heheh, the on-going debate on using game mechanics for fiction based on games.
In the game, if you die, your "spirit" can run back to where you died. Once you're close enough to your body, click a simple button and you return to life, able to continue where you left off. Or, certain players can resurrect you with no real cost to them, you, or anyone else. A very, very common game mechanic, but it would be downright stupid to use in a story. What point would it be to write about someone's physical struggles and dilemmnas if they can just be returned to life without a second thought as often as needed?
Some - if not most - game mechanics are necessary. A priest uses holy magic to heal and protect others. A rogue sneaks around and ambushes unsuspecting opponents. A warrior goes into battle screaming, able to take a bunch of hits before falling. But a line has to be drawn somewhere. My rogue, who in-game can hide from people in the middle of an open, cut field in broad daylight, certainly couldn't "normally". A human priest who worships the Light and a night elf priest who worships Elune (two very different and separate "deities") use the exact same spells in game simply because they are both priests, but "normally" that just wouldn't make sense, considering they draw their powers and their faith from two totally separate beings. I could go on and on. A line has to be drawn somewhere in terms of what game mechanics to use in fandom and what not to use. *shrugs*
Of course fewer readers = fewer reviews :) The warcraft fandom is definitely smaller than the Inuyasha fandom. There's always the exceptional few fics out there, the ones that will snag hundreds of reviews regardless of how big or small the fandom is. Mind you, I never expect anything I write to be THAT popular, I just wasn't prepared for how difficult it can be to establish oneself in a smaller fandom. It just requires a bit of patience on my part, and hoping that the reason isn't truly because my stories are sub-par. But if that's the case, that's something only I can fix...
In the game, if you die, your "spirit" can run back to where you died. Once you're close enough to your body, click a simple button and you return to life, able to continue where you left off. Or, certain players can resurrect you with no real cost to them, you, or anyone else. A very, very common game mechanic, but it would be downright stupid to use in a story. What point would it be to write about someone's physical struggles and dilemmnas if they can just be returned to life without a second thought as often as needed?
Some - if not most - game mechanics are necessary. A priest uses holy magic to heal and protect others. A rogue sneaks around and ambushes unsuspecting opponents. A warrior goes into battle screaming, able to take a bunch of hits before falling. But a line has to be drawn somewhere. My rogue, who in-game can hide from people in the middle of an open, cut field in broad daylight, certainly couldn't "normally". A human priest who worships the Light and a night elf priest who worships Elune (two very different and separate "deities") use the exact same spells in game simply because they are both priests, but "normally" that just wouldn't make sense, considering they draw their powers and their faith from two totally separate beings. I could go on and on. A line has to be drawn somewhere in terms of what game mechanics to use in fandom and what not to use. *shrugs*
Of course fewer readers = fewer reviews :) The warcraft fandom is definitely smaller than the Inuyasha fandom. There's always the exceptional few fics out there, the ones that will snag hundreds of reviews regardless of how big or small the fandom is. Mind you, I never expect anything I write to be THAT popular, I just wasn't prepared for how difficult it can be to establish oneself in a smaller fandom. It just requires a bit of patience on my part, and hoping that the reason isn't truly because my stories are sub-par. But if that's the case, that's something only I can fix...
Reply
Leave a comment