Over in Cafe Society Skald the Rhymer challenge Dopers to name the fictional world they’d most enjoy visiting and what sort of things they’d study/learn about while there. I think I came up with a pretty good answer (Ian Banks’ Culture to study post-capitalist economics). But then some guy suggested a visit to Gor, and I visit Second Life Gor regularly, so I posted that he COULD visit Gor and sent him an SLURL. Then a guy said he wanted to visit the cantina in Mos Eisley, and I’ve been to the Cantina in Mos Eisley via Second Life, so I sent HIM an SLURL. Then a guy suggested he wanted to visit The Village from the Prisoner TV series, and I found a sim for the Village in Second Life … etc.
Now, most of the places suggested were much more obscure and likely did not have Second Life sims devoted to them, but it occurs to me that there are a lot of other grids, MMORGS, computer RPGs, etc., out there but of course, not all of them do a terribly good job of reproducing the world of the books or movies they’re based on (those that are based on books or movies). So the question is, which games that are based on books/movies REALLY give you the feel that you are living in the world of the book/movie? Is LOTOR a pretty good evocation of living in the world of Lord of The Rings? Is Conan’s Hyborian Age game a pretty good evocation of living in Hyborea? Have you encountered a game that just knocked you out with is immersiveness? Spill!
43 reads and no responses? I must have fucked up that OP big time! Is its meaning unclear? Too long? The questions buried under too much backstory? Are computer RPers under-represented on this board? Or am I searching for a chimera?
I’ve only played a low level character, but (modulo the weirdness inherent in MMOs) the Shire in Lord of the Rings Online definitely feels like the Shire.
Im fairly high level in LOTRO, and parts of it are very realistic - some of the cavern spaces in Moria are very evocative of the movie. Some of the other zones are pretty well designed also. Lothlorien is a wonderful representation of a tree based city, and Bree is pretty decent as well. Rivendell has some good buildings, but I hate the zone because it is a pain to run around in because of the rivers and bridges. Lothlorien is a pain in the ass because of all the different levels and trees.
Well, good to know about LOTOR. I’ve often though the Shire might be a fun place to visiit. And i guess the lack of games based on books and movies would explain the lack of response. I just assumed that most TV shows would spawn a computer RPG just as a matter of course. Also, that most of them would be crappy.
It is free to play, give it a shot. I play on a German server [Gwaihir, my name is BlauLotos] because I play with a German friend I have had since I met him playing Everquest back in 1999 when it started. They have servers for US, British, German, French, Spanish and I think Russian. [I spoofed my way onto the Euro servers by downloading and installing the GB version instead of the US version. It isn’t technically against the rules.]
Another LOTRO player chipping in - other players have mentioned how the place looks like and feels authentic. I also recommend you take a look at the food you can make in the game. Mm…Lembas! The best quests and moments are the beginning of the game. I myself was blown away when I get to Rivendell for the first time (by foot, not through a waypoint) after avoiding several high level mobs.
The Romance of the Three Kingdoms strategy games (no, not Dynasty Warriors) pretty much capture the sprawling nature of the original work - lots and lots of characters, plotting, back-stabbing and marching armies back and forth.
The Witcher series of RPG has also beautifully captured the grimness and darkness of the game.
From what I have see of video reviews, Arkham Asylum and Arkham City done a good job of portraying Batman and the crapsack world that he fights and lives in.
The major properties I can think of that spawned MMORPGs of any note are:
Lord of the Rings
Conan
Star Wars
Star Trek
DC Comics
Dungeons & Dragons
LoTRO has been generally lauded as a worthwhile Middle Earth experience but I can’t speak for the rest having not played them and/or been familiar enough with the source material to judge. I’m assuming D&D was based off one of the source book game worlds.
Ebberon, specifically. (Although the most interesting Ebberon-specific race has to be unlocked, making it rather less fun than it might be to be set there.)
I don’t know about MMORPGs as I’ve played one, but three games that have done an excellent job of making excellentan immersive game from source material, whislt being true to that source material are:
SW:KOTOR II, Batman:Arkham Assylum and Baldur’s Gate
Well Gor (based on John Norman’s Gor novels, very kinky and adult stuff) in Second Life has about 300 sims and players estimated between 30,000 and 50,000 (it’s hard to get estimates in Second Life because of the widespread use of avatars, the best estimate I know of is a Linden estimate (the Lindens own Second Life) of about 45,000 players from a few years ago. But not everybody believes Linden estimates.