This thread is for ideas and suggestions for future Elder Scrolls games, and to keep all the discussion in one series of threads.


We have a long way to go before we get another ES game. In the meantime, similar topics will be closed and referred to this one.


Note there is a separate thread specifically for http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1609912-tes-vi-location-and-setting-speculation-35/ suggestions for future games. Please keep discussion of Skyrim in the correct forums.

Sch wrote:

Yea, for me liking Daggerfall so much, that would be good news! Yea, maybe it is time to polish the random generator. After Daggerfall the popularity for the random generator was rather low. People wanted more variety in graphics. But what the random generator gave us in terms size, items and quests and epic feel is has been forgotten by many. But like fashion, things come and go, as cool as the word/phrase hand-placed sounds, that as well has downsides.

As long as it is not some VR thing they are waiting for I can relax. Because I want this game to be played in more relaxed gaming experiences than VR, and be about much more than VR.

I think any of the implied technical limitations almost certainly have to do with Radiant AI. Which, frankly, terrifies the crap out of me, because the last time they tried it, it was rubbish. Like, I'm surprised it didn't get scrapped entirely rubbish. The Sims did a better job of the exact same premise, and it came out 2 years before MORROWIND. If they hope to use Radiant AI for anything but minor background characters, they're going to have to pull off a freaking miracle.


Procedural world generation is already comfortably at the point where you can generate extremely large, varied environments with a good amount of detail, though they'd still need some hand-pruning to overcome some of the awkwardness that results. That still limits total size somewhat, though smarter use of Procedural Generation would allow for bigger worlds without much extra work.


Quests fall into a similar boat. More basic tasks would dramatically expand the range of Radiant Quests you can do, but ultimately you're going to have trouble developing coherent and interesting quest lines from random quests alone. They're going to be filler, which is fine, but they can't entirely replace writing.


Characters are where such randomization both has its biggest benefits, and most dangerous pitfalls. The ability to generate hundreds, if not thousands, of 2 dimensional characters with minimal personality or history, but enough to make them interactive and more than an Assassin's Creed or Wild Hunt cardboard cutout, allows for the ability to dramatically increase the scale of the games. But, these random NPCs can't replace written characters, and the ability to create deeper individuals with coherent personalities and interactions is something that has never really been shown, in any game. Which it's self poses a problem, because you then need to find a way to differentiate between filler Radiant characters, and the deeper Written Characters. Trying to find the 10 people worth talking to in a city of 1000 thorough trial and error is really not an option.