This is one of the biggest gripes I have with Skyrim and most games who go down the same route. Apparently, Bethesda seem to think that incorporating randomly generated content in the game increases its replayability, or so they claim.
I think that depends heavily on the game, and in Skyrim's case does quite the opposite of what its developers claim. Why? Let's take a game like Diablo. The focus of that game is your character. Improving stats, gear and skill, trying different combinations and builds, and then gloating or destroying other people online is the game's primary goal, while the environment and world take the back seat. Does randomly generated content add something to a game like that? In my opinion, certainly. The world is just the backdrop, and it's being kept fresh while you grind.
In a game like Skyrim though, the main focus is the world itself. It's not even a multiplayer game. Randomly generated content takes away uniqueness and creative flair, because honestly numbers can't replace developers. I played Morrowind for hundreds, maybe thousands of hours after I had completed every quest in it, because it was packed with neat little easter eggs that the developers had stashed in every corner of the map, even in the depths of the sea. That's what made it unique and that's why it lasted so many hours. In Oblivion, and even more so in Skyrim, I feel that it just makes the game worse. I could play a deadly drinking game with the times I rolled my eyes because a dungeon or quest felt randomly generated. In the end, I don't feel like I'm ever going to replay this.
In short I feel that in Skyrim and similar games, randomly generated content actually hurts the depth of the game as well as its replayability, and it is either lazy game design or a way to cut back on development time, falsely marketed as an intended feature. What do you guys think?
EDIT: I had a poll up and everything, but the forum decided to eat it for some reason.
I think that depends heavily on the game, and in Skyrim's case does quite the opposite of what its developers claim. Why? Let's take a game like Diablo. The focus of that game is your character. Improving stats, gear and skill, trying different combinations and builds, and then gloating or destroying other people online is the game's primary goal, while the environment and world take the back seat. Does randomly generated content add something to a game like that? In my opinion, certainly. The world is just the backdrop, and it's being kept fresh while you grind.
In a game like Skyrim though, the main focus is the world itself. It's not even a multiplayer game. Randomly generated content takes away uniqueness and creative flair, because honestly numbers can't replace developers. I played Morrowind for hundreds, maybe thousands of hours after I had completed every quest in it, because it was packed with neat little easter eggs that the developers had stashed in every corner of the map, even in the depths of the sea. That's what made it unique and that's why it lasted so many hours. In Oblivion, and even more so in Skyrim, I feel that it just makes the game worse. I could play a deadly drinking game with the times I rolled my eyes because a dungeon or quest felt randomly generated. In the end, I don't feel like I'm ever going to replay this.
In short I feel that in Skyrim and similar games, randomly generated content actually hurts the depth of the game as well as its replayability, and it is either lazy game design or a way to cut back on development time, falsely marketed as an intended feature. What do you guys think?
EDIT: I had a poll up and everything, but the forum decided to eat it for some reason.
