Poll: Playing Evil

[Agayek]

Generally, I will always choose whatever the option is that my personal moral compass says is "good". Several times, that's not what the developers decided was good, but fuck them.

I just feel bad otherwise. I just can't enjoy pretending to be what I view as evil, and it kills my interest in the game.

I recognize that the victims aren't real, but it still makes me feel like I should hate myself for making that choice, so I avoid them.

Now, that said, I don't have any particular problem with the character I'm playing committing atrocities (for example, I take no issue with something like Spec Ops and the evil things the game makes the player do). It's only when I'm presented with the choice that it becomes a problem.

 

[Vern5]

On the other hand, I can't bring myself to play evil in Mass Effect. I just feel so awful about it. I like being nice to my crew members.

This interests me. I was very considerate towards my crew members in Mass Effect as well. I enjoyed joking with them and encouraging them as much as I could. However, I still ended up having massive Renegade points in Mass Effect 2 because I was impatient and cruel towards everyone else.

It completely possible to be "Evil" in Mass Effect while still being a nice person to your crew. And that's how it should be.

OT: If I do take "Evil" choices, I never really considered them evil in the first place. Maybe in hindsight but everything is clear when you view the aftermath. For example, When Sovereign attacked the Citadel back in Mass Effect 1, I told the Alliance Fleet to concentrate all of their energy on destroying the Reaper and ignore supporting the Council ship. I figured, with the Alliance battering the Reaper, the Council would survive in the confusion. Apparently, my assessment was way off because those morons died.

Of course, the result of that decision was Renegade and I felt a little bad about it but I wasn't outraged or surprised too much. The plot had taken a sudden turn for the realistically grim and I found contentment in that.

 

[Taurus Vis]

Evil is a point of view. My character serves a greater purpose than any immediate threat. The greater good is more important than a friend, a quest giver, a family. In any game, it's always about helping the many, even if it means letting a few good men die. There can never be change without sacrifice. Thinking you can save the world is foolish. It's how I live my real life, not that I've ever had a life or death choice put in my hands.

 

[RedDeadFred]

On the other hand, I can't bring myself to play evil in Mass Effect. I just feel so awful about it. I like being nice to my crew members.

This interests me. I was very considerate towards my crew members in Mass Effect as well. I enjoyed joking with them and encouraging them as much as I could. However, I still ended up having massive Renegade points in Mass Effect 2 because I was impatient and cruel towards everyone else.

It completely possible to be "Evil" in Mass Effect while still being a nice person to your crew. And that's how it should be.

Completely true and I would play it this way if the game didn't punish you for not going all out Paragon or Renegade (there are some speech checks that require ridiculously high Paragon/Renegade scores). That's one of the changes in ME3 that I really liked.

 

[Smiley Face]

Theoretically, sure - for certain kinds of evil. I have no particular interest in playing 'evil' as in 'someone who does the most terrible things he can think of for kicks', because I have an overwhelming urge when playing RPGs to do the most terrible thing I can think of to them for my kicks. I just wouldn't get any fun out of it, and I doubt most others would.

That said, there's other kinds of evil. There's villainy, where you take a character, give them an 'evil' objective, and have them go about achieving that in the most interesting way you can think of. There's casual evil, where they're not quite as showy as a villain, but will do evil things without breaking a sweat in the pursuit of some objective or other.

So yeah, theoretically, give me lawful evil, give me neutral evil, but I'll only do chaotic evil if I get to be a real ham about it.

That said, I haven't got quite as much experience with RPGs as I'd like, so given the option, I'd rather do not evil. The characters I pull don't tend to conform to any one side of your 9-point alignment scale, but they tend to stay out of evil.