Do you consider the "real" world in CoX?
By
Arctic_Princess,
Posted on: 2006-09-11 20:19 in Roleplaying
Mosty I assume that current real world events are not happening in the CoX world, mainly as they would happen totaly differently or not at all due to the presence of magic and superpowers and super technology.
I accept game history to be the same(mostly) as real world history up to the 1890s..Then you get the heroes appearing in the 1920s(?) which is a good point to assume things diverge grossly from real world events.
There is an obvious problem, commonly known as fudge, in most games of this genre.
Whilst traunatic events could be saved by the application of powers, many more could be caused. Without wanting to delve too far into RL, a Middle East Country that wanted to raid another to take control of, say, the Well of Souls, (Especially relevant as the Garden of Eden is thought to be in the area now known as Iraq), A horde of Allied Longbow Eagles might have fought off the Arabic Djinn and suffered a retributive strike by an Efreet.
On the other hand, developments such as Teleportation would also lead to Cloning, Nuclear Fission, Nanobots, Ethereal Transfer, Mind Control, Empath Counsellors, Telepathic Lawyers.
As a basic example, given current Paragon technology, there would be no reason why the Hospital Grid couldn't be used by Ma Bell (BT to us) to use mobiles as homing beacons for TP. Thus eliminating vehicular transport for all but the poor. This means oil would become nearly worthless as well as most major construction industries as by simply mapping the Teleportation Code; Innumerate copies of anything could be created. Thus destabilising the World's currency.
Given that coding, people could remove/add code to give them any alteration to their body they desire. This makes Pollution/Global Warming/Nuclear Weapons obsolete, as well as Arms/Food/Cookery etc.
The resultant unemployment turns a high percentage of people to crime through boredom.
That's just from the Hospital Grid. So Fudge is definitely needed 
[ QUOTE ]
Mosty I assume that current real world events are not happening in the CoX world, mainly as they would happen totaly differently or not at all due to the presence of magic and superpowers and super technology.
[/ QUOTE ]
My opinion too.
It always leaves a sour taste in my mouth when real events are interspliced with comics (I didn't particularly like the Marvel homage to September 11th).
Implied results of those attacks (such as the state of alerts seen in Metropolis in Superman:Birthright) are slightly better, but still leave me feeling a bit jaded.
I'm not saying that these events shouldn't be acknowledged, but given the world of COH/COV has already had to deal with a massive invasion which nearly decimated the entire planet, using real life events in game seems a tad redundant.
The world of COH/COV is a playground. We can add elements into it ourselves to make it more real life. Others can agree, or disagree. Life goes on.
"Idealism is such a wonderful thing. All you really need is someone rational to put it to proper use." - Kerr Avon
Myopic Aardvark on Twitter
I'll often refer to RL in RP, but not for events such as the war against terror etc. I'll refer to movies, actors, perhaps some minor news stories, but only very minor things really.
@FloatingFatMan
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
Real world events happen in the real world, CoX events happen in CoX. In this case, we've got a world still reeling from a massive alien invasion. I don't think there's really any reason to want to reference "real" events when there are things like that, far more relevant to the feel of the game world, already in place.
Although, as above, small things like movies, music and things are fair game, and rightly so.
Not major current news events, but minor things, yes. My characters talk about the latest comic they've read, film they've seen, et cetra.
The invasion has, imho, been pushed aside.
I mean, it's only been a year or so since the world was attacked by incredibly hostile, lethal alien forces, and NOONE talks about it! :/
It's been over two years now. If you consider real time to be the same as COH time?
Only 5 years until we can get that Time Capsule to Hero 1 open then 
"Idealism is such a wonderful thing. All you really need is someone rational to put it to proper use." - Kerr Avon
Myopic Aardvark on Twitter
[ QUOTE ]
It's been over two years now. If you consider real time to be the same as COH time?
Only 5 years until we can get that Time Capsule to Hero 1 open then
[/ QUOTE ]
...and find out he was hiding inside it all this time! 
Actually, the Rikti homeworld was the highest voted in the poll, so we may get to see it for ourselves!
Actually, 4, they invaded 23rd May 2002.
Yup. Z is right. It confuses some people though as they took part in fighting the Rikti at the end of the American beta.
Indeed. But I can understand the timeslip - after all, when the game launched, Paragon City had just issued its call to new heroes to come and bolster the ranks that had been lost in the war.
I wouldn't imagine them doing that for some time after it ended.
"Idealism is such a wonderful thing. All you really need is someone rational to put it to proper use." - Kerr Avon
Myopic Aardvark on Twitter
[ QUOTE ]
Do you consider the "real" world in CoX?
[/ QUOTE ]
Laugh if you want, but my finest hero, Pious can warp through dimensions and alternate realities. Once, he visited me, in (the Real World) where he caught me playing him as an avatar. He was most fascinated, but claimed to have seen wierder things than that.
So Pious for one learnt of things like this here CoX game, the World Trade centre's collapse and even the Marvel Comics before returning to his own dimension.. where Paragon City exists.
I think it's fair to include events 'in another guise'. With regards to the War on Terror, Iraq, Afghanistan etc. - The Rikti War embodies that for me. All the paranoia, fighting and loss.
However, Paragon has also seen the rise of narcotics-related crimes despite The Vindicators' War on Crime (i.e. regardless of what the History Plaques say, heroes and indeed villains are constantly fighting groups that deal in drugs) - even Longbow have now 'invaded' the safer spots of Paragon but people are still getting mugged.
So, I say, if there's an issue you'd like to rRP through then try scribbling a few things down and chuck out the raw ideas to fellow RPers (after all in some cases there are age-limits to consider) before having a crack at the idea in full.
As for 'little' things like books, movies etc. - why not make a few up? Sure, refer to comics but perhaps some rabid ex-CoT-guy-turned-politcian has just written a book about his experiences in Oranbega? The possibilities, as the recycling advert tells us, are endless.
[ QUOTE ]
I think it's fair to include events 'in another guise'. With regards to the War on Terror, Iraq, Afghanistan etc. - The Rikti War embodies that for me. All the paranoia, fighting and loss.
[/ QUOTE ] Exactly my view of it.
Odd question, but it's something I've been thinking about.
When it comes to "real world" events such as September 11th, the Iraq war, etc, do you consider them to have happened in CoX's world as well?
Just interested in seeing how people do with this sort of thing.