Business And Economy Archive
Thread: NPC vendors in cantinas now?
tpugmire wrote:
Wow, like a year ago I think. Been there a while, that's for sure!
that long hunh? well I did take some time off . . . . lol
Speaking of NPCs in bars, will the conversation text of NPC bartenders ever be changed?
Months agoI /bugged the fact that when you converse withNPC bartenders, they were still gossiping about Dr. Vacca and DeadEye and other such story-related things as though there were any story arc still being offered. I checked a few nights ago -- they're still talking about this obsoletestuff.
Not only is this a poor use of NPC assets for veteran players, it's badly misleading to new players. If you go to a cantina looking for hints as to where you can find adventure in this game, you shouldn't be given information that's so completely out of date. NPC bartenders ought to be one of the first NPCs who get their conversation options changed when new content enters the game, not the last!
NPC bartenders could be fantastic resources if properly used. Not only could they be starting points for adventure ("I heard that Janek Airlifter over by the southshuttle is telling some crazy story about how his mine was taken over by narglatches"), if their conversation text is well-written they could really add to the Star Wars flavor of SWG.
Everybody wins!
--Flatfingers
I just got an idea to add to this. What about allowing players to "leak" information to a bartender for a price? So long as some system can be put in place to prevent it from being misused this could add a little RP value and player interaction. And give the bartender something else to talk about for once.
Flatfingers wrote:
Speaking of NPCs in bars, will the conversation text of NPC bartenders ever be changed?
Months agoI /bugged the fact that when you converse withNPC bartenders, they were still gossiping about Dr. Vacca and DeadEye and other such story-related things as though there were any story arc still being offered. I checked a few nights ago -- they're still talking about this obsoletestuff.
Not only is this a poor use of NPC assets for veteran players, it's badly misleading to new players. If you go to a cantina looking for hints as to where you can find adventure in this game, you shouldn't be given information that's so completely out of date. NPC bartenders ought to be one of the first NPCs who get their conversation options changed when new content enters the game, not the last!
NPC bartenders could be fantastic resources if properly used. Not only could they be starting points for adventure ("I heard that Janek Airlifter over by the southshuttle is telling some crazy story about how his mine was taken over by narglatches"), if their conversation text is well-written they could really add to the Star Wars flavor of SWG.
Everybody wins!
--Flatfingers
JamesHighwest wrote:
I just got an idea to add to this. What about allowing players to "leak" information to a bartender for a price? So long as some system can be put in place to prevent it from being misused this could add a little RP value and player interaction. And give the bartender something else to talk about for once.
Interesting! That's a clever use of bartenders as information conduits, totally in keeping with their generally understood literary function and game utility.
In terms of implementation,this reminds me of the idea for allowing some players to be able to script conversation trees for certain NPC characters. Players who enjoy RP have been wanting something like this since forever.
Unfortunately, several things weigh against that happening. Freeform scripting of NPC dialogue by players seems to make SOE nervous -- possibly from a RL legal standpoint (content ownership), possibly from the standpoint that some players might abuse the privilege, possibly both of these things.
An alternative that might be more acceptable would be allowing players to choose from options in a pregenerated list. This allows SOE to insure that content will be safe, but still gives players the opportunity to express some aesthetic creativity.
Is there a way that a system like this could be used to provide the "leaks" you suggested?
We should probably also think a little more about what leaks are for. What's the purpose of this feature? What are the desired benefits? What are the possible costs?
For example, other than paying credits, should there be any restriction on who can use this system to create leaks? If so, what might those restrictions be?
Should there be any restrictions on who can hear leaks from a bartender?
What do you think about the idea of reserving the ability to create "leaks" to who've mastered an entertainer profession (Entertainer, Musician, Dancer, Image Designer)? From a game design point of view, the people who like these professions enough to master them (especially now!) need to have some new abilities that they enjoy doing and that are useful in the game. And from a story perspective, it makes sense that entertainers "overhear" conversations among their clients -- if anyone would pick up on rumors and hints of important secrets, it would be these characters.
So I'd suggest letting master entertainers be able to create leaks at will. On the other hand, I'd charge players for listening to leaks -- it's the equivalent of slipping a bartender a few credits for information.
If we wanted to get enthusiastic about it, we could even suggest that for every type of leak, there's a set of prices corresponding to the quality of the information. Pay the lowest price (say, 50 credits; anyone can afford that), and you get only the vaguest hint. Pay a middle price (perhaps 1000 credits), and you get more details. Pay the top price (maybe 20,000 credits, maybe more in some cases) and the bartender will repeat exactly what was overheard as well as his or her personal understanding of what the rumor means.
Of course, rumors being what they are, there's no guarantee that the rumor will be true. It might even be deliberately misleading....
Lots of room for someone to run with this idea!
--Flatfingers
Flatfingers wrote:
JamesHighwest wrote:I just got an idea to add to this. What about allowing players to "leak" information to a bartender for a price? So long as some system can be put in place to prevent it from being misused this could add a little RP value and player interaction. And give the bartender something else to talk about for once.
Interesting! That's a clever use of bartenders as information conduits, totally in keeping with their generally understood literary function and game utility.
In terms of implementation,this reminds me of the idea for allowing some players to be able to script conversation trees for certain NPC characters. Players who enjoy RP have been wanting something like this since forever.
Unfortunately, several things weigh against that happening. Freeform scripting of NPC dialogue by players seems to make SOE nervous -- possibly from a RL legal standpoint (content ownership), possibly from the standpoint that some players might abuse the privilege, possibly both of these things.
An alternative that might be more acceptable would be allowing players to choose from options in a pregenerated list. This allows SOE to insure that content will be safe, but still gives players the opportunity to express some aesthetic creativity.
Is there a way that a system like this could be used to provide the "leaks" you suggested?
We should probably also think a little more about what leaks are for. What's the purpose of this feature? What are the desired benefits? What are the possible costs?
For example, other than paying credits, should there be any restriction on who can use this system to create leaks? If so, what might those restrictions be?
Should there be any restrictions on who can hear leaks from a bartender?
What do you think about the idea of reserving the ability to create "leaks" to who've mastered an entertainer profession (Entertainer, Musician, Dancer, Image Designer)? From a game design point of view, the people who like these professions enough to master them (especially now!) need to have some new abilities that they enjoy doing and that are useful in the game. And from a story perspective, it makes sense that entertainers "overhear" conversations among their clients -- if anyone would pick up on rumors and hints of important secrets, it would be these characters.
So I'd suggest letting master entertainers be able to create leaks at will. On the other hand, I'd charge players for listening to leaks -- it's the equivalent of slipping a bartender a few credits for information.
If we wanted to get enthusiastic about it, we could even suggest that for every type of leak, there's a set of prices corresponding to the quality of the information. Pay the lowest price (say, 50 credits; anyone can afford that), and you get only the vaguest hint. Pay a middle price (perhaps 1000 credits), and you get more details. Pay the top price (maybe 20,000 credits, maybe more in some cases) and the bartender will repeat exactly what was overheard as well as his or her personal understanding of what the rumor means.
Of course, rumors being what they are, there's no guarantee that the rumor will be true. It might even be deliberately misleading....
Lots of room for someone to run with this idea!
--Flatfingers
Flatfingers' Excessively Long List of Ideas for SWG
Sounds interesting. A bribery system would be pretty Star Warsy. Everyone knows how corrupt Imperial administrators are.