Larian Studios Forums Beyond Divinity (English) General Has anyone read Just RPG interview with Lar?

That is a good point, DATD. In Baldur's Gate, Imoen, Minsc, etc. were considered NPC's, even though you control them and develop their skills.
Still, maybe you can create the deathknight, in a way. Give him a name, change his avatar's appearance? Then wouldn't he qualify as a player-character?

This is getting very confusing for the uninitiated.
The correct terminology for CRPG is that a human-player’s controllable computer-character MUST be a player’s character by simply masking the words {human, controllable, computer}. This is very simple logic guys not chemistry. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" />

On the other hand, it is a custom for a programmer to consider all characters as NPCs; the reason behind this contradiction is that from the point of view of the programmer they make no difference when he locates their coordinates and execute the commands whether they were computer-generated by algorithm or computer –generated by human-player-triggered event. The serious reason for this terminology is that abbreviating characters “Cs” is rather non-indicative, and “PC” is mainly reserved for Personal Computer. This mean that the three letters NPC is the best abbreviation for indicating RPG characters in a very general sense. Here the verbal naming sounds as “EN PEE SEE” not as “Non Player’s Character”.

In Baldur’s Gate and other games, NPC stands for any character player’s or not.
In other games there are Human Players HP and Computer players CP.
Characters controlled by each are called HPCC and CPCC respectively.
HPCC + CPCC = NPC

In fact, I would recommend writing N.P.C. to stand for the non-player’s characters to distinguish them from the HPCC.
In a sense N.P.C. = CPCC.
I hope this clarifies the confusion.
Cheers.


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I read the Sword of truth books as well, busy with number 7 right now.
But i doubt that Samuel from SoT has something in common with the Riftrunner demon. Sameul from SoT kinda reminds me of Gollum (both corrupted by an item : Ring/Sword)

There is an excellent therm in english language which indicates an RPG character: the therm is "RPG character". You're going in circles, my friend.

There's also NYC for New York City and YMCA for Young Men Christian Association.


Actually the confusion is created by you, mate.
I have no wish to continue this useless and stupid argumentation.
DATD out.

That's why I want clarification by Larian !

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/sleepey.gif" alt="" />
<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/silly.gif" alt="" />


If you mean to say, that I am being stupid then thank you for this wonderful debate.
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Just remember the post, which Raze posted on changing the coordinates of your hero the player character.
You search for “Agents” as a key word then you look for “newnpc” and the coordinates are very close from there after. What do you think the words new npc stand for, within this context, Mr. Clever?

We all make mistakes with confusing matters and you should never feel ashamed or hurt, but it is my duty to clarify and the right of other forum members to know how the abbreviation NPC is used and what it means.
Cheers.



<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wave.gif" alt="" />

Most of the forum members are seasoned RPG players who know what NPC is.
As for the others, as far as I remember, there is a definition of NPC in the manual. I personally think that your explanation would only mislead new RPG players. For some reason the only feeling I experiance now is pity. No shame nor pain.

Come on now DATD there is no reason to be rude to a friend.
Why on earth do you need to feel pity for me?
Is it not true that the Acronym NPC stands for Non-Player Character?

Now you should be smart enough to explain to us that negation and its opposition.
What is the difference between the Player Character and the opposite?
What makes the player character so special?
Take for example Blizzard’s War Craft III, in each episode, you control several characters and many created army forces. How can you explain your conception of player’s characters hence?

The only well-defined difference is control; if you can control a character, it must be a player’s character, and if you may not control it then it is an NPC.

I also cleared the confusion regarding overloading this acronym due to using it to indicate and computer controlled character whether that was through an algorithm or through executing human player generated events. You simply fail to use your logical mind for reasons beyond me my friend.
If it is too hard for you to realise your error and admit it, we should leave it there and there is absolutely no reason for you to hate me or post rude replies.
Cheers.


<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wave.gif" alt="" />

hey guys, don't do this. not on my thread, u hear? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/memad.gif" alt="" />

had the argument happened in real life & not in the forum, i'd say u guys make a pretty good couple. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/think.gif" alt="" /> after all DAD + T = DATD, or DATD - T = DAD, so cheers u're both related!

hey nice ava, DAD. glam rock rulez!!

where is this thread going by the way? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

linguistically NPC really means character which is not controlled by players. but like all computer-related terms, it gets convoluted over time & see what happens to PC(personal computer)? even the computer u use at work is called PC when it's supposed to be called workstation. no term is absolute, that's for sure.

yeah, go ahead & mince me & my measly 2 cents.

I WILL KILL YOU!!!! NOT. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif" alt="" /> I realise I was a bit harsh yet I can point out my mistakes.
<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wave.gif" alt="" />

Yes but it also stand for:

National Panhellenic Conference
National Parks of Canada
National Peanut Council
National Pensioners Convention (United Kingdom)
National People’s Congress (Chinese Legislature)
Nauru Phosphate Corporation
and such <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/winkwink.gif" alt="" />


I disagree, friend, but after all, I think it's not important: I guess NPC is different for everyone.

At the beginning of each campaign, the game 'points' who is the player: in the human campaign, he's the paladin. He is the fallen paladin in the undead campaign, the young propheth Thrall as the orcs and finally the priestess for the elves.
The player character is the one called "you" in the game. It's the child of Bhaal in Baldur's Gate and the character you make in <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/div.gif" alt="" />. It is the 'good' character in <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/riftrunner.gif" alt="" /> as the description says You get your soul bound with a deathknight. Which means you are not the deathknight.

In this discussion I finally understud for myself what is an NPC and what is a PC.
Thank you, DAD.

you forgot 2

Natural Phallic Congregation
Neutral Penis Constabulary

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" />
HaH!

enough <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/offtopic.gif" alt="" /> for these pages....

sombody quote me some interview! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/biggrin.gif" alt="" />

To my understanding, a Player Character (PC) is any character you have direct control over. A PC does not have to be "you". A player may control a party or army of PCs, although in an army they're more often refered to as units as they tend not to have distinctive characteristics. In something like Warcraft where PCs will sometimes go off and fight on their own accord, this is an instruction you gave them: guard this area. Flaws and limitations in the program do not reduce this title of PC.

A Non-Player Character (NPC) is a character that the player cannot control. The character may be a merchant whom with which you trade, or you may be able to influence them to aid you in your quest. NPCs can also be opponents, usually fitting into class catagories (Warrior, Theif, etc.) Reguar monsters aren't called NPCs for the same reason army units shouldn't: they're not distinctive characters, just extras.

So if you control a party of 6 characters and they all do your bidding, they are PCs. If one of them cracks it and goes off on their own, they become an NPC. If one joins your party, but fights on their own accord, they are an NPC who wishes to travel with you.

For example: in Black & White, the only PC is the Hand of God. The creature is an NPC who can be greatly influenced by you and who will follow your orders, but ultimately has a mind of it's own. Other gods and creatures are NPCs as well. The villagers, though individually named, are not NPCs because they have no distinction. They can be given a race and a job and a house, but aside from that, they're exactly like every other villager. Any villager can do any job and live anywhere with no penalty or bonus. They're not individual.

In “War Craft I” and in early “Dune” games, there was no specific hero because they are simply not RPG. Nevertheless, you must choose a “side” or a house, or an alignment after which you control all your characters.
You click on a unit and it becomes the current PC but once you let go and even though it is carrying your orders it is an NPC controlled by computer algorithms.
I have to admit that the mainstream game programmers have come to that final realisation, which is that all computer-controlled characters are “NPCs” in every sense of that word because, ultimately, it is the computer that controls those graphics.

In CRPG category games the human player is playing a role or roles. This brings in a new term as Multiple Role Playing Game or MRPG. In some old discussions I remember that someone brought up the term PMRCG or player’s multi-role computer game. In such a game the player plays multiple roles rather than one.
This is what we may find in WAR CRAFT III but in a sequential way making the role being played one and only one role at a time. Rift runner is bringing back the old concept of a party but in the sense of a multi-role.

Now here are some coincidences that play the fate of this game, and they are that rift-runner is based on divinity's enhanced engine, thus, taking over the concept of character gender selection and character customisation. The “DK” is going to be like one of those forced on the player in “WCIII.” Being able to customise one of the player’s characters (before starting to play), which he plays their role does not change the fact that the classification of RiftRunneR shall be a multi-role playing game. Add to that the summoning dolls on which the player has full control.

Game critics may find it very hard to call RiftRunneR an action game or an adventure game. It shall be an RPG of a special type the MRPG.

You're right in saying that there's little point trying to define a PC in strategy games. That's not what they're about.

It sounds like the biggest issue here is the limitations of software. No software can provide entirely freeform character design, unlike pen & paper games. How much control does a computer algorithm have to apply before you no longer have a PC? In Divine Divinity, when I click on a distant location in the sewers my character does not walk in a straight line. He determines a route that will get him there as quickly as possible, as determined by an algorithm. So am I instructing an NPC? I think we need to accept that software can provide only so much and do the make the best we can of it. For many years to come we will continue to be plagued by selectable speech options and character control limited by the number of buttons on our mice. I don't care. I think it's fun!

I still don't understand why you cannot control a party of PCs and why only one of them can be a PC at a time. In turn based games, you lose no control over your party because your inactive party members couldn't be doing anything anyway.

That is why I verbosely clarified why computer games’ characters are basically non-player.
It is the program algorithms that ultimately control them.
Out of those NPCs some characters are unique and not produced in numbers.
Therefore, rather than soldier_1 and soldier_2 we may have Warhammer and Skythunder.
Still NPCs even though they have unique names until it is the player who has control over them.
Each character you control is a character that you decide its actions in a strategic manner rather than a tactical manner, which the computer’s game program implements by algorithms.

In that sense the player is playing the role of that character and literally “thinking” for it.
The criterion here is making the decision of movement directions and/ or destinations.
You decide to make the character pick an object or manipulate another such as opening a door.
This is the meaning of role playing.
That is why it is not necessary that you can only play one role through out the game but it is absolutely true that you may not play more than one role at a given absolute time. The absolute role being played is that of the currently selected unique character.
So why does this differ from strategy games in which you control several identical units!
They are all NPCs in the absolute sense, but when you identify a character or more, you are able to follow up on its development later on in the game and get identified with it too. Thus you become role playing of one role or more.
It is a chance for me to introduce yet another concept of multi-role-playing.
You do not need several characters to control in a linear path for each and adding up those roles for multi-roles.
You may play multiple roles for a single character such as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hide.
You may play a warrior in battle who is a lover at home and a ruler at court, etcetera.
The concept of playing multiple roles is not restricted in one way or the other; nevertheless, even in real life it is impossible to play multiple roles simultaneously.