Fallout 4 - multiple origin choices?

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Ekans22

First time out of the vault
Like they did in dragon age Origins? Was reading the thread on possible race selection and made me think - maybe instead of choosing a race (or in addition to choosing a race); choose a faction for your character. Or just a background.

If it was similar to DA:O (dragon age: Origins), they could have an introductory quest line(at least 30 min - 1 hour) that is tailored to your race/background selection, but which also introduces you to the campaign world from the perspective of your origin story.

Ie, if you played an Enclave citizen, the information you get on whatever region the game takes place in would be horribly skewed and propgandic. (enclave is just an example - could do any timeline, any region, etc).

Could have faction-based origins, based on whatever region the game takes place in. (hopefully with mostly new factions that haven't been in any previous FO game - at least I'm hoping, personally).

Could also have non-faction origins; like raider, slave, slaver, caravan guard, etc.

Or break them up by region; ie, you come from this vault vs you come from this tiny settlement over here on the streets vs you're wealthy and spoiled (as much as can be, in the wastes) and living it large in big hub/city here.

Its a lot of programming work/writing - but I don't think its so bad as long as all intro/origin stories end with setting you 'free' somehow in the writing, so that you can explore the wastes. A lot of work, but would also be cool if the game treated you differently throughout the story based on the origin you chose, and even made some quests accessible/forbidden pending on it. Would certainly increase replay value for me.

What do ya think?
 
My personal preference is for an old-school origin (I.E. it's left to you to determine who you are, but what you are is a vault dweller/tribal/etc.) or a "bottleneck" origin (I.E. "Your history is mostly yours to decide, but when we fade in on our story you're a courier/prisoner/etc.).For my part, I'd sooner have the writers and programmers focus their attention on a really strong central story and as many well-written, multi-variable quests as they can fit into the game. I wouldn't mind seeing multiple origins, even if it would make for a very different kind of Fallout than we're used to, but in practice I think that to fully commit to it would wind up being a big demand on time and resources, and the game would probably end up hurting for it elsewhere unless Bethesda was willing to say "sky's the limit" on the budget and development cycle.

A good way to go might be something like what they did with Arcanum, where you could nail down a rough origin for your character by choosing backstory traits during creation (but always started in the same situation), or like they had slated for Van Buren, where it was up to you to choose whether you were innocent or guilty of the crime you began the game imprisoned for and your story/character would subsequently reflect that choice.
 
Dragon Age Origins used some like 6 unique intro stories, and I thought it still had a solid main story/quest line. Not sure how the budgets compare though. Also had (albeit not super commonly) some NPCs react to your character differently pending on your origin pick.

I think multiple origins could be feasible as long as there are only a few to pick from, and that they're relatively short (like in DA:O)
 
Yamu said:
A good way to go might be something like what they did with Arcanum, where you could nail down a rough origin for your character by choosing backstory traits during creation (but always started in the same situation), or like they had slated for Van Buren, where it was up to you to choose whether you were innocent or guilty of the crime you began the game imprisoned for and your story/character would subsequently reflect that choice.
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I really dig the approach they took with Arcanum. You could really be anyone yet the story was your own, because of the circumstances. I'll admit, though, that they could have used a better McGuffin to get the character on the road than a dwarf-gnome that asks you for a favor before dying...

Van Buren idea is cool as well. Very good indeed, actually. Similar to Baldur's Gate 2, where you start in imprisonment as well. Interesting thing with BG2 is that there you can make a 180 degree turn alignment wise from your playthrough in BG1, because of the memory wipe and experimenting on the PC.

Multiple backgrounds can really only work if each background provides their own initial motivator for the player character (to enter the game world) and then a common motivator that drags them into the main plot. Kind of like the mini quests for NPCs in New Vegas or Baldur's Gate - Cass' story with her caravan, ED-E's upgrades and background, Minsc on his quest to find and rescue Dynaheir, Jaheira's trouble with Harpers. That sort of thing.
 
I would like to see my character to be able to finally talk and not just stand there not doing anything like a moron while I'm selecting dialogue options.
It could work like this - you're a vault dweller/tribal/whatever, male or female but both male/female characters would have a spoken dialogue and not just the HUD with dialogue.
Maybe it's only me but games that are focused on story with the main character not being able to TALK aren't exactly what I'm looking for in a game made in 2013 so please Bethesda ... get your sh** together and make that happen <3
 
Origins in the Enclave would be fantastic, then I can finally play as an actual human! Well...at least I wouldn't have to pretend that the player wasn't some mutated dirty wastelander who the Enclave would exterminate.

I think it would be interesting the story looking at the other side and not having this cookie-cutter good vs. evil (i.e Fallout 3). In the end, the only thing that is judging what is good or evil is your mind.

One Enclave, One America.
 
Agree with Lyra in terms of voice acting of main character.

But only if its good voice acting. Beth...Needs...better...voice..acting.....-baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaadly- (not to overstate)
 
I am completely opposed of turning the dialogue in Fallout into Mass Effect, the amount of money that goes into voice acting already limits the variety of dialogue choices in the newer games because of the reactions of the npcs, if they were to make every single Science, speech, gun, explosive, etc check voice acted that would mean reducing them in number and complexity. Your character doesn't stand around while you choose dialogue options, s/he is the one saying them, s/he is not a passive character either, as the point of the Fallout games is player actions afecting the game world.
 
Yeah, I never understood why we can't have unvoiced generic characters, with only voice acting for the more important ones.
Or maybe they could crowdsource mook voice acting. :P
 
Akratus said:
Or maybe they could crowdsource mook voice acting. :P
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That would be interesting.. let people make an account, get sent a generic non spoilery line like "patrolling the mojave makes me wish for a nuclear winter" then betheseda pays 10 dollars or so for the best one. cheaper for them and not everyone would have the same voice
 
There's plenty of people out there with perfectly good voices and recording equipment. You really would want to see this potential fix for Beth Voice Syndrome?
 
It's not just a matter of having a good voice, you need voice directors, sound mixing and lip synching to make it sound good. And you can't crowd source that, people don't do that amount of work for free.
 
Walpknut said:
It's not just a matter of having a good voice, you need voice directors, sound mixing and lip synching to make it sound good. And you can't crowd source that, people don't do that amount of work for free.
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You underestimate the devotion of Beth fans. And what do you mean lip synching and sound mixing? Beth would do that of course. I said crowdsource voice acting, but I meant crowdsourcing just the voices themselves.
 
Let me put it this way then, I am completely opposed to crowdsourcing resources on the behalf of large companies, if they want free resources then they should get shitty resources.
 
Sometimes I wonder why people care that much about people speaking anyway. You've been taught to read, it's not a difficult ability.

Been playing Legend of Zelda recently, a series with absolutely no spoken dialogue. It's been fine, no problems (it's actually been quite fun voice acting the characters myself) so I don't get the whole "WE NEED EVERYONE TALKING THING" (especially when most of the people are voiced by the same actor anyway)

Why do people want the main character to speak? I thought the point was it was your own voice speaking, thus it being first person. And of course having voice actors just horribly limits the amount of dialogue you can have. So no thanks, I'm fine with where it is.

On the actual background thing, yeah it could be pretty cool. I was thinking how a game could literally just plonk you in the middle of the desert and you're just given a number of options of who you MIGHT have been, or you could even go with no backstory (amnesiac blank slate type) It's just my own opinion it's not necessarily the best (the Two Courier story of you and Ulysses was amazing, something you would obviously lose with a chosen backstory)
 
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