How Important Should Companions Be? : V

» Tue May 03, 2011 6:51 am

should specific quests be available only if you have certain companions in your party should certain bosses require companions to defeat them such as big daddies or 1000 year old lichs or maybe the more powerful dragons? i like how new vegas had quests only available when certain companions were in the party and they even helped some of the quests as well.

this obviously wouldnt apply to main quests unless bethesda has designed them that way. but it would be fun for lots of side quests.

» Tue May 03, 2011 6:10 am

Companions are my favorite thing about Fallout New Vegas but they really don't talk them up much for Skyrim. I would have like the deep backstories again but we won't be getting that. Todd did say in an interview that they were going for *many* companions. I love them...but I want them to be made Essential.

» Tue May 03, 2011 5:18 am

Hopefully not as much as FO:NV.

I really, really hated the way companions worked in FO3 & NV. They were easy enough to avoid in FO3 (like, clear out the Archives with Sydney left behind, then drag her through the empty halls to the finish), but the fact that so much plot & quest was tied to the companions in NV made me feel forced to take them, even though I really really really didn't want to.

Being forced to play a way you don't enjoy, in order to access a decent amount of the game content? A bit annoying.

» Tue May 03, 2011 10:01 am

Companions should be as important as the player makes them.

They shouldn't be something you have to use and that game mechanics force you to rely upon.

If you wanna treat them as a meatbag and pack mule then go ahead.

» Tue May 03, 2011 1:01 am

I kinda liked how they were handled in New Vegas. Backstories, smart dialogue...all in all, quite excellent.
On the other hand, perhaps that wouldn't fit in so much with TES. As long as they aren't like they were in Oblivion (Dark Brotherhood Murderers anyone?) then I don't mind how they're handled.

» Tue May 03, 2011 12:43 am

not to terribly important but still they should play a part

» Tue May 03, 2011 6:30 am

I've never really cared much about companions. Always thought they are in the way or ruining my personal travel experience, or that I have to look after them all the time or whatnot.

» Tue May 03, 2011 7:26 am

None although I'm thinking that the AI has dramaticaly improved since Oblivion so it's possible but not likely.

» Tue May 03, 2011 12:55 am

Dragon Age really spoiled me in terms of companions, so It's going to be hard to explore this vast world completely alone, but that's what gives the ES series its special vibe, I think, the loneliness is a big part of who our hero is, so I don't think companions should play a big role. I haven't played NV, so I can't say whether that system would work in Skyrim.

» Tue May 03, 2011 9:20 am

I think companions in Skyrim should be like "optional", you don't need them but you can get one(or more) if you want.
In New Vegas I really liked their backstories and quests, when you do "their" quests you get better know him/her and so on...
:slap:

» Mon May 02, 2011 8:46 pm

Companions don't do much for me, I like my solo wanderings.

They seem to run to extremes...either made of glass and not even good meat shields/cannon fodder, or so brutally overpowered you can grab one then never touch a weapon for the rest of the game. (And worst of all...essential, genuinely immortal ones. :sick:)

Ultimately, all I care about is that if they're there, they stay optional so I'm not saddled with them "like it or not."

» Tue May 03, 2011 2:15 am

Companions don't do much for me, I like my solo wanderings.

They seem to run to extremes...either made of glass and not even good meat shields/cannon fodder, or so brutally overpowered you can grab one then never touch a weapon for the rest of the game. (And worst of all...essential, genuinely immortal ones. :sick:)

Ultimately, all I care about is that if they're there, they stay optional so I'm not saddled with them "like it or not."

^

I'm not a fan of companions. I prefer having nothing holding me back, and thats all a companion really does.. I hope that if they do force you to use a companion at some point, the companions don't constantly jump in front of the axe you're swinging at an enemy.

» Tue May 03, 2011 6:32 am

I don't want them to be necessary because sometimes i like to go it alone and if they are going to have them do them right with fleshed out backstories and stuff like that.

I think NV did great in that respect but they definitely could be even better which is what they should shoot for with skyrim of course. Btw I do know nv wasnt done by Bethesda but they should definitely use it as a standard.

» Mon May 02, 2011 10:41 pm

I have no use for companions and have never enjoyed the company of even a single one of the ones available, and all too often forced on me, in TES games. Not even one. I see no redeeming value to them at all.

That said, if Beth wants to put some purely optional companions into the game, I have no particular problem with that. But if they set it up so that I HAVE TO travel with them in order to gain access to parts of the game, I'm that much more likely to just not bother buying the game at all. I could cope with things like escorting the Jemanes to Weatherleah or going with Mazoga to Fisherman's Rock, but that's about the extent of my patience.

» Tue May 03, 2011 9:25 am

I would prefer more companions for variety sake, they don't need to have their own quest line or whatever, a simple background would be nice but not one that takes up alot of space for other kinds of content.

I would rather be able to befriend and recruit almost any npc to become a companion. but have a few that are tougher and that there is no doubt that their existence is to be a companion.

» Tue May 03, 2011 11:08 am

I'm not a fan of companions. I prefer having nothing holding me back, and thats all a companion really does.. I hope that if they do force you to use a companion at some point, the companions don't constantly jump in front of the axe you're swinging at an enemy.

when I choose a companion I tend to select one with a different skillset than mine. Like if my Char is a in your face barbarian my companion may be more skilled in ranged fighting, say for example archery.

a good companion may end holding you back from going into the abyss

» Tue May 03, 2011 1:14 am

For me, the main use for my companion is as a porter. When it comes to fights, I'd rather not have to rely on them.

» Tue May 03, 2011 2:06 am

Not very. I found the companions in FO3/NV to be really boring, but had to take them along or miss out on content.

» Tue May 03, 2011 11:08 am

Will one of them give you the whiskey rose perk? No? Not interested then, back to working alone, or with a dog, and I am talking a Fallout dog, not a Fable dog.

» Tue May 03, 2011 12:44 am

In Fallout I loved having companions around, but in TES I don't care too much for them. That said, since they are there, I would much rather have less companions, but with a deeper story about them (unfortunately we won't be getting that...again.). It always bugged me about how they were handled in FO3, but in New Vegas they (Obsidian) hit the nail on the head there.

» Tue May 03, 2011 1:39 am

no to necessary party members or companions with real ability, I want companions on lvl with lower npc's and the ability to have bunches of them should I so choose ,.... slaves , guards, ect,.... and thats it I want to be able to kill everything by myself for the most part with them at the most annoying my adversaries !!!!

» Tue May 03, 2011 2:54 am

If I can find a cute Bosmer to lend me some sniper support, then I shall have an companion. Otherwise I don't need them. The occasional quest companion is fine, but no FONV companions and companions quest for me.

Or a gorgeous Breton healer...

» Tue May 03, 2011 1:55 am

I would actually love companions if the AI was good enough so that they don't mess up my work but still remain what they are. For example the DB assassins...if I'm an assassin both of us should take different targets and snipe them or something, but if I'm a barbarian I still want my companion to act like an assassin (hiding in the shadows and what not).

» Tue May 03, 2011 4:25 am

I don't care how much depth they have

» Tue May 03, 2011 7:47 am

The only companions I like are the Adoring Fan kind.......they carry my torch, obey me like there a dog, and there so very easy to slay........ :evil: