[MUD-Dev] [MEDIA] Finding an Interesting Middle Path in the RPG

[Megan Fox]

J C Lawrence wrote:

>   http://www.ludonauts.com/archives/000057.shtml

> Now, however, I think I've got it figured out. What's Han Solo's
> motivation in A New Hope? Money. Wealth. Riches. Paying off Jabba
> would be nice, too. But he doesn't want to be a bad guy,
> either. Han Solo makes sense in the movie because he exists in an
> environment, a system, where he can make a lot of coin, and this
> in turn gives him access to other goodies. But Han Solo doesn't
> make sense in Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, because
> while the player can get money, he can't do anything with it
> besides beef himself up, and ultimately this is subservient to the
> role he's forced to play as a good or evil man. There is no system
> or outcome in place that could make money a major motivation, thus
> depriving the game of an interesting middle path.

I'm not sure it's quite that specific - Han's middle-path is the
well-being of Han himself.  Wealth is an ends to this means.  Now
Han doesn't actively act bad in this pursuit (in fact, he acts good
more often than not - though it's assumed that he didn't do that
before the old man and the scruffy nerf herder showed up), but he
also isn't actively good.  Becoming a higher-up in the Republic
might suit him, as it affords him a life of luxury, which he would
probably exploit to both help his friends and those he liked (good),
but also turn an officially blind eye to the smuggling of his
compatriots, possibly at a price (bad).

So, a middle path is one in which neither half is particularly
helped or hindered by you, while you make out well.  Money isn't the
only means of doing this - maybe you're looking for a romance, and
so you strike for the girl or guy instead of either helping or
hindering senior muck-a-muck attempts at ruling the world.  Maybe
you're trying to save your father, a higher-up Imperial, which
forces you to act again the Republic to save him in the first place,
then act against the Imperials to get your father out and
unbrainwashed.  Etc.

A better middle path is one in which you pick up some of the story
on either half, but end up helping neither.  Playing both sides, for
whatever reason the story might have (helping your father might be a
decent one).

This middle path can exist, and could have existed for Knights of
the Old Republic, but the trouble is in writing an equally
compelling plot that doesn't involve an epic struggle against good
vs evil (it takes more work than framing person A as "bad" and B as
"good", most definately - a bit much for me to try writing myself,
at least). Never mind just writing a third plot period, to
completement the two already fleshed-out plots you've spent goodness
knows how many man-hours writing and implementing.

  (ok, folks, stop reading here if you haven't played KOTOR, might
  be a few spoilers)

In the case of KOTR, a middle-road would have taken Jolee's story
and extended it further.  Here was a line-walker, a man that used
BOTH sides of the force, yet managed to stay sane - how can you
become like him?  How can you use this to your advantage?

You train with him, and learn to harness both sides of the force -
and then you take the star forge for yourself, wielding it for the
betterment of the Republic, against the objections of the Jedi
Council.  Your future is dubious, but up 'till now, you have
displayed an incredible ability to harness both sides of the force
without falling to the dark side.  Perhaps it's your unique past,
having lived a life first of darkness, then re-living a similar path
on the side of light.  Etc... etc... etc...

Might have worked, and would have made better use of Jolee as a
character (I liked him, but you got barely any story involving him
at all).

Just my 2c,
-Megan
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