How are you supposed to tea-bag that dude you shot half a mile away with your long range laser or that guy you just vaporized with your disintegrator?

Blades are about getting up close and personal.

Actually, Tabula Rasa implemented sword quite nicely into their game, by giving them to those that played as spies. With them, they could turn invisible (stealth) and then make a gruesome hit with a laser-blade when close enough to their target. Plenty of advantages, 1) you're sure to hit, 2) you up close so you can hit just the right spot and 3) you don't waste ammunition

Originally posted by Lobotomist

Yea, but why the hell would anyone use a blade.

When you can point your (unlimited energy resource) disintegrator , squeeze the trigger and whatever was there turns into vapor.

'Cause you don't want to breach the hull of your space station and end up sucking vacuum maybe?

A picture of a game I played had a player with a sword and a gun which is in the future.

To make it have more sense if you use the gun the sword is on her back :P

if the future was up to me we all would be suing swords in battles

Originally posted by Lobotomist

Yea, but why the hell would anyone use a blade.

When you can point your (unlimited energy resource) disintegrator , squeeze the trigger and whatever was there turns into vapor.

What happens when the disintegrator ray is deflected by my belt powered energy deflection field and the only way you can touch me is with physical weapons?

(I know, shoot me with a 45)

Originally posted by Mr.Happy

Just wondering, but do you think there should be sword in sci fi mmos? The only one i think is Star-Wars, and thats because it is based off the movies. But I just want to know what others think about it. Sometimes it seems like there are sci fi mmos that are masked as fantasy genres.

Guns are great and all, but I suspect that hitting people with a big sharp piece of metal that doesn't require ammunition, power, maintenence (apart from a wipe rag and a whetstone), make any inherent noise, show up on "energy scans", and that can also be used as a utility tool, will never entirely go out of fashion

Originally posted by Malcanis

Originally posted by Mr.Happy

Just wondering, but do you think there should be sword in sci fi mmos? The only one i think is Star-Wars, and thats because it is based off the movies. But I just want to know what others think about it. Sometimes it seems like there are sci fi mmos that are masked as fantasy genres.

 

Guns are great and all, but I suspect that hitting people with a big sharp piece of metal that doesn't require ammunition, power, maintenence (apart from a wipe rag and a whetstone), make any inherent noise, show up on "energy scans", and that can also be used as a utility tool, will never entirely go out of fashion

problem with games with amo type attack they never run out of bullet at same time as rogue say they should limit  those to 6 amo and reloadable by hand not a 100 amo mag you just clip on lol

Originally posted by Cephus404

I think as a secondary or close-combat weapon, using some sort of a blade is fine, but using a low tech blade as your primary weapon makes about as much sense as using a rock as your primary weapon.

I agree. Swords may not be present, but something smaller with a wider variety of attacks would be viable. Combat knife, anyone? Seriously, swords are limited and straightforward. While knives lack the power of the sword, they make up for it by having unmatched precision (when used in the right hands, i.e. Apache knife fighters). Plus they're lighter, easier to carry, a multi-purpose tool, etc., etc. That's why modern armies equip them today, not swords. A realistic sci-fi game (meaning one that is in the future, but that has logical progression in technology from our present time) would not use swords. But a pure sci-fi game might, just because swords have always been a part of human nature and there might be a good reason to justify their use (like what Dune did - that makes the use of swords plausible).

Originally posted by drbaltazar

Originally posted by Malcanis

Originally posted by Mr.Happy

Just wondering, but do you think there should be sword in sci fi mmos? The only one i think is Star-Wars, and thats because it is based off the movies. But I just want to know what others think about it. Sometimes it seems like there are sci fi mmos that are masked as fantasy genres.

 

Guns are great and all, but I suspect that hitting people with a big sharp piece of metal that doesn't require ammunition, power, maintenence (apart from a wipe rag and a whetstone), make any inherent noise, show up on "energy scans", and that can also be used as a utility tool, will never entirely go out of fashion

problem with games with amo type attack they never run out of bullet at same time as rogue say they should limit  those to 6 amo and reloadable by hand not a 100 amo mag you just clip on lol

Um what?

It's cool.

www.ryzom.com/en/ is a fantasy / sci-fi mix and a pretty cool one too.

There are a few reasons to use a bladed weapon rather than a gun in a sci-fi setting.

Maybe not a sword, which is a bit of a clunky weapon, but definately a knife.

Close-quarters combat for one; within a certain distance a concealed knife is more deadly than any holstered weapon, be it a modern .38 or a futuristic high-power plasma pistol. It doesn't matter how high-tech your gun is If you're dead before you can draw it.

As has been mentioned; force-fields also provide a theoretical situation whereby energy weapons and high-speed projectile fire might be ineffective.

Guns can also jam, overheat, run out of ammo, break down and are subject to environment conditions .. they are also somewhat conspicuous, expensive and difficult to conceal. By comparison, a knife is a cheap weapon, far easier to hide upon ones person, absolutely silent and the only thing that can go wrong with it would be for it to break.

No question that I'd be happier with a high-power sniperrifle than a pocket-knife at a distance of 500 ft, but I'd have a knife tucked into my boot nonetheless. They're just too useful.

Originally posted by Mr.Happy

Just wondering, but do you think there should be sword in sci fi mmos? The only one i think is Star-Wars, and thats because it is based off the movies. But I just want to know what others think about it. Sometimes it seems like there are sci fi mmos that are masked as fantasy genres.

Well, Dune is a good example. They used daggers/knives because of the shields could stop fast moving projectiles etc.

Originally posted by Mr.Happy

Just wondering, but do you think there should be sword in sci fi mmos? The only one i think is Star-Wars, and thats because it is based off the movies. But I just want to know what others think about it. Sometimes it seems like there are sci fi mmos that are masked as fantasy genres.

Slow down there Skippy. Star Wars isn't full Sci-Fi or Fantasy, its a subgenre of Sci-Fi called Space Opera. Star Trek is a Space Opera as well.  Space Operas normally have a much broader scope, then most regular Sci-Fi stories.

Here is the definition from Wikipedia:

Space opera is a subgenre of speculative fiction or science fiction that emphasizes romantic, often melodramatic adventure, set mainly or entirely in space, generally involving conflict between opponents possessing powerful (and sometimes quite fanciful) technologies and abilities. Perhaps the most significant trait of space opera is that settings, characters, battles, powers, and themes tend to be very large-scale.

Something like a knife would be as useful in a scifi setting as it is now, ie very,, maybe more if you have forcefields or cybernetics, but those are lame.  No lasers though those are just stupid, then again I never liked laser guns either.

Fantasy books have been included as part of the science fiction group for many years. 

I personally think they are more accurately described as science fiction fantasy or just fantasy, depending on the particular world. However, my personal views are not accepted  practice.

Because if it works & people like it / use it...

We still use plenty of technology used hundreds of years ago in real life...if not adapted.  Just make the swords have some random upgrade to it or 'power-up' of sort, and you're good to go for the people confused.

Only thing I'd agree with is balancing damage of such weapon types...a laser vs. a blade, sometimes that can be a little ridiculous in games...

I think swords might actually be useful, but at the same time, too cumbersome to carry. I would expect large knives though to still be carried.

Originally posted by augustgrace

Swords and other bladed weapons are used in Dune.  Dune however actually provides a reason for swords being used.  The Holtzman shields that generate a protective field around the individual (or ship) wearing the generator, react to the velocity of an incoming object.  Fast moving objects like bullets/other projectiles are deflected by the shield.  A slow moving object however can pass through the shield.  This offers the wearer protection while still allowing them to interact with their environment.  As a result a type of specialized hand to hand combat hand to be designed which uses slow movements to bypass shields but still do damange to the target.  Swords offer the control and precision necessary for this specialized type of combat.

Sorry for the nerdy wall o' text :)

Indeed, Dune really offers one relatively "reasonable" explanation as to why melee weapons and in most cases even long range balistic weapons are still used in such a distant future with all the awesome technology that exists in that time period. Although, it should be pointed out that they actually make more use of fast and concealable weapons like kinjals and your regular short swords/daggers more than 2H swords and other bulkier weapons.

On the actual point... I have nothing against melee weapons in SF games (yeah, even SW does it with cortosis woven weapons and... well, lightsabers), if for no other reason than mainly it's a good way to balance the classes.

A sword or blade might also be a 'fashion statement'.

Swords were worn by Europeans for years - how many of those wearers were actaully competent to use them?

And yes, in close quarters a blade might be more useful than a 'stand off' weapon.

In fact - in one Sci-Fi novel I read years ago everyone carried holstered sidearms - but they never used them - it was socially unacceptable even in self defence.  They fought with knives and hand to hand.