No Quest Compass

[Pollox]

I agree with removing the on-screen quest compass but would like to have a map with a general town or region highlighted if my characters know for a fact that we need to go to that specific location (and only if I've discovered or been told exactly where that location is). I have trouble remembering every encounter I have so having a daily journal that updates with things I've seen and done would be nice if I wanted to go back and refresh my memory.

[Hiver]

I have a suggestion that might work for everyone although im generally on the side of those that dont want to see this in the game.

Whatever the compass ends up being, a more detailed one leading players to every little thing or just a general one showing only known and bigger locations - make it optional.
And make an actual compass an item that you must buy/obtain/steal in the game itself rather than just an option in the options of the game.

You may even give a starting basic compass to all players seeing how we will probably play a ranger so it makes sense. Or let one of the starting crew - allies have it, then get them killed in the intro and the player can take it from their inventory if that fits.

Make the more precise "im hand-holding you to any item" type of compass available later on, for example.
Although i would prefer those not to be there at all and you get your designers and writers concentrated to provide decent clues and directions players can use themselves - with the help of a nicely designed journal to boot.

It would make sense since even in most of the possible apocalyptic events the Earth magnetic fields would not be changed so you can reasonably expect an ordinary compass to work. Although normal compasses dont show locations like cities or different places or items but we are talking about game compass so you have a free license there.
And of course, it would end up seeming much nicer then just having a freaking magic icon glowing on the screen.

One of the first mods for Skyrim i downloaded, that really, really enhanced my gameplay, was the one that just removes pointing out of small non-quest related locations on that compass bar at the top of the screen.
I still got the main quests directions, if i choose them, but i no longer see small immediate locations around myself on that freaking bar.
Which means every single small location i find is immediately a reward in on itself.

And the fact that i now miss most of them if im not specifically looking is my own damn fault - which makes the whole deal of exploration actually meaningful and very rewarding. And MY CHOICE.
Of course, Skyrim is so badly and intentionally designed in that regard that you actually need a quest compass otherwise there is literally nothing else by which you would find any bigger location at all.

[Shaewaros]

No quest compass, I agree 100%.

[astateofmind]

QUest compass is a generic feature this says. A generic feature that i hope will not be present in Wasteland 2. I mean ... is a wasteland, not a circus park with maps and gps.

[Aarionn]

I vote for NO quest compass.

The game will NEED to have proper journal with quest description and with description of the place where you need to go (directions of some kind that is provided by a quest giver or some clue in game). a big + would be if we could also write a notes in our journal.

Also a map would be needed where you can add your locations and descriptions.

[benzei]

THIS.

AVOID QUEST COMPASS, AT ALL, COST.

Avoid mapmarkers aswell untill you have actually found the location.

[apocraphyn]

Map/Quest markers make sense - that's as simple as marking an X on a map to remind you of a location to visit. However, a homing GPS-style compass does not.

Of course, markers wouldn't make much sense in the hypothetical case of "Uncle Jimmy disappeared last night! I have no idea where he could be! Please find him!", unless of course the quest giver divulges information on their last seen whereabouts.

[Lucius]

Every RPG in the last decade has been a hand holding abomination. Please just tell me which way to go. I know where Northwest is; tell me to walk that direction. There is no need to put a marker on a map or on a compass. We don't need an arrow on the screen. Please let us use our brains in a game for once because it sure has been awhile since I played a RPG and actually had to think.

I like adventure in my adventure games.

[Hiver]

It would be nifty to be able to mark your own points of interest on the map itself.
It always annoys me as hell if i cant do that.

But no magic sign pointing and leading you to the location. Just a mark/sign on the map.

And make maps something you find, buy or steal. A rare, useful help.

[simonw]

Like others have said, no compass. I want the feeling of not knowing what to do and being frustrated to find that place, it all adds up to a more satisfactory experience at the end when you all put it together yourself.

Most gamers nowadays cannot put up with the frustration that comes with such design but as a kick starter project, I hope Wasteland 2 can take a much hardened approach toward this.

[Tharkon]

You'd better have a very detailed map then in cloth and computer image + an even more detailed radar-sort-off-map-without-radar that updates itself as you move along.


For anyone that wants to see what I mean please refer to this game/images (but imagine it better and more modern).

This is the classic Sega Master:
MIracle Warriors. My first RPG ever


An important tip (OP please add this to your first post if you can/want so that the devs see it):
You should be able to add NOTES on the in-game map.

[Sub-Human]

Certainly Wasteland 2 should be absent of any type of quest marker that leads the player. As some had already suggested, perhaps being able to stick a note on your map would be a great idea, and, speaking of which, perhaps having this option in your journal would be cool, too.

A location, in my opinion (a city, for example), should be put on the map as scenery. As the player approaches it through the map, the various buildings pop-up, sort of like you exploring it. Other than that, you could have someone pinpoint the location to you, or a bigger circle if someone is not entirely sure whether the location is actually there. If someone just tells you of a city to the north, the note-on-map function would be great here.

Besides, who doesn't sticking retro-styled notes on these type of stuff anyways? Great for roleplaying

[Tharkon]

Yeah a journal-type thing to is necessary.
I mean yeah, there is always notepad but pl0x....who can bother alt-tabbing that much and there's always the risk of alt-tab messing up the game.

[Elthosian]

No quest arrow please, as many have said, the ideal solution is being able to put some markers by yourself, also, if you really have to put a quest compass in, be sure to give the option for it to be disabled, and to make the quest-characters give us the same hints that they would give us in a game without it, Skyrim was horrible in this regard, you could disable the arrow, yes, but the quest-givers would only tell you "Go to generic cave 17", and then you had to enable the damn thing again

[Tharkon]

Also one more argument against them quest arrows is that we today have the internets...
Them gamers of 1988 did not have access to it in general and those who did had access to it at the speed of...56kb/sec and a limitation of both cost per megabyte and your annoying sister/cousin/mom that wanted the phone

[Jack Dandy]

A big NO to quest compasses / unlimited quick travel.

Also, please try and incorporate the cloth map in the gameplay- I'd love it to actually be useful!

[kad136]

Fully agree that there should be no quest compass. But notes on the map for already-discovered areas are perfectly fine. Plus the map should allow the user to make their own markers/notes (see BG2).

[Goral]

Yes, a big "NO" to quest compass and self-solving gameplay would be appreciated.
Generic, inaccurate hints about where to find something/someone? Sure.
A big glowing arrow leading the way? Fuck that shit.

Agreed with this and the first post. Rangers could have a compass but a player should be the one to use it, no big arrow is necessary, although IMO it would be best if no such helping hand would be present in game.

[Nex]

Yep, no quest compass and not one which points to a spot you marked yourself either. I would like it to be simply a map which does not even show where you currently are on it. You should be able to add notes to it tho. No radar type thing either.

I want to get lost, and to struggle to find places.

[Menckenstein]

No markers, at all. If you hover over the name of a location w/ your cursor and you've knowledge of this place it'll give you the name. That should be enough. Hand holding makes gamers, and games, worse. People went crazy for Dark Souls because it was challenging but not artificially so (HP bloat, cheating AI, etc), imagine the paradigm shift from a resurrected classic from the golden age. "This game is hard, but I managed to get through that using my own brain, how rewarding "