Best video game genre for Bionicle?

[PlasmaJaller]

What genre think do you think worked or would have worked best for Bionicle games?

To start with console games, platforming was an obvious choice for the 2003 game. Mata Nui is such a fascinating island and diverse in its landscapes, you would want to explore it. Only, the game suffered from pretty interchangeable characters. Aside from Lewa's flying and Gali's swimming (and those weren't really much), none of the other Toa stood out - Kopaka and Tahu Nuva wouldn't really count in terms of platforming since their games only consisted in sliding down a mountain or surfing on lava. There was also no strategy when it came to combat, which was another missed opportunity to exploit the Toa's elemental power.

As for Heroes, shooter always struck me as an odd choice for Bionicle. Toa would generally fight using melee weapons and their powers. Weapons like Zamor spheres or Cordak Blasters were an addition but never the core of the sets. One of the most disappointing aspects was how the game drastically diverted from the story by having you play a nameless protagonist using the Inika's masks as basically armors for him to wear - among many other things. At least the 2003 tried to tell two whole years of the franchise in one game, even though it was rushed and half-assed.

When I think of Bionicle, I think of the following: unique heroes with distinct weapons and elemental powers, action, exploration, storytelling and most, of all, unity. If I was put in charge of a Bionicle game, I would see two possible genres that would fit those themes best:

A platformer, preferably a side-scroller, in the vein of Trine. You have your set of characters with different attacks and abilities and you switch between them depending on the circumstances. In the case of the Toa Metru, for instance, you would use Vakama to hit distant targets with his disk launcher, use Nokama to swim underwater at high speed, use Onewa's Proton Piton's to swing to hooks and other objects etc. Each character having their distinct level is a way to go, but unlocking new characters throughout the story and going back to previous level to access areas that were inaccessible before is much more interesting, adds replayability and provides motivation for completionists. Think Bionicle Heroes with platforming instead of shooting and an actual plot where the Toa are their own individuals.

The second option would be a turned-based RPG similar to the Persona franchise. With its team of six members and its elements, Bionicle could easily use Persona's expanding party system and weak points. Each enemy would be weak and resistant to different elements and other type of attacks, so you would have to switch between party members for the best strategies. Combined attacks would also be a given, whether it takes two party members or the entire party, to inflict greater damages to enemies, to emphasize unity. Equipment and experience would also be a given, but I am not fond of the classic leveling system that tends to be broken by grinding or adaptive leveling of enemies. I much prefer alternative like Star Renegades where experience (or, in this instance, "ADN") is used as currency to level up the party members of your choice.

Obviously, those aren't the only ways to go about a franchise like Bionicle. Clearly, you don't even need play as Toa. You can also have a fun time playing a Matoran. But that's what I would propose if they asked me to pitch them an idea for a game.

[Bambi]

I know it's not a console game, but Maze of Shadows for the GBA used turn-based combat like Pokemon.

Also, I feel like not a whole lot of people know about this, so I'll just leave it here:

 

[PlasmaJaller]

2 hours ago, Bambi said:

I know it's not a console game, but Maze of Shadows for the GBA used turn-based combat like Pokemon.

Also, I feel like not a whole lot of people know about this, so I'll just leave it here:

I started playing it a few minutes yesterday night. It's too soon to judge but Vakama suggesting they leave Nokama to die is all kinds of wrong.

This project has been looking really promising, but I have some reserves, my main issues being that I'm not too fond of the Dark Souls approach to combat (although I guess it's always better than 2003's) and that the levels look like a bunch of corridors that are easy to get lost in. Still, I'm glad LEGO is enthusiastic about it and gave them guidelines to follow, instead of trying to get them to cease and decease. I do hope there will be resolutions settings low enough to keep my laptop from setting my house on fire though.

[Lenny7092]

Well, I would go with the 2003 game’s gameplay (not including the Kopaka Mata and Tahu Nuva mini-games), and have more freedom to explore around, kind of similar to Kingdom Hearts. Bionicle Heroes and Bionicle: The Legend of Mata Nui sort of have the right idea. The first person shooting thing is weird for me, and I can’t jump freely. It would be nice if any of these games were like Lego Marvel Super Heroes in 2013. That’s my opinion. 
 

I bet Quest for Mata Nui sure is promising because it does what a Bionicle fan dreams of playing. I’m super-glad that Lego likes this, despite the fan game not being released yet.

[PlasmaJaller]

14 minutes ago, Lenny7092 said:

Well, I would go with the 2003 game’s gameplay (not including the Kopaka Mata and Tahu Nuva mini-games), and have more freedom to explore around, kind of similar to Kingdom Hearts. Bionicle Heroes and Bionicle: The Legend of Mata Nui sort of have the right idea. The first person shooting thing is weird for me, and I can’t jump freely. It would be nice if any of these games were like Lego Marvel Super Heroes in 2013. That’s my opinion. 
 

I bet Quest for Mata Nui sure is promising because it does what a Bionicle fan dreams of playing. I’m super-glad that Lego likes this, despite the fan game not being released yet.

I think a shooter could work but only for 2007. I've once read about an idea for a survival-like game where you play as one of the Toa Mahri who has been isolated from the rest of the team following an intro cutscene similar to the commercial - up until Matoro fights with Gadunka. From then on you'd have to find a way to rejoin the group, find the mask of life and, most of all, survive the creeps that are lurking in the shadow. A first person view, on top of a vision limited to a flash light, would add to feeling of vulnerability and isolation Mahri Nui had. Survival horror sounds just as odd a choice for Bionicle, but clearly LEGO pushed the "creep" factor pretty hard when promoting the Barraki.

Also yeah, games that don't have a jump button are a goddamn travesty.

[Iruini Nuva]

For the "complete package" Bionicle experience, Action/Adventure/RPG hybrids seem like a potential sweet spot (i.e. Quest for Mata Nui).

I do think there's also a vital role for other genres as micro-experiences that deep-dive into specific bits of the world. Old-school Koli matches, for instance. I think platformers fall into this "focused experience" niche too. Leverage/Build the world by adding detail in a focused area, rather than spanning the whole gamut. Also where fan games like The Insurgent intentionally tried to play.

I also had some napkin ideas for an RTS back in the day. Not sure that it would work overly well without feeling too contrived, but I always hoped there was something there with the Bohrok, etc.

TCGs were deeply under explored too, but the genre didn't really survive. :/

[PlasmaJaller]

8 minutes ago, Iruini Nuva said:

For the "complete package" Bionicle experience, Action/Adventure/RPG hybrids seem like a potential sweet spot (i.e. Quest for Mata Nui).

I do think there's also a vital role for other genres as micro-experiences that deep-dive into specific bits of the world. Old-school Koli matches, for instance. I think platformers fall into this "focused experience" niche too. Leverage/Build the world by adding detail in a focused area, rather than spanning the whole gamut. Also where fan games like The Insurgent intentionally tried to play.

I also had some napkin ideas for an RTS back in the day. Not sure that it would work overly well without feeling too contrived, but I always hoped there was something there with the Bohrok, etc.

TCGs were deeply under explored too, but the genre didn't really survive. :/

Playing as the Matoran as they try to protect their Koro and fight back against the Bohrok, now that is golden.

[Lenny7092]

1 hour ago, PlasmaJaller said:

Playing as the Matoran as they try to protect their Koro and fight back against the Bohrok, now that is golden.

It’s would have been nice if there is a mini-game about that in a console or handheld game, or as an online game similar to the Mata Nui Online Games.

[Iruini Nuva]

1 hour ago, Lenny7092 said:

It’s would have been nice if there is a mini-game about that in a console or handheld game, or as an online game similar to the Mata Nui Online Games.

Ask and ye shall receive: https://www.bzpower.com/board/topic/8946-mnolg-the-bohrok-swarms/

Doesn't look like it was ever finished, but the link is up and I just got it to run successfully.

Edited November 28, 2020 by Iruini Nuva