[Discussion] Wandering OW's, y/n?

[Abnegation]

You know, those little guys wandering about your maps? This is something the original pokemon games have not really done. But a lot of game developers like to have some pokemon overworlds wander about their maps, but these little guys may not always have a purpose and are usually for aesthetic and visual appeal. How do you guys feel about this technique? I'm aware there are a lot of mixed opinions.

 

[Cilerba]

You're on a roll with these threads, eh Gavin?
I do it myself, and I love the technique. It makes the maps seem more "alive," rather than just walking around with a couple of NPC's. :P

 

[Lord Varion]

It seems like a good idea.
It shows pokémon have some sense of freedom rather than being either trapped by trainers or forced to relocate due to cities and towns being built.

I say yes. :3

 

[flamemaster]

i personally, think that you should alway's have them in a game, not nessicarily in every map, but in like wild places like forests.
it just adds much more life and realism to the game.

 

[Maruno]

If they're there and I can't battle them, there's no point them being there in the first place. It may add a bit of life to maps, but if they're also going to behave differently to how I think they should (i.e. I should be able to battle all wild Pokémon, which isn't unreasonable), then maybe you should just make better maps instead.

Another reason why I wouldn't be fond of them is that the Pokémon lurking in tall grass are completely invisible. Of course they are; there's an infinite number of them, and it's hard to fit an infinite number of sprites in a finite patch of grass (no, really). If I can't see the important ones (the ones I can battle), why can I see the ones that are decoration? And if I can battle the decorations, why are they still different to invisible grass-based mons?

I think if you're going to show Pokémon bobbing around in the overworld like that, you need to go all the way and have them be the only way you encounter Pokémon. And the only way I can think of is to load a finite number of bobbing Pokémon when you enter a map, be able to battle just them (no spontaneous encounters), and then reload some more when you leave and return (or after a while depending on the current population). I seem to recall the Mystery Dungeon games doing this.

Of course, that's too difficult to expect just anyone to program (although it's probably easier than you think). The trick would be to make them stay in their regions (in the grass/water, although cave dwellers could just wander anywhere). It'd be different, though.

On the other hand, the various legendary Pokémon, Snorlax, Sudowoodo, Kecleon, Drifloon and so forth all stand around waiting for battles, and they're fine for no reason other than we're used to it because all games do it. But these Pokémon are important, either by being roadblocks or specials/legendaries, and having them be visible makes that clear and is the distinction. If you can see it, it's special.

So on the whole, I think that while they add a little to the atmosphere, it detracts more from the gameplay by being inconsistent with the rest of it.

 

[Abnegation]

If they're there and I can't battle them, there's no point them being there in the first place. It may add a bit of life to maps, but if they're also going to behave differently to how I think they should (i.e. I should be able to battle all wild Pokémon, which isn't unreasonable), then maybe you should just make better maps instead.

Another reason why I wouldn't be fond of them is that the Pokémon lurking in tall grass are completely invisible. Of course they are; there's an infinite number of them, and it's hard to fit an infinite number of sprites in a finite patch of grass (no, really). If I can't see the important ones (the ones I can battle), why can I see the ones that are decoration? And if I can battle the decorations, why are they still different to invisible grass-based mons?

I think if you're going to show Pokémon bobbing around in the overworld like that, you need to go all the way and have them be the only way you encounter Pokémon. And the only way I can think of is to load a finite number of bobbing Pokémon when you enter a map, be able to battle just them (no spontaneous encounters), and then reload some more when you leave and return (or after a while depending on the current population). I seem to recall the Mystery Dungeon games doing this.

Of course, that's too difficult to expect just anyone to program (although it's probably easier than you think). The trick would be to make them stay in their regions (in the grass/water, although cave dwellers could just wander anywhere). It'd be different, though.

On the other hand, the various legendary Pokémon, Snorlax, Sudowoodo, Kecleon, Drifloon and so forth all stand around waiting for battles, and they're fine for no reason other than we're used to it because all games do it. But these Pokémon are important, either by being roadblocks or specials/legendaries, and having them be visible makes that clear and is the distinction. If you can see it, it's special.

So on the whole, I think that while they add a little to the atmosphere, it detracts more from the gameplay by being inconsistent with the rest of it.

And this is exactly what I agree with. It leads to inconsistency. However. Something I may support would be flying pokemon, occasionally going past the screen on a variable which cannot be interacted with. If done right, I see no harm in that. I would also agree with wandering pokemon in towns and cities, who belong to nearby trainers and people.

 

[Yuoaman]

I'm on the fence about it - while they do add life to the map I do find that they make a lot of maps rather busy. And overly busy maps that are well-made are just as bad as badly made maps. :\

 

[Silver25]

I'm on the fence about it - while they do add life to the map I do find that they make a lot of maps rather busy. And overly busy maps that are well-made are just as bad as badly made maps. :\

That's pretty much how I feel about them. If used effectively and like others have mentioned before with the interaction, I think they can really make a game more lively. But having them all over the place is just cluttering and actually detracts from the gaming experience.

 

[Worldslayer608]

While I understand everyones point as to why they should not be in a game, it is important to understand that the ones you can see, should be used in a reasonable manner. Just because you cannot see them in grass does not mean one inside a town should not exist.

Wild pokemon overworlds should be used for special reason, much like in the official version. Wild Pokemon Overworlds should not litter a map without function. For example, a Wild bulbasaur to entice the player over to it. wild bulbasaur runs off over some special terrain to show the player what it is, then runs off is a great way to use them. Or flying pokemon over a screen for decoration and realism is a fine way to use them. But just littering them on a map with no apparent purpose other then looks, and having the pokemon sit there is a terrible way to execute things.

They should be in games though simply because it helps bring the player into the game which is important. You want the player to experience as much as possible.

But this thread just gave me a pretty slick idea. If you want to display wild pokemon overworlds in grass a neat little thing you can do is write a simple script that will flash and OW of a wild pokemon in the grass at a random location, then poof and pull out another one in a different location. A little pointless, but it at least adds that sense that the player is chasing actual wild pokemon.

It is all about execution.

 

[Rossay]

I think they can be a nice touch to add a bit of colour to otherwise bland areas, but I find over-use can ruin otherwise good maps.

I have no objection to them being in towns etc (because they are in real Pokemon games) but in routes they need to be used sparingly.

 

[dannyboy601]

I agree with Rossay on this one. I think that they add a bit of life to maps and make them seem less bland, which is why don't mind the idea of them being used in towns and cities. However I think that using them on routes is a pretty bad idea. They can make the map seem very cluttered and not to mention, when using certain game making software, cause lag and even glitches. Unless they belong to an NPC, or are flying over the map, I think that they shouldn't be used on routes at all.