Should Wasteland2's world be "more realistic"

[CRP]

Most post-apocalyptic games (especially Wasteland 1 and all the Fallout games) start out in a realistic enough fashion (for my taste, at least): all the people one encounters face hard times and must try very hard to survive.
But then, inevitably, comes a point where pure sci-fi takes over: plenty of wacky weaponry, weird robots, AIs, supernatural Cults, absurd mutants etc.
So I am wondering, is there any way to keep the story interesting without going overboard with fantastical elements?
An example would be a comparison between Postman movie and book. I know many people think the movie is rubbish, but I actually enjoyed it very much and did not miss that final part about the AI at all.
In the same vein, I am somewhat sick of running into yet another Area 51 variation, give me some interesting real locations. For example, how about an oil rig near the coast or a settlement like that in Mad Max?
Finally, what I always found a bit odd in the above mentioned games, is that too often there were encounters with enemies or NPCs in areas where they had no reason to be there. I expect people in a post apocalyptic world to concentrate in resource rich areas (again, like Mad Max). The odd hermit in the desert is fine, with a bit of context, but do not go over the top with it...
So, to sum it up, I would really enjoy a Wasteland 2 where the final goal is not to rid the world of the evil supermonster du jour, but to "right things" for a small or not so small community that might then be the starting point for a new civilization.

[krellen]

Too bad. The game's main adversaries are going to be the Guardians. Already established story fact.

[CRP]

Well, what I said is not in contrast with the Guardians, unless their secret leader is an old C64 turned sentient...

[Zigmar]

Huh? What the problem with sci-fi themes?!

[krellen]

Well, what I said is not in contrast with the Guardians, unless their secret leader is an old C64 turned sentient...

Except that they are explicitly a high-science, hoarding of old tech, monks in power armour group. They're pure sci-fi.

[Gennadios]

Too bad. The game's main adversaries are going to be the Guardians. Already established story fact.

I must have missed that memo. Looks like we're in for some good 'ol Space Marine vs. Imperial Guard action.

[Zeronet]

The thing i enjoy about Wasteland and Fallout is the mix of science fiction elements and post-apocalypse. I doubt and i hope they aren't going to mess with that.

I enjoy finding mysterious old science fictionquese military bases where i have to break through ancient laser defences and descend into the cold war era sublevels of a facility.

[Lucius]

I would expect sci-fi elements will be pretty prevalent in this game since it was so heavy in the original. Honestly, to think otherwise is foolish and would entirely retcon the entire first game.

[TΛPETRVE]

Well, what I said is not in contrast with the Guardians, unless their secret leader is an old C64 turned sentient...

Except that they are explicitly a high-science, hoarding of old tech, monks in power armour group. They're pure sci-fi.

Thankfully they are established as a bunch of lunatics that worship credit cards and TVs. Makes it a lot easier to distinguish them properly from Fallout's Brotherhood of Steel and the like.

[Son of Max]

The thing i enjoy about Wasteland and Fallout is the mix of science fiction elements and post-apocalypse. I doubt and i hope they aren't going to mess with that.

I enjoy finding mysterious old science fictionquese military bases where i have to break through ancient laser defences and descend into the cold war era sublevels of a facility.

That was what I always thought gave Wasteland it's charm, yeah, it's a post-apocalyptic world...but there was a lot of cool stuff from before the apocalypse buried in the desert BY the apocalypse.

It's the 'Lost Civilization' or 'Lost City' concept. The 'Old World' is gone...but not ALL of it. For the brave (or crazy) there's a reward for daring to uncover the lost past.

Likewise, there's also great peril which made for a great game.

[Woolfe]

no

[newyawk]

When I was 14 and playing wasteland, I thought the setting and humor was perfect. That being said, I am now closing in on 40 fast and expect a something a bit darker with more post apocalyptic themes. Humorous and the rest would fit nice but I think the same game would be a lot less impacting 25 years later

[TΛPETRVE]

So what? Just because we grow older does not mean that our childhood franchises have to "grow up", too. That's exactly the kind of argument someone like Michael Bay would use to justify his bastardisation of the Ninja Turtles (only that in the TMNT case, the original comic was "darker and edgier" than anything the IP did evolve into ever since).

[tuluse]

I vote no to more realistic.

A lot of the fun is some of the silliness of the world.

[rakenan]

Huh? What the problem with sci-fi themes?!

Obviously they have no place in the sequel to a game where you use laser weapons and power armor to defeat an insane artificial intelligence intent on replacing humanity with a perfect machine civilization.

[Zeronet]

it’s clear this character is physically challenged, has esoteric old world knowledge, and is gifted with electronics and machines and codes, so after remembering that Wasteland has a high technology bent, it occurred to me I had the freedom to imagine him as an android if I wanted to. -Chris Avellone's Blog

It's become a habit of mine, but i think quoting various developers pretty much sums stuff up.

Wasteland inspired the whole high tech post-apoc in the first place, it'd be completely bonkers for the sequel to not follow on from that.

[jcash85]

meh I like my sci-fi soft and pulpy. I do think sci-fi elements should be rare, and reserved for the highest tier of gear and enemies, but you won't see me bat an eye if I have to face down a robot scorpion, controlled by a cyborg brain-in-a-jar, with only my trusty six shooter and laser sword.

I just don't want to randomly encounter said robo-scorp-brain-jars every 30 damn feet just because I'm high level. I also don't want to walk into Slim's general goods store and see 3 plasma rifles, a laser rifle, and 200 energy cells sitting on a shelf next to 200 year old canned beans. I think high-technology should mostly be hidden away in the world, with the vast majority of humanity scraping a living at the near-iron-age technology level, where the man with a functioning rifle is king for exactly as many bullets as he has left.

[tuluse]

Society was pretty well beyond iron age level in Wasteland 1.

[Clausewitz_]

it’s clear this character is physically challenged, has esoteric old world knowledge, and is gifted with electronics and machines and codes, so after remembering that Wasteland has a high technology bent, it occurred to me I had the freedom to imagine him as an android if I wanted to. -Chris Avellone's Blog

It's become a habit of mine, but i think quoting various developers pretty much sums stuff up.

Wasteland inspired the whole high tech post-apoc in the first place, it'd be completely bonkers for the sequel to not follow on from that.

agreed
been away from the forums but been replaying the original again - had not tried to play it for a good 20 years.
would not be Wasteland if it changed too much

[Zombra]

I think the enemies can get as weird as they want, but I will be disappointed if my Rangers are all Space Marines by the end.