Fetch & Kill Quests

[MisterTorgue]

So I was reading an article on the above,

"either get this item and bring it to whomever!"

or

"Kill X amount of monsters"

and my current game has a few of these in at present, that don't really have much past the initial context given when accepting the quest.

...

As I am going to have quests that reveal the background and history of characters also, and quests that do have meaning and background, but I am guilty of putting  so far a few quests with not much background other than kill this guy!

Do you think it is just bloat that shouldn't be in the game?

 

 

[Commotion]

I personally hate quest like that, mix it up give it something no other quest has. The go fetch this, go kill this has been done since rpg's existed and it is boring. Do a quest like walking a dog and protecting it, or babysitting a evil witch baby something no one has done but is fun

 

[MisterTorgue]

I personally hate quest like that, mix it up give it something no other quest has. The go fetch this, go kill this has been done since rpg's existed and it is boring. Do a quest like walking a dog and protecting it, or babysitting a evil witch baby something no one has done but is fun

Yeah I dont want to bloat my game with them!

I mean if I had a few to get you started on the game and provide some exp, and it makes you explore a bit of the game, this wouldn't be a bad purpose despite the quests being quite shallow meaning.

I am looking to do different quests and stuff also, just wanted peoples consensus on the start of the game having a few of these quests to get you the motivation to level a bit e.c.t.

Also

I was thinking of creating a small village (with no direct relation to the main quest line) but doing the quests here reveal more about the character who lived there and their background, but I dont want people to feel cheated out of a town!

 

[Commotion]

Providing a back story to a main character is not at all bad, it is actually a good idea. There have been to many times where games just leave way to much out of story. And if you do plan on adding the go fetch this go kill this DO NOT put it in the beginning of the game, that is one of the fastest ways to bore someone and they quit your game before they even get a chance to really play it

 

[MisterTorgue]

Providing a back story to a main character is not at all bad, it is actually a good idea. There have been to many times where games just leave way to much out of story. And if you do plan on adding the go fetch this go kill this DO NOT put it in the beginning of the game, that is one of the fastest ways to bore someone and they quit your game before they even get a chance to really play it

Yeah, its all about first impressions, you do have a point!

I might have to change a few quests around, possibly put some small quests on the maps you will pass through to uncover little bits of a party member's history (or future party members)

Thanks for your help here, I want to perfect my game!

 

[captainproton]

I don't see a problem with fetchquests, personally, so long as they aren't too frequent. Also, in games like Chrono Trigger, fetchquests not only rewarded you with items or money, but they also had effects on the flow of events in the game. For instance, sharing food with the mayor's ancestors in the past led to a mayor in the present who understood concepts like kindness and charity.

 

[MisterTorgue]

I don't see a problem with fetchquests, personally, so long as they aren't too frequent. Also, in games like Chrono Trigger, fetchquests not only rewarded you with items or money, but they also had effects on the flow of events in the game. For instance, sharing food with the mayor's ancestors in the past led to a mayor in the present who understood concepts like kindness and charity.

See in future side quests I will have fetch quests and such, that will add people to your own map (do the builder quest chain to do a few different quests, you will get a builder who reduces the costs to build inn/shops e.c.t. in your village and such

 

[monkeyintartan]

I personally find that you need a variety of quests in any game however if you do have a lot of fetch quests make sure there are interesting puzzles and a story behind them. I like to use that sort of quest as an entire side quest system eg. Instead of just find or fetch its a case of collect for reward and you have to find them. So there are a set of 3 really rare books that all the magicians in the world want to find.

you have a mage in your party who's father found one and that lead him to teach them some rare magic skills and also forms the idea in their head that they want to find them all as their father intended. You can build a story around it with out actually making it a key quest, giving the player the option to explore and find them unlocking more of the characters past and also the hidden magic's within the books. You could even go as far to say that the more books you find the more the magic unlocks even make them the characters weapon or "shield" so they can equip them for different effects.

This then changes a simple fetch quest in to something the play may actually choose to do, as they will get rare valuable and usable items, allows for more exploration of the world environment, an builds in the story environment of the word your game is set in.

I also feel this type of longer quest that includes smaller parts caters to a bigger audience as they can go bk and forth to it and for the players who don't like the whole back story of games can avoid them if they choose to.

Hope that helps

 

[MisterTorgue]

Thanks guys, going to leave the quests I have in at the moment to just get the feel for the game and such, but putting more indepth quests in and longer quests in broken down,

 

[Chaos17]

People dont complain about those quests if : they're tied to story.

If they're just filler, they will hate them, me included.

Here, you can have a glimpse/taste of that > http://forum.bioware.com/topic/530737-this-game-is-an-endless-fetch-quest/

 

[Danteus]

Fetch quests are also one of the best times in a game to add in hidden foreshadowing. Most players will automatically dismiss minor events that happen during such quests. It makes things interesting when you notice that the NPC you met while gathering ingredients turns out to be one of the major characters a bit later in the game.

 

[whitesphere]

I don't like the "Kill X monsters" quests because those rely completely on the mercy of the Random Number Gods, unless there is an area which specifically has those.  I particularly REALLY dislike ones where you need to get Rare Item Drops to proceed.  if they're optional, that's fine, but if they're part of the main story, avoid those.

When you get down to it, just about EVERY quest in a computer based RPG game IS some type of well disguised fetch quest, a "Get to this location" quest, or a "Kill X To Proceed" quest. 

That being said, a really GOOD mandatory quest is crucial to the story, advances the plot  AND gives the party time to level up.  In Chrono Trigger, for example, here are the first few story items, after going through the Time Portal in order:

1. When you reach the Castle, meet Marle ("Fetch" her)

2. Marle disappears, so you must do the "Find the Queen" fetch quest to save her ancestor

3. Defeat a Boss

4. Return to the present ("Get to the Time Portal")

5. Chrono escapes the prison after being unjustly scheduled for execution

6. Party lands in the Future

These are all examples of very GOOD quests.  It's not because they're original, really.  What makes them good is how smoothly they tell the story.  The "Save the Princess/Queen" quest is as old as it gets, but it's just the beginning AND sets the stage for the Time Travel motif ("Events you do In The Past affect The Future") of the game.   So it tells the story so well that you THINK you're doing a cliche "rescue the queen" quest --- and you are --- but the "save the future" is a great reason. 

I remember I was shocked, the first time I played the game, when Chrono was scheduled for execution when he returned to the Present.  So, already, the game sucked me into its world.  And that was, maybe, 2 hours into the game.

If you do your game well, players will be sucked into your game world before playing it for very long.

The quests themselves are PLENTY of opportunity to level the party up, but it doesn't feel "too grindy" because your party always has something specific to do.  And the plot itself has plenty of twists and turns. 

That is what makes for good Quests.  Fetch quests all boil down to "Get Me This MacGuffin"  but creative writing can make them anything:

"Save the Princess"

"Reverse the Deadly Curse"

"Get the Idol"  (Raiders of the Lost Ark fun)

"Find the password to the computer"

Also, minor NPCs besides offering hints, can really add a lot of flavor to the "fetch quests" and tell more story, such as in the "Deadly Curse" one, some might be victims of the Curse (Dragon Quest IX), for example.

But I'm not a big fan of the Kill X creatures quests.  I don't see how those would tie into the story --- "Kill 8 Bugbears and I'll give you this Sword"   I can see the Kill a Boss quests filling in nicely though ("A Bugbear murdered my wife.  If you kill that particular one and bring me its head, I'll give you the sword we were going to give to our son.")