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NPCs
Dec 22, 2003 14:49:21 GMT -5
Post by Beagle on Dec 22, 2003 14:49:21 GMT -5
NPCs...They've been with NinjaWars for a while, in a very meager form. NinjaLord had always thought he could develop an NPC worth a kill point.
Well, we'd like your opinion on NPCs in the game. NinjaWars, at it's heart, has always been a PvP game. The game is focused around players fighting players and helping players. How far can we go with NPCs before we potentially lose that aspect?
What we'd like to do is have some NPC encounters that provide some points, but far less than the amount you get for killing players. NPCs would also be a way to obtain gold and items, more effectively than the current method.
What are your thoughts on how NPCs should be fleshed out in game? What are your concerns about them and hopes for them? Let us know.
--Woof
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NPCs
Aug 8, 2004 6:26:45 GMT -5
Post by lets post ideas on Aug 8, 2004 6:26:45 GMT -5
well
they could be more usefull ! a mage to learn u skill ( u pay a number of kills), or upgrade skill merchant could give more gold thieves scrolls, emperor guard a bonus for rank (or the rank of the clan) or you could hire a npc for one fight
i lm sure players could find better ideas ! it wouuld be great to offer an alternative, a dilemna..
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NPCs
Sept 7, 2004 23:34:28 GMT -5
Post by Beagle on Sept 7, 2004 23:34:28 GMT -5
Before I reply to this post, I would just like to point out that NW2 is not going to have a kill point system. As has been noted many times, please see the thread on the Experience Point System, which will provide players with far more options for character advancement.
I like the idea of making advancement mechanics more personal through the use of NPCs. It would be better then the "ethereal narrator" we have currently that says things like "Your trainer finds you lacking." So trainers could be a good idea.
Killing merchants never sat well with me. I'll explain why in a few seconds.
The whole thieves thing needs to be better fleshed out. Instead of just having NPC thieves you can fight, we should definitely have NPC thieves that attempt to rob you as you wander town.
I don't think you should be able to hire an NPC to fight for you or with you, but I do have an idea for hiring NPCs.
------So here are my ideas for NPCs.---- 1) If we had NPCs in the game that personified the current "ethereal narrator", would you want to be able to interact with them on more than one level? My question is this. If you walk into the dojo, and you see the NPC trainer, would you like to be able to fight him as well as advance? Would you like to be able to possibly use some skills on him to rob him? The same question I pose for shop owners. Would you like to not only engage in financial transactions, but also fight and rob them?
Something to consider here. If you DO fight the merchant in the shop, should it be that no one can use the shop in that town for a certain amount of time because there's no shop owner? If you kill the merchant, should you get to loot the entire shop? Should you be able to leave the shop after killing the merchant, come back, and kill him again, potentially allowing you to kill the merchant many times in one session?
2) NPC guards for clan houses. It is our desire to have clan halls be an actual location in the city they are located in. We are trying to provide incentive for clans to advance, and one of the things we were thinking of was the ability to hire NPC guards to patrol the perimeter of your clan hall. This would mean that when another ninja tried to infiltrate your hall, he would have to pass stealth checks to see if he sneaks past the guards, and then if he fails to sneak past, he'll have to fight them. Which means that many of the actions you will take against a clan will involve fighting NPCs.
Is this good? Does this take away from the personal, venegful PvP we have come to know and love in NinjaWars? Or is this a great way to give incentive to higher level players to keep playing in order to advance the security of their clan?
3) A wilderness. What about having a wilderness, beyond the city gates, and between cities, where you will happen upon thieves (possibly bands of them), travelling merchants, royal emissaries, and the like? Would this be a feature that would be used and enjoyed? Would it be abused in order to level quickly? Is it important enough that we should try our best to solve any potential exploitations and implement the system?
These are some of the major questions about NPCs for NinjaWars 2 and we would greatly appreciate your feedback on them. We like the current feel of NinjaWars, and know that many do, and so we are worried about putting in too many non-PvP elements into the game. But then again, NPCs may add such great flavor, variety, and play options to NinjaWars 2 that everyone will love them.
Let us know what you think!
--Woof
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NPCs
Jul 19, 2006 19:07:44 GMT -5
Post by angrypanda on Jul 19, 2006 19:07:44 GMT -5
I really like all of those ideas Beagle. For the robbing the merchant bit, I would like to see, yes you can rob/kill a merchant, but the merchant would be strong and have guards. If you kill a merchant you can take everything IN his/her store. It makes sense that a merchant would NOT have all of their goods and cash open to the public for just that reason, it would be buried/hidden elsewhere. Would we be able to serve as merchant guards?
I also like the wilderness idea...I had kind of assumed that you would do it without saying anything...cos to me it seems essential.
I dont think NPCs will ruin NW2 at all, in fact, I think it is the lack of them that is taking away from the current one. Also from my own coding experience, NPCs can become very complex, just a simple merchant streched out to about 4 pages of code...so good luck with that.
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NPCs
Aug 3, 2006 23:10:00 GMT -5
Post by firesword on Aug 3, 2006 23:10:00 GMT -5
That's one thing about NPCs, they can be used for good and bad. I'm not for either side, so I can't give a good opinion on that.
Will/Would NPCs be used to gather information? As in, could you possible threaten them into learning about a merchant's hidden chest? Would they also be able to be recruited by another member to give others wrong information to lead them into a trap? Basically; NPCs being used by members against members in a way. That would make a NPC useful, but still keep the member vs. member.
Just a though...
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NPCs
Aug 7, 2006 11:20:52 GMT -5
Post by chrismonster on Aug 7, 2006 11:20:52 GMT -5
Responding to the above post (firesword's),
While NPC's may, at some time (don't think I enjoy this sort of language; I either betray our hopes or dash yours), have an interactive role in the world that lets players manipulate them, I don't think anyone would want to see NPC's have as cool a job as gathering information on hidden chests. If you read up on the posted info covering our basic plans for the game, you should be able to guess that if such a task exists as extorting information on hidden treasure chests, it would have to fall with players. You wouldn't want NPC's being cooler than yourself, would you?
Most importantly, as you yourself point out, any utilization of NPC's would be a compliment to the member vs member gameplay. With that in mind, you'll just have to hold on to see what we do.
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NPCs
Aug 17, 2006 10:38:18 GMT -5
Post by murmkuma on Aug 17, 2006 10:38:18 GMT -5
Beagle I love those ideas. LOVE EM all of em. specially the part of the shop being out of commision. roll with it.
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