Diverging character development?

[bluestarultor]

I've been toying with this idea in regards to a game that I've been writing half as a book for years. The main character, as well as a lot of the rest of the cast, has gone through some major changes over the different versions. So I was wondering about how to make the MC at least grow to reflect that.

The real question is, if this ever gets made, how should it be handled? The basic premise is that he will grow in one direction or another depending on his choice of weaponry. In essence:

- The sword user of the party is the quiet, artsy type, so using a bow or rapier (haven't decided yet, but the bow would shoot sword-shaped energy arrows) makes him sort of a protector.
- The gunner is a bit cold and utilitarian, so using guns shoves him towards being a lone wolf.
- His best friend uses a spear, so if he uses a staff, he becomes more laid-back.
- The hothead heavy in the party uses a hammer, so if he uses a greatsword (we're talking really big, but realistically so), it puts him in a more arrogant direction.
- Then he has his own weapon in a set of metal bracers and boots. Sticking with these, he becomes a more balanced character with good people skills to manage his team with.


The thing I'm having trouble deciding is how to implement it. I've got a few ideas, but I'm not sure what would best serve his development:

1. Starting out with one. I really don't like this idea because it forces me to write five whole stories depending on the choice, and it's not easily reversible.

2. Have him find or buy weaponry and then change as he uses it. This is better because it allows his character to develop gradually and can be reversed if the player dislikes him as he's developing.

3. Have him switch battle modes. The crew all have unique strengths and abilities that he'd then be able to utilize. His best friend is a cleric, so he'd use better healing spells with a staff, whereas the sword user is more of a caster, the gunner is more of a thief, the heavy is an attacker, and he, himself could best be described as sort of a monk with some unique attack abilities from different martial arts and a high evasion and counter rate. All of these would have their obvious advantages, and it might be handy to be able to double them up if needed with a jack of all trades.




So what's your feedback? Any of these sound any good? I'm partial to the second two, but I'm not sure what other people would think of any particular one, or if anyone else has other ideas. The main thing is that he never changes so much as to be patently unlikable to everyone, but he does follow different paths of dealing with his leadership of the party and his general tendencies.

[Madcow9000]

I don't mean to be a dick or anything, but...... all of those weapon to personality traits tends to be a bit stereotypical to any rpg ever made.

I like the premise, but weapons shouldn't grow a personality. That's like saying that I have red hair, therefore I am a psychopath that likes to eat babies, but if I dye my hair blond I become a fierce defender of the weak and innocent. It just doesn't make any sense. Story and the events and decisions involving that character should determine their personality.

One way to implement this is through dialogue options. Depending on what you tend to pick for responses from those characters may unlock several different responses later in the game that you wouldn't have gotten had you picked a different set of responses earlier which would have it's own extra set as well.

[bluestarultor]

I was actually hoping to AVOID dialog options, instead focusing on driving his personality by his actions in battle. Imagine having five options per dialog tree, for every dialog event! XD

No, it's more like he becomes more like the party members he emulates, who each chose their weaponry because of their individual personalities and the actions involved. The gunner is very precise, for example, and utilitarian, so he has a weapon that suits him. The sword-user is incredibly artistic and chose the sword to express her finesse, but also her desire to defend her friends. By using their weaponry, he'd learn things in reverse, so to speak. The techniques he used in battle would lend themselves to thinking a certain way, since it would entail using techniques similar to the things the others already chose.

My idea is that a person can say anything. What they do is what defines them.

Also, dialog trees really work best for a binary system, like good and evil. Calculating anything more than that gets really complex. Think of it like Pip form Chrono Cross, only every Element has its own path, rather than Light Pip and Dark Pip.


Edit: Oh, and he would have a bias toward his own personality. He'll always be "himself," but he picks things up from those around him, and if nothing else, he can pretty easily recover by using his own unique abilities.

[Kim]

I was actually thinking up a similar idea myself. Basically the character having dark power, and different character development by how much they used that power and strengthened it. It's kind of too black and white though, with my system.

How about having side-quests that determine personality. Not just good or evil, but multiple solutions to the side-quests that affect the character differently. If you solve a side-quest by being a smarty pants, your character will behave more intelligently or something. Solve by brute force, obvious result. Make sense?

[Madcow9000]

Ah, didn't realize you were going with the more traditional approach. Sorry.

I do however like Noncon's approach.