RPG Maker Forums

Greetings gentle peoples of the interwebs,


So I was working on my day & night cycle, as well as my weather system for my current game, both of which operate off an internal clock within the game. When it occurred to me the possibility of of quests being based upon the internal game clock; both in the occurring only when a certain amount of time had been reached (example a quest giving NPC for a sub quest only being at a location at certain times during the day, or puzzle elements only being accessible during certain times), as well as requiring them to be completed within a certain time frame to be successful.


As an example of the later, the big bad must be defeated within a certain amount of time, or their plan comes to fruition. One common example of the utilization of this mechanic that springs to mind for me, is the original Fallout game; where if you fail to defeat the antagonists, the vault gets wiped out. Though I am certain everyone probably has their own prefered example of this mechanic.


To me this seems like a good way to make the player more invested in the events of the game, because it makes the villains more threatening in a way. Rather than simply being static objects waiting for the hero to take them out, they are active NPCs in the game world pursuing a course of action.


So my questions to you dear members, regarding the use of an internal clock as it relates to quests both sub & main, are as follows.


1) Do you enjoy games where this mechanic is present?


1A) Why or why not?


2) Do you utilize this mechanic in any of your own game projects?


2A) Why or why not?


3) What do you think is a good example of this mechanic being used properly?


3A) Why or why not?