Do you enjoy games with multiple romance options?

[MasterChief892039]

I finally got around to playing Dragon Age Origins recently and started getting cozy with Alistair for the romance achievement. Somewhere between his attempts at sexual innuendo and the dorky scene where he gives me flowers, I realized that I was actually enjoying the relationship I was creating between him and my character.
I've played a couple games where the player is given a choice between several possible suitors (like the Harvest Moon series and Mass Effect 2), but I've never actually found it to be an entertaining experience, and usually only bother for the achievements or to see extra content.

So my question is, do you enjoy games with multiple romance options, or do you prefer games with the "Here is the female, she is your love interest" cliche? Or maybe you rather play games with no romance at all? What games have you played that have succeeded in making romance a believable and/or valuable part of the game?

 

[Irridium]

I'd like games that don't basically force a relationship on me. Most notably is Jack in ME2. If your a male character, you either have to have a romance with her learn about her and be her friend, or she tells you to fuck off when you say you don't want to be romantically involved.

It was better in Dragon Age, but I still find it silly that NPC's can fall for me after a couple conversations.

I appreciate the choice, I just with they were handled a bit better. Like you can only get involved with people you actually spend time with outside of the party/ship.

 

[Broken Boy]

I like the choice but Irridium is right it could be handled better.

 

[GloatingSwine]

Depends on the game. I mean in Alpha Protocol it's pretty much perfect that there are four "romance" options but all they actually consist of is a James Bond style one night stand. (and you can do all four in a single playthrough).

 

[Vrach]

DA: O Morrigan ftw. She was the most enjoyable romance option within games imo.

Depends on the game. I mean in Alpha Protocol it's pretty much perfect that there are four "romance" options but all they actually consist of is a James Bond style one night stand. (and you can do all four in a single playthrough).

Agreed, AP's got it down pretty well for a Bond-style thing (SIE ftw!), but DA: O makes it a more intricate experience. Also, since I played DA: O with a female character the first time trough, there was something undoubtedly awesome about Leliana still being a romance option

Anyway, yeah, I prefer more options and the option to avoid it altogether when I want to. Pointing to something as the object of all my worldly affection... I don't quite see it working.

 

[GloatingSwine]

(SIE ftw!)

SIE might be well preserved, but given the game has a contemporary setting she must be pushing 50. Still, being strapped to a table there's not much you could do about that....

 

[Vrach]

snip

First, might wanna put a spoiler mark on that mate

And yeah, I know, but frankly I didn't realise she was supposed to be a cougar until I saw the perk for her/had the conversation options, think there was an article on the Escapist about a similar situation, games just render skin of all the characters 'perfectly' so aging/old women just look like 25 year olds (the example was on Wynne from DA: O which had a normal body model just with gray hair). 25 year olds with experience and a shitty, yet sexy Germanorussian accent that is

 

[Trivun]

Personally, I enjoy seeing romances in games (I'm an old softy at heart), but I prefer it when you as the player can choose who the charcaters end up with. For instance, I recently finished playing FFX, and I'd actually have much preferred Tidus and Rikku to start a relationship (provided it didn't screw up the whole character dynamic between Tidus and Yuna that is so important to the overall plot, especially with Seymour... ). And now playing FF X-2, I almost wish Rikku and Gippal, and Paine and Baralai, would just hook up already . Yeah, I'm a bit of an odd shipper (though Brother is still fairly weird for fancying his own cousin...).

But yeah, giving the player the choice is much better than leaving it entirely scripted. I guess that's one reason why I like games like Mass Effect so much...

 

[Blue_vision]

It doesn't really matter to me, so long as they don't make romance in general awkward and childish. I guess if you're looking at romance as a little sidequest, then choice would be the better option.

But if your love interest is a part of the storyline with all the other characters, it'd be a bit stupid to make you choose what you want IMO.

 

[GloatingSwine]

And yeah, I know, but frankly I didn't realise she was supposed to be a cougar until I saw the perk for her/had the conversation options,

The fact that she was a Stasi agent and the Stasi haven't existed for 20 years since the reunification of Germany didn't give it away?

 

[Vrach]

And yeah, I know, but frankly I didn't realise she was supposed to be a cougar until I saw the perk for her/had the conversation options,

The fact that she was a Stasi agent and the Stasi haven't existed for 20 years since the reunification of Germany didn't give it away?

Didn't check the dossier straight away, no

 

[Kryzantine]

Not checking the dossier is like never opening the inventory in the original ME. That game is serious when it comes to knowing your enemy.

 

[Breaker deGodot]

I like it if it's handled well. I didn't play much of Dragon Age, so I'm not sure about that one, but I do know that Mass Effect failed at it for me.

 

[The Madman]

DA: O Morrigan ftw. She was the most enjoyable romance option within games imo.

I can only hope that at some point in Dragon Age 2 we stumble over Morrigan's decomposing corpse and are given the option of kicking it a few times (For roleplaying reasons). What a terrible, terrible person she was.

Anyway yeah, I like multiple romance options. Problem is most games these days tend to outright shove it in your face regardless of whether you 'want' to do something like that or not. It's especially bad in Mass Effect 2 where if you even try to be friendly it's seen as romance, there's no 'I just want to be friends' option, it's tits or gtfo.

Think Bioware had the formula down best in Baldur's Gate 2, where the romance were not only entirely optional to such a degree you could go the entire game without a single line of romance-related dialogue, but tricky as well. Meaning you had to be more than just a nice guy who choose the right replies, you genuinely had to think things through as it was entirely possible for each character to leave you permanently should you not play your cards right. That appeals to me, I like the option of failure. But as a result rather than just a sex cutscene (If I wanted porn I'd google it!) success would instead have an impact on both characters involved as well as the story itself with long-lasting consequences. It was even possible for some other characters in your group, completely independent of you the player, to have their own relationships. It made the group feel more alive, rather than just a collection of sidekicks.

What I *don't* like are romance where half an hour and a few dialogue tree after meeting a character you're already sexing them up and saying how much you love one another. It's silly and its juvenile. I'd much prefer a latent one where it's all merely talk leading up to those infamous words 'I love you' right before the end. You know; Romance. It makes for good storytelling. Certainly better than 'tehee I'm the only girl in your group, and although I act all snobbish its really just an act because I'm like totally in love with the hero gorgeous whatevers, because he's like the hero, tehee'.

Eug.

 

[grammarye]

I've always preferred player choice; it really annoys me when the game decides my character wants to flirt or fall for someone without even asking me.

Equally, having one option only feels cliched and thrown in for the sake of it. If I'm going to have romance in a game I want it to feel original, thoughtful, and have enough of a choice in the matter to decide for myself whether I want my personal playthrough to have it in. Multiple options really is the only way to go in my view. It also works in terms of multiple preferences, if the game designers have the guts to do that.

Hmm, lets' see. Bastila Shan (KOTOR) I think is at the top of my list for romance stories that felt like they had some meaning to them, following quickly by Ashley Williams in ME. Ironically the other Bioware love interests have so far left me cold, though Liara, Tali, and Leliana did all give me a sense that the writer was trying; just not successfully with me.

The very (very) slowly developed interest between the ever-silent Gordan Freeman and Alyx Vance was pretty well acted, but hasn't really gone anywhere yet, and is probably one of the few exceptions where it doesn't feel that cliched to have it just happen, because, well, not much has!

 

[NeutralDrow]

...you know, I frequently play and review games where multiple romance options are the entire point, but I guess romantic visual novels and dating sims aren't what you were talking about.

If they're included, though, then absolutely. Hell, even <url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.206764-Neutral-Drow-reviews-Kana-Little-Sister>Kana: Little Sister had more than one love interest (and the very real possibility of ending up with no one).

 

[GloatingSwine]

Hmm, lets' see. Bastila Shan (KOTOR) I think is at the top of my list for romance stories that felt like they had some meaning to them, following quickly by Ashley Williams in ME. Ironically the other Bioware love interests have so far left me cold, though Liara, Tali, and Leliana did all give me a sense that the writer was trying; just not successfully with me.

Bastila was a spoilt cow, and not only that she was a clone of Aribeth, also a spoilt cow, which made the plot surrounding her blatantly obvious.

 

[procyonlotor]

Think Bioware had the formula down best in Baldur's Gate 2, where the romance were not only entirely optional to such a degree you could go the entire game without a single line of romance-related dialogue, but tricky as well. Meaning you had to be more than just a nice guy who choose the right replies, you genuinely had to think things through as it was entirely possible for each character to leave you permanently should you not play your cards right. That appeals to me, I like the option of failure. But as a result rather than just a sex cutscene (If I wanted porn I'd google it!) success would instead have an impact on both characters involved as well as the story itself with long-lasting consequences. It was even possible for some other characters in your group, completely independent of you the player, to have their own relationships. It made the group feel more alive, rather than just a collection of sidekicks.

This is what I like.

I'd also like to mention NWN2's romance system, which was also more optional, in that it didn't just pop up once you get friendly enough with a person. You could actually just play through the whole game without getting a whiff of romance. And even if you tried to get it, it wasn't exactly easy.

But, really, I don't care much for the romance options. If there is romance, I don't mind at all, but if it's an option in-game I'll go through with it just because it's there and because it's a sort of side-story you can pursue, a different kind of goal on the side.

 

[Lullabye]

No, not if they do it like in FF. Make the gay options very clear. I don't want to utter a few stern words to the dumb bombshells and end up having to date Mr. T.(That was soooooooooo awkward)

 

[migo]

I definitely enjoyed it. Persona 3 did it very well, and showed an evolution of the RPG genre.

Something that regularly happens with certain genres is whatever they're known for becomes possible in other genres. This is the case with adventure games and why you don't have any point and click ones beyond Sam & Max (which incidentally sucks for the same reason the genre died out). Anything you can do in them involving dialogue trees and puzzles can be done in other game types.

With an RPG it's the same, particularly if you're looking at turn based combat. It made sense years ago, but now there's no need. Final Fantasy revived it a bit by introducing great cinematics and a solid story, but once again that can be done without an RPG, particularly if you look at Metal Gear Solid 4, GTA4, and other such games. So RPGs have to evolve again, and romance options and social interaction is where it's at, removing the cinematic emphasis and bringing on the more integrated and branched storytelling.