This is a very beta version of a guide to user-created content. Please comment and add suggestions. I know its too much to expect, but Id prefer it if this thread didnt turn into wouldnt it be cool if the Mission Editor was able to (fill in great but impossible feature here).
Here is what we know so far about the Mission Editor.
Similar in concept to our character creator, it allows you, the players, to create missions and story arcs for your characters and others to participate in. Youll be able to pick the map, villain group, and objectives, as well as write the dialog and any clues needed for the missions. When you are satisfied with it, you can upload it and have other players across all servers play it and rate it. Fame will come to the players whose stories rate the best overall.
Plan for creating content
We certainly dont know much, but its not too early to start preparing. You can establish your themes, characters, and missions goals. Mission text can be written and reviewed by others. You can flesh out the origin stories of your Super Groups and characters, with an eye to make them adaptable and engaging whatever features are in the mission editor (ME)
This guide provides a framework for planning and organizing your early writing, along with some suggestions and speculations on the ME. I am going to use the terms mission to cover both missions and story arcs.
The ME probably wont do everything you want
First of all, I suggest everyone be prepared for the editor not giving as much creative control as you would like. I have seen posts in which people seem to think that anything the designers can do, we will be able to do. Some people are even speculating on new mission features that arent in the standard game, which leads to rumors in later messages.
All that has been mentioned is choosing to the map, villain group, and objectives and writing the dialogue and clues. If it turns out there are some additional features that make it into the final version of the ME, great. You can always add additional dialogue or events to take these into account. It doesnt really matter if they add a few additional features, because at best we are still not going to be able to do everything they can do.
The initial excitement of user-created content will die down quickly, and thousands of missions will be available to choose from. The popularity of your mission will depend mainly on how engaging the ideas, mission text and dialogue are. Your missions will basically be the same structure as the dozens of other missions already in the game. The ONLY substantial difference will be in the writing.
The paragon wiki lists these as the basic mission types:
Streetsweep (kill x number of a faction)
Kill All
Defeat Boss
Kidnap/Rescue
Find Object (click on glowie)
Thats itfive basic missions, although the devs probably categorize these differently. Of these Find Object is the most flexible, since clicking on a glowie is described in various missions as uploading a computer virus, stealing plans from a wall safe, or planting false evidence in a desk.
Here are some suggestions and warnings of how to proceed.
List of Do Nots
Do not blatantly rip off comics, movies, or novels
[/b]Many of us love specific characters from the comics, and wish we could somehow bring Spiderman/Batman/Wolverine/Wonder Woman/Sparkly Pants the Snuggly Boy into the CoX world. For copyright reasons this is impossible. If we arent allowed to even name our characters after them we certainly wont be able to keep missions online which refer to them. Unlike your character, who only gets renamed, the missions will probably be deleted.
Of course, part of the charm and history of comic books is subtly ripping off other materials. Copywrite law is confusing, but essentially you can use the basic ideas as long as the specific details vary. For example, the idea of a school for mutant superheroes is okay, but dont make the leader Professor Zavier and call the team Z-Men.
Do not try to kill the player
This probably will not be a problem since CoX already has code to let the player determine how difficult or easy to make their missions, and the ME will only let us pick from standard mission types. However, it is useful to remember you are not in a competition with the player. If they die during your mission they will not be impressed with your l33t skills at snuffing them out.
Do not establish new game canon
Canon is the general term for events which are considered to have really happened in a fictional universe.
We are not sanctioned to mess with the existing world of CoX. Most of the signature heroes and groups already have developed histories and back-stories. It is tempting to write missions that add to this existing material. You might have interesting ideas about how Manticore learned archery and why he hates Italian food, but this would conflict with official story arcs which state he loves pizza.
I expect this rule will be flung down and danced upon by many of the uploaded missions. Such is life.
Avoid negative racial or ethnic stereotypes
Be cautious when depicting racial and ethnic groups. What you think is funny might get your missions deleted if there are many complaints.
Do not assume everyone loves your writing
On the one hand, the writing is the main thing that will make your missions stand out. On the other hand, long paragraphs of adjectives do not make for exciting reading. Do not bother to write The villain Mr. MeanGuy is really, really, really, really, really mean and nasty and bad and mean. Really
Your paragraphs should be skimmable for readers who are trying to get to the point of the mission.
List of Dos
Do read the text of existing missions
The existing missions were written by people who have been addressing the same issues we face. Reading what they have already done will expose you to many different ideas and methods The easiest way I know is to go to paragon wiki (http://cityofheroes.wikia.com/wiki/Index.php) and look at the mission text for the specific Contacts.
Do create memorable characters
Creating memorably characters that pull the reader in is one of the challenging tasks of any fiction. Creation these characters in a few lines of dialogue in an online game is even more difficult, and beyond this simple guide.
One thing to consider is motivation. Your NPCs might hate a particular group for a very personal reason. Often its easier for a player to connect emotionally to a specific event than it is to connect to a general catastrophe. For example, Darkblade killed my father and turned my sister into a villain is more engaging than Darkblade killed dozens of innocent people. Both sound bad, but one is more specific and easier to visualize and relate to.
Do notice what engages you while playing
You will probably find you enjoy certain kinds if missions more. I dont mean disliking kill all missions because they are long and you always miss a few, although that is something to consider. Notice or remember what missions seem interesting and draw you in because of the story and objectives. Use these as a source of inspiration for your own writing.
Do link your missions to existing canon
This is the flip side of do not establish new game canon. It is possible to make links and references to the CoX universe without contradicting it. Some tricks are:
-Use characters who are related to existing characters, but sufficiently distant. For example, Sally Smith went to school with Ms. Liberty and was always jealous of her. Now she plots against Ms. Liberty and has a plan to kidnap her which you must foil (Defeat boss mission).
-Use characters who speculate about possibilities. I have a theory that Kheldians were actually genetically engineered by a superior alien race. I just need you to get a few items for me to test my theory (Click glowie mission).
-Use alternate dimensions and time-streams. Marvel has a zombie limited series in which most of their heroes have been turned into flesh-eating zombies in a nearby alternative dimension. Freakshow have captured Rikti technology in a nearby dimension and are planning on invading! They must be defeated! (Kill all)
Do provide missions with different moral alignments
This suggestion is more person opinion, but I think one way that user-created content can vary greatly from the official missions is that you can flip the moral alignment for heroes and villains. Personally I frequently disliked role-playing a bad guy while in CoV. It would have been great to have alternate missions that somehow depicted my character as an undercover hero. Conversely, there are heroes who might be willing to moonlight and do a little work for the Family on the side if the price is right. Hopefully it will be possible to make clear to players where your missions fall on the hero-villain spectrum so people dont find they are walking down the wrong path.
Wouldnt it be interesting to take the existing villain missions and modify the text to provide good-guy versions? Or to provide revision missions which are meant to be played right before or after an existing story-arch to reveal you did something far more heroic (or more vile) than the official mission description? Go to Sam Smith. He will send you on a mission to wipe out a business rival, but this is actually a cover story for the real purpose.
Do make your mission goals clear
If you write text which makes the mission objectives difficult to understand players will not be challenged, but they will be annoyed.
Do use a spell-checker
Spel-checkrs are aesy to find in any sotfware. Use them!
Do expect others will use some of your ideas
If you do a good job you can expect other people will borrow, adapt, and downright steal some your best ideas. There will also be some remarkable similarities between stories developed independently. Just consider it a compliment, then go and write some new missions.
Some Web 2.0 ideas in case the devs wander by
User-generated content and ratings is very Web 2.0. (Full disclosureI work for a company owned by OReilly Media so I have a slight vested interest in promoting Web 2.0 concepts and practices). The goal, as I see it, is to provide a platform which will let user upload, edit, rank, and tag missions with a minimal amount of intervention from the CoX team.
Here are a few things to consider:
Tags
Tags could come in two forms, personal and public. A personal tag would let me mark a mission with a keyword such as favorite, and then see these favorites across all my characters. A public tag would let us place a user-defined keyword on any mission. The advantage of user-defined is that people will always come up with surprising categories that you did not expect. If this were implemented you would find some people very interested in tags like Christian or Anti-American. On the one hand these tags themselves will be controversial, but they also will let players search for or avoid content that meets their preferences, which leads to less complaints. These tags should be searchable so I can find content quickly. When a mission is uploaded it should automatically be tagged with the name of the author.
Rankings
I would like to be able to rank a specific mission on a simply 1 to 5 scale, but only after I have played. I would also like to be able to change my ranking if the creator uploads a new version that I find better or worse.
Comments
I would like to be able to place brief comments on a specific mission. Because of the server load it would be sufficient to only allow one comment per player to avoid arguments.
Ranking the Rankers
Some people will agree with me about what constitutes fun content. Others, not so much. Id like to be able to pick specific individuals (assuming that mission rankings are public) as my favorite rankers and see what other content they enjoy.
This is a very beta version of a guide to user-created content. Please comment and add suggestions. I know its too much to expect, but Id prefer it if this thread didnt turn into wouldnt it be cool if the Mission Editor was able to (fill in great but impossible feature here).
Here is what we know so far about the Mission Editor.
Similar in concept to our character creator, it allows you, the players, to create missions and story arcs for your characters and others to participate in. Youll be able to pick the map, villain group, and objectives, as well as write the dialog and any clues needed for the missions. When you are satisfied with it, you can upload it and have other players across all servers play it and rate it. Fame will come to the players whose stories rate the best overall.
Plan for creating content
We certainly dont know much, but its not too early to start preparing. You can establish your themes, characters, and missions goals. Mission text can be written and reviewed by others. You can flesh out the origin stories of your Super Groups and characters, with an eye to make them adaptable and engaging whatever features are in the mission editor (ME)
This guide provides a framework for planning and organizing your early writing, along with some suggestions and speculations on the ME. I am going to use the terms mission to cover both missions and story arcs.
The ME probably wont do everything you want
First of all, I suggest everyone be prepared for the editor not giving as much creative control as you would like. I have seen posts in which people seem to think that anything the designers can do, we will be able to do. Some people are even speculating on new mission features that arent in the standard game, which leads to rumors in later messages.
All that has been mentioned is choosing to the map, villain group, and objectives and writing the dialogue and clues. If it turns out there are some additional features that make it into the final version of the ME, great. You can always add additional dialogue or events to take these into account. It doesnt really matter if they add a few additional features, because at best we are still not going to be able to do everything they can do.
The initial excitement of user-created content will die down quickly, and thousands of missions will be available to choose from. The popularity of your mission will depend mainly on how engaging the ideas, mission text and dialogue are. Your missions will basically be the same structure as the dozens of other missions already in the game. The ONLY substantial difference will be in the writing.
The paragon wiki lists these as the basic mission types:
Streetsweep (kill x number of a faction)
Kill All
Defeat Boss
Kidnap/Rescue
Find Object (click on glowie)
Thats itfive basic missions, although the devs probably categorize these differently. Of these Find Object is the most flexible, since clicking on a glowie is described in various missions as uploading a computer virus, stealing plans from a wall safe, or planting false evidence in a desk.
Here are some suggestions and warnings of how to proceed.
List of Do Nots
Do not blatantly rip off comics, movies, or novels
[/b]Many of us love specific characters from the comics, and wish we could somehow bring Spiderman/Batman/Wolverine/Wonder Woman/Sparkly Pants the Snuggly Boy into the CoX world. For copyright reasons this is impossible. If we arent allowed to even name our characters after them we certainly wont be able to keep missions online which refer to them. Unlike your character, who only gets renamed, the missions will probably be deleted.
Of course, part of the charm and history of comic books is subtly ripping off other materials. Copywrite law is confusing, but essentially you can use the basic ideas as long as the specific details vary. For example, the idea of a school for mutant superheroes is okay, but dont make the leader Professor Zavier and call the team Z-Men.
Do not try to kill the player
This probably will not be a problem since CoX already has code to let the player determine how difficult or easy to make their missions, and the ME will only let us pick from standard mission types. However, it is useful to remember you are not in a competition with the player. If they die during your mission they will not be impressed with your l33t skills at snuffing them out.
Do not establish new game canon
Canon is the general term for events which are considered to have really happened in a fictional universe.
We are not sanctioned to mess with the existing world of CoX. Most of the signature heroes and groups already have developed histories and back-stories. It is tempting to write missions that add to this existing material. You might have interesting ideas about how Manticore learned archery and why he hates Italian food, but this would conflict with official story arcs which state he loves pizza.
I expect this rule will be flung down and danced upon by many of the uploaded missions. Such is life.
Avoid negative racial or ethnic stereotypes
Be cautious when depicting racial and ethnic groups. What you think is funny might get your missions deleted if there are many complaints.
Do not assume everyone loves your writing
On the one hand, the writing is the main thing that will make your missions stand out. On the other hand, long paragraphs of adjectives do not make for exciting reading. Do not bother to write The villain Mr. MeanGuy is really, really, really, really, really mean and nasty and bad and mean. Really
Your paragraphs should be skimmable for readers who are trying to get to the point of the mission.
List of Dos
Do read the text of existing missions
The existing missions were written by people who have been addressing the same issues we face. Reading what they have already done will expose you to many different ideas and methods The easiest way I know is to go to paragon wiki (http://cityofheroes.wikia.com/wiki/Index.php) and look at the mission text for the specific Contacts.
Do create memorable characters
Creating memorably characters that pull the reader in is one of the challenging tasks of any fiction. Creation these characters in a few lines of dialogue in an online game is even more difficult, and beyond this simple guide.
One thing to consider is motivation. Your NPCs might hate a particular group for a very personal reason. Often its easier for a player to connect emotionally to a specific event than it is to connect to a general catastrophe. For example, Darkblade killed my father and turned my sister into a villain is more engaging than Darkblade killed dozens of innocent people. Both sound bad, but one is more specific and easier to visualize and relate to.
Do notice what engages you while playing
You will probably find you enjoy certain kinds if missions more. I dont mean disliking kill all missions because they are long and you always miss a few, although that is something to consider. Notice or remember what missions seem interesting and draw you in because of the story and objectives. Use these as a source of inspiration for your own writing.
Do link your missions to existing canon
This is the flip side of do not establish new game canon. It is possible to make links and references to the CoX universe without contradicting it. Some tricks are:
-Use characters who are related to existing characters, but sufficiently distant. For example, Sally Smith went to school with Ms. Liberty and was always jealous of her. Now she plots against Ms. Liberty and has a plan to kidnap her which you must foil (Defeat boss mission).
-Use characters who speculate about possibilities. I have a theory that Kheldians were actually genetically engineered by a superior alien race. I just need you to get a few items for me to test my theory (Click glowie mission).
-Use alternate dimensions and time-streams. Marvel has a zombie limited series in which most of their heroes have been turned into flesh-eating zombies in a nearby alternative dimension. Freakshow have captured Rikti technology in a nearby dimension and are planning on invading! They must be defeated! (Kill all)
Do provide missions with different moral alignments
This suggestion is more person opinion, but I think one way that user-created content can vary greatly from the official missions is that you can flip the moral alignment for heroes and villains. Personally I frequently disliked role-playing a bad guy while in CoV. It would have been great to have alternate missions that somehow depicted my character as an undercover hero. Conversely, there are heroes who might be willing to moonlight and do a little work for the Family on the side if the price is right. Hopefully it will be possible to make clear to players where your missions fall on the hero-villain spectrum so people dont find they are walking down the wrong path.
Wouldnt it be interesting to take the existing villain missions and modify the text to provide good-guy versions? Or to provide revision missions which are meant to be played right before or after an existing story-arch to reveal you did something far more heroic (or more vile) than the official mission description? Go to Sam Smith. He will send you on a mission to wipe out a business rival, but this is actually a cover story for the real purpose.
Do make your mission goals clear
If you write text which makes the mission objectives difficult to understand players will not be challenged, but they will be annoyed.
Do use a spell-checker
Spel-checkrs are aesy to find in any sotfware. Use them!
Do expect others will use some of your ideas
If you do a good job you can expect other people will borrow, adapt, and downright steal some your best ideas. There will also be some remarkable similarities between stories developed independently. Just consider it a compliment, then go and write some new missions.
Some Web 2.0 ideas in case the devs wander by
User-generated content and ratings is very Web 2.0. (Full disclosureI work for a company owned by OReilly Media so I have a slight vested interest in promoting Web 2.0 concepts and practices). The goal, as I see it, is to provide a platform which will let user upload, edit, rank, and tag missions with a minimal amount of intervention from the CoX team.
Here are a few things to consider:
Tags
Tags could come in two forms, personal and public. A personal tag would let me mark a mission with a keyword such as favorite, and then see these favorites across all my characters. A public tag would let us place a user-defined keyword on any mission. The advantage of user-defined is that people will always come up with surprising categories that you did not expect. If this were implemented you would find some people very interested in tags like Christian or Anti-American. On the one hand these tags themselves will be controversial, but they also will let players search for or avoid content that meets their preferences, which leads to less complaints. These tags should be searchable so I can find content quickly. When a mission is uploaded it should automatically be tagged with the name of the author.
Rankings
I would like to be able to rank a specific mission on a simply 1 to 5 scale, but only after I have played. I would also like to be able to change my ranking if the creator uploads a new version that I find better or worse.
Comments
I would like to be able to place brief comments on a specific mission. Because of the server load it would be sufficient to only allow one comment per player to avoid arguments.
Ranking the Rankers
Some people will agree with me about what constitutes fun content. Others, not so much. Id like to be able to pick specific individuals (assuming that mission rankings are public) as my favorite rankers and see what other content they enjoy.