aliensalmon Posted February 21, 2021 Posted February 21, 2021 I know that NPCs are not a new concept discussed around here, but I was thinking about some ideas in which they could be used: Enemies: This one is self-explanatory. But they do not have to be advanced "aliens" (to avoid the "evil alien" trope), they could just be hostile wildlife or machines. Good for the PVE aspect. Pets: Again, self-explanatory. Common aspect of MMOs. I believe that this was already promised anyway. Allies: Recruit an NPC ally to assist you in battle, to guard an area, or even help you in something like building! Non-dangerous wildlife: Maybe you can collect specimens (e.g. bugs and fish) for scientific missions or materials? (This can also apply to non-mobile lifeforms such as flora). There might be other uses for NPCs that I haven't though of yet. Either way, I'd like to hear your thoughts and ideas.
joaocordeiro Posted February 21, 2021 Posted February 21, 2021 It was never about wanting npcs in the game. It was about the difficult challenges to do this with a dynamic world like DU. Path finding alguritmons with this dynamism would require pretty advanced AI. NQ explained to us how this would massively increase the investment needed to release the game. And i agree with them. But they never said no for this feature to be added to the game after release. aliensalmon 1
krateria Posted February 21, 2021 Posted February 21, 2021 No man's sky did it with a 15 people team. I'm pretty sure that this is not the only problem. No man's sky has dynamic voxel based planets and npc/creatures. aliensalmon 1
joaocordeiro Posted February 21, 2021 Posted February 21, 2021 11 minutes ago, krateria said: No man's sky did it with a 15 people team. I'm pretty sure that this is not the only problem. No man's sky has dynamic voxel based planets and npc/creatures. The issue is how do avatar NPCs navigate inside dynamic voxel constructs. How would dynamic npc constructs keep fighting effectively against a infinite combination of player constructs even after being damaged. And mainly how to make this lack of intelligence not exploitable by players. I can imagine a group of players figuring out a combination of voxels that would bug the npcs. Making then passive targets. A simple hole in the ground made by a mining tunnel can be hell to a noob with a speeder. Imagina how many npcs would just fall into a simple hole and just die there. No man's sky does not have to deal with this dynamism Musclethorpe and aliensalmon 2
krateria Posted February 21, 2021 Posted February 21, 2021 6 hours ago, joaocordeiro said: The issue is how do avatar NPCs navigate inside dynamic voxel constructs. How would dynamic npc constructs keep fighting effectively against a infinite combination of player constructs even after being damaged. And mainly how to make this lack of intelligence not exploitable by players. I can imagine a group of players figuring out a combination of voxels that would bug the npcs. Making then passive targets. A simple hole in the ground made by a mining tunnel can be hell to a noob with a speeder. Imagina how many npcs would just fall into a simple hole and just die there. No man's sky does not have to deal with this dynamism In that regard, I think npcs should only spawn in more controlled areas. Something like elite dangerous odissey. I agree with you that it would be impossible to program an decent IA in a totally dynamic env, unless you integrate some gpt3 into it. aliensalmon 1
Sabretooth Posted February 21, 2021 Posted February 21, 2021 Or have npc's like elements, that we can place around our builds so it doesnt look empty. Have people sitting at the desk or have a linear path that they walk. That way its possible to fill a city or a space station so it looks more realistic. Even if the npc's are static, maybe they can state a simple text like a screen by interacting (F). So a helpdesk-lady-element can actually have a purpose instead of hanging screens all over the place. Also, filling up your bridge with crew and stuff. I think it can work very simple. aliensalmon 1
aliensalmon Posted September 26, 2022 Author Posted September 26, 2022 Just thought I'd bump this to see if sentiments have changed regarding mobile NPCs.
StoneLegionYT Posted September 27, 2022 Posted September 27, 2022 On 2/20/2021 at 11:41 PM, joaocordeiro said: The issue is how do avatar NPCs navigate inside dynamic voxel constructs. How would dynamic npc constructs keep fighting effectively against a infinite combination of player constructs even after being damaged. And mainly how to make this lack of intelligence not exploitable by players. I can imagine a group of players figuring out a combination of voxels that would bug the npcs. Making then passive targets. A simple hole in the ground made by a mining tunnel can be hell to a noob with a speeder. Imagina how many npcs would just fall into a simple hole and just die there. No man's sky does not have to deal with this dynamism Path finding is path finding. Weather it's generated or created it's path finding for the NPC... Minecraft is just a perfect example of this. Or better yet look at Empyrion. Sure not perfect but it does work.
Wyndle Posted September 27, 2022 Posted September 27, 2022 The answer is not "no," but "not yet." The only functionality that a static or follow only NPC could add is already covered by other systems. That just leaves non-mobile NPCs with cosmetic value and follow only NPCs as pets (which are coming).
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