For starters, focusing on a chest form led videogames to associate mimics almost explicitly with greed and treasure, and they were a convenient way of introducing risk/reward in dungeons. But JRPGs have a fascinating (and mostly forgotten) origin on PC, which you can read all about right here (opens in new tab).Īfter a while, the mimics of early RPGs like Ultima started to influence other videogames as much as D&D did. Mimics became a mainstay of Japanese RPGs in the late 80s, which we normally think of as console games. So, you know, the more things change, the more they stay the same. Dungeon masters and game designers alike have always used mimics as plot devices and gameplay challenges as needed. “Unlike, say,, they have few strings attached to their shifting abilities, and lack the restrictions on form that most other shapeshifters have… Mimics can be anything, can have any degree of cunning a requires, and the desired patience, too,” Greenwood says.Įven when videogames are cherry-picking D&D canon, they’re still following it in spirit. “Mimics are the workhorse shapeshifting critters, the most ubiquitous, versatile and yet low-powered,” Greenwood says. And really, aside from the whole eating people thing, that’s what mimics have always been about: meeting the unique needs of games. Again, the focus here was on exploring a world, and to that end mimics were most useful as a clever way to liven up dungeons. But while Baldur’s Gate didn’t have an easy time cramming an isometric RPG into a disc, its mimics were a result of design philosophy more so than technical limitations. Considering Baldur’s Gate’s wealth of dialogue and how faithfully it emulated D&D’s other systems, you’d think it could have made good use of a wise-cracking mimic or two. There wasn’t a shred left of the intelligence Luggage displayed mimics were back to being regular old monster chests.
“I have always loved the Luggage, largely because of its independence,” Greenwood says. Hardware and genre influenced the design of both games’ mimics, but both ultimately echoed the then-current standards set by D&D.
Thus Luggage was born, intelligence and disobedience intact. Computers had improved since the ‘80s and it wasn’t a fantasy RPG like Ultima it was a point-and-click adventure game, and those are popular because of their writing and charm. So, to meet gameplay needs, ‘the mimic’ was colloquialized to ‘the monster chest.’ĭiscworld had a little more wiggle room. With an Apple II’s specs, there was barely enough room for a fantasy world, let alone rich dialogue.
#Shred video maneater Pc
D&D players have the luxury of interacting with as many NPCs as they can imagine, but for early PC games like Ultima, creativity was measured in bytes. So why are most mimics automatically enemies? To paraphrase a certain Doom review, wouldn’t it be something if we could talk to them?ĭespite Greenwood's definition of the mimic giving them the power to take any shape, mimics are almost always enemies in games largely because of technology. But why? Greenwood said that mimics are often intelligent enough to speak.
In fact, Luggage is one of the only ‘smart’ mimics in videogames. If nothing else, he’s far more intelligent than Ultima’s mimics. He’s a little disobedient, but sentient, almost dog-like and kind of cute. Luggage is most definitely a mimic, but he’s also your companion. Now look at Luggage from Discworld, released in 1995-after Greenwood’s ecology. Sounds remarkably faithful to the Monster Manual, doesn’t it? These are aggressive monster chests that pounce when the player gets close. Look at the ones in the original Ultima, released in 1980. Greenwood’s Ecology is probably the closest thing to science to ever come out of D&D, but what’s even more interesting is how the characteristics it laid out influenced the mimics in videogames. (opens in new tab)įor early PC games like Ultima, creativity was measured in bytes. The Monster Manual’s take on mimics (left) and the revised version shown in 1983.
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