PlaneShift
Gameplay => General Discussion => Topic started by: JJSRox on June 26, 2006, 06:19:01 am
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As I was reading a new series of books a while ago (The Seventh Tower), i notice it is quite similar to planeshift in a few ways...
1. Both of them take place in an underground land, where no sunlight can reach.
2. They both use a great crystal to light the land, and smaller crystals can be used to light rooms, buildings, etc.
(in the seventh tower, they are called sunstones)
3. Planeshift has 7 levels in its stelactite, and the seventh tower's land has 7 levels to it also
Is this a coincidence? I realize that this series came out before the game did.
If you were wondering to see if I was serious, or if you just want an interesting read, here it is
http://www.scholastic.com/titles/seventhtower/index2.htm
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There've been a lot of "Coincidence?" threads comparing PlaneShift to various things - they've all been coincidence. PlaneShift started back in '92, anyway.
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There've been a lot of "Coincidence?" threads comparing PlaneShift to various things - they've all been coincidence. PlaneShift started back in '92, anyway.
Are you saying Garth Nix took the idea from the original planeshift game?
Also, there may have been coincidences before, but this series is so close it's almost IDENTICAL to planeshift..
Like i said, the seven levels and underground crystals are too much to be a coincidence...
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Everything's been done before, and you will allways find things similar to other things. No real way to avoid it, and it doesn't mean plagerism was involved. Just that similar ideas can arise seperately.
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Are you saying Garth Nix took the idea from the original planeshift game?
You don't believe that coincidences happen at all? Everything in this world is 100% original?
As I wrote, PlaneShift started back in '92. These books were published four years later, if not more, as far as I can see.
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In the book there could have been 6 levels, or 8 levels, or anything...
And was the crystal idea and the seven levels idea thought of by the time the books came out? Was that the original idea in 1992?
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I'm not really sure what anyone can tell you, if the fact that PlaneShift was created years before the books, doesn't mean anything to you.
News from 1992-2000 (http://www.planeshift.it/news_1992-2000.html) and here (http://www.planeshift.it/oldmudpage/index.html) is the original MUD page. PlaneShift's setting is old.
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Haha,
What was that saying...
Something like "Being a good writer is nothing more than knowing which ideas to steal from great writers"
And another coincidence!
Karyuu loves me
AND
Zorbels loves me...
AND
Xordan loves me
AND
...
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Scandalous :P
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Quite, and about that Xordan thing.
It only happened a few times and we were both drunk :P
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Karyuu loves me
AND
Zorbels loves me...
AND
Xordan loves me
AND
...
AND
Drey doesn'y love you... ever. never.
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When you ask somebody to tell you a number between 1 and 10 85% of the people you’ll ask will say 7. So, yes, it might be a coincidence.
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It only happened a few times and we were both drunk
After this I will never look at you three the same way :-X
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:X I deny everything.
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Heh, we can do 18 \o/ now eh...funny stuff.
Anyways, getting back to the topic, I'll look into the book, then post whether or not it is something ungood.
Everybody here trusts me... Right?
Right?
Kary?
Xordan?
Dre..
Xordan?
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Everybody here trusts me... Right?
Ahahahaha, Waylander made a funny :P
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Heh, we can do 18 \o/ now eh...funny stuff.
Anyways, getting back to the topic, I'll look into the book, then post whether or not it is something ungood.
Everybody here trusts me... Right?
Right?
Kary?
Xordan?
Dre..
Xordan?
in flames we trust
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Everybody here trusts me... Right?
:-\ Your kidding right? :P
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Me? Kidding? I never do anything but kid.
And you all joke about it, but when I am acting serious, you all do trust me.
Whether you do or not, let me live in my arrogance and ignorance :P
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1. Both of them take place in an underground land, where no sunlight can reach.
Seriously, what are the options? Either you are on a planetary surface, or you are underground. And if you compare the number of settings that take place on a planetary surface to the number of underground settings, I think underground setting comes up pretty original. In fact, the fact that people actually do inquire about the originality of this proves that is is pretty original, because noone would think twice about surface settings.
2. They both use a great crystal to light the land, and smaller crystals can be used to light rooms, buildings, etc.
(in the seventh tower, they are called sunstones)
Again, what are the choices, usually? It is almost a natural choice to conduct light from the surface down through a crystal, just as in fiber optics. An alternative of using magic would result in difficulties in explaining plant growth, and a very high percentage of completely deserted spaces.
Likewise, any other, conventional artificial lighting like lamps produce the same effects, and add the problem of oxygen.
Another solution would be light emitting plants. However, that presents the problem of how they actually managed tro evolve, how they manage to produce sufficient light and why they would do that, in terms of evolutionary reason. Emitting light uses quite some energy, so doing so needs to be carefully weighed in a cost/benefit comparison if a species is to survive.
Additionally, PS does not use smaller crystals to light rooms. It uses normal medieval-style lamps, candles, etc., as can easily be seen not only ingame, but also on the mainsite's flash animation of a tavern scene.
3. Planeshift has 7 levels in its stelactite, and the seventh tower's land has 7 levels to it also
Planeshift has not 7, but 8 levels. Two of them are completely submerged at all times, whereas one is submerged depending on season. I also, while not having read the link you gave yet, think it's pretty safe to assume that TST doesn't have the same or a comparable race set, with the exception of the obvious and standard fantasy races (humans, dwarves, elves).
Thus the conclusion is that what is similar are things that follow from the base considerations, and thusly are very easy to make up independantly, so I vote "Coincidence".
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The PlaneShift levels are EIGHT, not seven. The underground cave is quite different from the one pictured in those books, and about the crystal, I think it's a quite common material in fantasy. So the similarities are really few. About dates, the novels have been published in 2000, while we wrote the history of PlaneShift in 1992.
:thumbdown:
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Adding to that, according to the information on the site linked to, the world in that books isn't even underground, but below a magical shield blocking the sunlight. It also is not illuminated by the crystals, likely only the castle itself, or parts of it, are, if at all. So one less similarity. I must wonder whether you actually have read either of the books, link you gave, and PS settings.
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Only the spires pierce the Veil, a magical barrier that repels all light and shrouds the world in darkness.
Lets see not underground but but under a magical shield that blocks sunlight
the ability to capture the light of the sun and store it in jewels.
No big crystal only a small ones that catch sunlight
The spiky towers crown the vast castle city of the Chosen
The seven towers don't even seem to refer to seven different planes.
What similarities are there??