Ultimate Marvel: Is there a way to make it work again?

[Byrd Man]

Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. I'm just saying there needs to be a healthy balance. (God, I feel like I'm advertising a breakfast cereal... )

Remember kids, solo-posting is a sometimes snack, but not an every day thing.

Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

 

[Saved]

I essentially back everything MB has said and Byrd's comment about snacks. Kinda sad only five of us are posting in this thread, though. Not a good sign.

 

[wiegeabo]

Remember kids, solo-posting is a sometimes snack, but not an every day thing.

Now you know, and knowing is half the battle.

The other half is evenly split between red lasers and blue lasers.

 

[Optikal]

Just to throw in my two pence, I agree that interaction is the lifeblood of a game but also that some people prefer to set up an origins arc before delving into everyday superheroics. Ult DC resolved that problem and it'd be wise for this game to follow suit.

The first reboot was fudged. There's no disrespect intended to those who were behind that move, but it was ugly and not a reboot in the true sense. In I think because of that, it was doomed from the start. THen upon the next (proper) reboot, everyone was into the idea but within a few pages, everyone stopped posting. I know that at the time I was itching to do stuff, but waiting days for someone to reply just sapped away all enthusiasm and I left. I think everyone was just so burned out by the concept and by the constant retreading that again - it wasn't viable to last.

Which brings us to now. And again, right now I don't think another attempt would work. The game is facing up against 616, which is enjoying a steady stream of plot thanks in no small part to Marvels 616 universe being stronger than it has been in years. THe Ultimate Universe is just taking the first small steps back in the right direction, but there's been no good material since Ults 2 and that leaves enthusiasm for the concept at an all-time low. And finally, the games have suffered quite a loss of talent this past year. Posters have come and gone and we are essentially down to just a core few who participate across all of the Hype RPGs. Sure there are plenty of RPers but most of them tend to focus on only one or two games.

If you want this to work, I suggest you let it rest for a while. Much like G&M, let the desire to have one around swell in a few more people before we try and force everything into another revival. I love Ult Marvel and think the concept has legs as a viable game but I also think it needs to just take a break for a little while too.

 

[Johnny Blaze]

I'm all for a trying to iron out the kinks and get this game running again.
I'm a fan of the Dawn of Marvel's style take that's been suggested, in that everything starts from scratch. I like that creative freedom, personally. Especially with the major characters, like Spider-Man, Thor, Doom, etc.
Only thing with that is we'd need to come up with a basic premise/backstory for the game.
As for it getting bogged down in solo arc hell, as Byrd first mentioned, just have that "three year" option, ala Ultimate DC and everything should be fine.

 

[Batman]

I've been thinking alot about this overnight, and I think it all boils down to this: Most people want a Dawn of Marvels-styled Ultimate RPG. So I was thinking about it, and asked myself... why not just restart Dawn of Marvels? As Eddie said, the possible reason that it failed was that it had Ultimate Marvel to compete with, and without an Ultimate Marvel, there's a better chance for it's survival. Since that seems to be what alot of the UM fans want anyway, why not just work with that concept? Someone else could take the helm and do things that I couldn't with it, and really churn out something worth playing and keeping stable.

This way, people's need for a 'start-from-scratch' Marvel RPG are satisfied, and we can allow Ultimate Marvel to take a necessary rest until people are ready to embrace that universe again. Because honestly, the idea of a game called 'Ultimate Marvel' without being based in the actual Ultimate Marvel universe seems unfitting to me.

 

[Byrd Man]

Well, what if you restarted DOM, but also allowed people to play the Ultimate version of a character? Like, to me, Ult. Cap's backstory and personality works well for Ult. Marvel and any other RPG. What if I wanted to play Cap in DOM and I just played the Ult. Marvel version with slight tweaks if I wanted them?

 

[Batman]

Well, what if you restarted DOM, but also allowed people to play the Ultimate version of a character? Like, to me, Ult. Cap's backstory and personality works well for Ult. Marvel and any other RPG. What if I wanted to play Cap in DOM and I just played the Ult. Marvel version with slight tweaks if I wanted them?

*shrugs* I say just let people do whatever they want. Mish-mash whatever they want in to fit what they want to do with the character. Hell, I added in a few elements of Batman Begins/Dark Knight into my Ultimate Batman, so I can't really say otherwise.

 

[Andy C.]

I wouldn't mind just re-booting DoM: one of the advantages Ultimate DC has over Ultimate Marvel is that there's no existing Ultimate DC comics to conform to, so you can theoretically mix in anything you like. Applying the same to a new Ultimate Marvel/DoM game would open up a lot of freedom--you could mix in stuff from 616 Marvel, Ultimate Marvel, the cartoons, the movies, or whatever you make up on your own. That alone I think would give us a lot of freedom and motivation to come up with stuff.

I for one would be all about such a thing, especially now that I have a little more time to burn on the RPGs (writing up several concepts right now, as a matter of fact, for who I'd want to play)

 

[Eddie Brock]

I'd support a DoM restart, for the record.

 

[Blacklight]

I'd support a DoM restart, for the record.

Same here.

 

[Optikal]

I wouldn't mind just re-booting DoM: one of the advantages Ultimate DC has over Ultimate Marvel is that there's no existing Ultimate DC comics to conform to, so you can theoretically mix in anything you like. Applying the same to a new Ultimate Marvel/DoM game would open up a lot of freedom--you could mix in stuff from 616 Marvel, Ultimate Marvel, the cartoons, the movies, or whatever you make up on your own. That alone I think would give us a lot of freedom and motivation to come up with stuff.

I for one would be all about such a thing, especially now that I have a little more time to burn on the RPGs (writing up several concepts right now, as a matter of fact, for who I'd want to play)

This.

 

[Saved]

When we say "Dawn of Marvels Reboot", are we still embracing the "60s Marvel" view?

 

[Eddie Brock]

When we say "Dawn of Marvels Reboot", are we still embracing the "60s Marvel" view?

I say "yes" because '60s Marvel is kind of a one-shot (since the timeline is fixed from 1963 to 1969), whereas DoM would - hopefully - be an ongoing RPG.

 

[Saved]

I meant 'would DOM and 60s Marvel be the same RPG?'

 

[Byrd Man]

I meant 'would DOM and 60s Marvel be the same RPG?'

Probably not. DOM could be set in the present time or whatever, while the 60's RPG is...set in the 60's, best way I could think to say it!

People have their own ideas about characters. Say, for instance, your idea for Spider-Man was to make him website editor for the Daily Bugle (Yeah, I know. Just go with me!) well, you couldn't do that in the 60's RPG. So, if you got ideas for a certain character set in the 21st century, play them in DOM. If you want to have your character experience the turmoil and change of the 60's, then play them in the 60's RPG.

 

[The Question]

*raises hand*

I think that one problem some "start from scratch" RPGs is a lack of established backstory. I mean, I agree the appeal of Ultimate DC is that you're starting fresh with established characters and not forced to follow comic cannon at all, but a lack of over all universe backstory can cause people to contradict one another when talking about past events or the nature of the universe. So, maybe coming up with a "history of the Ultimate Marvel/Dawn of Marvels universe" that both establishes major things that should remain consistent for everyone and leaves enough wiggle room for people to play their characters as they like would be a good thing.

 

[Saved]

*raises hand*

I think that one problem some "start from scratch" RPGs is a lack of established backstory. I mean, I agree the appeal of Ultimate DC is that you're starting fresh with established characters and not forced to follow comic cannon at all, but a lack of over all universe backstory can cause people to contradict one another when talking about past events or the nature of the universe. So, maybe coming up with a "history of the Ultimate Marvel/Dawn of Marvels universe" that both establishes major things that should remain consistent for everyone and leaves enough wiggle room for people to play their characters as they like would be a good thing.

Very much agree.

 

[Byrd Man]

*raises hand*

I think that one problem some "start from scratch" RPGs is a lack of established backstory. I mean, I agree the appeal of Ultimate DC is that you're starting fresh with established characters and not forced to follow comic cannon at all, but a lack of over all universe backstory can cause people to contradict one another when talking about past events or the nature of the universe. So, maybe coming up with a "history of the Ultimate Marvel/Dawn of Marvels universe" that both establishes major things that should remain consistent for everyone and leaves enough wiggle room for people to play their characters as they like would be a good thing.

Agreed. That's what you and MB did in the first UDC, and we did in the latest version of UDC.

 

[Batman]

*raises hand*

I think that one problem some "start from scratch" RPGs is a lack of established backstory. I mean, I agree the appeal of Ultimate DC is that you're starting fresh with established characters and not forced to follow comic cannon at all, but a lack of over all universe backstory can cause people to contradict one another when talking about past events or the nature of the universe. So, maybe coming up with a "history of the Ultimate Marvel/Dawn of Marvels universe" that both establishes major things that should remain consistent for everyone and leaves enough wiggle room for people to play their characters as they like would be a good thing.

That's why I've been hesitant to put up an Application thread thus far. I've no idea what people would want out of an established backstory, and I only have a vague idea of what I'd want for it myself. Perhaps if I had someone to work with behind-the-scenes (volunteers? ), we could come up with something basic enough to set in stone for a pitch.

 

[Johnny Blaze]

I'd be up for some brainstorming of ideas and figuring out a backstory.

 

[Blacklight]

I'd be up for some brainstorming of ideas and figuring out a backstory.

Me too. I have a few concepts that might work

 

[Batman]

Alright, me, JB, Syn, and BL will be at work hammering this out.

 

[Batman]

Alright, me, JB, Syn, and BL will be at work hammering this out.

 

[Byrd Man]

You can say that again!