Who is your favourite romantic option in a choice game, and why?
Who is your least favourite romantic option in a choice game, and why?
Same questions for any other games.
What do you look for in a romantic option?
And what do you strongly dislike?
Who is your favourite romantic option in a choice game, and why? None! Because of me being awkward around them. 
Who is your least favourite romantic option in a choice game, and why?
Same questions for any other games. Again, None so far. Though, their are some dislikes I have with some people due to personality issues in games.
What do you look for in a romantic option? I like Being Chaste around mentally unstable people! (And perhaps the average-looking. As we all know, that pretty people, would likely die first and go insane.)
And what do you strongly dislike? I hate people with bland personalities. Like Thisi.
So @Happy, you’d prefer an option where you can choose just to be friends? Or would you prefer an option where you can just be awesome on your own without any of that romance or friendship nonsense?
Also I’m curious, what was it about Thisi’s personality that made her bland?
Friendship is magic! Now seriously, I’d prefer having friends. And why, in my own opinion, why Thisi is bland. She for some reason, is alright flirting with everybody. That’s pretty much what she does.
I’ve yet to play a CoG game that focussed enough on the Romance to make it a favourite in that way, the official ones seem to have a “romance” section (or two), then barely mention it for the rest of the game.
Some of the more story-like hosted games like ZE and Waywalkers make a bit more of an effort to keep the romance going/keep building on it - and I want to see more of that.
I don’t want:
*choice
#Yeah I’m interested
-> Romance Scene
-> Romance Scene
-> End of game
I think the development should be more subtle, drawn and complete.
If that makes any kind of sense?!
“I’ve yet to play a CoG game that focussed enough on the Romance to make it a favourite in that way, the official ones seem to have a “romance” section (or two), then barely mention it for the rest of the game.”
This.
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Hmm, none really, haven’t seen a good romance tbh.
@bawpie’s Heal was implementing a good one I thought, but they’ve not logged in since January 22nd and I fear that story will never see the light of day…
As for game romances… I really enjoyed the dynamic with Ashley Williams in Mass Effect throughout all three games, she was a very strong woman, with equally strong if possibly abrasive views (call her a racist if you want to press my berserk button, as you’re wrong… -_-).
Having thought about it though, there’s not really been many good romance in rpgs that stand out as good.
Reiko and Ruri’s romances arc stand out in Season of Sakura, Shuhei and Nao’s romance (well they’re in a relationship it’s kinda hard not to see that…) is pretty cute in Soul link, both are adult visual novels though so, obviously there is a focus on romance (well more for Seasons than for Soul Link which, is sci-fi affair but yeah.)
Returning to safer ground, one of the romances in Baldur’s Gate 2 is popular, though to be honest ANYTHING written by Bioware/Obsidian/Whomever writes epic RPGs tends to be very bland in the romance department!
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I’m working on a mini-game, the point of which is to make a bush not a tree, with a multitude of romantic options, just to see if I can. Hence the asking of questions, to see what I can do about fully fleshing out the romances.
I do plan to write every single path separately, I’m not even going to resort to gender switching, apart from the non-humans (and in that case it’s in character for them). Of course I’ve a new idea every week so odds on this actually getting finished are low.
I was hoping to bash out a game in May though, force myself to do the same thing I did with @lordirishdas contest and finish something.
Of the unofficial games, I liked what @JimD did in Zombie Exodus best. You get to know the characters first, they’re all fully fleshed out people and the four relationships are different. I do think he’s going to implement the romances far better in his next game though.
It seems strange that on the forums there’s almost always a call for more romances, better choice in them, but there’s yet to be a game that’s really addressed that.
@FairyGodfeather “It seems strange that on the forums there’s almost always a call for more romances, better choice in them, but there’s yet to be a game that’s really addressed that.”
It’s probably due to the attention required to create characters with developed personalities, a system of forming a bond with said characters, making that bond consequential, and then working it into the rest of the game, which renders authors inclined to make romances merely nominal. After all, most games are not romance based, so the addition of romance is merely an addendum to the game proper.
I think @Drazen explained that very well.
Love is a complicated thing, you can’t even describe it in words, nevermind code.
Yeah, basically what Drazen said, unless the CYOA is dedicated to a romance plot, romances are often pretty shallow because they aren’t the main focus of the story.
This is doubly so when the writer attempts to create a love interest for every gender/orientation/fetish/etc. Now they just look like a cookie cutter romance with a couple changes and nobody bothers with any real characterization.
Have no idea why everyone wants them so bad in every RPG/CYOA nowadays and I’m not saying that stories shouldn’t have them, but romances are really overrated and not necessary unless finding true love or something similar is the goal.
Ashley would’ve actually been more interesting to me if she actually had been genuinely “racist.”
As it stands her attitude towards aliens was more of a pragmatic cautious one and influenced due to her own background story of her relative that surrendered to the Turrians. It wasn’t like she supported the Earth First movement or Cerberus.
What about movie romances? Where they’re given a similarly short space of time in order to try and build a romance?
I’ll admit that I absolutely loathe romance movies, and especially romantic comedies. All of the characters in them strike me as horribly obnoxious, broken people and the typical romantic tropes have me either cringing, or wondering why people even consider this to be acceptable behaviour. Why can’t they just communicate? That would solve all sorts of misunderstandings.
I’m trying to think of a movie romance that I liked and I come up with things like I liked Brother’s Grimm because she didn’t choose either of the brothers. I liked the Blacksmith in A Knight’s tale because she didn’t end up being a romantic interest to any of the guys. I liked how in the new Clash of the Titans I was absolutely certain that Perseus would end up with Andromeda, despite the fact that they’d only spoken for five minutes, and the movie didn’t actually end up going that way (can’t say I liked how it did go though).
I’ll admit that romance isn’t actually a genre that I’m interested in. I’m the one who was shouting at Katniss that she didn’t need either Gale or Peeta, she’d have been far better off on her own.
I’m trying to think of a movie romance that I actually liked and I’m failing terribly. None of my favourite movies have romance.
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I’m not particularly into Romance in my movies, but I do like it in my books.
Honestly (think what you will ^^) but a movie I can say that I think has a good romantic plot is: “50 First Dates” with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore - I think it does a good job of describing love, showing what lengths people go to express it - in the most abstract and incomprehensible of ways.
I think there is a lot of room for good romance in choice novels, it’s just that *choice* that makes it so difficult, of all things to rail-road, Romance is the worst, but it’s also the hardest to give the player freedom with.
People want romance in games, because it’s a fundamental human drive and most literature incorporates love interests. But I agree that few games are written with romance in focus. I always had it planned for ZE and progressing those sub-plots takes considerable effort, especially with multiple LIs.
If I read IF, I want the LI to challenge me and provide some arc to the story, as opposed to having an accessory.
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About romance… Hmm when I play a CoG I don’t really focus on the romance… It doesn’t really perk my interest lol. But I have a question @Happy who is Thisi if you don’t mind me asking?
@EndMaster - Right on the money with that evaluation, it doesn’t stop plenty of people from claiming that she is racist without noting any of those points however. As one of the few who was active heavily on the storyline/lore forums for the games, it turned out to be one my major pet peeves. Hence; berserk button. =)
@Fairygodfeather - I can stand movie romances, but I detest the oh so predictable “Hey I just met you, and this is crazy but let’s make out and pretend we love each other.” -_- Always irks me. Particularly end of movie kiss scenes…
One main problem I have with romance options in CoGs is that they dont affect anything…they are pretty much filler…What I would kinda like to see in a CoG is like in dragon age 2…at the end when you wait to attack and you share a tender moment with your romantic option…I feel they should add something like that To every CoG…But…Based off of what there is…
My favorite: Feng (Choice of kung Fu) I liked her personality and how she is a conflicted person…In a romanc with a monk…yet her life work is to torment them…
Least Favorite: Black Magic (heroes rise: prodigy) To many bad things about them…its bad…If it was balanced good with bad then maybe things would be better
Strong, beautiful, independent, and with a bit of a rebellious streak! I feel like I just described every female romantic interest in every game/movie/book ever… The main thing I want though, is good and deep characterization in all my npcs, not just the RI. They should have their own needs, wants, ambitions, beliefs. What I have a problem with is when they feel tacked on just for the sake of having a RI, much like every other RI in Kung Fu beside Feng.
@RVallant
What about one of the Dragon Age romances?
@SianaA
A plant-like sexy alien from Treasure Seekers of Lady Luck.