Poll: In games with morality systems, which extreme would you choose?

[DarklordKyo]

As we all know, a number of games with morality systems tend to focus on extremes. You're supposed to be either purest good, or evil incarnate.

In a game like this, which would you rather be?, Mother Teresa or Satan?

 

[tippy2k2]

I am awful at being evil in games. I've tried to do a renegade playthrough in Mass Effect and was able to do it for a little bit until I had to be mean to a crew member (I didn't even do anything evil, just being kind of a dick) and I couldn't do it.

I remember in Mass Effect 3 specifically when I told Miranda that I was "breaking up with her". When she did the turnaround and you could see the tears, I crumbled like a baby. That was the first time I ever resorted back to an old save and changed my decision because it broke my heart hurting her like that...

Spoiler

So yeah, evil is not in the cards for tippy2k2. Good all the way.

 

[American Tanker]

Just look at my history in the Mass Effect games and Fallout 3.

I'll start with FO3. To put it plainly, I did everything to be as far off the Good Karma deep end as possible. Keeping Amata's father alive then making her Overseer of Vault 101. Taking President Eden's Modified FEV and giving it to Elder Lyons. Activating Project Purity with no toxins in it(though I usually had Fawkes activate it instead of putting my neck on the line; only recently did I choose to fully embrace the idea of the "Lone Wanderer" and do it myself). Nuking Adams AFB from orbit with the Enclave's own satellite. Wiping out the Slavers of Paradise Falls(actually quite profitable, if you take that Lawbringer perk; you'll be swimming in caps from fighting the Enclave too, so there's really no reason to NOT go Good Karma and be the richest goody-two-shoes in the Wasteland).

As for Mass Effect, it really applies across the entire trilogy that I went full Paragon everywhere I could. My Shepard was a Colonist/War Hero, having grown up on a remote colony, then single-handedly stopping the Skyllian Blitz dead in its tracks. I chose to save the Rachni Queen on Noveria, tried to save as many of the Feros colonists as I could(mostly by ordering my squad to hold back and only using melee if I didn't have any grenades left), and I ended up leaving Alenko at the bomb site on Virmire to save Kirrahe's team(which happened to have Williams with them; BioWare seriously dropped the ball on that one, not allowing you to say that you're trying to save the Salarians, NO, it's gotta be about the Normandy's crew all the time). I also had Anderson punch out Udina to release the Normandy, then chose to save the Council when Sovereign attacked the Citadel. Anderson became a Councillor because of me, too. All this is just the first game, too.

ME2, there's only one Renegade interrupt I take, and it's surprisingly NOT the Wyrlock Clanspeaker on Tuchanka, it's the Eclipse mercenaries at the start of Lawson's loyalty mission. Outside of that, I'm still just as far off the Paragon end as before, saving Maelon's research into a genophage cure during Mordin's loyalty mission, convincing Jack to let Aresh go in her loyalty mission, convincing Garrus to let Sidonis live in his loyalty mission, handing Ronald Taylor over to the Alliance in Jacob's loyalty mission, killing Morinth in Samara's loyalty mission, and the crown jewel of that entire game being blowing up the Collector base to keep the Illusive Man from salvaging it(plus I kept my whole crew alive through the entire Suicide Mission on top of that).

ME3, it basically starts with me curing the genophage and uniting the turians and krogan. I somehow managed to get the Charm option to negotiate peace between the geth and the quarians, too. Everything I did, I was being as Paragon as I could be, including saving the Rachni Queen(again). But in the end, I decided that freedom from the Reapers' influences was more important than anything else, and I blew the power conduit to end the Reapers for good. I can only hope that the races of the Mass Effect setting use this opportunity to advance without the Reapers' influences, and bring about a new golden age of peace.

So yeah, it should be pretty clear where I stand. But don't ever let anyone tell you that being good means being soft. Even if my Shepard was the nicest girl in the galaxy, you need to remember that she's still the deadliest thing in it.

 

[Gergar12_v1legacy]

In Fallout New Vegas you either were neutral-good, or if you went Legion all the companions hate you, and you don't get access to the main city.

At-least in Fallout 4 you could become a raider over-boss, but then Preston hates you.

 

[Mcgeezaks]

When I'm playing RPGs as myself I'm usually a pretty good guy. With that said, I recently played through the Mass Effect series again but this time as a evil asshole and I honestly enjoyed the game more. It's just more fun to be a douche and some scenes become more powerful (to me).

For an example, in Mass Effect 3

Spoiler

When you're playing as renegade Shepard and you shot Mordin, that scene is so much sadder compared to the paragon Shepard scene.

Because of this I will probably play renegade in Andromeda as well.

I would've also played evil in Fallout 4 but for some reason they removed the morality system.

 

[Zhukov]

Goody-two-shoes all the way.

Morality systems in games are always either shit or, at best, inconsequential.

It always comes down to Achieve Objective Like Reasonable Person or Achieve Objective While Being Unnecessarily Dickish About It. The second option only seems to exist to provide choice for the sake of choice or so a few players can get their sadistic rocks off.

 

[aegix drakan_v1legacy]

Where's the option in the poll for 90% Hero of Niceness and 10% Total Asshole?

Because that's typically how I play. I'm generally a nice guy, but if I'm up against an obvious bad guy and I have an opportunity to shank the obvious bad guy when he has his back turned, I'm shanking the guy when his back is turned.

Also if I have a choice between "save person I care about" or "Save X random people", I will always save the person I'm close to first, and THEN worry about the random people.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

Always the nice guy. The evil option is usually gratuitous to be appealing; the good side just makes sense.

 

[Basement Cat]

Like others here I hate, hate, hate playing the baddie when it means hurting beloved companions.

The only games I've ever managed to go all evil in were KOTOR I and II and that was after playing both dozens of times each for years. Even then I ran back to being a goody-good on the next play through.

I'm playing through ME3 now for the second time (I always consider my first run through a BioWare RPG as the learning run and get serious on the second run) and I'm delighted to (1/5 of the way through the 2nd run) to realize that you can Paragon and Renegade to you heart's content because both contribute to your overall Reputation score!

I've never enjoyed a BioWare RPG more (as far as the morality system went).

 

[Asita]

Oh, good guy all the way. Part of this is because I just plain enjoy being a diplomatic hero, and part of it is because - as Zhukov said - most systems are simply terrible at writing evil decisions.

 

[kiri3tsubasa]

After beating the Mass Effect Trilogy many times, I finally decided to do an absolute Renegade run though and I find far more satisfying then the Paragon run.

 

[darkcalling]

I almost always end up playing the hero. In fact the only games I can remember finishing on an evil playthrough was the Infamous series. I finished Mass Effect as a renegade but I only got about a third of the way through number two that way. Nothing in particular stopped me like "oh no I can't do that". I just got distracted and never went back. Same thing will probably happen with Andromeda.

 

[Smithnikov_v1legacy]

i'm very strange with this in gaming.

In resource or tactical games where I'm in charge of armies or civilizations, I tend to go full on despotic/genocidal. In Spore, I GLEEFULLY wiped out everything in my path, and in Command and Conquers, I always gravitate towards the Nod/Soviets/Chinese first over the others.

In games where I'm playing an individual, however, I'm quite the hero. I always go the Good route in things like Fallout, Skyrim, ect...

 

[TheMysteriousGX]

You'll have to find me a game where the evil dick route involves actually solving a problem like Lex Luther solves problems before I go that route. Unfortunaly, video game morality systems tend to break down into "do thing and get bonus rewards or prestige" and "do thing while being an unbelievable dick", and that just doesn't cut it.

Or to put it another way: Early on in Fable there's a bit where a bully is tormenting a homeless dude, and your choices are "fend off the bully" or "fart at the homeless dude for a solid minute". Like, why.

 

[Elijin]

Depends on the context of the game. Evil is fine in a game with a sense of humour. In a serious game, it only works if the primary character is entirely alone anyway. Choices which affect the city, or global population etc, without directly being tied to some companion who you supposedly value.

I just realised I wouldn't mind seeing something Suicide Squad-esque. A setting or other external factor which allows you to be a team leader of a group with hostile relationships, but forces it anyway, due to the situation. Over the course of the game, you can build loyalty and improve things, and the later game will reflect that, or you can ignore squad relations without undermining the tone.

 

[FalloutJack]

I tend to go for the good endings, really. Not many evil endings are all that great. I mean, a good evil ending is actually the direction Legacy of Kain took with their first game, Blood Omen. Kain becomes an evil vampire with power over every living mortal on Nosgoth. And that became the canon ending when they started making new games, so that we would get the battle between Kain and Raziel with so much more Shakespearean badassery.

 

[Hops]

In Fallout games, I'm evil (since it's fun to destroy and it has little effect on a lot of things). In something like Fable 2, I play the nice guy. It varies, really.

 

[Tanis]

Playing the 'bad guy' tends to be more fun.

Guess the whole 'yo, I'm a total fucking asshole and I JUST SAVED THE FUCKING WORLD' makes me laugh harder than it should.

 

[ReservoirAngel]

It's odd, really. In games with direct telegraphed 'good or evil' choices I tend to go for the good option. Because somewhere in my heart I play games to be the hero who saves the world, not the bastard that destroys it for giggles.

I've tried the evil runs in a few games but I always feel absolutely dreadful about everything I do. I remember Fable 3 making me feel absolutely horrible about myself by the end when I went through it being the bad guy, especially Logan's execution.

In games without the telegraphed morality system and a more free-style approach to morality I tend to be a bit more 'shades of grey' and not in the kinky way. I will still in terms of the story be nice and play the good route as much as I can, but I tend to do more distinctly amoral act. Like I literally cannot play a Bethesda RPG without stealing absolutely everything of any value that isn't nailed down. I think part of it comes from deliberately always playing the stealthy type of build in those games and thieving just tends to go right along with that. Like, what's the point in being able to get into any building unnoticed if you're not also going to empty the place out without anyone knowing?