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Re: Originality
Posted By: Mark LevinDate: 8/26/01 10:32 a.m.

In Response To: Re: Originality (Soapstone)

: Rubicon has intentionally imitated Marathon and Marathon Infinity in the
: following aspects: mood, style, and story elements. These aspects are
: evident in the level design, gameplay, and terminal messages of Rubicon.

Find me one Marathon scenario of which this is not true. Nearly all scenarios are designed as "add-ons" to the original story (which they are), so of course there are going to be parallels. There is also the point that there is a finite number of moods and aspects available, so there's bound to be duplication sooner or later. Is every book which takes place in the future, or in which a character performs an interior monologue, a ripoff?

: Myst III: Exile also imitated the mood, style, and - to a lesser extent -
: story elements (lesser in extent because Exile has a relatively small,
: weak plot) of Myst and Riven. This is evident in the music, Age design,
: puzzle logic, and character interaction of Exile.

As above, Exile was meant to be a sequel to Myst (it was even an official sequel, a distinction not awarded to any Marathon scenario except perhaps Infinity), so of course it's going to be very similar to the original. One of the main attractions of a good sequel is its similarity to the original.

: Mimicry does not work because the coolness factor is not the highest
: priority.

I disagree with the basis of this statement... Coolness factor should never be the highest priority. High quality and entertainment should, and they are different from coolness. The #1 rule of game design is that a pile of cool things is not itself a cool thing. Even the best games have negative aspects, parts which are frustrating or tiresome or unoriginal, but they are part of a greater whole.

: So when I talk about originality here, I'm not talking about striving to have
: new ideas, but to strive to have ideas that are wholly one's own.

Not sure what you mean by this... Either an idea has never been seen before or it has. I'm saying that this distinction is not nearly as important as you make it out to be, and shouldn't be a large factor in design decisions.

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Replies:

tidbits and revolution!Chris Bisoski 8/22/01 8:59 a.m.
     OriginalitySoapstone 8/22/01 12:34 p.m.
           Re: OriginalityForrest of B.org 8/24/01 10:57 a.m.
                 Re: OriginalitySoapstone 8/25/01 12:08 p.m.
                       Re: OriginalityMark Levin 8/26/01 10:32 a.m.
                             Re: OriginalitySoapstone 8/26/01 11:36 a.m.
     Re: tidbits and revolution!Speaker-To-Animals 8/22/01 12:49 p.m.
     Re: tidbits and revolution!Martin Antell 8/22/01 9:26 p.m.



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