Before you flip your metaphorical shit, this is a hypothetical situation. Bioware and Bethesda have not, to my knowledge, announced that they are going to work on a game together. Apologies to anyone that got excited about the prospect though. The question is though, if they did, would this be the best game ever? I'd argue yes, and allow me to explain:
Bethesda games mark, for me at least, the highest level of immersion. This is best felt when you are wandering the Wastes\Tamriel. The open world environment's that Bethesda makes are gorgeous, even when it's literally a nuclear wasteland. The gameplay is also quite good, the ability to attack and kill anyone rather than only fight when the game tells you its time is preferable in my opinion. Want to play the good guy and protect everyone? Great, but if you'd rather just be a crazy butcher and kill everything that moves, you can do that too.
We all are well aware of Bethesda's problems though. Even their latest, Skyrim, still has NPC's with dead stare, lifeless eyes that can break immersion. Their bugs are plentiful, and the dialog is sub-par, not to mention the lack of voice talent they use (how come that solider sounds exactly like that farmer, and the wizard, and that merchant, etc.). While the overarching story is usually quite good, the dialog is often lacking, and it is incredibly difficult to feel attachment to any of your followers, since they basically say the same five things over and over again while they are in your party.
Then there's Bioware. They arguably have the best written games overall. While I will defend DA2 as a great game to my deathbed, let's ignore that title for the moment so we don't derail the discussion. Games like KotOR, Mass Effect 1\2, and DA:O are all beautifully written games, and I know plenty of people who find strong attachments to the people in your party (Oh Leliana, our love can never be). The varied personalities you meet throughout each game, the way they build their universe, the attention to detail, their games have certainly left a mark on me.
Now Bioware isn't perfect either. Especially since they are leaving their RPG roots more and more, but beyond that the scripted-only battles are a bit annoying. Why can't I approach that random person on the wall? If my enemy is right before my eyes, why can I not taker him or her out? Perhaps they are too in love with their narrative to allow that, and perhaps there are even some benefits to that approach, but still, it breaks immersion.
So now this leads me to my thesis: A game designed jointly by Bethesda and Bioware. Imagine it:
The setting is the Fallout Universe. Some area not explored yet. The main character is a vault dweller, fresh out of the vault for the first time ever (original, I know). He or she exits to the wasteland with their best friend, to find the surrounded area occupied by a number (5-7) of different city-states (think Megaton and Rivet City, not NCR\Legion). There is some sort of external threat to the area that will attack towards the end of the game. The city-states are led by different types of people, bad guys, good guys, warriors, merchants, pacifists. At this point, you can do anything. You can ally yourself with one of the city-states and work to have them take over the region, or you can centralize a government in one of the areas and get other city-states to join (sort of like how the NCR started). You can simply keep the peace and maintain the status quo, or you could be a butcher and just wipe out every area. Or you could force everyone swear allegiance to you and the vault. Nearly limitless options.
So far this is just sounding like a Bethesda game. Then comes in Bioware's influence. Your vault friend will, uncharacteristically of a Bethesda game, develop as the story progresses. In each of city-states, you can pick up another member to add to your party (depending on your actions), and THEY TOO will develop as the story develops. Maybe the party is only 3 people max (including you), but despite that, your companions will actually acknowledge the other's existence. They'll make comments while you are talking to other NPC's, and generally have more than just a superficial personality. The different factions will have different voice actors, or at least ones that sound different. You'll miss your companions after you turn off your PC\Console. Most bugs will be worked out before release,
So that's my idea. So tell me, would this idea work? Would a Bethesda + Bioware game be the best game ever? Even if it's a different game than I imagine it, would whatever they came up with not be incredibly awesome?
Bethesda games mark, for me at least, the highest level of immersion. This is best felt when you are wandering the Wastes\Tamriel. The open world environment's that Bethesda makes are gorgeous, even when it's literally a nuclear wasteland. The gameplay is also quite good, the ability to attack and kill anyone rather than only fight when the game tells you its time is preferable in my opinion. Want to play the good guy and protect everyone? Great, but if you'd rather just be a crazy butcher and kill everything that moves, you can do that too.
We all are well aware of Bethesda's problems though. Even their latest, Skyrim, still has NPC's with dead stare, lifeless eyes that can break immersion. Their bugs are plentiful, and the dialog is sub-par, not to mention the lack of voice talent they use (how come that solider sounds exactly like that farmer, and the wizard, and that merchant, etc.). While the overarching story is usually quite good, the dialog is often lacking, and it is incredibly difficult to feel attachment to any of your followers, since they basically say the same five things over and over again while they are in your party.
Then there's Bioware. They arguably have the best written games overall. While I will defend DA2 as a great game to my deathbed, let's ignore that title for the moment so we don't derail the discussion. Games like KotOR, Mass Effect 1\2, and DA:O are all beautifully written games, and I know plenty of people who find strong attachments to the people in your party (Oh Leliana, our love can never be). The varied personalities you meet throughout each game, the way they build their universe, the attention to detail, their games have certainly left a mark on me.
Now Bioware isn't perfect either. Especially since they are leaving their RPG roots more and more, but beyond that the scripted-only battles are a bit annoying. Why can't I approach that random person on the wall? If my enemy is right before my eyes, why can I not taker him or her out? Perhaps they are too in love with their narrative to allow that, and perhaps there are even some benefits to that approach, but still, it breaks immersion.
So now this leads me to my thesis: A game designed jointly by Bethesda and Bioware. Imagine it:
The setting is the Fallout Universe. Some area not explored yet. The main character is a vault dweller, fresh out of the vault for the first time ever (original, I know). He or she exits to the wasteland with their best friend, to find the surrounded area occupied by a number (5-7) of different city-states (think Megaton and Rivet City, not NCR\Legion). There is some sort of external threat to the area that will attack towards the end of the game. The city-states are led by different types of people, bad guys, good guys, warriors, merchants, pacifists. At this point, you can do anything. You can ally yourself with one of the city-states and work to have them take over the region, or you can centralize a government in one of the areas and get other city-states to join (sort of like how the NCR started). You can simply keep the peace and maintain the status quo, or you could be a butcher and just wipe out every area. Or you could force everyone swear allegiance to you and the vault. Nearly limitless options.
So far this is just sounding like a Bethesda game. Then comes in Bioware's influence. Your vault friend will, uncharacteristically of a Bethesda game, develop as the story progresses. In each of city-states, you can pick up another member to add to your party (depending on your actions), and THEY TOO will develop as the story develops. Maybe the party is only 3 people max (including you), but despite that, your companions will actually acknowledge the other's existence. They'll make comments while you are talking to other NPC's, and generally have more than just a superficial personality. The different factions will have different voice actors, or at least ones that sound different. You'll miss your companions after you turn off your PC\Console. Most bugs will be worked out before release,
So that's my idea. So tell me, would this idea work? Would a Bethesda + Bioware game be the best game ever? Even if it's a different game than I imagine it, would whatever they came up with not be incredibly awesome?
