Growing UP?

madmike41587 · 11th July 2008, 10:29

i would love to see in just one mmorpg ....what would set mortal online apart from other mmos i would like to see my character age through out my game....its not that hard maybe every month you can age your character by going into a charater creation mode but with limited changes so he looks like the same person.....like little by little a few years and eventually get Grey hair and some wrinkles but not totally age like till your withering say around 60 looking and be able to turn this aspect off at will or skip the aspect so your character doesnt age at all....i would love this

how bout you?

Jonkar · 11th July 2008, 12:37

I think it would be awesome to have it as an option, as I believe it would be awesome for immersion.

Taranus · 11th July 2008, 13:03

In a world where we are affectively living our characters, far more so than any other MMORPG, the ability to age in quasi-real time would be fantastic. I fear, though, that it creates problems in the sense that you would have to impose limits on it, as one couldn't start too young, nor could one get too old. I also fear that emphasis on that would require an awful lot of focus from the developers, and I for one would rather see an immersive world than an immersive character. Characters can change, but the world stays the same.

Great idea, though! ^_^

-Tara-

Tickle · 11th July 2008, 13:33

I can't say this would appeal to me. Ageing is one of those things I play games to escape from, I don't want my characters growing old to be honest.

madmike41587 · 11th July 2008, 13:56

that's my point immersion just like my other thread check it out if you like

thx for the input

OMGPIE · 11th July 2008, 19:48

I am against aging in the present tense but being able to select an age from ya know a young character around like 20 something or old one so there would be old mages walking around and younger assassins and whatnot like you always imagine.

Collbard · 11th July 2008, 21:12

I can be immersed in a game without it being just like real life. I would like to see aging in a game, but I don't think MO is going to be that game. There would be too many limits involved with aging and MO doesn't seem like it is all about constraints.

auutumn · 11th July 2008, 21:21

Good idea but when do they stop and reach their peak, when they're 80 years old and cripplied with arthritus? Don't think that'd make a good fight except for telling tales so some under age would have to decided upon.

The Last Spartan · 11th July 2008, 21:24

A good idea, and the "becoming too old" problem is solved by your suggestion, or having a Mage that de-ages you, or some sort of quest for the Fountain of Youth?

Kraven · 11th July 2008, 22:09

cant remember the name of the game, but i played a RPG once where your character got older, each age had its upsides and downsides, a old man was wiser than a young, stuff like that.
Could a character die from age? Yes!
But it happened so rarely due to the fact you could get potions of youth and do quests to become younger again, mind it these quests where quite hard.

egonboy · 11th July 2008, 22:22

I like games that have people aging notably Mabinogi which I downloaded the other day to try out. You can start at 10 and age till like 80 then be reborn. However I'd like the ability to start at about 15 and stop whenever I feel like it.

Belblind · 11th July 2008, 22:26

It's a bit Fable-like.

How about that: 1 Month of playing = 1 year aging
This is slowly changing the skin (you get wrinkles, look older, etc), your hair color.

After 60 months of playing your character will probably die, but that's another question.

OMGPIE · 11th July 2008, 22:58

How about an age slider and no aging? Let's keep one age (that can be changeable through special fountains of youth or whatnot) but you decide it when creating your character.

catmorbid · 12th July 2008, 02:27

Very nice... I like this one... After the age of 70 and so forth there should be a chance for dying of old age - unless you decide to seek out the mentioned fountains of youth or another kind of rare way of returning your youth. Having age related effects on attributes would need to be implemented as well, so that the old would really be at disadvantage in some things, but generally speaking they'd have far better skills than a young person - plus the practical experience the player would have.

Heliopios · 12th July 2008, 04:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kraven

cant remember the name of the game, but i played a RPG once where your character got older, each age had its upsides and downsides, a old man was wiser than a young, stuff like that.
Could a character die from age? Yes!
But it happened so rarely due to the fact you could get potions of youth and do quests to become younger again, mind it these quests where quite hard.

Darklands?

Kraven · 12th July 2008, 15:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Heliopios

Darklands?

May be, ill check out the game and see if its that one.

ganzo72 · 12th July 2008, 23:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by madmike41587

i would love to see in just one mmorpg ....what would set mortal online apart from other mmos i would like to see my character age through out my game....its not that hard maybe every month you can age your character by going into a charater creation mode but with limited changes so he looks like the same person.....like little by little a few years and eventually get Grey hair and some wrinkles but not totally age like till your withering say around 60 looking and be able to turn this aspect off at will or skip the aspect so your character doesnt age at all....i would love this

how bout you?

that woud be cool i guess. but i dont wanna look ike a prune a month into my charachters career, and dead in the second.

MasterRabbi · 13th July 2008, 00:21

I like the idea, but I think it would best be implemented at the player's choice/pace.

Basically, every month (to use Belblind's example) you could have the OPTION to age one year. This would leave those that want to be totally immersed in a real-life-ish character, that suffers from aging (stat-wise or just look, etc), a method of doing so, and leave the limit to make it feel as though it's not just "oh, I felt like being 60 today, later i'll be 20 again.

It would also leave those that want to play at a certain age the ability to do so. I know from RP'ing and writing, and an old friend of mine writing a huge story, that it is more difficult to play out of your age group. I mean, I could barely imagine the daily concerns of a mid-40's professional skinner or how he could make up for his failing strength with increased wits.

Overall, cosmetic or stat, I think it should be a player option, and at the player's pace.

Laihei · 13th July 2008, 06:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by The Last Spartan

A good idea, and the "becoming too old" problem is solved by your suggestion, or having a Mage that de-ages you, or some sort of quest for the Fountain of Youth?

One word....

toomuchwork

The Last Spartan · 13th July 2008, 09:21

I see what you did there..:P

And meh, one man's wine is another man's waste.

Torgrim · 14th July 2008, 03:32

2 years down the road and all day 1 MO players are old people and the devs implent a new crafting recipt, the steampowered wheelchair.....

So what can this beast do, well....

You can uppgrade it to go faster
Armorplating
You can joust with your friends

Bahhhh im just tired.

Sorry guys

nycgamer · 16th July 2008, 19:36

I think that the immortality of mmo characters are part of the problem with current game. Eventually all characters can be rich and can accomplish everything in the game. The only thing that can be done is to add more content for the highest level characters and\or raising the level cap. New players (those who play far after release) have problems finding people around their level or even finding items (the central role of loot is yet another problem) to group with is another cause of the never dying character.

Why not add bloodlines or next-of-kin? Your character dies and the heir gains the inheritance of the "parent" character and a boost to initial stats (good genetics at work). There are ways to add death, either through aging or other means, that add to the game and to the fun. Of course this would also require a game to veer away from the current norms of MMOs.

I have a lot of thoughts on the death issue but I don't have the time (at work) to get really into it right now, but I will say that if you look at pen and paper games death (other than old age death) is not always the end. There are ways to get resurrected and you could always hope for Divine Invtervention (the DM intervenes). Your buddy dies - bring their corpse to the church to get rezzed. The Divine Intervention idea could be implemented by adding a chance of avoiding death (teleported out of combat, fully healed, etc) if you are particularly devout (donations to the church, killing your gods hated enemies, performing quests for your church).

So - say your a jerk that no one wants to help get rezzed and you decided not help any god. An MMO game developer can make playing as a dead character as part of the game with the goal of earning the favor of your diety to grant you life again. Maybe there are endless battles between the forces of good and evil in the afterlife and by participating in these battles you earn the favor of your god. Just one way to do it - creative people can surely think of others.

Hell - you can even have a character who died of old age, play in this Afterlife way a bit to earn the ability for their spirit to be spun out again as another character instead of creating a next-of-kin character.

There are ways to add aging and death. The key is to think of ways that are fun and not punishing.

11th July 2008, 10:29	#1 (permalink)
madmike41587 Newbie Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: i live in southern california, usa Posts: 9 Rep Power: 0	Growing UP? i would love to see in just one mmorpg ....what would set mortal online apart from other mmos i would like to see my character age through out my game....its not that hard maybe every month you can age your character by going into a charater creation mode but with limited changes so he looks like the same person.....like little by little a few years and eventually get Grey hair and some wrinkles but not totally age like till your withering say around 60 looking and be able to turn this aspect off at will or skip the aspect so your character doesnt age at all....i would love this how bout you?

11th July 2008, 19:48	#6 (permalink)
OMGPIE Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Omnipresent Posts: 1,506 Rep Power: 4	I am against aging in the present tense but being able to select an age from ya know a young character around like 20 something or old one so there would be old mages walking around and younger assassins and whatnot like you always imagine. __________________

11th July 2008, 21:24	#9 (permalink)
The Last Spartan Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 560 Rep Power: 2	A good idea, and the "becoming too old" problem is solved by your suggestion, or having a Mage that de-ages you, or some sort of quest for the Fountain of Youth? __________________ My idea of a Magic System. Look for my posts. My idea of a Veteran Reward. Look for my post.

11th July 2008, 22:26	#12 (permalink)
Belblind Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Germany Posts: 56 Rep Power: 1	It's a bit Fable-like. How about that: 1 Month of playing = 1 year aging This is slowly changing the skin (you get wrinkles, look older, etc), your hair color. After 60 months of playing your character will probably die, but that's another question. __________________ The Bug Race

11th July 2008, 22:58	#13 (permalink)
OMGPIE Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Omnipresent Posts: 1,506 Rep Power: 4	How about an age slider and no aging? Let's keep one age (that can be changeable through special fountains of youth or whatnot) but you decide it when creating your character. __________________

11th July 2008, 12:37	#2 (permalink)
Jonkar Junior Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 63 Rep Power: 1	I think it would be awesome to have it as an option, as I believe it would be awesome for immersion.

11th July 2008, 13:03	#3 (permalink)
Taranus Newbie Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 4 Rep Power: 0	In a world where we are affectively living our characters, far more so than any other MMORPG, the ability to age in quasi-real time would be fantastic. I fear, though, that it creates problems in the sense that you would have to impose limits on it, as one couldn't start too young, nor could one get too old. I also fear that emphasis on that would require an awful lot of focus from the developers, and I for one would rather see an immersive world than an immersive character. Characters can change, but the world stays the same. Great idea, though! ^_^ -Tara-

11th July 2008, 13:33	#4 (permalink)
Tickle Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: England Age: 18 Posts: 120 Rep Power: 1	I can't say this would appeal to me. Ageing is one of those things I play games to escape from, I don't want my characters growing old to be honest.

11th July 2008, 13:56	#5 (permalink)
madmike41587 Newbie Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: i live in southern california, usa Posts: 9 Rep Power: 0	that's my point immersion just like my other thread check it out if you like thx for the input

11th July 2008, 21:12	#7 (permalink)
Collbard Junior Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Louisiana Age: 20 Posts: 100 Rep Power: 1	I can be immersed in a game without it being just like real life. I would like to see aging in a game, but I don't think MO is going to be that game. There would be too many limits involved with aging and MO doesn't seem like it is all about constraints.

11th July 2008, 21:21	#8 (permalink)
auutumn Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Perris, CA Posts: 244 Rep Power: 0	Good idea but when do they stop and reach their peak, when they're 80 years old and cripplied with arthritus? Don't think that'd make a good fight except for telling tales so some under age would have to decided upon.

11th July 2008, 22:09	#10 (permalink)
Kraven Junior Member Join Date: May 2008 Location: Denmark Posts: 119 Rep Power: 1	cant remember the name of the game, but i played a RPG once where your character got older, each age had its upsides and downsides, a old man was wiser than a young, stuff like that. Could a character die from age? Yes! But it happened so rarely due to the fact you could get potions of youth and do quests to become younger again, mind it these quests where quite hard.

11th July 2008, 22:22	#11 (permalink)
egonboy Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Bellingham WA USA Posts: 45 Rep Power: 1	I like games that have people aging notably Mabinogi which I downloaded the other day to try out. You can start at 10 and age till like 80 then be reborn. However I'd like the ability to start at about 15 and stop whenever I feel like it.

12th July 2008, 02:27	#14 (permalink)
catmorbid Member Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Finland Posts: 646 Rep Power: 2	Very nice... I like this one... After the age of 70 and so forth there should be a chance for dying of old age - unless you decide to seek out the mentioned fountains of youth or another kind of rare way of returning your youth. Having age related effects on attributes would need to be implemented as well, so that the old would really be at disadvantage in some things, but generally speaking they'd have far better skills than a young person - plus the practical experience the player would have. __________________ Judgement and Perserverance "There's more to the picture, than meets the eye" ESAK: Achiever 33.33%, Explorer 86.67%, Killer 26.67%, Socializer 60.00% Questions about MO? Try this info summary! Follower of the Great Cat God Felissos

13th July 2008, 00:21	#18 (permalink)
MasterRabbi Junior Member Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 17 Rep Power: 1	I like the idea, but I think it would best be implemented at the player's choice/pace. Basically, every month (to use Belblind's example) you could have the OPTION to age one year. This would leave those that want to be totally immersed in a real-life-ish character, that suffers from aging (stat-wise or just look, etc), a method of doing so, and leave the limit to make it feel as though it's not just "oh, I felt like being 60 today, later i'll be 20 again. It would also leave those that want to play at a certain age the ability to do so. I know from RP'ing and writing, and an old friend of mine writing a huge story, that it is more difficult to play out of your age group. I mean, I could barely imagine the daily concerns of a mid-40's professional skinner or how he could make up for his failing strength with increased wits. Overall, cosmetic or stat, I think it should be a player option, and at the player's pace.

13th July 2008, 09:21	#20 (permalink)
The Last Spartan Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Posts: 560 Rep Power: 2	I see what you did there..:P And meh, one man's wine is another man's waste. __________________ My idea of a Magic System. Look for my posts. My idea of a Veteran Reward. Look for my post.

14th July 2008, 03:32	#21 (permalink)
Torgrim Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Sweden Posts: 490 Rep Power: 1	2 years down the road and all day 1 MO players are old people and the devs implent a new crafting recipt, the steampowered wheelchair..... So what can this beast do, well.... You can uppgrade it to go faster Armorplating You can joust with your friends Bahhhh im just tired. Sorry guys Last edited by Torgrim : 15th July 2008 at 11:38.

16th July 2008, 19:36	#22 (permalink)
nycgamer Newbie Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 1 Rep Power: 0	I think that the immortality of mmo characters are part of the problem with current game. Eventually all characters can be rich and can accomplish everything in the game. The only thing that can be done is to add more content for the highest level characters and\or raising the level cap. New players (those who play far after release) have problems finding people around their level or even finding items (the central role of loot is yet another problem) to group with is another cause of the never dying character. Why not add bloodlines or next-of-kin? Your character dies and the heir gains the inheritance of the "parent" character and a boost to initial stats (good genetics at work). There are ways to add death, either through aging or other means, that add to the game and to the fun. Of course this would also require a game to veer away from the current norms of MMOs. I have a lot of thoughts on the death issue but I don't have the time (at work) to get really into it right now, but I will say that if you look at pen and paper games death (other than old age death) is not always the end. There are ways to get resurrected and you could always hope for Divine Invtervention (the DM intervenes). Your buddy dies - bring their corpse to the church to get rezzed. The Divine Intervention idea could be implemented by adding a chance of avoiding death (teleported out of combat, fully healed, etc) if you are particularly devout (donations to the church, killing your gods hated enemies, performing quests for your church). So - say your a jerk that no one wants to help get rezzed and you decided not help any god. An MMO game developer can make playing as a dead character as part of the game with the goal of earning the favor of your diety to grant you life again. Maybe there are endless battles between the forces of good and evil in the afterlife and by participating in these battles you earn the favor of your god. Just one way to do it - creative people can surely think of others. Hell - you can even have a character who died of old age, play in this Afterlife way a bit to earn the ability for their spirit to be spun out again as another character instead of creating a next-of-kin character. There are ways to add aging and death. The key is to think of ways that are fun and not punishing.