GURPS as an MMO Engine

[Tyneras]

For this little thought experiment, GURPS is being used as the engine for an MMO of <insert favorite genre here>. However, because you have a tireless computer doing all the beancounting, the rules can have their resolution increased to your heart's content!

So, what would you do? What rules do you wish were more detailed, but have this little nitpick of mere human capacity to use them?

Personally, I would start with the damage and injury rules. Detail each part of the human body, down to the finger and toe joints, as well as breaking HP and DR and damage up by a factor of 100, so that human resistance to cuts and blows would actually show up (as tiny numbers) rather than rounding down to zero.

[Gigermann]

Originally Posted by Tyneras

Personally, I would start with the damage and injury rules. Detail each part of the human body, down to the finger and toe joints, as well as breaking HP and DR and damage up by a factor of 100, so that human resistance to cuts and blows would actually show up (as tiny numbers) rather than rounding down to zero.

Role-Master+Phoenix system ;D That would be insane.

BTW. SJG was trying to get an MMO or two going some time back—Old West if memory serves.

[The Benj]

I'm not sure about a factor of 100, but I've certainly thought about multiplying by 10 to allow finer gradations of jnjury and healing.

I'd like more detail (more variables, mostly) in the social interaction and Influence system.

[Sarge]

I'm uncertain how finer graduations of injury and healing would make the game more fun. One of the things that people like about RPGs is that they can get into a firefight / sword battle and not suffer some of the horrendus and permanently crippling wounds that people do in real life.

More detail in social interaction and influence is something that can be done in great detail with a good GM. However my experience is that MMOs handle that portion of gaming very badly. Not to say that your MMO couldn't do things differently, but I've played a number of MMOs and none of them handle interaction with NPCs very well.

[RedMattis]

I've been thinking of trying to convince my game design/graphic/programming/audio student friends to attempt designing a GURPS game, not a MMO though.

I posted some ideas here.

Basic idea is to create a game with a game with a program similar in concept to the Warcraft III Map Editor well integrated.
The system would of course use GURPS style character creation, and look kinda similar to Fallout 1 & 2 when it comes to that.

Aside of that? Top down perspective, fully destructible environments (though perhaps not beautifully so in the beginning*), and support for most GURPS powers.

Examples of GURPS abilities that would be possible would be. Appearance/Charisma/Voice, Permeation, Insubstantiality, Super Jumping, Flight, Alternate Form/Morph, as well as most if not all attack/defence and passive abilities. Examples of unlikely or impossible powers would be Control/Create and Contacts/Patron at character creation.

Do an image search for Silent Storm and Freedom Force to get an idea of how it would look.

Most likely we would first create GURPS Modern, and then GURPS medieval. Super Powers comes after that.


*Smoke+Vanish and a suitable sound effect for most objects to begin with.


- - - - -
The most difficult thing would probably be to get Steve Jackson Games approval and generally work out the deal.
- It would be great if we could get an approval for something like a non-profit game, and work out a deal for a game for sale if we are all (SJGames and Us) liking how it is going.

PS. If possible I'd like to hear whether getting approval for this kind of thing would be at all possible.

[Gigermann]

I can't cite specific sources or anything, but I've been left with the impression over the years that (a) SJG would really like to do a video game of some kind, (b) they've had a rather bad experience trying to get one going (Fallout, and the aforementioned MMO stuff), and (c) they're kind picky about licensing that sort of thing. Doesn't mean it can't happen, though, especially if you pitched them a "finished" product.

[Jonas]

I don't know, wouldn't showing them a finished product actually make it less likely to happen? I mean then any changes they'd want to have made would take a fair bit of work vs something that's still under development.

[RedMattis]

Originally Posted by Gigermann

I can't cite specific sources or anything, but I've been left with the impression over the years that (a) SJG would really like to do a video game of some kind, (b) they've had a rather bad experience trying to get one going (Fallout, and the aforementioned MMO stuff), and (c) they're kind picky about licensing that sort of thing. Doesn't mean it can't happen, though, especially if you pitched them a "finished" product.

Yeah, I too got the impression that they were interested.

Pitching a finished game probably isn't the best of ideas though.
a) Getting a complex game like that to the stage like that takes waay to long, and not getting approved means a lot of work altering to a different enough system.
b) Like Jonas said, SJ will no doubt have a number of opinions on how we should go about this, and presenting a finished product in the pitch would probably give them the feeling that we don't care much about what they think.

That said, producing a simple prototype, along with a few detailed concept drawings might not be a bad idea. (Though I think we (the would-be developers) should pump the experts at our school for information before putting together a serious presentation)


By the way, does anyone have details on the guidelines/restraints SJ put up for Black Isle Studios back when using the GURPS system for Fallout was discussed? Might be a good read if anyone know a bit more about what was going on back then.

[nick012000]

I'd buy a Transhuman Space game, as long as it's flexible enough to let you make body modifications. Maybe a licensing of the Spore engine, or something.

[The Benj]

Originally Posted by RedMattis

By the way, does anyone have details on the guidelines/restraints SJ put up for Black Isle Studios back when using the GURPS system for Fallout was discussed? Might be a good read if anyone know a bit more about what was going on back then.

No-one who is left knows. Nobody but Steve.

Everybody else is in storage, sealed in unflavoured gelatin, deep inside the warehouse...