Let's talk relationships in games, or something!

[wallwalker]

Testing the poll option. Also, I'd really love to participate in some discussion about this, after a conversation on LJ and some further conversation about it with my boyfriend. Things that work for people, things that don't work for people, things people would put into their own games if they were designing their dream game, whatever. :D

Poll #2265

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 5

View Respondents

Which of these varieties of relationship/romantic subplots in RPGs do you prefer, if you had to choose?

View Answers

Lots of characters as potential options, but less detail put into each subplot.
1 (20.0%)

A few character options, but more detail put into each subplot.
1 (20.0%)

I'll take either, I'm not picky.
3 (60.0%)

I don't like these sorts of subplots, or I don't care.
0 (0.0%)

Other - I will elaborate in a comment.
0 (0.0%)

(By the way - I am still taking more drabble requests, and will get to the currently-posted ones soon. If anyone else wants to play, feel free! Post is open until I reach ten.)

Comments

[wallwalker]

I chose the first option for three reasons:

1. When a game does give a lot of detail about a relationship, well, I end up wanting to rewrite a lot of it that doesn't work for me so well, anyway. That's if I like the friendship or couple; if I don't like it, I just try to ignore it or not choose its option. So small hints/details seem to work better for me.
2. I don't mind filling in the gaps, really. I think that a lot of people are divided on this point, now that I think about it.
3. The more options there are, the less likely I am to dislike or be bored by ALL of them. (Although my boyfriend did have an excellent point in saying that no matter how many options you give, someone's going to dislike or be bored by all of them...)

So, I guess that what I mainly ask of games are, one, a way to alter the way that characters feel about each other in the first place, and two, a way to do it that affects how they interact in the game, which would make a HUGE difference in how some of the plot points would play out, since it would affect who trusts or mistrusts whom. Star Ocean 2 had the closest mechanic to what I'd really like, but even it wasn't perfect; it still had a lot of times in the main plot where the two leads were sort of thrown together, no matter how much you made them dislike each other or how much you made them like other members of the cast. While it might not have bugged me hugely, it did bug me occasionally.

[lassarina]

So, funny thing. 4 different options for relationships in Dragon Age: Origin (vs. one per gender in Neverwinter Nights, and 3 total in Mass Effect). I am in love with ALL of them. I am going to play this game enough times to SLEEP WITH ALL OF THEM. Uh. But Bioware hits my narrative and character buttons super hard.

that being said: to quote the lovely and very very smart celeloriel, I ship Squall with "growing up" and Rinoa with "therapy." Yet I'm all over Celes/Locke and Zidane/Garnet, and you will never convince me Balthier/Ashe wasn't strongly implied by canon, EVER. Also Kain/Fiend but. I have my obsessions.