Games can bring fantasies to life, many games are based around adopting someone else's persona and powers, becoming faster, better, tougher than the average man. They allow players to be like James Bond, or whatever film / book hero you want to name. If a game allows you to play out a fantasy that you have, (and is a fun game) then this can draw you to the game. We can build games around this wish fulfullment, by identifying the feelings that players want and building gameplay, scenarios and characters that allow them to vicariously experience these feelings. Such as G.T.A be a bad ass gangster/gangsta + have a really fun game too. What you say that Sim City isn't story based, so it can't fulfill fantasies? I postulate that this panders to peoples fantasies of building a city, watching a living world etc.

This is a rather basic element to consider when constructing a game, if you want to start a discussion on this you'll have to pose some questions, or at least make your post raise some more questions.

Heh, sorry about the image, I couldn't resist. [wink]

:)

This came from a review of Fable that said that it made you feel like a HERO, and weren't just controlling one arbitrarily. Ie. Because the plot says that you are -the chosen ONE-.

So I wonder if we can write stories and quests, and gameplay that help to slowly build up a picture of becoming a FANTASY persona rather than being one already.

Ie. You start off quite wimpy but you save a young child from being run over, and the parents thank you profusely, then you get invited along on a heroic expedition and all the other heroes get slaughtered but you manage to save the day and defeat the dragon (with your brains?) etc. You get parties thrown in your honour the further into the game you get, you get to name people's children, etc.

Interesting thought. I think that there are a lot of games that use this already, at least to a certain degree, but it seems that in all cases I can think of, the player is already in the fantasy persona - they just may not be particularly strong/powerful/whatever yet.

If the character starts off without this fantasy persona, just as a regular person, then there really isn't any motivation for them to do anything; no direction to guide them. I think this is probably why they do start off aleady fulfilling the role, however weak they may be made within the role to begin with.

Think about Dungeon Siege. You start out as a farmer armed with a plow. There is nothing exceptionally fantastic about that. But it is said that you have DECIDED to go out and become a hero. You really need something like that to tell you you need to play the game...

No matter what, you're playing a game that has, built into its design, greatness and significance for your character. You can choose, if you want, to stay in the first town, never kill a monster, and never buy a sword. You won't have fun. You won't even play the game. The king won't ever talk to you, villagers won't ever stare at you, and you'll be a totally normal dude, with the one notable difference between you and a shopkeeper being that he has a freaking job.

Could you design a game so open and so free that 99% of the people who play it can spend a whole character's lifetime doing virtually nothing of importance and never making a name for themselves? Probably. The Sims does this. Would it be particularly interesting? No. Even The Sims lets you get wicked rich and buy great stuff, which is a form of consumer excellence.

I played Fable, and there's no way whatsoever to avoid being a hero in that game. You can be a jerk of a hero, but you're going to kill the villain at the end of the story, no matter what. Those stained-glass windows will all have pictures of you on them, and nothing you do will change that. Your character in that game is just like Luke Skywalker, or Frodo Baggins, or Rand al'Thor. Humble beginnings, noble destiny.