Larian Studios Forums Baldur's Gate III Baldur's Gate III - General Lets talk about Romance, the Birds and the Bees

Choices within that game, I'm with you. but why would I treat a choice I make in a game that resulted in the same outcome within that game, differently than a choice I made in a game that resulted in the same outcome in a different game. (unless you're making a game about the meaninglessness of your actions) I think you're really on my side here, otherwise you wouldn't say you dream of it.

Talking about time and money is a practical concern that limits the scope of a story, using it as a justification for the design of that story isn't really an excuse. Don't misunderstand me though, I'm not saying those stories aren't good because of it, I'm not saying a game isn't good without unlimited resources, I'm just talking about the friction that occurs between the illusion of choice in these games and the continuity between them. Every story requires some buy in from the audience, Garrus being on Omega didn't ruin it for me, it's just that when you start seeing it everywhere, you star seeing the invisible walls that keep the narrative on track. Creating a story where your choices with Garrus, in Mass Effect 1, had meaningful ramifications on the story of Mass Effect 2, would have required the game actually deal with the story of Mass Effect 1, instead of resetting the table, and giving us a main plotline that amounting to little more than a sidequest in the trilogy. And Mass Effect 2 is my favorite of the series.

I think we're going to be getting games that do it better and better, I think that's why the games industry is so excited by things like 'emergent gameplay' because they want systems that are able to adapt the story based on the user's input.