Human Head's Paper Gaming Secrets

Although some of you probably know Human Head as the videogame developers behind Rune, as well as the forthcoming Unreal-engined Dead Man's Hand and an as-yet unannounced Doom 3 engine title, but thanks to OgreCave for pointing out the company is diversifying back into board and paper-gaming with Human Head Games. This intriguing step includes "The Redhurst Academy of Magic, a new setting sourcebook designed for use in d20 System world settings and compatible with the new 3.5 edition of the Dungeons & Dragons rules", as well as a new boardgame title, which OgreCave reveal as being "Gothica: Dracula's Revenge, a two-player game set a few years after Bram Stoker's Dracula novel, where Dracula and his forces face off against Van Helsing and his allies in the streets of London." What other videogame companies would you like to see doing board/paper games?

Comments

P'n'P Rules in Computer Games Suck

[code-e255]

I really dislike video games which are based on pen and paper rules, such as D&D. D&D is good as a pen and paper game, but it sucks in computer games. It's too slow, overly complicated (complexity is good, but complication isn't), and just too old.

Most p'n'p rules are way too unfocused. They give you tons of useless spells which you don't need, skills which you probably will never use, and they provide you with lots of absolutely insignificant statistics. This doesn't really matter in real role playing games, because humans can use their imaginations to put all those things to use, but video games are more limited, so they need focus.

What makes a good RPG system in my opinion? *Simple*, but *significant* statistics and *clearly* defined classes (if applicable), skills and spells which are *all* useful and *fun* to use.

To be honest, I don't know many games which achieve this. I can only think of Diablo II (which is only half-way there - some stats/skills in DII are still a little useless [although the upcoming patch will probably improve on this]) and WarCraft III (that's right... I think this game whichh is mainly a RTS game, has the best RPG system). In WarCraft III, all the stats (armour strength/type, hit/manapoints, strength, agility, intelligence, damage (bonus) etc.) are significant and simple to understand. Same with the special skills/spells. There are few, but they all rock - they are useful and unique, they are fun and they look cool! Unlike many p'n'p games, the stats/skills/spells are clearly defined. The developers of this don't try to hide any facts and want the players to find out what everything does and how it works. All the player needs to learn is when to use the skills/spells - when they are most effective. I think the MMORPG EverQuest also has a decent RPG system, although definitely not perfect.

The Baldur's Gate games and Neverwinter Nights (recent games I've played based on p'n'p rules) could have been a lot better if the developers would have created their own RPG systems, imho. Even very heavy modifications to the p'n'p rules which a game is based on is OK, I think, but very strict conversions of p'n'p rules into computer games result in failure

Re:P'n'P Rules in Computer Games Suck

[lafiel]

Although I agree with you that D&D is slow, complex and overly complicated (especially for computer gaming), I don't think that's the reason why pen and paper doesn't seem to succeed as well in computer gaming... or that people dislike computer games based on it.

Remember that D&D is based on character and the ability to role-play, not roll-play. Four hours in D&D could go by without any players ever rolling a single dice. It's not a combat orientated game (although it's certainly important), but a game of imagination and ingenuity. Nowhere else but pen and paper could you decide to suddenly drop a ton of water on the Golem in front of you, run up, freeze it, and then hoist it back to town and let it loose.

Computer games simply can't keep it with something like that. You're right, computer games need to be focused... that's why games like Neverwinter and Baldur's probably would've been a lot better based on their own system. Pen and paper is simply freeform role playing...

Pen and paper will remain where it is... a type of game that simply won't be programmed perfectly because of it's incredible diversity.