[Damned_Queen]

The fourth category is easy imo. Bittersweet endings invoke feelings and are something you remember. Happy endings are ok, but they don't feel very emotional.

Best game ending (from a "WOOHOO! Yeah!" emotional-reaction point of view) that I've seen in awhile was Mass Effect 1. Very stirring/emotional/energizing/etc. Also, happy. (the end of the fight with the big bad, that is. The final epilogue/discussion isn't bad, but the fight climix is the real payoff.) And I get that same reaction on multiple playthroughs - it's really excellently done.


Worst ending I've run into recently was Divinity 2:Ego Draconis. Partially, because it wasn't actually an ending, but was actually a cliffhanger that you need the expansion to resolve, but also because it was a

Spoiler

bad/evil/"you lose"

ending/cliffhanger.
You fight your way through all the quests, solve the problems, beat up the badguys, and then

Spoiler

learn that you've actually been tricked, you've actually managed to resurrect/repower the Great Evil, and you're locked in a crystal prison to watch as they destroy the countryside.

Great, just great. No, I'm not interested in endings like that.

I like good endings. In games with multiple possible ends, I work hard to make sure I get the "good" one. None of this post-modern grey/grim/dark crap. Can't wait for that whole trend to die down a bit.

[brenden casey]

See one thing id like to see with the MQ is that i want to be threatened by Alduin. I mean the deadra were a joke and it was a chore to close the gates... I want to get that rush when ever im confronted by a dragon and i want to feel like no matter what im going to win... As much as i loved oblivion i just hated how Mehrunes Dagon just wasnt a real threat to me even when he was standing right infront of me... I mean my wabbajack simpily fixed that problem.... I want Alduin to be a threat that is to be taken seriously

[Stacey Mason]

Sorry, but lore and canon are what drive this series. Without them, there is no series. I hate when a game has multiple endings but then the next game only takes one as canonical, or else just ignores it altogether, undermining your accomplishments of the past game as inconsequential. Personally, I would be much more satisfied looking at the one main story and how it will effect the world and what the repercussions are, rather than just not think about any of it because there are multiple endings and who's to say which one is going to be considered canonical, if any at all? And all for the sake of some arbitrary gameplay element.

Well wouldn't having multiple endings all resulting in Alduin(?) dieing be alright? It's the same general ending but achieved in different ways. With the next game referring to a hero who stopped Nirm from being eaten. There doesn't have to be a true cannon one either because it all leads up to the same thing which is the death of the big baddie

[Prohibited]

I want Bethesda to take inspiration from how great the MW main quest was. Other than that I just want Bethesda to do their thing, because they're really good at it.

[Melly Angelic]

I said easy on the morality. Better than OB but not a central theme. Beth hasn't proved to be adept at implementing this, so I'd rather they address it w/o making it a big deal.

Also sixuality and games are pretty much laughable. Some light references would be fine but it's such a difficult topic to cover, let alone in a high-fantasy setting that it's just not likely to come off well.

[Jesus Duran]

I think that the MAIN questline should and will be good vs evil as is always, there should be 1 ending for the main questline for lore purposes and you can play through all the other factions and quests however you like 'good or evil' and those will be different through radiant story. Main questline will likely be heavily scripted with a set conclusion and rightly so.

A karma system would not fit well me thinks

[Nymph]

I think that the MAIN questline should and will be good vs evil as is always, there should be 1 ending for the main questline for lore purposes and you can play through all the other factions and quests however you like 'good or evil' and those will be different through radiant story. Main questline will likely be heavily scripted with a set conclusion and rightly so.

It's not very fair to force people who want to roleplay an evil character to play a goodie in the MQ though.

[Trey Johnson]

Yea, i honestly dont want to save the world right away. Let me develop my character in the world as i did in Morrowind, and then slowly discover my true potential as a Dragonborn.

Just being the Superhero immediately isnt fun for me, i have to experience the depth of the world myself, and learn the game.
I dont want to just slice through it

As for Moral Choice, im all for it, because how you act towards people should affect how they see you and behave towards you.

Romance however....does not seem like something that is in the Elder Scrolls area of expertise, this is a game of exploration, mystic weirdness and bizarre discoveries. Not a Smoochie whoochie game.

[Andrew Lang]

I really, really hope we can just drop the whole MQ if we feel like it. I voted: 4, 5, 1, 2, 2.
5 on the second one is other, that means I don't really care how it will be done.
2 on the last one is simply there if it is really, really well done, otherwise it's a straight 3.

Bittersweet ending ofcourse, if the world is threatened it shouldn't be just won and then be forgotten, it should be remembered for ages and the victory comes with a great sacrifice.

[Lance Vannortwick]

My only comments will be related to the survey itself. The OP did a very good job of providing questions, that if properly considered, could give one pause for thought to a response, rather than replying with a gut level reaction type answer.

Thought provoking and articulate. I would vetnure to guess that at some point in the OP's gaming experience, speechcraft may have been a significant attribute.

Well done OP!

[[Bounty][Ben]]

Well wouldn't having multiple endings all resulting in Alduin(?) dieing be alright? It's the same general ending but achieved in different ways. With the next game referring to a hero who stopped Nirm from being eaten. There doesn't have to be a true cannon one either because it all leads up to the same thing which is the death of the big baddie

Well, Alduin dying would result in the end of Mundus permanently and wouldn't be possible, but I know what you're getting at, and yeah, I think I said in my original post that I'm fine with slightly different paths so long as they all end in the same place. Morrowind did something like that.

[BethanyRhain]

Well, Alduin dying would result in the end of Mundus permanently and wouldn't be possible, but I know what you're getting at, and yeah, I think I said in my original post that I'm fine with slightly different paths so long as they all end in the same place. Morrowind did something like that.

Alright, I was a little confused is all, but that's something that would be cool to see happen

[Aliish Sheldonn]

Biased poll, but at least you tried It was clear to see which answers suit your preferences, though.

First things first, what I "actually want from Skyrim's story" is: TWISTS. Not in the sense of "oh no we thought the amulet was safe and now it's stolen", but in the sense of "this new character and his explanations turn this whole story upside-down! I'm on the wrong side here and Esbern should be slain for his betrayal!"
That's one important question you've missed, in my opinion. Now, on to the other questions.

1) I want the story to start late. I like how they start with a bang, and have dragons appear everywhere, but I wouldn't like it if I had to jump into action right away. And I can think of several ways to slow down the progression of the story, so I hope they do that.

2) Personally, I never liked branching stories that much. I like the concept, but in practice it just doesn't work for me if it's somehow tied to moral or strategic choices that I have to make, because then I feel either rewarded or punished for that, depending on how it turns out; and I'm not a fan of that. I want to play my character the way I want without having to fear that I will trigger the bad ending or anything.
What I do like is choosing which path you will take to get to the same ending. For example, Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis had three completely different paths, with different locations and different story twists and everything. One was action-based, the second puzzle-based and the third teamwork-based, but mostly they were simply completely different in how the story developed - the labyrinth of Knossos serves a completely different purpose in each of the paths, to name an example. But once you wound up in Atlantis, it didn't matter anymore how you got there; the finale was a whole other story (and it was only in this last chapter that you could make choices that influence the ending). I would really like to see something like this in a game again, it was good stuff and each path was a lot of fun.

3) Grey shades should be extremely important in the game. I'm sick of good vs. evil, just like I'm sick of being able to make a choice whenever presented with a moral dilemma. Sometimes, things are just grey and there's nothing you can do about it. Complex moral circumstances make for interesting stories, especially if you sometimes have to do things you don't like.

4) I voted for "happy ever after", even though I'm not so sure about this. But I somehow have the feeling that many games now try to seem more "rugged" and interesting by giving you a bittersweet or bad ending. And often, that feels really cheap. A good happy ending is much, much harder to pull off. But sometimes, stories just manage to put a satisfied smile on your face when you finish them, and it's just so much better.

[Jhenna lee Lizama]

Voted: 3-2-1-2-3.

Though with morality I'd rather have it to be treated/presented as "prismatic tints" than simply "shades of grey" (which I find still too two-dimensional to representing the real-life moral dilemmas).

First things first, what I "actually want from Skyrim's story" is: TWISTS. Not in the sense of "oh no we thought the amulet was safe and now it's stolen", but in the sense of "this new character and his explanations turn this whole story upside-down! I'm on the wrong side here and Esbern should be slain for his betrayal!"
That's one important question you've missed, in my opinion. Now, on to the other questions.

You know what? I have this funny feeling that this kind of deal might actually be in store for us...

[Jeffrey Lawson]

BGS have repeatedly stated that they just want to make games that people want to play.

Misquote here. What they actually keep saying repeatedly is "We try to make the game that we want to play."

[jaideep singh]

I like good endings. In games with multiple possible ends, I work hard to make sure I get the "good" one. None of this post-modern grey/grim/dark crap. Can't wait for that whole trend to die down a bit.

glad to see i'm not the only one here who shares that point of view.

[Pawel Platek]

This was a well thought-out poll.

I do have preference, but for the most part I'll be happy with the simple fact that the player gets to be the protagonist this time around. For all the faults that Oblivion had, nothing stung worse than that.

[XPidgex Jefferson]

I want the world to know that I am the hero. They did it somewhat in Oblivion. I want Skyrim to throw me a celebration after I defeat Alduin.

[Stephanie I]

This was a well thought-out poll.

I do have preference, but for the most part I'll be happy with the simple fact that the player gets to be the protagonist this time around. For all the faults that Oblivion had, nothing stung worse than that.

*player fighting dagon*

*martin kill steals dagon*

player: We were fighting like MEN!


http://angryjoeshow.com/2010/08/the-dd-freakout/

[Klaire]

*player fighting dagon*

*martin kill steals dagon*

player: We were fighting like MEN!


http://angryjoeshow.com/2010/08/the-dd-freakout/

That was a quality video, I must say. And yes, it felt like that. :rofl:

[Queen Bitch]

1) Immediately, or early. That'd be the political, not so urgent, stuff, with the "omg dragons" kicking in about half way.
2) A few decisions, but major ones.
3) A palate of gray, with some shades of gray, and gray accents.
4) Bitter sweet. Was doing X really the right thing, or did I mess up the future? (*coughtmorrowindcough*)
5) Other - I don't want a developed romance, but I do want a character who you can really care for. So a strong comradery or student/teacher relationship.

[Elena Alina]

in the section for the ending i put other. i think thier should be multiple endings. if your an amazing tes player and you woop alduins ass you should have a peacefull ending where everything continued happily ever after or so to speak. and if alduin woops your ass, it should show a cutscene of the world ending (however it might happen). this will give people more incentive to do more play throughs.

[Nuno Castro]

Biased poll, but at least you tried It was clear to see which answers suit your preferences, though.

Not sure to what you're referring to. Each option has pros and cons to which I tried to allude, but I refrained from ridiculing the options that I find slightly unpalatable.

Misquote here. What they actually keep saying repeatedly is "We try to make the game that we want to play."

Well in that case, who are you to speak for them?

[Erich Lendermon]

I liked the way Morrowind did the main quest as opposed to Oblivion's.You didn't know too much about it and your goals were not clear.In Oblivion you have a pretty good idea of whats going on in the beginning,and to me that sullied the sense of discovery.I think Morrowind's main quest sort of changed pace and had climixes that were not so immediate.

[Nick Pryce]

Just wanna say :

Regardless of how many different endings you want to be on offer, what ending would you personally enjoy the most if you could play Skyrim's MQ only once?

Other:

Alduin, a dragon so big that his veary mouth can eat entire nirn in one bite, apears in the sky after a large dragon priest lead ritual sacrifise takes, (one that the pc may attempt to stop but should of course fail) Alduin then says "Did you enjoy it, being the one last hope, but soon you'll just be DEAD. I hope you had fun, borrowing some of my old spells... but there can only be one great dragon! then he says "Prepare to die" and the massive figure which fills the whole sky and much more quickly gets bigger, there's no stopping me now!" Alduin screams as he opens his gab to swallow Nirn... but then from the north (or werever Jiup drove the cliffracers familiar screams are heard... millions of cliffracers (a part of the massive alduin mesh) swarm towards him and Alduin screams in pain as they bite out his eyes, fly into his mouth, break his scales off, eat him up from within, and atlast, before he hits the ground. he is just a a few tiny remains of bones the cliff racers didn't take to use for nests... then the racers fly off to all sides... and return to tamriel...
Now Dovakhiin has gained a new task... to clear nests and breeding grounds of cliffracers, offa Skyrim.