjoyed. It's not an easy thing the make a player give a fuck enough about the characters in a story for them to be engrossed in it beyond the level of mere gameplay. Bioware certainly doesn't do it, but rarely does anyone else in the game industry. But I can at least appreciate their attempt.
A lot of people hate on Obsidian but I really don't understand why. IMO NWN2:Mask of the Betrayer was one of the best CRPG stories I ever played. I thought New Vegas was solid as well. Obsidian is also run by the same person that ran Black Isle before Interplay went under, and Black Isle had some of the best CRPGs ever.
Are you team Azeroth, team Tyria, or team Jacob?
I don't find the stories amazing.
Whether its a "Blight" or a...whatever they were called in Mass Effect.
I feel that Bioware's over-arcing stories are their weakest parts. I feel that their strongest parts are their characters. I find the character stories to be more intriguing than the main plot of any Bioware game. Problem with that is that the character story missions are rushed and as much fun as a cheaply produced "DLC" expansion.
Buuuuuuuuuuuuuut, i'm always in the minority when it comes to my opinion on big bad Bioware.
I've never even played AoC. I'm talking about their single-player endeavors, in the form of The Longest Journey and Dreamfall.