Yay and Nays in your COGS

The only time I tend to hide a choice is if it is “Sorting Hat Dependent” - e.g., if someone needs to be a hacker to ever be able to crack open the black box, I may not let them experience that option until they play through as a hacker class - or if it would offend certain people.

I have been trying to sort out whether people like, for example, sex, violence, and swearing by keying this content to certain types of responses. If someone is asexual, they don’t need to know what they could have accomplished by drooling over someone, as long as there is an equivalent option for them to be able to do get ahead in the story. If someone responds well to the first few rebellious choices, I can start introducing more swearing into their option text. And if someone is playing a character class that is disposed or indisposed towards violence, they do not need to necessarily know that other options would be “perform a sacred blessing ceremony over the remains, as follows” or “desecrate the corpse.”

That’s just my view on it, and of course you’ve been awfully successful at doing at your way. :smile: Your ‘Trial of the Demon Hunter’ is the next one I’m going to buy when I have a free day to play something new. Like I said in my last response, I am reluctant to play some historical fiction, but the raving on the forums has convinced me.

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Yeah, that definitely makes sense, especially for really complicated and long stories with a lot of different stats.

Well, TotDH isn’t really historical; it’s set in another world (Lume) and it’s high fantasy. It’s similar to medieval Europe but generally more progressive and advanced, though - taking a look at your previous post - that may not appeal to you so much. That aspect doesn’t show up much until volume 2, though, so. :stuck_out_tongue:

Agree with all of these points thought i was the only one who disliked classic fantasy! Also sex and romance is something i feel has been missing in a lot of cogs it’s there but not as much as i would like i know this is mostly down to the apps store strict rules though :pensive: im just waiting for a game that fully explores this

Hello, and this is my very first post in this forum.
Yay

  • The basic gender, sexuality.
  • Time moves slow. Clicking next every two times won’t jump you to next day or year. I like when i feel like, if i wanted i did lot of things not just woke up, ate, talked to one person and went to sleep.
  • My MC can lie to himself/herself. If someone asks “Do you like that?” or there is a option “I think i like…” I don’t have to take “Yes” the “positive” option just to have that thing available. Just because i think and say i hate, doesn’t mean it concrete. I like my MC young and stupid, that still doesn’t know everything about herself/himself. They can change there mind and not be penalized for not having enough points collected by thinking and saying things rather then doing. (So i don’t like when “first” thing you do is choose your sexuality) I want to see the world, experience it and see who my MC is.
  • To be evil without shooting myself in the foot. Villains can have there happy endings too, it’s not there problem that then everyone else gets the bad one. Mhahahah! Or more specific, I can care about my family, love interest, animals, but still be evil and kill anyone else. I am not evil for sake of being evil so i shouldn’t be obliged to kill my loved ones to get the evil ending.
  • Having an option to hit someone. There is a jerk, he talks, says bad things about you and you can either talk back at him or ignore… i wan’t hit him!! :smiley:

Nays

  • Fake gay/lesbian. By that i mean, for example, you are male gay in medieval setting and tell your parents that you like a boy. They smile and say that can’t wait when you merry him and start a family… It just makes me feel that I’m playing a game that was meant for straight MC. I understand that lot of games try to make utopia world, where it’s ok, I would love a world like that, but I live in this world and would like to play game where your choices make you stand out form the norm. Same goes if story feels like meant to be played like a female, your male just feels feminine or on the contrary you play as female but feel the story was meant for a male.
  • MC gender and sexuality changes NPC genders and sexuality. It’s ok, at first, I liked the idea, but in time I started to want a option, turn the switch off. I like when NPC stand on there own. I liked Jenny in Hero Project. I liked my male MC interaction with her. The comments, You make me wish i was straight. or something like that and she replayed playfully she wouldn’t date you even then. I just loved that part. It felt so right.
  • Choosing your look as a fake choice, no one will ever compliment my red mohawk :frowning: or five piercings in my nose or say i should wear something more proper and less reviling.
  • Love interest is somewhere. Lately i noticed a trend. Love interests just don’t get the spotlight. In story they more feel like background characters. They show up only to kiss you and then disappear and other then that, do the same things they would do if they didn’t date you.

Hope my English is somewhat understandable… :smiley: (since i myself am trying to do something that resembles writing a game)

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Let me hop on this.

Yay: Meaningful character creation. Too many games give you choices for you character, ranging from gender to hair color, and in almost all of them, these choices change nothing but the occasional pronoun/romance option/mention of hair. I hate that! I understand why it is that way in a lot of cases, but it’s still frustrating. ESPECIALLY in realistic settings that have race and gender options. You’re telling me a black person in the confederate south isn’t going to have problems a white person would? A gay person wouldn’t have trouble in the 50s? Sure… [Looks like that turned into a nay/// oops] In a more positive way: games that, say, let me choose my body type, and then have the romances play out differently because of such are incredible!! I want to know how hard it is for my short character to kiss her really tall girlfriend! Or even better, perhaps a short character could solve a problem by worming through a tight space, while a tall one could find a hidden key up somewhere high. Basically, use the Chekhov’s Gun idea: if you put a choice in, make sure it does SOMETHING, even if it’s just a minor dialogue change here and there, although even then that’s pushing it.

Nays: Fixed characterization and gender! Ugh!!! I would rather play a bland, unrealistic, gender-flip woman than be forced to play a dude, or straight. Same with personality! If my player is forced to have a set motivation it, ironically, kills my motivation to play. This is mostly because I like to play meek/shy/quiet characters and so many games force you to be aggressive or determined. What’s the point of a choice if it’s basically just a different coat of paint! I want to choose my car! Just think of it: The bandits attack you! What do you do? In most games it’s a choice like "Kill them with my [bow/spear/dance moves]. It’s still killing. What it should be is like: The bandits attack! What do you do? I… [Kill them/Run Away/Try to talk them down/Surrender immediately]. That’s a choice!

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Well I cant fulfil the custom in this thread of having massive posts, but i generally like massive fantasy games like fatehaven and the lost heir, and the need to change gender and name is a must, even if I personally wouldn’t use it. I also love humorous games soooooooooo much, my fav being Deathless ‘But you can run, Lords and Ladies you ca run’ and imprisoned ‘Its pretty hard to get up with no arms’ :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye::grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes::stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

The Fall of Daria is 145k and Fatehaven is 115k :stuck_out_tongue: not exactly massive in CoG standards, haha.

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Personal opinion, since those are the only ones I have. Get your own if you want others… :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:


Yays:

  • Choice of genders. Pet peeve of mine. Because I have limited time and money I can afford to be picky here and skip those not offering to play my own gender. At least ‘binary’, but more shows a considerate author, methinks
  • Romance, at least flirt level, can help make the ‘world’ feel alive, and add fun to the game
  • Despite being straight myself, choice of sexuality; preferably without asking, merely let you flirt with whatever person you want (you know who you are, doing this one right!)
  • Engaging story and characters. Hard to describe, but something needs to draw me in and keep me engaged. Make the world and its people feel real, no two-dimensional clichés unless the game is a spoof with that as a base
  • If they exist (they do in most games), stat-based choices without dead ends and a chance to
    win the day with other than the ‘ideal’ stat – keep the flow going, within the narrative
  • Difficult choices (eat the pizza now or save it… no wait, that’s easy…) Choices where it is not clear what is ‘right’, or even if there is such a choice
  • Moral choices – Star Trek reference; do the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few? And such. Of course with the following:
  • Consequences. Choices that affect the story or the characters in it. Feel you can do it. Not always, mind you, because the world should not always revolve around you either. But to feel like a leaf in a stream, with no control whatsoever, ever, gets boring quickly

Nays:

  • ‘Realistic’ historical fiction (i.e., anything set in our past) where females are almost worthless to play (we’re already making stuff up, let’s not get stuck on specifics). It’s a game, not a historical document. Dare to do this, at the very least
  • Random actions (i.e., dice rolls) that dictates your survival or other events depending solely on chance – it takes away from replaying and can put an end to enjoyment on my part
  • Stat-based choices that are do-or-die if you have the wrong ones – I hate dying in the middle of a game (esp. without saves, but even then it sucks). The only game so far that done it acceptably in my book is Tin Star (costs you Legend points to say ‘no, that didn’t happen’, with the choice to indeed die there and then.)
  • Long texts with no choice. Nothing loses my interest faster than lack of choices in a CYOA. It’s not a book, after all, so use the power of ChoiceScript – that is the whole idea of it, after all
  • Inconsequential choices that changes nothing, be it the story or characters around our MC, although this does not mean the player should be in control, of course. Just don’t make a choice utterly moot, might as well skip it then (see above point, though)

That’s just off the top off my head (you don’t want to go inside it, trust me, ha ha haa!)… :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye: :scream: :no_mouth:

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I actually find it funny when what i say has large repercussions and affects everything, and since I cant use ‘spoilers’ SPOILERŚ in choice of robots when you save USA and do really well, get a commeration coin… And then throw it in her face and get sent to prison,. End Spolier. This of course is in moderation, i dont want me saying ’ my character has blue curtains’ to kill me later on when blue is found to be the colour of the devil or something