Jordana Chal on 25/9/2002 at 00:31
Even Daggerfall had alternate endings. Why not Morrowind? Given that open-endedness is supposed to be the big thing with MW, it's very frustrating that, ultimately, you can't choose your own path. I don't know that I'd necessarily WANT to become a god, or join Dagoth Ur, but it would be nice to know that the option was there. It must be particularly annoying for people playing psychotically evil characters to be effectively forced into a heroes' role.
I think the thing that really gets me is the fact that the game so explicitly leads you to believe that you CAN join the "dark side", only to deny you that option later on. I mean, for pity's sake, Dagoth Ur sends you a note offering forgiveness and practically begging you to join him. Why was this ever included, if you can't take him up on his offer?
I feel the same way about the fact that you can't free all the slaves. I can't see any reason why you shouldn't be able to. It's frustrating to know that as an abolitionist character, you can never succeed in the quest to wipe out slavery entirely.
For the sake of balance, and not being too whingy I should say that I love this game, it's the best I've ever played. The flaws are relatively minor but these two really niggle.
What does everyone else think?
Forsythe on 25/9/2002 at 01:05
Re: Alternate endings, I do agree but I suspect the reason why it wasn't done that way is very simple: Higher-ups likely shot the idea down because they wanted to leave an easy way to make the expansion pack possible, should Morrowind be successful enough to warrant one.
Re: Abolitionists, while I really disliked that you couldn't free every slave, if you think of Morrowind as a realistic environment then it really does work out as to why they didn't write it up. The only way it'd be possible to end slavery in Morrowind would to either politic everyone until they agree w/ you, or to kill all slavers. Inventing the requisite level of AI flexibility to have politics to make this feasible is just too much (think about it). And while it sounds interesting to go after the slaver organisation and tear it up a la the movie 'Payback', it would likewise require massive effort to flesh out such an organisation and give it sufficient filling-out to make it worthy of conquering... and given that they weren't sure how many players would like such an idea, it didn't happen. I do consider it likely that the expansion pack will contain a more fleshed-out 'abolitionists vs. slavers' sub-plot, but I'm not exactly holding my breath.
Chaos Kin on 25/9/2002 at 20:09
Quote:
I think the thing that really gets me is the fact that the game so explicitly leads you to believe that you CAN join the "dark side", only to deny you that option later on...Well I just contented myself that Dagoth Ur is more likely to betray me anyway by denying me godhood in the end. ...nope not content, it niggles at me too!
Quote:
I feel the same way about the fact that you can't free all the slaves...after completing the same quest Azura did bade me to "do good... for tho Dagoth Ur is gone, other evil remains..." or in that same sense. Im HOPING that the expansion might be targeting this when the developer(who?) mentioned something like adding some other tweaks in it.
Jordana Chal on 26/9/2002 at 00:20
Yeah, it would be good if there was more slavery stuff in Tribunal. I've just discovered the slave market in Tel Aruhn, so for a while I'll be busy saving up money to buy the slaves and set them free.....pity you can't get the lazy wasters to actually do any work for you, they might be worth keeping then :-}
Chaos Kin on 26/9/2002 at 08:54
hmmm... If it were Janeway making decisions, would she cite the prime directive and not interfere with slavery? Waddaya think? :)
Forsythe on 26/9/2002 at 20:16
Offhand, I'd say she'd follow the typical Star Trek formula of hinting to her subordinates that they can take care of it, and then bury herself in something (work, holodeck, etc.).
Chaos Kin on 27/9/2002 at 01:44
Bend it, don't Break It. Amen.
