Human race in games

[Deleted]

Hello all!

So I was wondering recently, most games I see, doesn't matter if they're MMOs or solo playing ones where you choose how your character looks, what race etc seem to have as a choice the human race somewhere. It doesn't matter if you, the player choose it or if the human race is made up around the world you play in, there's always humans.

Now I am starting to wonder more and more why? In the end if we think about it games(and movies, for it seems humans are everywhere in SF/fantasy movies too) are meant to immerse us in a fantasy world, a world different from real life, a world where you'd see races "made up", either by the designers or by someone before them(I'm thinking here things like high elves, orcs etc). So then why are humans everywhere too? Now I don't say people shouldn't play humans in games or something like that, I'm just wondering why when the choices for available races are made by designers, humans are always there?

I can understand that you have humanoid races, in fact all playable WoW races are humanoid, but why humans too? What's so special about humans in fantasy worlds?

[llDemonll]

It gives some semblance of hope that humans will still exist (or did still exist) during those times. Makes the world a bit easier to "accept" because there's at least one similar concept there

[Rocketsurgeon]

The more alien you make things, the harder it is for the average shmuck to relate. Even having human NPCs gives some touchstone for how humanity would fit into the world you're providing. If the story, at best, portrays completely alien characters that don't procreate, move, think, or even breathe like humans-then your audience can have a hard time empathizing. I worked on a story like that once, the reviews were not what I was hoping for.

[flarecde]

Familiarity. Same reason I imagine many (most?) fantasy settings use the same generic races (elves, dwarves, etc.). Ultimately, the less fundamentals you have to explain (humans know humans!) the more time you can spend on other things, and the larger the base of people who can actually understand your creation.

[ImNot1337]

Believe or not, a lot of players want to play themselves when they play a game. They want a virtual representation of themselves as the hero. Sometimes the representation is completely removed from what they actually are in real life, but it still represents "them" in some fashion. Also, a lot of players like being human, they like the implied "adaptability" that humans have in many fantast/sci-fi settings. They like to identify with their character because it is the same species as themselves.

I can understand that you have humanoid races, in fact all playable WoW races are humanoid, but why humans too? What's so special about humans in fantasy worlds?

Plenty if you read/watch enough fantasy or sci-fi books/shows/movies. Creating a fantasy/sci-fi world and then dumping humans into the mix can lead to interesting plot developments. Off the top of my head, in Bablyon 5, humans were the ones pulling people together, forming "communities". Something the other races really didn't grasp or care to do, but it was needed in order to win the war. In one book series I'm reading, humans are weren't originally from that world (they got pulled into it and have no memory/knowledge of Earth whatsoever), but they were able to adapt in ways that would be impossible for the other races to do if the same had happened to them. When written well, humans in a fantasy world can be very special.

[Deleted]

It gives some semblance of hope that humans will still exist (or did still exist) during those times. Makes the world a bit easier to "accept" because there's at least one similar concept there

Yes, that's the thing, when you go into a fantasy world though, let's say WoW, you want in a way to detach from the real world. In the end that's why we play games, right? To relax and have fun, to get away from real life problems for a while so we can clear our heads, doesn't matter if it's killing orcs or collecting herbs. Or that's how I see it.

The more alien you make things, the harder it is for the average shmuck to relate. Even having human NPCs gives some touchstone for how humanity would fit into the world you're providing. If the story, at best, portrays completely alien characters that don't procreate, move, think, or even breathe like humans-then your audience can have a hard time empathizing. I worked on a story like that once, the reviews were not what I was hoping for.

Ok, I admit that is true for many but I did say I understand humanoid races, as in races who can move, think, breathe, have 2 legs and 2 feet etc, just not humans as a race themselves. In the end people as you say relate to things similar to them, so let's say in WoW, if a human male doesn't have the face I like but a night elf does, I will choose the night elf, right? because I relate to it better.
On the other hand, if the human had the face I liked, I'd choose that. What if the night elf had both faces though? Then, relating to that, I'd choose night elf.

Familiarity. Same reason I imagine many (most?) fantasy settings use the same generic races (elves, dwarves, etc.). Ultimately, the less fundamentals you have to explain (humans know humans!) the more time you can spend on other things, and the larger the base of people who can actually understand your creation.

Yes, but I ask about humans specifically since, as I said, I feel like humans relate too much to real life when in truth we play games to go into another world. Also, after so many races and creatures were invented in fantasy you'd think there is enough to choose from, even if you choose only the most known ones. Here, I'll try to name 12 races that are known yet at least partially different from WoW and aren't playable in WoW: dark elves, wood elves, satyr, mermaids/tritons, snake-people, chimera-people, frost giants, robot-cyborgs, tree nymphs, demons, angels, cat-people.
Now there are tons others, so plenty from where to choose if you want only races that have been invented before. And no, I don't want those races in WoW or a game especially, there were just the first that came into my head. Yes, some have resemblances to other races, mermaids to naga, but still even if humans aren't there they are all familiar in a way to people.

Believe or not, a lot of players want to play themselves when they play a game. They want a virtual representation of themselves as the hero. Sometimes the representation is completely removed from what they actually are in real life, but it still represents "them" in some fashion. Also, a lot of players like being human, they like the implied "adaptability" that humans have in many fantast/sci-fi settings. They like to identify with their character because it is the same species as themselves.



Plenty if you read/watch enough fantasy or sci-fi books/shows/movies. Creating a fantasy/sci-fi world and then dumping humans into the mix can lead to interesting plot developments. Off the top of my head, in Bablyon 5, humans were the ones pulling people together, forming "communities". Something the other races really didn't grasp or care to do, but it was needed in order to win the war. In one book series I'm reading, humans are weren't originally from that world (they got pulled into it and have no memory/knowledge of Earth whatsoever), but they were able to adapt in ways that would be impossible for the other races to do if the same had happened to them. When written well, humans in a fantasy world can be very special.

Yes, I can understand they want to play themselves, yet when the body and faces don't represent you it's kind of hard. Since we all play WoW, let me give the human example in here, the humans are all body-builders, in real life I don't think 10% of those playing humans are even close to the muscular statue of... any race they play.
Also, so what you're saying is that people want to play humans because it makes them think humans can adapt everywhere and in any condition, thus relating to real life in a way where it is true humans as a race have adapted to some really weird things? But if for example I'd bring... I don't know, let's say sarbhenians(yes, I invented that on the spot), a humanoid race that looks like humans except they're made out of ... plants and they have all the possible faces anyone could want(well, in theory) and they have the exact same characteristics as humans, wouldn't people still relate to them? Not at the first sight, but after seeing them a bit.
Also I'm not asking for all the games to not have humans, I'm asking why do ALL have humans, since I haven't seen an alien-only game RPG or MMO for ... almost never I think... there could be out there but I don't know of any.

Sorry if I failed to express some of my views clearly, I have a problem with finding the words sometimes.

[ImNot1337]

Also, so what you're saying is that people want to play humans because it makes them think humans can adapt everywhere and in any condition, thus relating to real life in a way where it is true humans as a race have adapted to some really weird things?

It's not meant to mimic "real life" 100%. Remember, this is fantasy. People like to think that humans can rise above conflict and better themselves (see Star Trek). Is that true reality? Probably not, but it makes for a better fantasy, escapism, and entertainment. The latter being the whole point for why they are playing the game in the first place.

(On a side note, adaptation is at the core of evolutionary biology. Where is it true that humans have adapted to "weird things"? Um, we've always adapted, that's why we're not extinct.)

Also I'm not asking for all the games to not have humans, I'm asking why do ALL have humans, since I haven't seen an alien-only game RPG or MMO for ... almost never I think... there could be out there but I don't know of any.

All games have "humanoids" not all games have humans. I think you are confusing the two. Example, Star Wars, Luke isn't human, Vader isn't human. They're humanoids that look/act spot on to humans, but they're not from Earth. They're not even from the same galaxy. Another more MMORPG example, Saga of Ryzom, you play a humanoid. There are no humans.

[kharyll]

I think the real problem is how the other races behave like humans, how their culture is very similar to human culture. When it's the case, you don't feel like you are in a fantasy world.

A memorable game that truly pulled me away from this world into a fantasy realm was Morrowind, the game that preceded Oblivion. Even though all the races were humanoids and one race was actually human, humans were only a small component of it all. The Vvardenfell island was the home of Dark elves. The scenery, the colors and the sounds, the sky, the creatures and the flora that surrounded the player, the architecture of each races were all so exotic. The medieval knight armor made of metal was there too, but it as only an occasional sight. Many different materials and forms (chitin and glass comes to my mind) were heavily used in the game and they distinguished the world from the actual world we live in, and the so-called fantasy world that other games offer and look alike. The cultures of the races were truly unique, and deeper than just "they have a tribal culture and practice voodoo". With the addition of a great main story and several side quest lines, that game has a unique spot among other computer FRP games.

When non-human races are shallow, for instance when dwarves are just a red-headed, stout and hot tempered version of humans who like to drink beer and live in snowy muntains, when there is nothing new and unique to explore, that makes the presence of humans in the game more apparent and boring.

I think Morrowind was one of the few games that found a sweet spot between the unknown exotic fantasy world and the real world references that are known to all players and RPG'ers.

[namelessone]

Because it's ultimately almost impossible for us to imagine what a truly non-human sentient race would be like. This is why all fantasy races are essentially caricatures on some human qualities. Elves = patient and wise and emotional, dwarves = greedy and selfish and determined, orc = ferocious and violent... Same happens in sci-fi. Think Mass Effect. Turians are militaristic and disciplined humans. Quarians are reclusive and nomadic humans. Salarians are smart and inventive humans.

This is why I often find myself picking a human race - because it doesn't force me into weird stereotypes.

[Charo]

:/

I think you meant: Dwarves: stoic, loyal, and independent.

[Dembai]

nameless - o.O;; Whatchu talkin' 'bout? Dwarves aren't greedy or selfish generally. If I had to pick some negative terms for the traditional fantasy dwarf, stubborn, headstrong, or grudge holding would be more accurate.

As for humans, I rarely play one. This is largely due to the inherent bordom with 'playing yourself'. I'm myself all the time, but it's much more fun to go one step beyond that be someone who isn't myself. It's like Total Recall, The thing that's the same with every vacation is the fact that YOU are there.

That being said I do resemble a WoW dwarf (if they were 5'6") So...I guess playing one of those does mean I'm playing myself to a certain extent.

I think it's natural for a person's first fantasy experience to be self-insertion. But in general, I think one progresses beyond that if they have any imagination at all.

[Deleted]

I think the real problem is how the other races behave like humans, how their culture is very similar to human culture. When it's the case, you don't feel like you are in a fantasy world.

A memorable game that truly pulled me away from this world into a fantasy realm was Morrowind, the game that preceded Oblivion. Even though all the races were humanoids and one race was actually human, humans were only a small component of it all. The Vvardenfell island was the home of Dark elves. The scenery, the colors and the sounds, the sky, the creatures and the flora that surrounded the player, the architecture of each races were all so exotic. The medieval knight armor made of metal was there too, but it as only an occasional sight. Many different materials and forms (chitin and glass comes to my mind) were heavily used in the game and they distinguished the world from the actual world we live in, and the so-called fantasy world that other games offer and look alike. The cultures of the races were truly unique, and deeper than just "they have a tribal culture and practice voodoo". With the addition of a great main story and several side quest lines, that game has a unique spot among other computer FRP games.

When non-human races are shallow, for instance when dwarves are just a red-headed, stout and hot tempered version of humans who like to drink beer and live in snowy muntains, when there is nothing new and unique to explore, that makes the presence of humans in the game more apparent and boring.

I think Morrowind was one of the few games that found a sweet spot between the unknown exotic fantasy world and the real world references that are known to all players and RPG'ers.

Yes, that's exactly the problem! I mean let's look at night elves as an example. In Warcraft 3 they had amazing alive-like buildings and only very few true buildings of their own. They had an unique style of buildings and such, not encountered in real life(at least I never saw living trees and even those little houses they had in the chasing Illidan mission seemed quite unique, think only the army sentinel barracks still resemble those, like the one at Maestra's Post). Then in WoW I get japansese style buildings painted in different colours except for a few. I can understand advancements in lore, but from WC3 to what is now only Cenarion's Circle in Darnassus and the tree that looks like Aviana's Roost in Hyjal look like true night elven buildings...

[Scio]

I've always seen human avatars as a way for people who think being a orc/elf/dwarf/goblin is to nerdy, but they still want to play the same way. That opinion may be a bit biased though, cause I hate humans in most games. Stuff like Mass Effect/Dragon Age 2/Fable I don't have a problem with them, only because they are the only selectable race, otherwise, I don't think I've ever picked a human if I didn't have to.

[Deleted]

I've always seen human avatars as a way for people who think being a orc/elf/dwarf/goblin is to nerdy, but they still want to play the same way. That opinion may be a bit biased though, cause I hate humans in most games. Stuff like Mass Effect/Dragon Age 2/Fable I don't have a problem with them, only because they are the only selectable race, otherwise, I don't think I've ever picked a human if I didn't have to.

Maybe it's just my opinion here, but I think people who say people playing WoW are nerds don't say it because they play an orc or an elf or something, but because they play games. So I don't really think the fact that some people play a human makes them less nerdy in the eyes of people who don't understand computer games are like a hobby. But still you could be right, some people could think that, the human mind is really twisted.

And I usually don't play human in other games where there's choices either, only game where I actually liked humans is Rift, but that's because of their story.

[unholytestament]

I know I've seen some RPGs where there was no human race, I just can't remember what they were called.

It's funny. In the literal years I have played Morrowind and Oblivion, I don't think I've ever played an Imperial, Breton, Redguard, or Nord (the human "races", for those of you who don't know). I always play either an elf, a beast race, or a mod race (FUCK YEAH, DREMORA WARRIOR TAKING DOWN DAGON!).

[Sunseeker]

Yes, that's the thing, when you go into a fantasy world though, let's say WoW, you want in a way to detach from the real world. In the end that's why we play games, right? To relax and have fun, to get away from real life problems for a while so we can clear our heads, doesn't matter if it's killing orcs or collecting herbs. Or that's how I see it.

That's actually not true at all. The best games, the best books, the best movies, are the ones that have subtly woven real-life references into them. They parody, exaggerate, satire, and generally seek to provide a new view on a situation that exists by displaying the problem as external. "Oh, there's a lot of drug crime in Oggrimar because of over-emphasis on military cultu...hey wait, we have a strong military culture, maybe that's why we have drug problems?"

Historically, humanity IRL has an issue with bigotry often being a sticking point between otherwise good relations with other humans. The WoW humans mimic this, if it wasn't for racism towards the blood elves, they would likely have never joined the Horde. The religious ferver of humanity pushed away the Forsaken, most of whom were human before being raised into undeath. Varian's constant distrust in orcs has been a thorn in the side of Thrall's ever-persistent peace attempts. There are many paralells to real life among all the races, note the dreanei have quasi-russian accents, this is a play on the fact that for decades, the most foreign thing to Americans was this strange, unknown "communist" country half way around the world. The Blood Elves have a very obvious, human-style drug addiction. Would an alien race truly be "addicted" to something in a way that is so familiar in that when they don't have it they get sick, weak, and die, just like humans?

Ok, I admit that is true for many but I did say I understand humanoid races, as in races who can move, think, breathe, have 2 legs and 2 feet etc, just not humans as a race themselves. In the end people as you say relate to things similar to them, so let's say in WoW, if a human male doesn't have the face I like but a night elf does, I will choose the night elf, right? because I relate to it better.
On the other hand, if the human had the face I liked, I'd choose that. What if the night elf had both faces though? Then, relating to that, I'd choose night elf.

That's not relating to something. And you have to ask "why do you understand the other races", the problem with this is that WoW has humanity in it, and it's used to help you relate to those other races. There's no real way to know if you could relate to the night elves without having humans in the game. The proverbial well is already tainted.

Yes, but I ask about humans specifically since, as I said, I feel like humans relate too much to real life when in truth we play games to go into another world.

Again, this really isn't true. We don't want to go to an ENTIRELY alien world. None of the races in WoW are truly inhuman. They're more like human variants with certain aspects exaggerated or minimized. Truthfully, all fantasy races started as extensions of myths, which stem from fables, which generally exist to teach people a lesson. The elves, being probably the oldest and most widely known, were often used as foils to compare and contrast aspects of humanity and make the listener reflect upon themselves.

If you want something truly alien, then WoW is not the place to look, in fact most fantasy or sci-fi games are not alien in the slightest. True "alien" concepts are really so foreign that we simply can't grasp them. How would life be like if you breathed through a mouth on your back? Even that is distinctly human, "feel" presumes you have feelings, "breathing", "mouth", "back", it works off so many concepts that are so obviously human.

Alien concepts are things you look at and you simply DONT get it. You could look at it from 50 angles and through a hundred lenses, and you still wouldn't get it, because it's so inhuman, it's simply beyond your ability to comprehend. Maybe, given time, you might come to possess an understanding of it, but it won't be easy.

[Deleted]

unholytestament: yes, me too.

smrund: thank you, you showed me some things I didn't think about at all. If I think about it you are right, people bind more with things that seem close to them,, even if not humans themselves then some things like the draenei russian accent. I still don't fully understand why humans are chosen as a race themselves fully, but still I understand why there needs to be something to relate more to real life, so the most obvious choice is the human race since it's the most simple and some people don't like to work to make other races more linked to some real life facts.

[Yooya]

I use to hate humans in video games. They didn't have any defining characteristics in video games that made them seem unique. That fact that most video games had fewer then five voice actors casting all, voice acted, characters in the same voice didn't help.

Since we have moved along in the industry humans have become a lot more distinct. They are identifiable as human, we can relate to them, but no two look the same and each are capable of a wide variety of emotions. Really its made a world of difference to me, and I actually have an appreciation now for humans in video games.

I imagine its because humans have always been around in gaming culture. Most table-top games have a human race in them, most arcade games have a human protagonist, etc... They (or rather 'we') just fit, in anything.

Still, I'm partial to the 'monster' races. Half-Orc, Argonian or Hell-Spawn I find them all to be fun characters to play.

Oh, and I hate elves - always have.