Hi, I'm doing a research regarding theft in games

[fluxcutstudio]

Hi The Escapist community!

We're doing a bit of research: a list of games would be good, anything related, really.

0. We are looking for games that DO NOT have stealing to be a driving game mechanism.

1. Which games have special "theft" mechanisms? Such as taking things inside someone's chest in an RPG, so something that's not considered a theft in a game, but in a real life would be. What comes to your mind?

2. Which games are like as in 1, except that it is considered a theft?

3. Can you share a particularly funny scenes where the game makes a self-reference or game applies seemingly crazy logic where it comes to "taking" something and "stealing" something? Maybe memorable quotes or references?

Really, more stories on games where you found "stealing" or "taking" things memorable would be excellent.

 

[madwarper]

Spoiler: Relevant

1) In almost all RPGs and Action Adventure games, being the chosen hero means you can run about the country, rummaging through the peasants' belongings and taking their valuables.

2/3) iirc, there was a house in Secret of Evermore where if you explored all the rooms, an NPC will ask you if you've stolen anything. I you haven't he'd give you a Alchemy formula.
Also, in Link's Awakening, if you steal an item from the shop, the next time you entered the shop the owner would get pissed and kamehameha you ass.

 

[Bellvedere]

I'd recommend you check out TVTropes: Kleptomaniac Hero - (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/KleptomaniacHero)

 

[fluxcutstudio]

Hey, thanks! What games, in your opinion, has the best theft mechanism while it not being the main gameplay aspect?

 

[Bellvedere]

Yeah sorry, should have contributed to the topic.

From an ironic perspective I quite like Mass Effect (in which your character is an elite government agent - who you would assume earns a pretty awesome salary)

You can not only steal items from innocent civilians (including those who are under attack and are probably about to lose their homes), you can also hack into computers for money. Which I guess is your character transferring the contents of someone else's bank account to themselves.

No mention of it from squad mates, no renegade points and no repercussions.

 

[FalloutJack]

Hey, thanks! What games, in your opinion, has the best theft mechanism while it not being the main gameplay aspect?

I want to say Fallout games. Stealing is an option, and the game knows what is specifically owned and not owned, and there are ways to snatch obvious or sneaky and so on...but it's just an option of the game. You could go through any Fallout game without stealing. You could also go through one without killing much either, or never talking to anyone. Options, open and well-played...

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

OT: Now then...

{1} That's alot of RPGs, really, with Final Fantasy games being the most famous culprit around.

{2} Again, that's definitely Fallout. Owner items are all in red. If they see you trying to take it, it will be reacted to. Even if you make it so nobody notices (i.e. liberal amounts of stealth, you can lose karma.

{3} I remember the first Discworld game, which is of course loads of laughs. This is one of those puzzling use-items kind of quest games where you're the wizard Rincewind with his incredibly-deep-inside walking Luggage. Well, partway through the game, you'll come to the main gates of Ankh-Morpork and find the City Watch on duty. One of the (It was Nobby Nobbs, in fact.) mentions that "Someone's going around town, nicking stuff.", which is actually very ironic since Nobby himself steals all the time.

 

[Jopoho]

Edit: As an answer for category 1. In Pokemon Red/Blue , you fight a thief, and rather than return the item he stole you simply keep it for yourself. The victim won't let you return it at all.

Skyrim falls into category 2, and I can regale you with two tales that I think are amusing anecdotes, since I almost always steal everything that isn't bolted down:

After picking a lock to a jail cell (after being jailed for theft), I decided to rob everyone to start reacquiring my assets. At the end of a hall was an occupied cell, and I decided I should be an equal opportunity cutpurse. He had one item on him, called Hircine's Ring. It was rather valuable, and the description implied it would, on occasion, randomly transform the user into a mighty werewolf. Neat! I put it on. Spontaneous wolf powers might come in handy without my usual stash of equipment. The rest of the escape went off without a hitch, and I eventually nabbed my gear from an "Evidence" chest.
Now that I was safe, I went to take off the ring, seeing as it would no longer be useful as I returned to my sneaky ways. The game was happy to inform me that "Cursed Items Cannot Be Removed." Now, bypassing the fact that I managed to defy this curse to steal the ring, I was in a bit of trouble. I had to break BACK INTO PRISON, hoping that my newfound random wolf powers didn't decide to go active, so that I could talk to this prisoner and find out why he had this ring, why it was cursed, and what I could do to stop it. Then, I had to go on a quest to absolve this guy of some sin he had committed so that I could get rid of his blasted piece of jewelry. After the quest they let me keep the ring, no longer cursed. I'm pretty sure I ended up dropping it in a river somewhere.

Second story is a little less funny, but I think indicative of a way thieving mechanics can be used by players. I was so good at thieving later in the game that everything had pretty much been made trivial. I had already stolen the best items money couldn't afford, and any continuing heists had no real purpose. What's a silver ring when I have a diamond-encrusted gold ring that's enchanted to make theft easier?
Shortly after I had begrudgingly given up my life of crime, I was presented with a mission that would require me to abandon all my things for the duration of the mission. I could give some stuff to a partner, who would stash it at a rendezvous points, but I was struck with a better idea: Steal everything I needed. I abandoned all of my possessions right there on the spot, and never did see them again. I went through that mission by stealing and pickpocketing as needed. I was happy. Lifting a key off of a guard had stakes again. If I wanted to defend myself, I had to steal the weapon. It was awesome.
When the mission was done, I dropped all the new stuff I had acquired, and from that point on I became The Beggar Thief. I didn't have any semblance of wealth anymore. I took what was needed and dropped it the second I was done. I didn't wear fancy gems and stealing health potions became a matter of life and death, but it was way more fun and exciting than trying to alphabetize my magical knife collection.

 

[NeutralDrow]

Skyrim falls into category 2, and I can regale you with two tales that I think are amusing anecdotes, since I almost always steal everything that isn't bolted down:

Don't forget how, even if your theft goes completely unwitnessed, there's a chance your recently-fleeced victim with hire thugs to kill you!

 

[Jopoho]

Don't forget how, even if your theft goes completely unwitnessed, there's a chance your recently-fleeced victim with hire thugs to kill you!

I forgot about that! I was always sad they couldn't be bought off. I never actually wanted to get any of my shiny daggers dirty.

 

[Starik20X6]

Also, in Link's Awakening, if you steal an item from the shop, the next time you entered the shop the owner would get pissed and kamehameha you ass.

And the game permanently changes your name to 'THIEF', and you'll get a slightly altered ending.

[hr]

My brother would habitually pat down the bodies of everybody he killed while playing Red Dead Redemption. He must have had thousands of dollars in pocket change. I dunno how much it counts as theft, seeing as they're all dead, but still.

 

[blackrave]

0. We are looking for games that DO NOT have stealing to be a driving game mechanism.

1. Which games have special "theft" mechanisms? Such as taking things inside someone's chest in an RPG, so something that's not considered a theft in a game, but in a real life would be. What comes to your mind?

2. Which games are like as in 1, except that it is considered a theft?

3. Can you share a particularly funny scenes where the game makes a self-reference or game applies seemingly crazy logic where it comes to "taking" something and "stealing" something? Maybe memorable quotes or references?

0.1. Neverwinter Nights, Witcher1&2, Mass Effect1,2&3- you can pretty much wipe houses of NPCs clean and nobody would consider it a crime.
2.The Elder Scrolls and Fallout- there are items that belongs to other NPCs, player can pick locks and pickpocket NPCs. TES have punishment system (pay fine or go to prison), while in FO if you get caught stealing something from a NPC this NPC/group of NPCs will become hostile.
3.Stealing is taking things from your friends or neutral people without permission. Taking things from enemies isn't stealing, it is looting right? Well in FO:NV it doesn't work that way- even if you are enemy of Legion and you wipe their camp, taking stuff from that camp is considered stealing.

 

[5ilver]

Gothic 2 is a great example of #2. You can steal (it's not an important part of gameplay). If you do it while somebody's in the house/general area and he sees you, you can kill him/ use magic to blank out his recent memory or you can sheathe your weapon and pay the fine (but quick loads exist so why would you).

#1 is not particularly difficult to find- almost every RPG has you stealing stuff, whether it's off the ground, off a corpse or straight out of somebody's cupboard (sometimes with the owner in the same room, talking to you).

A good example of #3 is the granny chef in Skyrim. Whether you stole from her or not, due to a bug, she would always send thugs to come kill you :O

 

[nonhoration]

{2} Again, that's definitely Fallout. Owner items are all in red. If they see you trying to take it, it will be reacted to. Even if you make it so nobody notices (i.e. liberal amounts of stealth, you can lose karma.

It's really funny, because you can actually become evil by taking something out of a fridge and putting it back in repeatedly if that something is designated as "not yours".

 

[vv85]

0. Actually, what I find funny is the belief of entitlement - you beat an enemy mech therefore you now own his weapons; you kill a soldier youre justified in taking his weaponry... IMO any time you profit from the defeat from another is theft. I mean, if I was to out glib a guy in a meeting room I dont get to keep his swipe card for his special parking space automatically. If that was the case I'd tackle the disabled guy first week in a new office.

Additionally, just because a crate doesnt have someones name on it doesnt mean the contents doesnt belong to anyone. Technically a true hero would turn in 'found' property to the local authorities immediately, so that the true owner could claim it.

Also, how can we define theft if we cant verify against the worlds legal system? Example - Fallouts world is mostly anarchic, so theft as a legal concept is ... tricky...

1. See above, supported by most point-n-click adventures. I doubt 'I needed it to defeat a pirate ghost' would stand up in court.

2. Fallout is an obvious choice here.

3. Youtube has a heap of parodys and metareferencing, but in-game, cant think of any

 

[keniakittykat]

The most famous example are the Legend of zelda games. You can just walk into a stranger's house, steal their money and keepsakes (Going from books to camera's) Grave Robbing is also featured in a lot of zelda games. and most of the time no one seems to care.

There's two exception, though. In Link's awakening you can actually steal items from the shop. When exiting the store a text box appears with 'Well, look at at that, you got it for free! Aren't you proud of yourself?' Also everyone in the game will refer to you as THIEF. And if you go back to the store, the boss music will play and the shopkeeper kills you.

Another acknowledgement of Link being a thief is from the oracle games. If you try to exit a store with an item, the shopkeeper will block your way and say "Hey, don't just take things! Thief! Give that back right now!" But other than that there's no consequences.

 

[MeChaNiZ3D]

While I can't answer properly, Dragon's Dogma had an interesting mechanic wherein you could have items duplicated by Mountebank and receive a copy as well as the original. For most quests or purposes, there was no difference between the two, and in instances where you are asked to deliver a letter, or where you have a certificate of being part of the Wyvern Hunt or something similar, NPCs will not be able to tell the difference, but magical item forgeries will not be functional, and have in-game repercussions. For example, a forgery of any Idol will not result in a shopkeeper's full expansion of stock, and a forgery of the Wyrmking's Ring will cause the NPC you were meant to give it to to deny you an item later. While it isn't exactly theft, giving a forgery in place of the real thing, especially when keeping the genuine article for yourself, could be related.

Another thing is that while stealing and stolen items aren't really a mechanic in DD, there is a Treasury that you can raid at the castle in two bursts if you observe the guard patterns and exploit the small window of opportunity. Interestingly, this is most useful for players who intend to forge the Wyrmking's Ring, because you are granted access anyway later, but raiding it early is the only way to get the item you would be denied by forging the ring.

Use that as you will.

 

[dogenzakaminion]

Well most rpg/action-rpg's have theft mechanics, while not punishable or integral to the gameplay. Zelda always comes to mind, which also involves property damage

The Elder Scrolls series comes to mind in terms of ther being punishment for theft. All stolen items have tags on them saying they're stolen, and in Oblivion you could only sell stolen stuff to the Thieves Guild.

3. Yeah, TvTropes...lot's of stuff there.

 

[Ulquiorra4sama]

How about that auction house in WindWaker?

Legend of Zelda games have long ingrained in us the idea that smashing people's pots for money is a viable survival strategy and suddenly when you smash up that one dude's pots he asks you to compensate him for wrecking his property.

Absolute madness!

 

[fluxcutstudio]

Hi, thanks everyone!

All your inputs will be used to drive one of our interns project to create a project website to fight the idea that video games cause violent crimes.

Last question: which game had the most immersive theft mechanism that you actually "transposed" that thought onto your real life? Mine would have to be Skyrim, although Fallout is a close second if it weren't for the moral system.

 

[Alssadar]

Hi, thanks everyone!

All your inputs will be used to drive one of our interns project to create a project website to fight the idea that video games cause violent crimes.

Last question: which game had the most immersive theft mechanism that you actually "transposed" that thought onto your real life? Mine would have to be Skyrim, although Fallout is a close second if it weren't for the moral system.

Having played a bunch of Fallout, I've realized I will never be a good thief (unless the occupants of the house are dead), or a good gambler. Heck, being an adventurer would probably get me killed, as I'm not that good at smooth talking or the quick draw.
I think I'll stick to an honest living.