December 2003
- DGN - Method of controling NPC's. Tony Hoyt
- DGN - Method of controling NPC's. J C Lawrence
- DGN - Method of controling NPC's. Sean Middleditch
- DGN - Method of controling NPC's. Vincent Archer
- DGN - Method of controling NPC's. Sheela Caur'Lir
- First Everquest Server Closure? Daniel.Harman@barclayscapital.com
- First Everquest Server Closure? Daniel.Harman@barclayscapital.com
- First Everquest Server Closure? Vincent Archer
- Game Designer and Senior Engineer Positions Adam Carpenter
- Spike TV"s Video Game Awards Michael Tresca
- Spike TV"s Video Game Awards Zach Collins {Siege}
- Spike TV"s Video Game Awards Rayzam
- Spike TV"s Video Game Awards Otis Viles
- Spike TV"s Video Game Awards Michael Tresca
- Spike TV"s Video Game Awards Daniel Anderson
- R: DGN - Method of controling NPC's. Ghilardi Filippo
- MDC 2004 - Call for Speakers mdc-proposals@kanga.nu
- MDC 2004 - Call for Papers mdc-proposals@kanga.nu
- Current State of MMOG's? Chris
- Current State of MMOG's? Jason Murdick
- Current State of MMOG's? Chris
- Current State of MMOG's? Jason Murdick
- Current State of MMOG's? Jeff Crane
- Current State of MMOG's? Sheela Caur'Lir
- Current State of MMOG's? Brian 'Psychochild' Green
- Current State of MMOG's? Scott Jennings
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 7 Chanur Silvarian
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Brent P. Newhall
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Ammon Lauritzen
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Nicolai Hansen
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death John Buehler
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Paul Schwanz
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death ghovs
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Chanur Silvarian
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death J C Lawrence
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death J C Lawrence
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Sheela Caur'Lir
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Ben Kirman
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Sean Middleditch
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Sheela Caur'Lir
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Jason Murdick
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Scott Jennings
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death games@anthemion.org
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death John Buehler
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Paul Schwanz
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death games@anthemion.org
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death John Arras
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Corpheous Andrakin
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Edward Glowacki
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Sean Kelly
- Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death Scion Altera
- Thought Experiment: Permanent MonsterDeath John Buehler
Scion Altera writes:
> Thursday, January 8, 2004, 7:01:09 AM, John Buehler wrote:
>> This can include the operation of a town. Imagine a GM breaking
>> out the Caesar III town-management interface and directing
>> movement of goods from one warehouse to another. That will
>> mobilize some number of NPCs to new activities. Perhaps the GM
>> declares a festival for the town. Again, the NPCs know what to
>> do. The better the AI for the NPCs, the more leverage the GMs
>> have for entertaining the players.
> Normally I don't agree with anything you say (although I do value
> your points of view since they are so often opposite to my own)
> but in this you have hit upon something exceedingly cool.
So much for my streak...
> Giving the RTS city or region level client to the GMs of a massive
> game would allow the fine grained control needed to operate a city
> efficiently and intelligently. The AI needed to make the NPCs do
> what they're supposed to do wouldn't be any less trivial than much
> of what they already do in most games. The benefit to the players
> would be that the cities each seemed more alive. The benefit to
> the company is that each GM is worth more because everything they
> do affects more players more profoundly.
Yes, we do agree on this. I mentioned Caesar III. The towns that
the game permits me to build are very active, and that is conveyed
by all the NPCs walking the streets doing their thing, with carts
going this way and that, tax collectors making their rounds, even
police and building inspectors checking out the neighborhoods. I've
always wanted to walk the streets of my own cities and witness all
that activity. Not to mention dropping by some of the villas to see
what the rich folks do with all their time.
It sure seems to give an interesting answer to the problem of static
towns in MMORPGs.
> Of course, it's a relatively simple step from here to giving an
> RTS client to a player who is the mayor of a town... I know Achaea
> lives on players running their own cities already, but the
> graphical games still seem to be lagging behind in this regard.
Our agreement was short-lived because now we're back to a
fundamental point of entertainment that we disagree on - player-run
worlds. I've certainly considered doing what you describe. Having
a game operate on an entirely different level than the first person
adventure would seem to add a lot of mileage to a game's
entertainment. But I prefer to back off of that and leave it to the
operators to ensure that a town's NPCs continue to act in a way that
adds to the entertainment of those impacted by the town's
activities.
> All I know is I'd love to see a new generation of multi-faceted
> games that combine RTS elements with first person elements.
I'd just be happy if town NPCs did something that made sense.
JB
- Thought Experiment: Permanent MonsterDeath John Buehler
- Utopian World (Removing access to entertainment) Sheela Caur'Lir
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 8 Chanur Silvarian
- The Skaff Effect Michael Tresca
- The Skaff Effect Sheela Caur'Lir
- The Skaff Effect Ryan S. Dancey
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Chanur Silvarian
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Paul Schwanz
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Rayzam
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Tom "cro" Gordon
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Freeman, Jeff
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Paul Schwanz
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Sheela Caur'Lir
- MUD-Dev Digest, Vol 7, Issue 9 Sheela Caur'Lir
- [ANNC] new list for technical discussion Bruce Mitchener
- The Mind's Eye Matt Mihaly
- [BUS] Browser-based games ceo
- Online gamer in China wins virtual theft suit David Durant
- Alternate Level Mechanics (was: ghost mode) Eli Stevens
- FW: Socialization in Online Games Christopher Allen
- Whimsy Patricia Pizer
- TECH Looking for light graphical clients Ian McDonald
- TECH Looking for light graphical clients Mats Lidstrom
- Simulated societies (Thought Experiment: Permanent Monster Death) Ola Fosheim Grøstad
- [BIZ] The Web's New Currency Michael Tresca
- [BIZ] The Web's New Currency Ola Fosheim Grøstad
- [BIZ] The Web's New Currency Chris Duesing