Villages need to be populated with "decoration" NPCs

[KanePT 699]

Like Amadee, I also wonder in which way this would ruin the enjoyment of the game for you KanePT, and others singing in the same choir. Some here have been worried about lag - however this has been countered by the fact that an NPC could replace another critter in the quota. Others have been concerned about NPCs ruining the spirit of the game. But the game already has NPCs! And really, just how often do people venture out and visit other deeds anyhow, aren't most of focused on our own projects? And if you know of a deed that has "those dreaded NPCs", absolutely no-one is forcing you to visit or even look that way. It's sort of like someone in my neighborhood likes to place plastic flamingos and elves on his lawn. Do I like looking at them? Hell no, but nothing is forcing me to look either. He likes them though, so he should have the right to decorate with them if he so wishes. It takes nothing away from me and it's really none of my business what he does with his plot of land anyhow. Just as it's none of his business if I decorate my yard with rose bushes.

 

Could someone offer a concrete and sensible reason why this would impact others in a negative way?

Because, ffs, read my freaking posts above. We already have Reduced Ai Movement on animals, reduced animal count on deed, and constant nerfs to Animal Husbandry and breeding, all for the sake of having the creature cap as is. Now you want to add something that would reduce the effective animal count again? And that wouldn't reduce other people's enjoyment? I'm not even going for how there's local issues with big FPS drops and hangups, because those are client-sided, and different computers handle it differently. I'm talking about global effects server-side.

And for heaven's sake for someone that posted you enjoy RP (in the marriage suggestion), you're really not showing it in this thread.

 

Calling you out KanePT.  Please do give us a sensible reason that isn't opinion based. I'd like to see that from you if you can manage it.

I have, in each post i've posted since the first. You don't care to read, or you don't know the game enough to know what i'm talking about, that's your problem, cultivate yourself.

[Slickshot 1,195]

And for heaven's sake for someone that posted you enjoy RP (in the marriage suggestion), you're really not showing it in this thread.

 

I have, in each post i've posted since the first. You don't care to read, or you don't know the game enough to know what i'm talking about, that's your problem, cultivate yourself.

1.  Now you're just being a pompous ass.

2. Opinions aren't facts.  Please dictionary.

[Alec 728]

1.  Now you're just being a pompous ass.

2. Opinions aren't facts.  Please dictionary.

 

This is trollbait, please avoid.

 

 

 

 

 

And since when isn't a fact that hoarding animals kills mid and low-en computers?

 

Even a dozen of BSBs makes some serious lag.

[Druidnature 1,118]

Kane, you missed what I was saying. I'm not saying it's not constant online or anything like that. I'm saying the way wurm currently works on PVE servers, people are encouraged to live alone - not with each other. There are benefits to living alone AND with others. However, look at how many deeds there are with one person with alts, compared to thriving, player filled deeds.

Is that a problem? Not Imo. I enjoy wurm how it is now, but saying it's a MMO, when most people only have a few friends by them, isn't exactly "MMO" standards.

Again, that's only my view on it, and of course you "could" play with 50+ people if you tried, but most don't choose that style.

[Malena 2,854]

Its always like this people always want more. 

 

Sure, people do want more. However I would insist that the original purpose of my post was not about "wanting more" (this time) but instead trying to fix a flaw in the game that stood out to me (as a new player) clear as daylight. Up till that moment of roaming through people's empty deeds, I had been bursting with excitement and motivation to play the game. I'd been so addicted and enjoying every minute. Even all the deaths, even the struggles, even the problems I had to find solutions to. It was all a part of working hard, figuring things out to make things work the way I wanted. It was all a part of making the end result - success! - all that more sweet. Imagine spending your first months going through dozens and dozens of problems that a new player does to set up their home, then succeeding in getting things built up the way they want and then finally visiting other deeds, only to find that they all seem completely abandoned. Not a single soul in sight. "Is this what I've been working up to. Is this what I've been working hard for?" I can tell you, it felt very strange and rather demotivating! It was in fact my first truly negative experience in the game. The first time I ever had doubts as to whether I want to push on ahead with all my plans. Just refresh your memory and go walking through gorgeous huge villages like Free Bears or Krondor on Indy. Gorgeous, gorgeous deeds. But the owners are in a different time zone I think so I never see them online and their beautiful deeds are just row after row of empty houses and pens full of animals that make no sounds. All I can hear is the howl of the wind. So desolate! Also, to be able to visually recognize which building was which, I had to mouse over the house name pretty much. How nice it would have been to go into one of the taverns and instead of an empty bar, there would be an NPC bartender behind it. Perhaps bartenders had the option to turn on tavern music which would match the theme of the game. One could perhaps hear the pouring of a drink once in a while. I could actually imagine stopping in for a drink, just for the heck of it. And hey, maybe another PLAYER might be lured to the same sounds as they're walking past and join me! Or walk past some forges and see a smithy hammering away, hearing the klinkety klink of that. Or walk past a tailor holding some cloth in their hand and hearing the scissoring sound. Walk past a fisherman, hear the "plop" sound as he casts. Sure, they're not the real thing, but it sure would contribute to the atmosphere of the place!

Edited March 21, 2014 by Malena

[Jainy 8]

It may sound like a good idea, but I think it would make it seem a little creepy and perhaps a little more lonely. Knowing they're just npcs, not real players.

I also wouldn't call it a flaw in the game. If you want to hear and see other players around you, you can always move to a more populated area.

As for bartenders in taverns and such, in my opinion that doesn't really suit Wurm, but rather something like World of Warcraft.

Edited March 21, 2014 by Jainy

[KanePT 699]

Kane, you missed what I was saying. I'm not saying it's not constant online or anything like that. I'm saying the way wurm currently works on PVE servers, people are encouraged to live alone - not with each other. There are benefits to living alone AND with others. However, look at how many deeds there are with one person with alts, compared to thriving, player filled deeds.

Is that a problem? Not Imo. I enjoy wurm how it is now, but saying it's a MMO, when most people only have a few friends by them, isn't exactly "MMO" standards.

Again, that's only my view on it, and of course you "could" play with 50+ people if you tried, but most don't choose that style.

What are MMO standards then? Because wurm fits the bill perfectly. Even in Games like GuildWars and WoW (pretty popular MMO) many people play only with friends/guild, much like people here play with their friends/alliances. In fact Wurm by making rid of most NPCs promotes way more player to player interaction than most MMOs where you can go by and except for harder dungeons/raid bosses (which we have on wurm in the forum of uniques which always gather people) you can go by without ever interacting with other players. In fact i've played characters to max level on Guildwars like it was a solo game, never really interacting with other players, and in fact i went through several maps without seeing a single player. So i don't get what you're saying.

Wurm is only different from most MMO's because Wurm has a small, in fact tiny playerbase when compared with more common MMO games, which is why you feel the isolation a bit more.

 

 

Sure, people do want more. However I would insist that the original purpose of my post was not about "wanting more" (this time) but instead trying to fix a flaw in the game that stood out to me (as a new player) clear as daylight. Up till that moment of roaming through people's empty deeds, I had been bursting with excitement and motivation to play the game. I'd been so addicted and enjoying every minute. Even all the deaths, even the struggles, even the problems I had to find solutions to. It was all a part of working hard, figuring things out to make things work the way I wanted. It was all a part of making the end result - success! - all that more sweet. Imagine spending your first months going through dozens and dozens of problems that a new player does to set up their home, then succeeding in getting things built up the way they want and then finally visiting other deeds, only to find that they all seem completely abandoned. Not a single soul in sight. "Is this what I've been working up to. Is this what I've been working hard for?" I can tell you, it felt very strange and rather demotivating! It was in fact my first truly negative experience in the game. The first time I ever had doubts as to whether I want to push on ahead with all my plans. Just refresh your memory and go walking through gorgeous huge villages like Free Bears or Krondor on Indy. Gorgeous, gorgeous deeds. But the owners are in a different time zone I think so I never see them online and their beautiful deeds are just row after row of empty houses and pens full of animals that make no sounds. All I can hear is the howl of the wind. So desolate! Also, to be able to visually recognize which building was which, I had to mouse over the house name pretty much. How nice it would have been to go into one of the taverns and instead of an empty bar, there would be an NPC bartender behind it. Perhaps bartenders had the option to turn on tavern music which would match the theme of the game. One could perhaps hear the pouring of a drink once in a while. I could actually imagine stopping in for a drink, just for the heck of it. And hey, maybe another PLAYER might be lured to the same sounds as they're walking past and join me! Or walk past some forges and see a smithy hammering away, hearing the klinkety klink of that. Or walk past a tailor holding some cloth in their hand and hearing the scissoring sound. Walk past a fisherman, hear the "plop" sound as he casts. Sure, they're not the real thing, but it sure would contribute to the atmosphere of the place!

Oh boy wall of text... Enter works...

As for music and whatnot, ask older players what was happening when the garden gnomes came out. You want Wurm to feel like LOTRO or guildwars or WoW. But its a whole different game, it isn't supposed to feel like it. The problem that makes it feel empty isn't solved by NPCs its solved by attracting new players and getting servers up to full. Basically if There weren't giant deeds, and Inde wasn't all needles, you could fit everyone online as i type this into inde and chaos without going much over 50% capacity.

[FreeTineen 430]

Excuse me for stealing this off Berris but this thread is becoming derailed stopped following thus:

 

[Dskaggsgv 36]

-1 this would generate to much lag. If they are alone they want to be alone. If you dont want to be alone, get guards.

[Malena 2,854]

Oh boy wall of text... Enter works...

As for music and whatnot, ask older players what was happening when the garden gnomes came out. You want Wurm to feel like LOTRO or guildwars or WoW. But its a whole different game, it isn't supposed to feel like it. The problem that makes it feel empty isn't solved by NPCs its solved by attracting new players and getting servers up to full. Basically if There weren't giant deeds, and Inde wasn't all needles, you could fit everyone online as i type this into inde and chaos without going much over 50% capacity.

 

You know, believe it or not but I really appreciate the passion you have for protecting the atmosphere and ethos of Wurm. I'm sure it's frustrating when this newbie comes along who has not been long enough in the game to truly appreciate and fully understand what Wurm is all about. I am sure you're right. It will take some time, and hey who knows - I may be singing in the very same choir as yourself in a year's time. God knows how many years I fought to keep Ultima Online the glorious game it once was. 

 

Regardless, something that happens to veterans like ourselves, is we also become blind to faults that the game we love has. So I still take your comments with a pinch of salt. 

 

As for filling up the game with real players... would that not cause even more lag than the NPCs? And you can betcha that those thousands of players would not wait around long in other people's deeds. They'd want their own of course. Even more lag.

[Slickshot 1,195]

Oh boy wall of text... Enter works...

Do you stop being rude at some point?

 

This brings to mind a quote:

 

 

“You are not entitled to your opinion. You are entitled to your informed opinion. No one is entitled to be ignorant.†- Harlan Ellison

 

[KanePT 699]

You know, believe it or not but I really appreciate the passion you have for protecting the atmosphere and ethos of Wurm. I'm sure it's frustrating when this newbie comes along who has not been long enough in the game to truly appreciate and fully understand what Wurm is all about. I am sure you're right. It will take some time, and hey who knows - I may be singing in the very same choir as yourself in a year's time. God knows how many years I fought to keep Ultima Online the glorious game it once was. 

 

Regardless, something that happens to veterans like ourselves, is we also become blind to faults that the game we love has. So I still take your comments with a pinch of salt. 

 

As for filling up the game with real players... would that not cause even more lag than the NPCs? And you can betcha that those thousands of players would not wait around long in other people's deeds. They'd want their own of course. Even more lag.

Yes probably excess players would. Thing is none of the servers are even at half capacity. Yet there have already been huge changes because of excess NPCs (case in point lots of measures to reduce player kept animals and breeding, also reduced AI for said animals to allow for increasing the animal count).

Trust me, and if you read any of my posts, i'm all but oblivious to the faults of Wurm, i'm so critic of this game's flaws that my previous forum account was banned for excessive dev bashing or something like that.

 

 

Do you stop being rude at some point?

 

This brings to mind a quote:

 

You should kinda read your own quote. And not being rude, last time i had english classes (not even my mother language) there were still a thing as paragraphs. Which make text easier to read. I'm pretty sure those exist in most western languages. Her last post was easy to read and cleanly formated, so i'd say my comment hit home.

 

So here's my suggestion for you. Think about what you're posting, stop being a ignorant troll, and think that maybe i've been in this game, and in these forums for time enough that what i wrote before and you classify as "opinions" aren't opinions, but actual fact born of experience with the game.

[Slickshot 1,195]

Yes probably excess players would. Thing is none of the servers are even at half capacity. Yet there have already been huge changes because of excess NPCs (case in point lots of measures to reduce player kept animals and breeding, also reduced AI for said animals to allow for increasing the animal count).

Trust me, and if you read any of my posts, i'm all but oblivious to the faults of Wurm, i'm so critic of this game's flaws that my previous forum account was banned for excessive dev bashing or something like that.

 

 

You should kinda read your own quote. And not being rude, last time i had english classes (not even my mother language) there were still a thing as paragraphs. Which make text easier to read. I'm pretty sure those exist in most western languages. Her last post was easy to read and cleanly formated, so i'd say my comment hit home.

 

So here's my suggestion for you. Think about what you're posting, stop being a ignorant troll, and think that maybe i've been in this game, and in these forums for time enough that what i wrote before and you classify as "opinions" aren't opinions, but actual fact born of experience with the game.

English class or not, your two previous posts have been distasteful and hateful, and in fact break the rules.  I'd suggest quitting while you're ahead.

[Forgedrake 130]

-1 to just decrotive pc's

[meiyeeer 78]

It wouldn't cause that much lag. I believe stationary blacksmith (like that reskinned merchant someone mentioned) is exactly what's being asked for here. As for the npcs not meaning anything anyway, what if they were bound to an active logged off player? As long as you have premium, you can choose to have a stationary npc take your place while you're logged off, based on your highest skill perhaps. A way to show off what you've accomplished, give a better idea of how many people are actually active, and perhaps a way to implement friend requests while someone is logged off.

[Rathgar 959]

it BUMPS !

[Slickshot 1,195]

it BUMPS !

In the night?

[Tuhljin 13]

Speaking as someone with some experience in game design and programming -- there is no good technical reason for not doing NPCs. There may be good technical reasons for making them a lower priority, but not for not making them at all. All this talk about it causing lag and this and that is nonsense in the long term as any such issue can be worked out (and many of these speculated problems aren't real to begin with). It's not like Wurm is all that intense packet-wise nor would this suggestion change that. So let's just dispense with all such reasons for dismissing this idea.

 

If you don't like the idea because you think it doesn't fit the game, then fine -- but you'll have to properly take into account that the game already has many NPCs in it and not just handwave away the idea of NPCs in general.

 

My own position is that "decorative" NPCs don't really seem like a high priority item, but there ought to be a place for some functional NPCs at some point, but even then their priority depends on the function.

Edited March 26, 2014 by Tuhljin

[Hussars 511]

Nvm... not worth it.. topic contents have been rehashed to grey paste...

Edited March 26, 2014 by Hussars

[Slickshot 1,195]

Nvm... not worth it.. topic contents have been rehashed to grey paste...

Such as brain matter on the walls.