Re: Development Update #15: March 2014
Posted: Thu Apr 03, 2014 3:10 pm
But why the marshmallow?Charley_Deallus wrote: I was very excited.
But why the marshmallow?Charley_Deallus wrote: I was very excited.
That's not supposed to be marshmellow. I think he was trying to convey that he was so excited, he was a bit premature and overstimulated.Katorone wrote:But why the marshmallow?Charley_Deallus wrote: I was very excited.
I think I agree.Telc wrote:please make sure that you don't make too many "rational" assumptions (e.g. perfect forecasting, optimal bell-curve). In real life we DO see spikes/shocks crisis etc. even if the "leading" economic models (DSGE stuff) or Nobel Price winners (Fama) say that crashs/bubbles don't exist...
So what I'm saying: it would be awesome to see how all this interacts with "personality" of the NPCs! As a player I will go for trading because I like trading! (and it also gives me money). But if I had enough of trading I go out and explore the world, maybe building a structure here, maybe settling down in one system, building up my empire in the way I like. I would not like to fly around being the only real "individual" driven by intrinsic motivations while everyone else is just going to maximize wealth.. (that would feel too generic imo)
I think the captains (or overlords) are putting a request for employees on the market and the workers take it. So it should be cheaper to work for a captain than mining and selling ore themselves. maybe they get their equipment from the captains.Cornflakes_91 wrote:to 7: i think they have both, but the commanded NPC's are being paid by their superior officers for their work, so they have an incentive to do what they are being ordered
Omniscience pretty much kills the exploration aspect so knowledge at this level of (realtime) completeness should have a cost.Flatfingers wrote:2. OMNISCIENT NODE VIEW
It's worth noting that we're getting to see the node view of a system. I love this view. I will want to spend all my time in this view. That said... is this just for the demo, or will players (and NPC) have this kind of perfect knowledge of all objects -- including ships -- in a star system? Are we omniscient on a per-system basis? Alternately, if knowledge of some objects will be hidden, what should the rules for that be? What should not be displayed by default in the system node view, and why?
I assume this is the new map UI. Hoping that a fog of war system is in place:Flatfingers wrote:And Josh spake, saying, Let there be economic activity. And there were asks and bids generated dynamically, and it was good.
[snip]
2. OMNISCIENT NODE VIEW
It's worth noting that we're getting to see the node view of a system. I love this view. I will want to spend all my time in this view. That said... is this just for the demo, or will players (and NPCs) have this kind of perfect knowledge of all objects -- including ships -- in a star system? Are we omniscient on a per-system basis? Alternately, if knowledge of some objects will be hidden, what should the rules for that be? What should not be displayed by default in the system node view, and why?
I'd say they're indicating vertical distance from a horizontal plane (you can see that some of the lines are descending from the ships, which are above the plane). This also helps for perception of depth. For a clear illustration consider the vertical movement systems in games like Homeworld, Star Wolves, or Flotilla.Flatfingers wrote:3. ASCENDING LINES FROM SHIPS IN NODE VIEW
What are the dim lines ascending from ships in the node view? If color indicates what kind of thing an object is, are the ascending lines mostly for making the node view more interesting? Or is there a practical function that I'm just not understanding from watching a video?
Seconded. The only thing that this month's progress has left me sceptical about(and I hope I'm mistaken, and have just missed a detail) is how, er, capitalistic the NPC motivation seems to be. I want some of the factions to have motivations beyond "profit", even if they're irrational. In this case they'll still use their assets and infrastructure to generate profit, sure, but only as a means to make pursuit of their larger goal sustainable.Flatfingers wrote:5. PERSONALITY-BASED DECISION-MAKING QUALITY
Seriously; it's important that not all NPCs want to do commerce, and that not all NPCs who do commerce do it perfectly or even well. Perfection is boring. (Yes, even in a universe of incomplete information that causes lack of perfect knowledge, NPCs should not all have perfect decision-making processes.)
Chatter is one of the most immersive features of space games for me. It was my second-favourite feature of Homeworld, and it really helped with my enjoyment of Freelancer - I think it got the balance right. It's the key reason I'm hoping we get some kind of voicework implemented.Flatfingers wrote:7. NPC CHATTER
I am hoping (as I mentioned in the most recent Fligher Podcast) that there'll be some "chatter" in the universe. I wouldn't mind being able to turn it off to enjoy the peace and quiet. But I also hope that it will be possible to hear occasional bursts of communication from an NPC that gives some insight into what they're doing and why they're doing it. Most of the time it should be possible to figure that out from their observed actions. But a simple broadcast message that explains what they're doing would, I think, significantly increase the feeling of being in a living universe where people do things for reasons. It really doesn't have to be frequent at all -- just a little bit of chatter would make a big difference in adding to the feeling of life and purpose. (I'm not sure what form that chatter might/should take, though.)
I realize you speak facetiously here, and I won't deny that I fully expect LT and (omigoshicantbreathemydreamsarecomingtrue) LT2 to seriously dominate my gaming life..Flatfingers wrote: [...]
I see now Josh's true goal: he is trying to ruin all other games for us forever.
He may succeed.
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