Creating an Immersive RPG

[GameBanshee News]

Iron Tower Studios kicked off a "Depository" forum for interesting RPG design docs. Obviously, we won't be posting every bit posted there, but the design doc they added today, written by the developer of indie RPG Scars of War, should be of interest: Creating an "Immersive" RPG.

Well, it would probably help to define immersion a bit more specifically so that I can stop using ellipses. The dictionary defines immersion as the "state of being deeply engaged or involved". Hmmm. Deeply engaged? Clearly this is a state of being that can only be induced via Pixel Shader 3 effects. DirectX 10 must be required, surely? Perhaps not. Certainly good graphics help, just as great audio does, but are those aspects all or even most of the story? I don't think so. Books can certainly immerse you. It's easy to find a good book, one that grabs you and plunges you into a world where you forget that it's 3 o clock and you have to go fetch your kids from school, and then the school councilor wants to have a chat with you and the people from social welfare. You can also certainly get immersed in your pen and paper role playing game, with nary a "bumpmap" in sight, unless you count the pockmarked skin of your obese cousin who is, disturbingly, roleplaying a dainty female elven ranger.

Given these facts I am convinced, despite the enthusiastic claims of our friends in PR, that great graphics are not the be-all and end-all of "Immersion". They aren't even necessary. So what is? I'm glad you asked, because otherwise I'd be without a topic for my article.

I'll avoid discussing art, sound effects or music as it relates to immersion, because this is an article about Game Design. Creating "immersion" is really just the art of creating an engaging CRPG experience, making design decisions which allow your players to lose themselves in the world and story you've created. I could have called this article "Basic Principles of CRPG Game Design" or “CRPG Design : Mistakes to Avoid” but buzzwords are all the rage these days and I thought I'd address one that gets hurled around a lot.

Spotted on RPGWatch.

[galraen]

Great article, please forward it to the people at Bioware and Obsidian immediately! They should pay particular attention to the section headed Immersive Interactions, it highlights sins they both commit on a regular basis.

[GawainBS]

Very torough, solid article, allthough I disagree a bit about "things waiting to unfold for the player." The moment you ditch this principle, it would create a HUGE amount of plot trouble. I, for one, am a player who likes to take his time. Example: (Highlight, but beware of spoiler.) I would absolutely hate it if you had a time limit to free Imoen in BGII, especially since that triggers the rest of the game and bars access to a lot of potential quests untill chapter 6.
In the end, I agree with the creator of Babylon 5 (Forgot his name.) on this matter: when asked what the topspeed of the series Fury-fighter was, he said "the speed of the plot. If they should arrive in time to save the day, they do. If they should arrive to only find wreckage, they'll arrive too late."
I do agree with the article, however, that some games could camouflage it better.