[MUD-Dev] narrative

[Brandon J. Van Every]

Jeff Freeman wrote:

> I played BG2 from start to end multiplayer co-op, and recently
> have been playing NWN the same way.  I talk to an NPC and zip
> through the convo's as quickly as I can.  I'm a lazy gamer.  Don't
> tell me about the labor, just show me the baby.  It's all
> written-out in excruciating detail, of course, but about all I
> ever get out of these convos is "blah blah sword blah blah blah
> dragon blah blah".

You are the victim of bad writing.  Good screenwriters know they
have to nail the essence in few words.

> So, talking about procedurally generating "stories" and then not
> having any way to procedurally generate the *writing* to go with
> it: Apart from doing it manually, there's another way, at least to
> convey the jist of the conversation

Heck, why not throw art nuthouse at it.  

  [approach Oracle] "SWORD!"  "Flames."  "Adversary!"  
  [Imposing cloaked black guy.]  <stutter, stutter> "Shaaaaard..."
  [3D special effect] "GO."

Like taking orders from Operation Flashpoint.  X-p

> (And why do this?  Because it's all many players get out of even
> the best-written dialog anyway).

I've never seen a CRPG that had "best-written dialogue."  Granted I
haven't played a ton of 'em.  I'd be surprised to find out that any
competent screenwriter has ever worked on a CRPG.  I know Lee
Sheldon (of "Charlie's Angels" fame) has some adventure games to his
credit, but I haven't played them.  What few good writers there are
seem to have done adventure games / interactive fiction, and even
there they are quite sparse.

> That would be, just have the NPCs speak with icons.  Rather like
> the Sims.  Talk to the NPC blacksmith and he says (by showing you
> icons), that he's mad, something about a monster.  Something about
> an axe.  Look in your Quest Journal and it says, "Step 1: Go kill
> this monster.  Step 2: Bring the magic axe to the blacksmith."

Banja Taiyo uses a visual language, although they cheat a little in
that the audio tracks have discernable words if you know even a
smidgen of foreign languages.  I don't know if they have quests or
not.  It's certainly a very interesting online 2D graphical Flash
MUD though.  It won the Independent Games Festival 2002 award for
"Innovation in Art."  www.banja.com

> Having done that, back with the blacksmith, oh look, now he's
> happy.  And money!

In Banja you do buy and sell things iconically.


Cheers,                         www.3DProgrammer.com
Brandon Van Every               Seattle, WA

20% of the world is real.
80% is gobbledygook we make up inside our own heads.


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