D&D 4E the Video Game: could we make it?

[tacticslion]

So this is one of those probably never in a million years questions, but I was really, really curious:

Do you guys think we could create the 4E video game using the 4E rule set?

Because I don't think it's nearly as difficult as it would seem.

First, I get the legal things, and I'm not asking if we can create any sort of official "Dungeons & Dragons 4E: The Game", of many reasons, not the least of which is that none of us happens to be of the legally binding name "Atari".

But I'm asking if we, as a forum, had the skill, will, and interest, to come together to create something real and lasting and create a new Video Game.

There might not be enough D&D nerds here to do it. Or those that are here might dislike 4E.

Heck, I dislike 4E, at least compared to some other pencil-and-paper RPGs I've played. It functions well enough, and I've had some fun experiences**, but gets bogged down in number minutia and "sameness" and other frustrating elements which detract (for me) from the idea of a living world.

But as a video game? Dang. That puppy'd run really smoothly.

As an example of what I'm talking about, I could see something like the games Tactics Ogre* or Final Fantasy Tactics* being a basic visual chassis (probably neither of those, as it'd be C&D'd to death about three months before I create this post) upon which we hung some of the specifics of the 4E rule set, cribbing what we could of what already existed (unless it was faster and easier to do otherwise).

Full disclosure: I'm an "idea guy" and have approximately the same technical know-how and computer programming savvy of my dad's dog (both of which are effectively in their 60s).

The basic rules: levels exist 1-30
Bonuses to all non-damage dice rolls: half your level
Feats that let you do things: first level and every even level thereafter
Ability Scores: point buy, plus your increases at every 4th/8th level and "1st" level (levels 1, 4, 8, 11, 14, 18, 21, 24, and 28) plus features

While the specifics would be the time-eaters, using the above as the most basic rule sets seems... simple enough.

And if the MM3 monster rules were utilized... well, since you can print them on a business card, and have room for stuff on the other side, I'd guess that it's the templates and special effects (conditions and things like forced movement) that take up the most "time".

Really, by cribbing the major graphics from somewhere else (anywhere else, really) we'd save ourselves the majority of work.

A number of things could even be done with the NWN2 engine (or maybe even the NWN1 engine; I know for NWN2 a number of online persistent worlds somehow altered the rate of feat gain and spell-gain, though I don't know how much work/how difficult that was).

Anyway, I was just curious if anyone would be interested or would even like the idea, or how feasible it would be with the skill sets of those here. And the biggest hurdle, of course, is if those to things would intersect...

So how about it? Could we do it? Would we want to?

I mean, there's been on-again and off-again talk about the future death and dispersal of Nuklearforums, but if we created a genuine video game... that'd be something pretty special and enduring, regardless of the life the forum. Just let it leak a few times and it'll pretty much go on.

And that sounds... pretty cool.

* It actually occurred to me recently, how similar these two games, and other tactical-based video games are to D&D 4E. They're not the same, obviously, but I think the comparison between them and 4E is much stronger than the WoW and 4E comparisons.
** This generally comes at the expense of the rules-set.

[Bells]

You have to understand that 4e was desgined pretty much as a pen and paper video game. There is a lot of League of Legend-ism and pretty much all tropes from MMO's in those books. Not only that, but you have some other clear influences like Skyrim and Neverwinter.

it's actually pretty damn easy to translate the bulk of gameplay from D&D to a game. What you DO loose though, are elements of interpretation and social skill. Because no game will be able to compute all the unique and creative ways you can use your skills to resolve scenarios.

So, while, for instance, you could very well acquire information and prevent a Tavern fight with song and dance, in a video game that option might just not be possible. Even if it is, there are still a couple hundred options that would not be visible.

What you CAN do, with proper effort, is something that WAS done here in the forums... which was pretty much a freeform RPG using Forum avatars as characters. That could translate into a fixed adventure (not a sandbox set of rules) and play out from the hands of a GM.

Not unlike roleplaying servers you have in Age of Empires, Half Life 2 Deathmatch, Chivalry and the such.

[tacticslion]

Originally Posted by Bells

You have to understand that 4e was desgined pretty much as a pen and paper video game. There is a lot of League of Legend-ism and pretty much all tropes from MMO's in those books. Not only that, but you have some other clear influences like Skyrim and Neverwinter.

1) Yes, I know. That's the point of this thread!
2) Eh. It doesn't seem MMO-y so much as Video-Game-inspired design.
3) Uh... isn't the new Neverwinter based on 4E, not the other way around? Or was that what you were saying? I don't understand.

Originally Posted by Bells

it's actually pretty damn easy to translate the bulk of gameplay from D&D to a game. What you DO loose though, are elements of interpretation and social skill. Because no game will be able to compute all the unique and creative ways you can use your skills to resolve scenarios.

1) Again, the point of the thread!
2) Partially. Given the creation of skill challenges, and using elements similar to, say, Long Live the Queen, this can be implemented fairly well. Further, Neverwinter Nights did fairly well at this kind of thing in a basic sort of way via dialogue trees. I agree that the social interaction part is lacking, though.

Originally Posted by Bells

So, while, for instance, you could very well acquire information and prevent a Tavern fight with song and dance, in a video game that option might just not be possible. Even if it is, there are still a couple hundred options that would not be visible.

This is accurate. What I'm not asking for is for that to be a thing. What I am asking for is for something to use the 4E rules as a chassis.

The latter isn't that hard.

Originally Posted by Bells

What you CAN do, with proper effort, is something that WAS done here in the forums... which was pretty much a freeform RPG using Forum avatars as characters. That could translate into a fixed adventure (not a sandbox set of rules) and play out from the hands of a GM.

See, that's not really what I'm asking for, I don't think, unless I'm misunderstanding you.

You're basically talking about a non-rule-set Role Playing game, or a Rules-based Play-By-Post? Either way, not what I'm looking for, really.

Originally Posted by Bells

Not unlike roleplaying servers you have in Age of Empires, Half Life 2 Deathmatch, Chivalry and the such.

... because I don't do well long-term on online games, despite my best efforts. :/

That's why I'm suggesting something more lasting and, I think, that would be quite popular.

[Aldurin]

While I am nerd, I am not on the whole 4e train, mainly a 3.5 junkie. I'll look at the system and give my ideas.

Though the big thing you have to realize first and foremost is that as a game, possibility has to be shrunken down, since complex interactions with the world are just writing in a tabletop, but hours of headaches for developers in a video game. There will be heavy trimming and modification to adapt the game to a mode where the computer is the DM.

But if you're still thinking of going with it then the big thing you want is to have a great foundation to build on, as the mod-friendlier it is, the more varied of adventures and settings that can be implemented officially, too. (Also mod campaigns are basically free level design labor so mod support is a must.) You basically want a good framework so that graphic and mechanical assets can be easily moved and modified without the base game shitting itself.