3D "Open" world Pokemon style game

I originally had a long rambling introduction, and realized that it's probably better to just get to the point.

Basically a lot of people want a 3D Open World Pokemon game, but do you think the traditional Pokemon battle system would fit such a game?

My thoughts were originally that it would be fine, and a system like Wizards101 could be implemented where the battle takes place in the field but the "outside" characters essentially ignore you while you fought. Thinking about it longer though I began to think that it would feel too gimicky and take away from the "open" world experience.

What are your thoughts?

(No this isn't a fan made Pokemon game, it is just much easier to describe a "monster capture battle game" as a Pokemon type game.)

 

As someone working on a game based off the JRPG genre - you *could* do a traditional Pokemon battle system, or something altogether different. Do what works for your concept.

 

I am mostly likely just going to sketch it out over next week or so, but I am currently leaning towards reworking my battle system to not follow the formula for Pokemon's 2/3D games. I'm just curious what others think would "feel right" for such a game, or if I am just over thinking this (I tend to do this a lot)

 

There is one aspect of the normal pokemon formula that I don't think will work too well in an open world. It basically comes down to the question: "what level should the pokemon in an area be?"

Leveling systems are progression systems, and, more often than not, progression systems run counter to the open world.

 

Skyrim managed it well enough. Basically the first time you enter an area the level of the monsters in that area get their level set.

Despite what I just said, I don't think the turn based battle system or the random encounters will fit in an open world. Their are just not enough options. Look at the ways I can deal with an encounter in Skyrim:

• I can fight
• I can sneak up backstab with a dagger
• I can sneak up and pickpocket
• I can snipe with my bow from a long range
• I can get onto an inaccessible ledge and snipe from there
• I can avoid the encounter
• I can distract the enemies by making a noise on the other direction
• I can engage the enemies, and then flee into a different faction of enemies, let the two groups engage, and escape in the confusion
• I can sneak past

You get the picture. Open world applies being able to do anything. The traditional JRPG combat system doesn't really fit in with being open.

Just my opinion, I haven't played that many open world games or JRPGs. It may well be completely doable. It might have already been done. But that's my two cents.

 

Ironically, I prefer Morrowind which actually does take the set level approach. It does limit where you can go, but that's mostly in the form of places you don't want to go. Look up the daedric shrines and you'll get a good idea what doom put into architectural form is like.


It would just be too easy to turn it into a grind-fest so that the player could actually be in the open world (and the newer pokemon games definitely feel like they made level progression a hell of a lot faster then it used to be).

 

Those are almost exactly the same thoughts I began to have as I started to plan out the game more and more. The game that I wanted to make and play was to essentially let me do what I wanted to do. This became an issue when integrating many of the things you listed. Every idea I had to "solve" the issue was just clunky and didn't feel fun when put into practice.

If I remember Morrowind right, didn't they do a sort of combination between Skyrim's approach and the set level approach, at least in some cases? At some Shrines if you went early on they would have Scamps, but revisiting that shrine at much higher level could have Golden Saints or the like.

I think there is merit to (at least what I remember of Morrowind's system), where you can have certain areas start at a certain level point, and then have it scale appropriately. For example if you have a dungeon where you want the player to have a hard time regardless so when the player is level 5-10 they encounter (using Morrowind) Clannfears, which they should struggle with. If they enter the dungeon at level 50-75, instead they will encounter Daedroths, which again, they should struggle with.

 

I don't believe so. Oblivion certainly did, but I'm pretty sure in Morrowind that at least people were set in stone. Not like you typically go back into a dungeon anyway.

 

What if instead of open world battling or turn based battling. You get transported to an "arena" which is generated based on your surrounding environment.

You have a one on one real time battle with your opponent without the distractions of the surrounding world, this would also prevent you or your opponent from literally running away into the open world. This would give you a lot more control over the battle making it easier to balance and force you to fight.

If you were thinking of making it multiplayer, other players in the open world would see you standing there with your opponent in "battle stance" but could not interfere. If they wanted to spectate your arena battle they could walk up to you and choose to spectate.

Also if you were thinking MMO, this would reduce the amount of server stress as updates would not need to be sent to everyone in the zone.

Sorry if you weren't planning multiplayer Didn't see it mentioned.

 

Right now I'm just focusing on single player, and definitely not an MMO. I don't need extra stress or headaches in my life

I thought about the "arena" idea as well, but transporting would arguably hurt immersion and doesn't make a whole lot of sense if you were sneaking up on someone for example. You could just generate barriers around the open world similar to how Assassin's Creed has the barriers that "desync" you. Using this though you run into the "why" question, why do these barriers exist?

I feel like for Multiplayer, assuming we aren't turn based, that the best choices would be some style of arena fights in a given location, or Far Cry / Fable / Dark Souls(ish) / Minecraft? where someone joins your world and contributes to what you are doing.

Overall I think the problem is that people want a game that is a Pokemon and Elder Scrolls crossbreed, however, the fundamental battle system of Pokemon (which is really just a form of a JRPG) doesn't work too well with the Open World, do whatever you want, game play of Elder Scrolls.