Which pen and paper roleplaying game would you like to see as a MMORPG?

Loke666 · December 2017

P&P games have been around for almost 50 years now and there are tons of great games around but sadly have the only P&P based MMOs been based on D&D (which is a great game but far from the only), not counting the underbudget Pathfinder game that never will have a real release.

So if you could choose what game would you like to see as a MMO?

My 2 favorites would be Shadowrun & Paranoia followed by Call of Cthulhu.

Arkain · December 2017

A Cyberpunk MMOGPG would be the one I think would be the best, even better if it is skilled and not level based.

Rollerrat · December 2017

Cyberpunk 2020 (with Hardwired rulebook) all the way baby! Closely followed by CoT. One can only hope..

Moirae · December 2017

Badly world of darkness. BUT, I don't trust ANY of them to do it right.

Thebeasttt · December 2017

Pathfinder should be the obvious choice. Too bad paizo lost their damn minds when choosing developers. Yeah lets make a pvp centric D&D game and lets make an NBA focused NFL game while we're at it. Could they possibly be more out of touch with their audience?

Ukurv · December 2017

Mutant chronicles

shetlandslarsen · December 2017

Would like to see Call of Chutulu and Shadowrun but heck ill play any on that list

Beeen a GM for 20 years just starting up again with a star wars group, D20 2002 ruleset.

rodingo · December 2017

I chose "other". I would like to see a Twilight 2000 MMO.

Clandestine · December 2017

Gamma World would make an awesome MMORPG.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_World

Phry · December 2017

Traveller based game for me, a game where i get to explore the spinward marches, if only.

Po_gg · December 2017

Paranoia would be fun, too bad it's near impossible to implement... which reminds me, you seek the mechanics and rules, like in the other thread, or more like the world and IP?

For the latter, Paranoia would be great, really love its world

(The clone part was already done in FoM, too bad the game was a huge pile of wasted potential...) However, half the fun in Paranoia comes from the roleplay, the always in character aspect and the acting, I don't know how it would work in an MMO. Maybe a constant stream of a webcam, with this new tech adding your facial expressions onto your avatar...

My pick would be Amber. Even less possible to implement

since even the world is beyond the current tech's capabilities (unless you pre-set a few Shadows and limits the shifting between those few), and the gameplay has no dice, so the number-crazed rollplayer generation would be totally lost

"i wanna chase the big numbers, what do you mean there are no numbers? how much is my strength, dammit?"

d_20 · December 2017

WARHAMMER -- Dark Heresy, Rogue Trader, and combined with Black Crusade.

But it has to be done well. Or forget it. I've been really disappointed with WH video games. I'd rather just have them stay pnp if they aren't going to be done TOP CLASS.

And NOT fantasy. Forget WH fantasy. My appetite for that has been ruined by the 2008 fail.

I don't usually use all caps, but I make an exception here.

Who would be the best developer/publisher for this? I don't know. I'd like to know what you guys think. But I'm dead against EA or Activision having anything to do with WH.

berenim · December 2017

Only one selection possible, so I'd rather put down a few words than vote.

World of Darkness of course. But as others have stated it is damn hard to implement it right and since it wasn't specified which one: The old WoD! I'd love Mage: The Ascension (unfortunatly the system is impossible to implement) or Changeling...

Shadowrun of course... Fond memories of my first P&P RPG for years (with fun Paranoia sessions in between). Decker and Rigger should be hard to implement, too.

Last one: Dark Sun! The world of Athas would make a nice MMORPG. All the races and classes with a twist. I'd like the dark and devoid of life atmosphere there.

Scot · December 2017

Remember the golden rules of MMOs: Sci-Fi, humour, horror and modern day settings rarely seem to work. So many on that list would have a hard time of bucking the trend.

I will add one rpg, it is Sci-Fi, but so fantastical that it looks like a hybrid between SF and Fantasy. It has humour and horror but does not rely on them. It has a future day setting...Numenera. But I voted WoD, that would be great to see, just does not tick the golden rules boxes.

Loke666 · December 2017

Po_gg said:

Paranoia would be fun, too bad it's near impossible to implement... which reminds me, you seek the mechanics and rules, like in the other thread, or more like the world and IP?

For the latter, Paranoia would be great, really love its world (The clone part was already done in FoM, too bad the game was a huge pile of wasted potential...) However, half the fun in Paranoia comes from the roleplay, the always in character aspect and the acting, I don't know how it would work in an MMO. Maybe a constant stream of a webcam, with this new tech adding your facial expressions onto your avatar...

My pick would be Amber. Even less possible to implement since even the world is beyond the current tech's capabilities (unless you pre-set a few Shadows and limits the shifting between those few), and the gameplay has no dice, so the number-crazed rollplayer generation would be totally lost "i wanna chase the big numbers, what do you mean there are no numbers? how much is my strength, dammit?"

I am a huge Amber fan but I fear it just wouldn't work as a MMO.

As for Paranoia you certainly would have to twweak the rules (instead of levels you would gain clearance from red to ultra violet) but I think the really dark humor could be fun in a MMO. But yes, it is more fun when you see the expression of the commie mutant traitor you trick into becomming reactor shielding....

d_20 said:

WARHAMMER -- Dark Heresy, Rogue Trader, and combined with Black Crusade.

But it has to be done well. Or forget it. I've been really disappointed with WH video games. I'd rather just have them stay pnp if they aren't going to be done TOP CLASS.

And NOT fantasy. Forget WH fantasy. My appetite for that has been ruined by the 2008 fail.

I don't usually use all caps, but I make an exception here.

Who would be the best developer/publisher for this? I don't know. I'd like to know what you guys think. But I'm dead against EA or Activision having anything to do with WH.

I still think that a Enemy within based game could be rather fun, but Warhammer is an adult game full of dark humor, evil and corruption and I think Mythic missed that. In either case a Warhammer game just wont work with levels.

Aethaeryn · December 2017

Warhammer as an open world!

Loke666 · December 2017

Aethaeryn said:

Warhammer as an open world!

Old Warhammer in that case and not the Age of Sigmar crap.

Anyways, seems like World of darkness is the popular choice here. It is a huge shame that CCP cancelled it for Dust. Not my personal favorite for a MMO since I feel that the mechanics would be almost impossible to translate and getting the intrigues fun would be really hard.

Werewolf would be easy since it is so combat oriented but vampire or mage which I feel is the better games would be very hard. I guess you could make it about Project: Twilight (earlier and not related, thank the Gods) and have players hunt all the supernaturals as well.

It also would have very little focus on gear no matter what game WoD setting you choose (my rank 6 silverfang have after years of playing still his starting gear). I don't think you could get that random loot factor. Yeah, mages might be the exception to that by crafting stuff with their quint.

Brunlin · December 2017

"Star Frontier" by TSR. Who doesnt want to play as a Dralasite? I loved this game though the technology introduced in the game back in 1981 would have to be updated to fit the times. We have more tech now in real life than what existed in a game of space travel. For example: They had computers that were so big that the party would have to have a van to fit it in. Hmmm maybe i need to re-explore this game give the tech a revamp and than introduce it as a campaign for Roll 20

Scot · December 2017

Loke666 said:

Po_gg said:

Paranoia would be fun, too bad it's near impossible to implement... which reminds me, you seek the mechanics and rules, like in the other thread, or more like the world and IP?

For the latter, Paranoia would be great, really love its world (The clone part was already done in FoM, too bad the game was a huge pile of wasted potential...) However, half the fun in Paranoia comes from the roleplay, the always in character aspect and the acting, I don't know how it would work in an MMO. Maybe a constant stream of a webcam, with this new tech adding your facial expressions onto your avatar...

My pick would be Amber. Even less possible to implement since even the world is beyond the current tech's capabilities (unless you pre-set a few Shadows and limits the shifting between those few), and the gameplay has no dice, so the number-crazed rollplayer generation would be totally lost "i wanna chase the big numbers, what do you mean there are no numbers? how much is my strength, dammit?"

I am a huge Amber fan but I fear it just wouldn't work as a MMO.

As for Paranoia you certainly would have to twweak the rules (instead of levels you would gain clearance from red to ultra violet) but I think the really dark humor could be fun in a MMO. But yes, it is more fun when you see the expression of the commie mutant traitor you trick into becomming reactor shielding....

d_20 said:

WARHAMMER -- Dark Heresy, Rogue Trader, and combined with Black Crusade.

But it has to be done well. Or forget it. I've been really disappointed with WH video games. I'd rather just have them stay pnp if they aren't going to be done TOP CLASS.

And NOT fantasy. Forget WH fantasy. My appetite for that has been ruined by the 2008 fail.

I don't usually use all caps, but I make an exception here.

Who would be the best developer/publisher for this? I don't know. I'd like to know what you guys think. But I'm dead against EA or Activision having anything to do with WH.

I still think that a Enemy within based game could be rather fun, but Warhammer is an adult game full of dark humor, evil and corruption and I think Mythic missed that. In either case a Warhammer game just wont work with levels.

Amber, Vampire and Werewolf have all worked as MUD's. They don't fit the golden rules I mentioned (maybe Amber does best) but many iterations were successful as MUD's to my knowledge. Of course they break my golden rules, but that's based on what has worked well so far, not on what might capture gamers imaginations.

Should add that MUD's gave us far larger expectation of the variety that MMORPG's could go on to achieve. So as a guide to what MMOs can do they are somewhat flawed.

Po_gg · December 2017

Scot said:

Amber, Vampire and Werewolf have all worked as MUD's. They don't fit the golden rules I mentioned (maybe Amber does best) but many iterations were successful as MUD's to my knowledge.

Earlier there was a thread about MUDs where I detailed how much "free-er" they were due to the text-based nature (easier and cheaper world building, tons of options for roleplay), so if something worked as a MUD that doesn't mean it could work as an MMORPG.

Not to mention, Amber wasn't a MUD, it was a MUSH.

(for those not familiar, it's like a heavy roleplay server version of MUDs, without the stat and number focused, scriptable gameplay. Sure, you could roleplay in MUDs too, alongside the "generic" players, but MUSHes were like distilled versions of MUDs, for hardcore roleplay in the focus. The core "engine" was similar, written in the same language, but changed a lot of things in favor of roleplaying.
Hell, I was in love with roleplay, was familiar with C and LPC, built modules for our local MUD - and when I first met a MUSH I fled in days

)

GladDog · December 2017

GAMMA WORLD! I loved that game. Or Dungeons and Dragons redone. Or how about D&D vs Gamma World?

Amathe · December 2017

Traveller

Loke666 · December 2017

Scot said:
Amber, Vampire and Werewolf have all worked as MUD's. They don't fit the golden rules I mentioned (maybe Amber does best) but many iterations were successful as MUD's to my knowledge. Of course they break my golden rules, but that's based on what has worked well so far, not on what might capture gamers imaginations.

Should add that MUD's gave us far larger expectation of the variety that MMORPG's could go on to achieve. So as a guide to what MMOs can do they are somewhat flawed.

While I never played an Amber mud I am not convinced that it really captured the IP right but I can certainly be wrong.

Yes, it is probably possible to make a good MMORPG of even Amber but it would be very hard, as would Vampire and I can't think of a single company that could pull Amber off. CCP certainly was on the way with Vampire even if it is possible that the reason they canned it was that they thought they couldn't get it to work.

Werewolf as I said above would probably be a far safer bet even if it still would be far from easy.

H0urg1ass · December 2017

I see a lot of votes here for World of Darkness, but I'm not sure people are thinking clearly about how well this game would translate to an MMO... it wouldn't.

World of Darkness is a Role Playing Game, not a Roll Playing Game. D&D and others are more about getting that perfect 20 and slaying the monster, but WoD is far far more about stabbing that Ventrue bloodsucker in the back for some slight on your honor from 150 years ago. Not a whole lot of game mechanics replicate this very well.

I mean, if you want a game where you can play Vampires and Werewolves, then maybe they should make an Underworld MMO since all they do there is fight. However, if you want to do WoD justice, then it needs to be 75% political maneuvering and 25% fighting which doesn't typically make for captivating games.

Scot · December 2017

Po_gg said:

Scot said:

Amber, Vampire and Werewolf have all worked as MUD's. They don't fit the golden rules I mentioned (maybe Amber does best) but many iterations were successful as MUD's to my knowledge.

Earlier there was a thread about MUDs where I detailed how much "free-er" they were due to the text-based nature (easier and cheaper world building, tons of options for roleplay), so if something worked as a MUD that doesn't mean it could work as an MMORPG.

Not to mention, Amber wasn't a MUD, it was a MUSH.

(for those not familiar, it's like a heavy roleplay server version of MUDs, without the stat and number focused, scriptable gameplay. Sure, you could roleplay in MUDs too, alongside the "generic" players, but MUSHes were like distilled versions of MUDs, for hardcore roleplay in the focus. The core "engine" was similar, written in the same language, but changed a lot of things in favor of roleplaying.
Hell, I was in love with roleplay, was familiar with C and LPC, built modules for our local MUD - and when I first met a MUSH I fled in days )

It has been a while, I played one Amber MUD/MUSH, not sure which it was.

I think in some ways roleplaying in MUD's was easier because people's imaginations were not limited by the graphics and there were less other things to do like quests. You logged on to roleplay.

Po_gg · December 2017

Scot said:

I think in some ways roleplaying in MUD's was easier because people's imaginations were not limited by the graphics and there were less other things to do like quests.

Yep, imagination is the best rendering engine

there was no need for textures, models, effects and tons of processing power... just your words, some programming skills, a server (even in the mid-'90s ours was running on a leftover 386) and you had your own world to wander within.

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Which pen and paper roleplaying game would you like to see as a MMORPG?

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