I personally like sprawling desert wastes with sand dunes and sprinkled oases and snowy mountain biomes.
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pipdashMember, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One
My favorite type of biome would be tundra / mountains, part snow, part not. The contrast of dark and light areas here with a 'cold' feeling makes trecking through these zones feel accomplishing. A reference to this would be howling fjord in wow, one of my favorite zones of all time.
I would have to agree with most that desert zones are a bit boring, often mono-colored and tough to keep my interest.
I enjoy them all. A variety is nice. Deserts are my least favorite due to them being mostly empty. Temperate forests are my favorite followed by rolling grasslands. One environment If love to see is deep underground like Dungeon and Dragon's Underdark. Just make them all transition well with the Underdark giving multiple entrances and exits all over the world.
What are your favorite and least favorite biomes in MMOs?
Favorites: Caves & swamps (I really want to see ASAP examples of the Underrealm Nodes and how the cave cities will be and Swamp castles)
Least favorite (but i still like them) Desert, maybe being more specific an Oasis in the desert
What's a biome that just needs to go away?
I really don't like the idea of the tropical jungle
FInally, i dont know if this could be considered a BIOME per se, but the idea of a MEGA CITY biome as always being very appealing to me (in fantasy terms hehe)
This is Kowloon a "walled city" in Hong Kong
And this is the Anata No Warehouse arcade at Kawasaki whos aesthetic was inspired by Kowloon
Maybe this last biome is too cyberpunk for a High Fantasy Game but maybe it can be added in something like this
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TruthEternalMember, Phoenix Initiative, Hero of the People, Kickstarter, Alpha One
I'm less concerned with the biomes themselves than a few other factors around terrain. I'm not sure how you get inventive with these, either, as even the stranger biomes like space, pocket dimensions, underground, and underwater have been done many times. So here are the factors I like in a terrain:
1) Slow transition - does the terrain change over time rather than having distinct areas that cut off arbitrarily or by obvious use of impassible terrain or less-than-believable terrain formations?
2) Strategic importance - does your terrain really matter in the open world? Is one path more dangerous than another for a traveler? Does different land terrain affect your movement speed in different ways?
3) No cliches - do you use lots of giant mushrooms and bio-luminescent objects? Does everything try to hard to look epic rather than having various normal (not read: boring) areas in the world? Is the world believable (e.g. some NPCs have kitchens, are asleep, have lives)? Do monsters simply patrol to and fro or are they in the wild with some purpose?
Good luck with your biomes!
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leameseMember, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One
I like whispering wind trough the leaves, the sound of the water streaming down the river. Mysterious and entiching lands, creative with fun twist on reality.
Also mountains and open grassy lands.
Also I like the Stonehenge with blue mushrooms. giant radiating mushroom from apoc. Guess I like mushrooms..
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DaedelusMember, Phoenix Initiative, Avatar of the Phoenix, Kickstarter
edited October 2019
Pretty much all of the above - the key for me is variety much like the real world with a high fantasy twist:
1) Natural - Forest, mountains, trees, rivers, creeks, caverns, deserts, rocky or sandy shores, underwater
2) Fantasy - cities in the clouds, alternative planes or dimensions
I also agree with the commentary that each biome should have a purpose or a reason for existing. I think also think architecture is an important part of the biome - buildings that make sense, that belong - like a desert on it's own can be somewhat boring but.... it can also be exciting with ancient ruins or temples to explore. One of my favorite zones in World of Warcraft was the Uldum zone. I loved the feel of it.
As handcrafted as the races, cultures and systems in this game are meant to be, devote that level of curation to the environments also. The minute a place feels cookie cutter or repetitive, the level of immersion is lost.
I always love big forest, similar to the redwood forest in North America there is nothing better than exploring a vast environment with your buddies behind you and your mule full with equipment.
Deserts and Ice swept snowy biomes. I love the extreme zones, especially if the weather is active with blizzards and sandstorms. Add in some mountains or icy forests, and i'm home
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MorkblahMember, Phoenix Initiative, Royalty, Kickstarter, Alpha One
Woodlands, as dark and gloomy as I can get them, but other types of general northern Europe-type biome is also nice. Mountains work as well, especially underground.
I'm less of a fan when it comes to warmer biomes, since deserts, savannahs and steppes mostly look boring to me. Not enough going on, I can generally see too far for my liking, and burning sunlight is, again, boring to me.
I can definitely appreciate and think 'whoa, that looks amazing' when it comes to my less liked biomes, but forests are what I really love.
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TeylouneMember, Phoenix Initiative, Royalty, Kickstarter, Alpha One
edited October 2019
Favorite Biomes?
I tend to like dark and exotic biomes very much, places that are dark and dangerous to the average person but have their own ecosystem and are bustling with life of their own.
From what i have seen so far of the underrealm it is pretty much what i want, it makes me feel as if i am in this dark but yet exotic and beautiful enchanted underground (mushroom) forest.
I think a nice above ground example of what i like would be something like this
Despite liking the visuals of gloomy areas (in other games), i don't like that instead of them being filled with hidden life they are just empty and tend to exist without pourpose which makes them really damn boring to explore.
Deserts in other games also seem to suffer from this problem just lots of nothing, despite all the opportunities to fill them with life and make them interesting.
So there is no paticular biome that i don't like, i just don't like pointless empty areas.
I would like to see a deep, dark and scary ocean filled with life and things you can.. and maybe don't want to see..
Oceans exploration in other games was mostly disappointing, entire oceans with pretty much nothing in them.
I also tend to like snowy- and volcanic biomes, so how about a snowy biome with volcanic activity and hot springs?
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LexMember, Phoenix Initiative, Avatar of the Phoenix, Kickstarter, Alpha One
I don't fancy the game overly much, but ESO has some amazing environmental art (and creature art).
To me, the only time in any game the environment has taken my attention away from the content in a good way was Blackreach in Skyrim.
I'm not generally fond of that kind of environment, but I just thought it was really well done.
I can think of examples that I like and dislike for almost all biomes, the only exception being plains/savannah types - never seen one that I especially like, but I'm more inclined to put that down to never having seen a good one rather than not liking it in general.
Endless Legend had some interesting ideas and backgrounds for exotic things that might exist in a fantasy world! I'd love a forest with living trees that changed positions every day!!! Especially if you could build a tree house on them!
Caves, dark forest, ruins of castles, abandoned buildings, dungeons, old wizard tower... Basically every uninhabited place, which is filled with mosters and loot maybe even a puzzle, and you can explore it.
Heroes of Many Expeditions || EU || Exploration Oriented
azurlMember, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One
My favorite biome in any game, is a snowy forest, white trees, frozen lakes.
My least favorite biome is probably swamp areas with lots of water or vast deserts with no mountains in sight.
although if beautifully done any biome fancies my view.
I personally believe each and every type of biome could be fun in its own right. To me it is the music that ultimately determines the soul of the location. That said, I am much more inclined to walk around lush greenery, magically infused locations and lively places in general. I usually avoid barren, ruined or devastated places unless they have a clear center of attention.
Favourite:
1. Jungle - Densely packed, possibly a city built in trees, with one Yggdrassil sized tree at the center. The biome would hold mystical springs and a main point of interest under the giant tree.
2. Highlands - Grasslands as far as the eye can see, possibly with snowy peaks amongst them. Civilization in the vallies and a terrible secret at the summit.
3. Riverland - Life centered around a river, with a clear upstream (Nigeria falls?) and downstream (Nile river beds?) and a possibility to build around or on top of water. Monsters may vie for dominance over this river.
4. Canyon - Imagine the Grand canyon as a Labyrinth with roads leading to more secrets or an open junction for civilization.
5. Mountain/Vulcano - A stronghold built on the summit of a mountain or in the crater of a blushed out vulcano.
Least favourite:
1. Permafrost - These could still be turned into interesting places by having your seasonal system impact secrets in this biome.
2. Wasteland - An oasis could certainly be a point of interest, a proper day and night cycle with extreme heat and extreme cold respectively, could improve this biome greatly.
Having a different variation of biomes, which offers players a new experiences is the most important thing imo. Moving from a biome to another could be done smoothly rather than having a clear line where the change happens. I do not like biome layouts, which are generic and feels like made with copy paste technic. My personal favorite biome type is maybe highlands combined with some forest. Autumn colors also gives a nice bonus feel especially for areas with trees, bushes and stuff like that. Here is few examples:
Edit: Pictures are links, because add picture seams not to work with my phone.
Do you need a ride to the Underworld?
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T ElfMember, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One
edited October 2019
The easy one is least favorite which is deserts.
As for favorites, I like flora and fauna that are in beautiful settings (GW had many). I guess green places with trees. I also liked watching beautiful sunsets in some games, and would love a starry night sky that actually had constellations. I like some bio-luminescence but not overwhelming.
Biomes I like:
- Dark forests that are so dense that you can't see the sky and it's almost like walking in a maze. (also just many different type of forests in general)
- Beautiful landscapes with lots of flowers, preferably inspired by asian culture. Something like this someone posted in another thread.
- Maps with a lot of vertical design. I want to go up hills, onto ledges, inside caves etc.
- Deserts, with hidden underground temples! And I mean actual deserts, not fake deserts that are over-designed to the point where it doesn't look like a desert anymore. Having an open empty desert between two cities would really put a feel of distance between them.
- Biomes that look evil in general. Big scary mountains with narrow paths between them. I mean if I'm an undead, where else would I want to live? These would also be difficult to travel, meaning players would have to plan their trip around these biomes if they'd want to trade or whatever. Some others would maybe go here for the rare materials or something. If the mats are rare it'd be more fun if the biome itself was challenging.
hate bleak, depressing "corrputed" lands. Orr in GW2 and I fully agree - that was horrible.
Everyone hating on Orr and I was just about to say that I like Orr
And for something I don't like:
- I just don't want every single biome to have those crystal thingys all over. I'd get kind of tired of them if they were everywhere.
...hmm but I can't think of any specific biomes I don't want. Unlike many people here I like the plains so as long as there's a big variety I'm happy!
2030 release let's goooooooooooooo
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NagashMember, Leader of Men, Kickstarter, Alpha One
Jungle, it's so green, bright and usually calm. Like piece of heaven.
Dont forget to mention the miriads of deadly, venomous insects.
and jungle raptors
The dead do not squabble as this land’s rulers do. The dead have no desires, petty jealousies or ambitions. A world of the dead is a world at peace
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DecimusMember, Braver of Worlds, Kickstarter, Alpha One
Tough question... I'd have to say the most favourite for me is savannahs (e.g. The Barrens in WoW), closely followed by jungles & mountains (actual mountains, not glorified hills).
Least favourite is probably snowy zones, not a big fan of those (unless it's a snowy mountain).
Comments
I would have to agree with most that desert zones are a bit boring, often mono-colored and tough to keep my interest.
Favorites: Caves & swamps (I really want to see ASAP examples of the Underrealm Nodes and how the cave cities will be and Swamp castles)
Least favorite (but i still like them) Desert, maybe being more specific an Oasis in the desert
What's a biome that just needs to go away?
I really don't like the idea of the tropical jungle
FInally, i dont know if this could be considered a BIOME per se, but the idea of a MEGA CITY biome as always being very appealing to me (in fantasy terms hehe)
This is Kowloon a "walled city" in Hong Kong
And this is the Anata No Warehouse arcade at Kawasaki whos aesthetic was inspired by Kowloon
youtube.com/watch?v=V_2KgQOqzBc
Maybe this last biome is too cyberpunk for a High Fantasy Game but maybe it can be added in something like this
1) Slow transition - does the terrain change over time rather than having distinct areas that cut off arbitrarily or by obvious use of impassible terrain or less-than-believable terrain formations?
2) Strategic importance - does your terrain really matter in the open world? Is one path more dangerous than another for a traveler? Does different land terrain affect your movement speed in different ways?
3) No cliches - do you use lots of giant mushrooms and bio-luminescent objects? Does everything try to hard to look epic rather than having various normal (not read: boring) areas in the world? Is the world believable (e.g. some NPCs have kitchens, are asleep, have lives)? Do monsters simply patrol to and fro or are they in the wild with some purpose?
Good luck with your biomes!
Also mountains and open grassy lands.
Also I like the Stonehenge with blue mushrooms. giant radiating mushroom from apoc. Guess I like mushrooms..
1) Natural - Forest, mountains, trees, rivers, creeks, caverns, deserts, rocky or sandy shores, underwater
2) Fantasy - cities in the clouds, alternative planes or dimensions
I also agree with the commentary that each biome should have a purpose or a reason for existing. I think also think architecture is an important part of the biome - buildings that make sense, that belong - like a desert on it's own can be somewhat boring but.... it can also be exciting with ancient ruins or temples to explore. One of my favorite zones in World of Warcraft was the Uldum zone. I loved the feel of it.
As handcrafted as the races, cultures and systems in this game are meant to be, devote that level of curation to the environments also. The minute a place feels cookie cutter or repetitive, the level of immersion is lost.
Thanks,
Daedelus
Most others fall somewhere inbetween.
Heavily dislike savannah, generic forests, plains, steppes, coast and underwater biomes
I'm less of a fan when it comes to warmer biomes, since deserts, savannahs and steppes mostly look boring to me. Not enough going on, I can generally see too far for my liking, and burning sunlight is, again, boring to me.
I can definitely appreciate and think 'whoa, that looks amazing' when it comes to my less liked biomes, but forests are what I really love.
I tend to like dark and exotic biomes very much, places that are dark and dangerous to the average person but have their own ecosystem and are bustling with life of their own.
From what i have seen so far of the underrealm it is pretty much what i want, it makes me feel as if i am in this dark but yet exotic and beautiful enchanted underground (mushroom) forest.
I think a nice above ground example of what i like would be something like this
Despite liking the visuals of gloomy areas (in other games), i don't like that instead of them being filled with hidden life they are just empty and tend to exist without pourpose which makes them really damn boring to explore.
Deserts in other games also seem to suffer from this problem just lots of nothing, despite all the opportunities to fill them with life and make them interesting.
So there is no paticular biome that i don't like, i just don't like pointless empty areas.
I would like to see a deep, dark and scary ocean filled with life and things you can.. and maybe don't want to see..
Oceans exploration in other games was mostly disappointing, entire oceans with pretty much nothing in them.
I also tend to like snowy- and volcanic biomes, so how about a snowy biome with volcanic activity and hot springs?
I'm not generally fond of that kind of environment, but I just thought it was really well done.
I can think of examples that I like and dislike for almost all biomes, the only exception being plains/savannah types - never seen one that I especially like, but I'm more inclined to put that down to never having seen a good one rather than not liking it in general.
Jungles
Islands
Caves
Mushroom lands
heavy woods
canyons
Boring-
Plains with no assets
flat dessert with no life in them.
High mountains you can climb
My least favorite biome is probably swamp areas with lots of water or vast deserts with no mountains in sight.
although if beautifully done any biome fancies my view.
Favourite:
1. Jungle - Densely packed, possibly a city built in trees, with one Yggdrassil sized tree at the center. The biome would hold mystical springs and a main point of interest under the giant tree.
2. Highlands - Grasslands as far as the eye can see, possibly with snowy peaks amongst them. Civilization in the vallies and a terrible secret at the summit.
3. Riverland - Life centered around a river, with a clear upstream (Nigeria falls?) and downstream (Nile river beds?) and a possibility to build around or on top of water. Monsters may vie for dominance over this river.
4. Canyon - Imagine the Grand canyon as a Labyrinth with roads leading to more secrets or an open junction for civilization.
5. Mountain/Vulcano - A stronghold built on the summit of a mountain or in the crater of a blushed out vulcano.
Least favourite:
1. Permafrost - These could still be turned into interesting places by having your seasonal system impact secrets in this biome.
2. Wasteland - An oasis could certainly be a point of interest, a proper day and night cycle with extreme heat and extreme cold respectively, could improve this biome greatly.
https://www.eaglebrae.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/autumn-highlands.jpg
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/97/c7/6d/97c76d160a617ac6c0cff1837b9aaac3.jpg
Edit: Pictures are links, because add picture seams not to work with my phone.
As for favorites, I like flora and fauna that are in beautiful settings (GW had many). I guess green places with trees. I also liked watching beautiful sunsets in some games, and would love a starry night sky that actually had constellations. I like some bio-luminescence but not overwhelming.
Formerly T-Elf
Dont forget to mention the miriads of deadly, venomous insects.
- Dark forests that are so dense that you can't see the sky and it's almost like walking in a maze. (also just many different type of forests in general)
- Beautiful landscapes with lots of flowers, preferably inspired by asian culture. Something like this someone posted in another thread.
- Maps with a lot of vertical design. I want to go up hills, onto ledges, inside caves etc.
- Deserts, with hidden underground temples! And I mean actual deserts, not fake deserts that are over-designed to the point where it doesn't look like a desert anymore. Having an open empty desert between two cities would really put a feel of distance between them.
- Biomes that look evil in general. Big scary mountains with narrow paths between them. I mean if I'm an undead, where else would I want to live? These would also be difficult to travel, meaning players would have to plan their trip around these biomes if they'd want to trade or whatever. Some others would maybe go here for the rare materials or something. If the mats are rare it'd be more fun if the biome itself was challenging.
Everyone hating on Orr and I was just about to say that I like Orr
And for something I don't like:
- I just don't want every single biome to have those crystal thingys all over. I'd get kind of tired of them if they were everywhere.
...hmm but I can't think of any specific biomes I don't want. Unlike many people here I like the plains so as long as there's a big variety I'm happy!
and jungle raptors
Least favourite is probably snowy zones, not a big fan of those (unless it's a snowy mountain).