| That has been a core part of role-playing games from their very inception. Dungeons & Dragons introduced us to this concept, and it has been the constant companion of tabletop and computer RPGs ever since. The KLLR dynamic is fun and isn’t a bad thing, but it does steer stories in a certain direction because it places a huge amount of focus on combat. Dungeon crawl and hack-n-slash style of games are almost pure combat with any story often being a flimsy facilitator to get the action going. The role-playing elements are essentially a combo of tangible reward through better abilities and a more complex way of keeping score. |
Many RPGs offer more, and has given us great stories. We had computer and console games in the 80’s that started this trend which continued to highly nuanced games like Dragon Age: Inquisition and Mass Effect. Even the classic Final Fantasy III/VI went deep. Still, all these games are centered around the kill, loot, level, repeat concept. Combat is the facilitator of these stories, and the ultimate arbiter of success. There are a few side quests here and there that are nonviolent, but those are exceptions to the whole.
There is a genre that is bucking the KLLR dynamic. It’s the story based games, like the Walking Dead and Life is Strange.
Not every great story has to revolve around fighting or war (at least with the characters directly involved in fighting), and that doesn’t mean the story has to be a snore-fest. This is another area where tabletop role-playing games have trumped computer RPGs. Back in the early 1990’s, White Wolf published Vampire the Masquerade. It was a game changer, literally. Some tabletop RPGs before it had gone into a more narrative focus where the KLLR dynamic wasn’t as prominent, but Vampire the Masquerade tossed it out the window. Suddenly there was a game where combat wasn’t much of a focus. In fact, an entire campaign could be played without a single fight breaking out.
For once there was a game where the one with the most HP and who could lay out the most damage wasn’t the most powerful character. By and large, computer RPGs have yet to catch up in this department. Even the best ones are still married to the kill, loot, level, repeat mechanic. There is a genre that is bucking the KLLR dynamic. It’s the story based games, like the Walking Dead and Life is Strange. Even some of the old text based adventures fit this sort of game play. Yes, many of these games have combat in them, but that isn’t an integral part of how the game works. It is a story element the same as speaking with the various denizens of the game world. The biggest boon to RPGs that these games offer is that the player is constantly in character, and not just for cut scenes.
Even masterpieces like Mass Effect have this split. You are Commander Shepard, talking to your crew, your teammates, random people, and then you’re in a vicious firefight. It’s great, but trying to use the conversation wheel to shout insults or ask colonists why they’re shooting at you would just be too cumbersome. Story based games have their issues. The biggest one is the fairly liner stories. You get offered choices that usually result in multiple endings, but the story still goes along a general path. All video games are like this, but when compared to RPGs, there is no break. We can always go on side quests or explore in most RPGs. This also tends to cut down on the replay value somewhat in story based games. Even with the option to make different decisions, there’s a lot of retread to plow through to get to that point.
Even masterpieces like Mass Effect have this split. You are Commander Shepard, talking to your crew, your teammates, random people, and then you’re in a vicious firefight. It’s great, but trying to use the conversation wheel to shout insults or ask colonists why they’re shooting at you would just be too cumbersome. Story based games have their issues. The biggest one is the fairly liner stories. You get offered choices that usually result in multiple endings, but the story still goes along a general path. All video games are like this, but when compared to RPGs, there is no break. We can always go on side quests or explore in most RPGs. This also tends to cut down on the replay value somewhat in story based games. Even with the option to make different decisions, there’s a lot of retread to plow through to get to that point.
The Next Step
Now all we need is a genius to come along and somehow merge these two types of games. I don’t know how they would do it. If I did, I’d be that genius. And to be honest, as neat as the story based games are, they tend to get boring and frustrating. A big part of it is my decades of playing tabletop RPGs. I’m used to the unbeatable amount of freedom I have in them, compared to video games. Story based games make me feel like I should have that same freedom, but I don’t. Case in point. In Life is Strange, I was trying to keep the blue haired girl from being shot.
I had already figured out what was going on, in character, but instead of telling a teacher that nut boy had a gun, I go back to the scene of the future crime. Hell, I could have just waited outside the bathroom and warned Miss Blue about Nut Boy. Maybe the game took into account that the main character is around thirteen years old, and wouldn’t think like my devious gamer brain would, but that’s half the fun.
I had already figured out what was going on, in character, but instead of telling a teacher that nut boy had a gun, I go back to the scene of the future crime. Hell, I could have just waited outside the bathroom and warned Miss Blue about Nut Boy. Maybe the game took into account that the main character is around thirteen years old, and wouldn’t think like my devious gamer brain would, but that’s half the fun.
by Kell Myers | |