Posted September 28, 2017 Are there going to be any NPCs in this that can be interacted with on certain levels? I'm not expecting hordes of NPCs running about, filling up the island, but in order to sustain a server, the server will need a high player count. Would it be possible to have around 50 NPCs on the island (mostly in the built up areas) just walking around, or doing similar things players would be doing to help build the immersion? The immersion would be totally lost if you join a server and find you're the only person on the island, despite it being built up to hold 300 players. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted September 28, 2017 39 minutes ago, iiMStevo said: Are there going to be any NPCs in this that can be interacted with on certain levels? I'm not expecting hordes of NPCs running about, filling up the island, but in order to sustain a server, the server will need a high player count. Would it be possible to have around 50 NPCs on the island (mostly in the built up areas) just walking around, or doing similar things players would be doing to help build the immersion? The immersion would be totally lost if you join a server and find you're the only person on the island, despite it being built up to hold 300 players. No, the NPC's will be to the least amount possible, as because yu cannot interact with them with total immersion if they are roaming. They will take up as shop positions which are boring for people to do all day and also will be as some vendors too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted September 28, 2017 Yeah I hate to break it to you but Npc will just be vendors in stores, players will have to fill up that world to make it feel alive. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted September 28, 2017 I think that's better, all in all Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted September 28, 2017 Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the players being the most active... that's what makes Altis Life that much better than GTA. That said, an empty server can be something that plagues the game. It may be better if the player slots were first roaming NPCs, that allowed minimal interaction (or scripted conversation)... when a player joins, the NPC occupying that slot gets "deleted", potentially not instantly, maybe they'd wander off to a remote location and then get deleted. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted September 28, 2017 8 minutes ago, iiMStevo said: Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the players being the most active... that's what makes Altis Life that much better than GTA. That said, an empty server can be something that plagues the game. It may be better if the player slots were first roaming NPCs, that allowed minimal interaction (or scripted conversation)... when a player joins, the NPC occupying that slot gets "deleted", potentially not instantly, maybe they'd wander off to a remote location and then get deleted. Well, this won't be such a thing as it is no roaming NPC's and some servers will be empty and well just a server has to start small anyways and so all your suggestion will show that it is still empy and you can just exploit it and rob such NPC's with no consequences brought upon you. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted September 28, 2017 (edited) 4 hours ago, LuckyDuck said: Well, this won't be such a thing as it is no roaming NPC's and some servers will be empty and well just a server has to start small anyways and so all your suggestion will show that it is still empy and you can just exploit it and rob such NPC's with no consequences brought upon you. But that's my point... The police force for example, at least in an Altis Life server, it's always hard to find someone who is willing to be a cop, and take the role of being the cop rather serious, or at least serious enough that they're not sat there randomly tasing civilians, or speeding around just because they can't be bothered to adhere to speed limits. To build an entire police force with those people may take literally thousands of people that join your server. Some days, you're going to log in and find absolutely no police officers online, and then as you say, players can just exploit it and rob everyone with no consequences. The video details that the police force has a structure to it... I presume by this, it means there are different branches where players are assigned different cases, or there are ranks that you progress through and have different roles to play as while you are that role... But I have to question that... what if, say the sergeant rank, has players sit behind a desk, and micro-manage other players? Sure, it's a nice role to be "the boss" for a bit, but it'd get boring. What happens when no players want to fill that role, or players only in that role are online? Does the police force collapse as a result? Ultimately, I think NPCs would work extremely well in this as "placeholders". It wouldn't take much away from the immersion if NPCs took part in some of the jobs to keep the system going. Sure, you can't have a friendly conversation with them, but maybe all they need to be able to do is say "Hey, how's it going?" if they pass you on the street... or even just give you a friendly nod as you walk by. The Bank would need to have some form of security in place, otherwise what stops absolutely everyone from robbing it as soon as the last police officer logs off for the day? If there's a fire service, and houses that can be set on fire by an arsonist (I have no idea, I haven't seen anything on this), who puts the fire out? Does the fire just spread and burn the entire city to the ground if there aren't any Fire service online? As cool as it may be, being a police officer and cruising around with your partner (your friend) to bust bad guys. If you're playing the game alone because they're offline or away or whatever, it may make the difference to your experience if you have a simple NPC keeping you company coming out with witty one-liners everyone once in a while as you make an arrest, or even have the NPCs mentor you as you're learning to be a police officer. In no way am I saying "Make NPCs the focal point of interaction" for this game, I'm simply suggesting to the community, it's worth considering their involvement in the finished product, and how they can greatly add to the game. Edited September 28, 2017 by iiMStevo Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted September 28, 2017 1 hour ago, iiMStevo said: But I have to question that... what if, say the sergeant rank, has players sit behind a desk, and micro-manage other players? Sure, it's a nice role to be "the boss" for a bit, but it'd get boring. What happens when no players want to fill that role, or players only in that role are online? Does the police force collapse as a result? No one will be behind a desk. 1 hour ago, iiMStevo said: Ultimately, I think NPCs would work extremely well in this as "placeholders". It wouldn't take much away from the immersion if NPCs took part in some of the jobs to keep the system going. Sure, you can't have a friendly conversation with them, but maybe all they need to be able to do is say "Hey, how's it going?" if they pass you on the street... or even just give you a friendly nod as you walk by. The Bank would need to have some form of security in place, otherwise what stops absolutely everyone from robbing it as soon as the last police officer logs off for the day? There is no security in the bank anyways and the less cops, the less money in the bank and also if no cops the system might not even allow people to rob the bank to stop exploitation. If you want a high reward, the task must be a high risk one in order to get that high reward and so there is no absolute reason to rob the bank when no cops online. There is no police jobs which require players sitting behind a desk and that is the exact thing which is where NPC's will do the boring stuff like serving as shop vendors at the tills. 1 hour ago, iiMStevo said: If there's a fire service, and houses that can be set on fire by an arsonist (I have no idea, I haven't seen anything on this), who puts the fire out? Does the fire just spread and burn the entire city to the ground if there aren't any Fire service online? Fires are not player started and are automated, fires therefor won't start when no fire fighters are online/ on duty. 1 hour ago, iiMStevo said: As cool as it may be, being a police officer and cruising around with your partner (your friend) to bust bad guys. If you're playing the game alone because they're offline or away or whatever, it may make the difference to your experience if you have a simple NPC keeping you company coming out with witty one-liners everyone once in a while as you make an arrest, or even have the NPCs mentor you as you're learning to be a police officer. Well, there won't be any roaming NPC's in the game and will only be at stores etc as vendors or such. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
