This is a blog post. To read the original post, please click here »
This article was originally posted in eZine issue 1.
When the topic of clichés is brought up in an RPG Making community such as RMXP.net,most people respond with the same old half-enthusiastic agreement. The cliché problem has long since been complained and warned of to death. Ironically, the very act of telling others to avoid the dreaded cliché has itself become clichéd. The very nature which gamers and game makers act by has been so influenced by the common video game cliché, that people rarely bring up a topic that itself is not a cliché nor does it refer to one. So, when does the world of the cliché end the world of actual human thought and life begin?
It doesn't.
Humans have become so attached to clichés around the world that avoiding one is a lesson in futility. If this is true, then what can a person do to offer something they can call original and show off as their own? That is the question of every creative mind on the planet. Before we plunge ourselves into the process in which to rid us of ‘cliché-phobia’, we must first grasp the concept of our own clichéd behavior. This will be accomplished in two simple steps: discovering a cliché that plagues the community as a whole; and dissecting a cliché that has tested true in stories, video (movie/television), games, and art for centuries, dating back to biblical times. These clichés will develop a sense to recognize a cliché in both works and in everyday life, thus allowing for the chance at originality.
The Beast
The cliché that is the most noticeable in not just the RMXP.net community, but in every community tied to RPG Maker (2000, 2003, XP) is the intolerance of the default main character. When RPG Maker 2000 was first released people flocked to it. Fresh off RPG Maker 95, this 2000 version seemed to be game making gold. Thousand upon thousands of resources were created. Tutorials and Articles filled web sites across the globe. Half-made demos and given-up projects filled "Games" sections of every major RM2K web site out there yielding very few worth playing.
This almost doubled with the release of RPG Maker 2003 which satisfied a large portion of the users' thirst for a side-view system, even if that system was problematic and faulty. Upon all the resources and tutorials, people—especially those new to the game making process—chose to use the default main character, Alex, as their own. For those of the upper echelon this quickly brought feelings of dislike. Dislike for games containing Alex for most would be given up in a week or be of sub-par quality. Alex could be a completely legitimate character choice but ended up an object of hate for being a cliché. So history has a tendency to repeat itself—RMXP was finally released in Japan (coming soon to US), many imported it, downloaded it illegally, and translated it. Eager for the no color or size boundaries and the new scripting options there was soon an orgy of those seeking scripts, tutorials, graphics, and more. Project after Project was announced and so many contained the new main character, Arshes (Aluxes in the newly released US version). Those who have grown accustomed to RM2K(3) and had little scripting knowledge often spoke out against RMXP showing that little has changed. And so, those with graphics skills and scripting knowledge quickly rose to the elite of the RMXP community. New features available and now these elite pumping out resources and scripts every five minutes, the
amount of new users popping up can be likened to an infestation of roaches. They announced almost hourly about their "new, original, amazing game", 90% of which failed soon after and over 75% containing the new Arshes/Aluxes. The wave had been unleashed so then came the backlash.
The elite and the middle-of-the-road members—those people who contain enough skill and knowledge to get by and fend for themselves but are not quite elite—waged war against Arshes/Aluxes and any person and/or game associated with him. This is the biggest cliché ever to clench the game making society. Those who fought the Arshes/Aluxes battles then turned their tides on clichés unknowingly creating more in their wake then they vanquished.
The Relation
See the pattern in the community? Cliché is the very nature of story writing, yet we seek to destroy it. Part one was intense. Take a breather before part two where we delve into the stories of the world. Pick up any novel, story, epic, etc. and chances are you will come across two key aspects: the protagonist, the main character and the antagonist, a person, group or force that opposes the protagonist. While that may strike you as a cliché do not be fooled by it. It is a necessity that stories contain these. These two factors themselves are opposites and are designed to conflict with each other (quick literature lesson: characters + conflict = entertainment). What is clichéd though is attitude which each takes towards each other. Even the stories ranging from Shakespeare to Dostoyevsky to the Bible (Old and New Testaments) contain this cliché. The protagonist and antagonist consistently plot to rid themselves (and usually the world) of the other. While it may seem like just two (or more) people plotting to murder each other, it consists with other common themes: Darth Vader sought to corrupt his son (effectively removing the protagonist) while Luke wanted to release the good inside his father (eliminating the antagonist); Lucifer desired the throne of heaven as "God" wished to cast him to hell (NOTE: this only displays a story in the Bible and in no way shows affiliation or support for one religion over another); Don Quixote fought against the giants and the windmills stood strong (this may confuse you but the first part is clear, the windmills standing strong crushes the protagonist's reason, or illusion, to fight thus removing him). See the cliché? It is the relationship between the protagonist and antagonist each eternally seeking to destroy the other. Why? The conflict will usually end when one or both is subdued. This cliché is not avoidable. Try as you might there will always be an antagonist to your protagonist. Having both will lead to conflict. One might suggest that the antagonist and protagonist fall in "love." This is still considered cliché because they have both been subdued from the need to destroy the other. This cliché is the biggest cliché in the world and is uniformly unavoidable. The Beast and the Relation have both been addressed. Clichés have the misconception that they are wrong and hurtful but they are not. They simply link us to things we already know. In a sense they are helpful. We find comfort in the familiar, while the unknown frightens us. The only problem with clichés is the potential to become trite and boring. Do not fear this. Embrace it. For when a cliché becomes stale then it is easier to work with. You can chip away the hard bitter parts, like you would a day old loaf of bread, until you get to the pliable soft core. From there you are able to recreate it in your own image. Take the community cliché of the intolerance of default characters. In this very editorial thatcore was molded beyond the simple hatred of a character to an epic battle. Do the same to the global cliché. It has been reinvented countless times and still, still, can be brought to a fresh light where it can grow into a new branch. Embrace your clichés for they are simple to use and easy to relate to. Life (natural or artificial) is a cliché by itself so involving it in anyway to a game automatically makes your game clichéd. Do not fear what damage a cliché can do to your game, for it will always be there, but invest in how that cliché can enhance your game and connect with those who play it. Nothing will ever be a bigger resource to your game than clichés and like all resources it does not matter what kind you have as long but how well you use it.
By AcedentProne
Tags:
Posted under: Game Dev
Read this blog post »
This article was originally posted in eZine issue 1.
When the topic of clichés is brought up in an RPG Making community such as RMXP.net,most people respond with the same old half-enthusiastic agreement. The cliché problem has long since been complained and warned of to death. Ironically, the very act of telling others to avoid the dreaded cliché has itself become clichéd. The very nature which gamers and game makers act by has been so influenced by the common video game cliché, that people rarely bring up a topic that itself is not a cliché nor does it refer to one. So, when does the world of the cliché end the world of actual human thought and life begin?
It doesn't.
Humans have become so attached to clichés around the world that avoiding one is a lesson in futility. If this is true, then what can a person do to offer something they can call original and show off as their own? That is the question of every creative mind on the planet. Before we plunge ourselves into the process in which to rid us of ‘cliché-phobia’, we must first grasp the concept of our own clichéd behavior. This will be accomplished in two simple steps: discovering a cliché that plagues the community as a whole; and dissecting a cliché that has tested true in stories, video (movie/television), games, and art for centuries, dating back to biblical times. These clichés will develop a sense to recognize a cliché in both works and in everyday life, thus allowing for the chance at originality.
The Beast
The cliché that is the most noticeable in not just the RMXP.net community, but in every community tied to RPG Maker (2000, 2003, XP) is the intolerance of the default main character. When RPG Maker 2000 was first released people flocked to it. Fresh off RPG Maker 95, this 2000 version seemed to be game making gold. Thousand upon thousands of resources were created. Tutorials and Articles filled web sites across the globe. Half-made demos and given-up projects filled "Games" sections of every major RM2K web site out there yielding very few worth playing.
This almost doubled with the release of RPG Maker 2003 which satisfied a large portion of the users' thirst for a side-view system, even if that system was problematic and faulty. Upon all the resources and tutorials, people—especially those new to the game making process—chose to use the default main character, Alex, as their own. For those of the upper echelon this quickly brought feelings of dislike. Dislike for games containing Alex for most would be given up in a week or be of sub-par quality. Alex could be a completely legitimate character choice but ended up an object of hate for being a cliché. So history has a tendency to repeat itself—RMXP was finally released in Japan (coming soon to US), many imported it, downloaded it illegally, and translated it. Eager for the no color or size boundaries and the new scripting options there was soon an orgy of those seeking scripts, tutorials, graphics, and more. Project after Project was announced and so many contained the new main character, Arshes (Aluxes in the newly released US version). Those who have grown accustomed to RM2K(3) and had little scripting knowledge often spoke out against RMXP showing that little has changed. And so, those with graphics skills and scripting knowledge quickly rose to the elite of the RMXP community. New features available and now these elite pumping out resources and scripts every five minutes, the
amount of new users popping up can be likened to an infestation of roaches. They announced almost hourly about their "new, original, amazing game", 90% of which failed soon after and over 75% containing the new Arshes/Aluxes. The wave had been unleashed so then came the backlash.
The elite and the middle-of-the-road members—those people who contain enough skill and knowledge to get by and fend for themselves but are not quite elite—waged war against Arshes/Aluxes and any person and/or game associated with him. This is the biggest cliché ever to clench the game making society. Those who fought the Arshes/Aluxes battles then turned their tides on clichés unknowingly creating more in their wake then they vanquished.
The Relation
See the pattern in the community? Cliché is the very nature of story writing, yet we seek to destroy it. Part one was intense. Take a breather before part two where we delve into the stories of the world. Pick up any novel, story, epic, etc. and chances are you will come across two key aspects: the protagonist, the main character and the antagonist, a person, group or force that opposes the protagonist. While that may strike you as a cliché do not be fooled by it. It is a necessity that stories contain these. These two factors themselves are opposites and are designed to conflict with each other (quick literature lesson: characters + conflict = entertainment). What is clichéd though is attitude which each takes towards each other. Even the stories ranging from Shakespeare to Dostoyevsky to the Bible (Old and New Testaments) contain this cliché. The protagonist and antagonist consistently plot to rid themselves (and usually the world) of the other. While it may seem like just two (or more) people plotting to murder each other, it consists with other common themes: Darth Vader sought to corrupt his son (effectively removing the protagonist) while Luke wanted to release the good inside his father (eliminating the antagonist); Lucifer desired the throne of heaven as "God" wished to cast him to hell (NOTE: this only displays a story in the Bible and in no way shows affiliation or support for one religion over another); Don Quixote fought against the giants and the windmills stood strong (this may confuse you but the first part is clear, the windmills standing strong crushes the protagonist's reason, or illusion, to fight thus removing him). See the cliché? It is the relationship between the protagonist and antagonist each eternally seeking to destroy the other. Why? The conflict will usually end when one or both is subdued. This cliché is not avoidable. Try as you might there will always be an antagonist to your protagonist. Having both will lead to conflict. One might suggest that the antagonist and protagonist fall in "love." This is still considered cliché because they have both been subdued from the need to destroy the other. This cliché is the biggest cliché in the world and is uniformly unavoidable. The Beast and the Relation have both been addressed. Clichés have the misconception that they are wrong and hurtful but they are not. They simply link us to things we already know. In a sense they are helpful. We find comfort in the familiar, while the unknown frightens us. The only problem with clichés is the potential to become trite and boring. Do not fear this. Embrace it. For when a cliché becomes stale then it is easier to work with. You can chip away the hard bitter parts, like you would a day old loaf of bread, until you get to the pliable soft core. From there you are able to recreate it in your own image. Take the community cliché of the intolerance of default characters. In this very editorial thatcore was molded beyond the simple hatred of a character to an epic battle. Do the same to the global cliché. It has been reinvented countless times and still, still, can be brought to a fresh light where it can grow into a new branch. Embrace your clichés for they are simple to use and easy to relate to. Life (natural or artificial) is a cliché by itself so involving it in anyway to a game automatically makes your game clichéd. Do not fear what damage a cliché can do to your game, for it will always be there, but invest in how that cliché can enhance your game and connect with those who play it. Nothing will ever be a bigger resource to your game than clichés and like all resources it does not matter what kind you have as long but how well you use it.
By AcedentProne
Tags:
Posted under: Game Dev
Read this blog post »