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Destiny

Discuss all things Destiny.
Edited by Birdman: 6/17/2013 8:44:28 AM
19

Race: Beyond Aesthetics (For Game Element Consideration)

Alright, I know about the interviews talking about how race is just cosmetic, so no need to remind me (and if you don't know, I do suggest searching for the topics containing interview links. They are great). I would like to take a minute and argue on behalf of adding a small bonus to the races in order to diversify, yet balance, the choice of choosing whether you play as the confirmed Human, Awoken, or Exo in combination with the confirmed classes of Titan, hunter, and Warlock (No priority was given on names). As it stands, race in RPGs (follow me on this) utilize a specific buff and penalty in selecting race in order to add more depth to the kind of character you are attempting to create in the world provided. In my opinion, race outweighs class in terms of personal story, and story is what makes a Bungie game so intriguing. Class is merely the clothes you wear, Race is the skin you must deal with, and with a story of survival, there should be both boons and banes to the races. Examples of race in RPGs are beings such as the classic Elf, gaining a +1 bonus to Dex with a -1 penalty to Strength, or the Human, gaining an extra skill each level. This choice does not necessarily bring a commitment to a specific class, but rather adds a possible handicap, or challenge, to the player which would allow for a story to be created by the player and worked upon. Using the examples mentioned above, a player could choose to be an Elf and take the class of a heavily armored warrior (attempting ambiguity of references). The story for this character could be that [i] the Elf didn't grow up with archers or druids, but instead grew up in a city raised by a strong human who was captain of the guard and valued all races as near-equal. To make him proud, the character took up the sword and shield and diligently trained to become one of the best guards in the city. Even though the character's frail frame could barely move in the armor or swing a regular sword, the Elf character persevered and adapted to the handicaps dealt as an Elf.[/i] Destiny's races are currently aesthetic choices, which in the RPG world is unheard of, and I must admit that is quite a bold and brilliant move to unify the choice of race rarely used in modern RPGs. It, as the staff at Bungie have roughly stated, allows the player to not regret the choice they made when creating their character. I would agree with this concept except for one fact that has already been confirmed: Players will be able to create multiple characters. With the ability of creating multiple characters comes the ability for freedom of choice, variety, and removal of regret. In my opinion, though I am sure there are statistics available for this, players tend to use more than one character in RPGs (Both Offline and Online if applicable), usually due to the fact that there is so much possible player growth (in the form of skills, skill combinations, attributes, and items enhancement), no single character can do everything. Personally, I agree with this, as it promotes player importance within the game, which promotes both friendly competition and cohesive camaraderie in online play, and replay value for offline adventures. As Destiny is attempting to take elements of the RPG (MMO or not), this particular request should be considered one of the priority elements in the game's final stages. To make sure there are no regrets in choosing race, benefits should affect each class, while the penalties (if any) should act as mentioned: a challenge to the player to overcome adversity in a story of survival. A suggestion for the race benefits in Destiny could be like so (Note: The names and numbers are choices I have come up with for the sake of clarity and thought and are not confirmed by any member of Bungie. Again, this is merely to promote thought and consideration): Human: +1 Weapon Specialization (Any Weapon Type adds one to each of its parameters) (Titan), +1 Reload (Hunter), +1 Skill Cooldown (Warlock) Awoken: +1 Shield Recharge (Titan), +1 Light of the Traveler Ammo/Time (Hunter), +1 Skill Damage (Warlock) Exo: +1 Damage Reduction (Titan), +1 Stability (Hunter), Minor Regeneration (Warlock) I have chosen to omit negative affects for now, as I would like to hear thoughts on whether this is a reasonable request, and would be honored to hear back from Staff and community members. Thank you for your time.

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