Forums » General Pantheon Discussion

Community Debate - Open World Housing vs Instanced Housing

    • 196 posts
    April 12, 2020 12:07 AM PDT

    Also limit housing to 1 character per account can own a single house, but there alts on that account has full access to it. so players are not buying out entire housing areas if they go the open world route or a instanced area where you live with other players. 

    • 9 posts
    April 12, 2020 9:31 AM PDT

    Instanced housing.  I just think its easier on the game engine and I hated to land grab that happened in Archeage when it launched.  ESO housing comes to mind though giving us the ability to build our house sounds fantastic too!

    • 844 posts
    April 12, 2020 10:32 AM PDT

    If you never played Vanguard and experienced the housing, you don't understand how housing will be handled, if it ever gets to that.

    • 3 posts
    April 15, 2020 10:47 AM PDT

    I love the idea of player housing.  I always collect and try to accomplish everything I can on a single character. That being said, somewhere to collect and keep memorial pieces is a great personal accomplishment area. I dont care for decorating and showing off, even though I see the appeal to many. Mine is more of a collection warehouse or game room idea.  

    I could see the advantages to instanced housing on a personal level, as its for myself mainly and a place to store my coveted trophies and collections and reduced time and effort on making it happen.

    But I was thinking while reading everyones replies and open world housing would be incredible as well, BUT only IMO if there where implications behind that.  If the open world housing existed it should be real. In terms of locks can be picked and items can be stolen. Houses burned or ransacked. Raids can be done.  Through this perhaps contracts or bounties can be put out by guilds and players alike to hunt down those responsible, to reacquire the stolen merchandise or simply for vengeance. Perhaps, if those responsible are PC's then they are autoflagged PvP by the bounty.  If its an NPC then perhaps a contract or bounty can be put out as a mission or quest by the player or guild for a reward. 

     

    Just an idea that popped up while reading this discussion.  Im still not all the way through reading them all but thought I would get this out befrore I forget abotu it. 

    • 413 posts
    April 15, 2020 11:42 AM PDT

    My Idea is boats become player housing. Or create archipagos in the ocean for player housing.  Or player housing on the bottom of the ocean (for those high level players who want to keep the rift raft out  guard it with sea creatures.  Caves are cool housing options, as are cloud cities.  as are other planes of existance.  if they get to the point of player housing make it frick'in cool.

    • 3852 posts
    April 16, 2020 7:47 AM PDT

    (Iif you never played Vanguard and experienced the housing, you don't understand how housing will be handled, if it ever gets to that))

     

    The best part of Vanguard housing was the ability to craft the houses. The worst part was the houses themselves. Small, cramped, relatively useless and with pathetically weak customization and decoration options. And I speak as one of the most vocal Vanguard enthusiasts who preferred it to EQ on many levels. 

    I don't know what it will take to put really good housing in Pantheon. Maybe a lot is available through Unity or other packages that can be added on fairly easily and cheaply. Maybe it is all custom work by the developers requiring endless time and resources - in which case it should be a very low priority. With a high level of probabilty the state of the art today makes both possible and feasible oh so many things that were not such when Vanguard was coded.

    We have the example of EQ2 which is considered to have a really good housing system. We have the example of SWTOR with frankly mediocre houses but wonderful settings and views. I still miss my houses on Tatooine with the view of the two suns from the balcony. We have games where houses were in other dimensions or times. We have very useful houses with merchants and crafting amenities and access to the markets (terrible idea if you want a vibrant world where players are *seen* by other players).

    • 121 posts
    April 18, 2020 10:26 AM PDT

    My first choice would be open world housing.  Like in Vanguard, it gave harvesters and crafters a purpose and great immersion for me.  Instancing is not as good, but it's better than nothing.   I know with Pantheon's small team and budget we won't get housing but I  can dream and remember Vanguard fondly. 

    • 74 posts
    April 18, 2020 10:37 AM PDT

    Open world, with the ability to place your house anywhere in the world within reason, IE, blocks of land with 'OKTOBUILDHOUSE' variable set to true. Let people pimp their houses out and make them unique and stand out too. Now is not the time to follow the herd, let's get innovative.

    • 945 posts
    April 18, 2020 11:41 AM PDT

    Housing may come in an expansion, and definitely instanced to not break game immersion.  Although some players would create absolute masterpieces that fit into the world, there would be the occassional "self-expressing artists" that decide to create a giant pink monstrosities.  Having a few template homes within a "housing community" that were actually instances to player housing would be great (similar to EQ2).

  • Pro
    • 9 posts
    April 18, 2020 8:59 PM PDT

    If housing HAS to be in the game then I think instanced is better. EQ2 did housing relatively well and interestingly IMO. There were a lot of cool things to place and do in your house. Honestly I would prefer no housing at all and would prefer the time spent in other areas of the game. However, if there is demand in the community then instanced would be the way to go IMO. It's a lot less messy. 

    • 99 posts
    April 19, 2020 9:36 PM PDT
    Never been a fan of housing just seems pointless to me. I noticed in WoW when they brought out the garrisons the main citys were empty. Totally killed the socializing that used to go on in main citys. Not that the game in general went in a direction to bring people together i feel they went the opposite. But thats really all im basing this off of was 1 time and it was awful. Maybe im bias because of it not being done right but if everyones instanced off in their houses the world might seem empty.
    • 8 posts
    May 25, 2022 6:31 PM PDT

    I see both pros and cons to both. Open world housing provides a more authentic and natural feel but in a world, real or virtual, space is limited, especially in a virtual world. With instance housing you can have potentially an endless number of housing in one location but having a dozen people standing outside a single house tends to break that authentic and natural feeling. I think you could do both. Have some real estate in game but that would be more expensive then let’s say an instance option. You could have a condo style building in every major city. Maybe have everyone start with a single studio apartment where people can put some stuff for safe keeping. In-game outfits, trophies, a weapons plaque or stand. Save up some gold, buy a bigger more elaborate apartment or condo. And having 20 people standing outside in a courtyard in front of a large building would not break that natural feeling. You could have a large grand building that could serve as an instance Guild Hall or save open world real estate specifically for guild hall placement. Maybe have both if there is a large demand for more space for Guild Halls, perhaps when the open world real estate spaces are all used up, that’s all there is and the only space left is the instance Halls.

    • 161 posts
    May 27, 2022 11:30 AM PDT

    The closest I ever came to in-game housing was choosing to log my Dwarven Paladin into and out of an empty room at one of the inns in Kaladim.