tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post1953783070896845132..comments2024-03-28T07:16:05.720-07:00Comments on Experience Points: Let's TalkJorge Alborhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04857765716032886965noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-34397646939639094212009-05-30T00:56:09.444-07:002009-05-30T00:56:09.444-07:00Interesting conversation folks. I guess I'll have...Interesting conversation folks. I guess I'll have to add Mass Effect to my "never played" pile of shame.<br /><br />I haven't read the Emily Short pieces yet, but they look enlightening.<br /><br />I once heard someone propose an idea for dialogue trees (possibly on the Idle Thumbs podcast) in which the conversation would take place in a quasi-real-time active mode, reminiscent to Fallout 3's VATS system.<br /><br />Whenever a dialogue juncture would arrive, the game would slow down and present a slew of options that the player would then "target." The player would have a limited time to target them, so as to simulate the flow of a natural conversation. <br /><br />Additionally, the system would not allow the player to simply start the conversation again to cycle through all the dialogue options to "brute force" their way to the answer they want to hear.<br /><br />A system like this would make conversations more active, more in line with how conversations go in real life. Basically it would be turning a "dialogue tree" into a "dialogue bush," one with a multitude of offshoots and paths that would both draw the player in actively and present meaningful choices with lasting effects.Scott Justerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11775296635863850847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-6835420599729699432009-05-27T00:49:19.252-07:002009-05-27T00:49:19.252-07:00Mass Effect has the best conversation system I've ...Mass Effect has the best conversation system I've seen yet in a mainstream game - I was also working my way through Shivering Isles at the time and the huge difference between having a proper conversation and just picking one or two crude options from a tiny menu is huge.<br /><br />I'd go so far as to say that every game I've played since Mass Effect has seemed restrictive in its character interaction options. I don't really see the issue with the 'fake' options given how detailed and well-written most of the conversations are. Sure, Shepard might not say exactly what I wanted her to say, but her comments were always in the right spirit and reflected what I wanted to say (and sometime put it better than anything I would've come up with in the heat of the moment).Branch-me-dohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01997669053686492099noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-19197643705331663312009-05-26T19:40:51.106-07:002009-05-26T19:40:51.106-07:00@ Krystian
The Mass Effect fake dialogue outcome ...@ Krystian<br /><br />The Mass Effect fake dialogue outcome irked also. If my choice is meaningless, I'd prefer not to be given the choice at all. It is belittling otherwise. Which I suppose is an arguement in itself. I don't always need to interact with dialogue choices, particularly if my character is having a heated conversation.<br />Heavy Rain looks like it'll add some interesting mechanics to conversations and internal dialogue.<br /><br />@ Carbon<br /><br />Thanks for the heads up. I tried it out and enjoyed it, particularly the way it drops ideas about what you might want to ask next, but doesn't require that response. I think people are scared of including interactive conversations in their games because communication is so damn complicated in real life also. <br /><br />@ CitizenWill<br /><br />Thanks for your company and compliment, we aim to please. Also, I absolutely think effective emotional mechanics are possible. Cut scenes and plot elements aside, I think dialogue is a great way to evoke emotion. Some of the most emotional scenes in film take place during rants or conversations. To mention Heavy Rain again, and judging from Indigo Prophecy, I think Quantic Dream may be a studio to look at for such innovation.Jorge Alborhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04857765716032886965noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-46938704865919871762009-05-26T17:15:12.109-07:002009-05-26T17:15:12.109-07:00I must say I found that aspect of Mass Effect to b...I must say I found that aspect of Mass Effect to be the most frustrating, especially when I had specific emotional motivations to choose the dialogue for my character. I guess my question is this: Do you see an effective emotional mechanic as a possibility within games? I mean, we have definitely seen an introduction of a modicum of morality and the game's outcome based on said moral choices (I'm looking at you Fable, but also others). <br /><br />Additionally, I love you guys. Not only did I successfully divert myself for catching up on your old blogs I missed, but I found new love in a bunch of new blogs. Thanks!CitizenWillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16252607783736010732noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-73780114574384649972009-05-26T15:57:40.689-07:002009-05-26T15:57:40.689-07:00And speaking of Emily Short, please please try out...And speaking of Emily Short, please please try out her quick-but-wide IF game Galatea. The entire thing is one big sophisticated attempt at conveying the nuances of a conversation, where you are simultaneously trying to find out about what you're interested in and to influence the person you're talking to through your questions. It works so well that I'm surprised not to see lots of indie & commercial games mimicking it.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06595513587784793157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3967694277763110629.post-27096865931181703272009-05-26T11:39:35.715-07:002009-05-26T11:39:35.715-07:00Playing several playtroughs of Mass Effect, I figu...Playing several playtroughs of Mass Effect, I figured out that one reason for why the preview sometimes mis-macthes the actual reply is that many of the dialogue choices are actually fake! They recorded just one reply and represented it by two slightly different choices. So you will have options like:<br /><br />1. Who are you?<br />2. What happened?<br /><br />And no matter what you select, the character will say: <br /><br />"What's going on and who are you?"<br /><br />I hate that.<br /><br />Otherwise, there was recently an excellent article on alternatives to dialogue tree by IF writer Emily Short:<br />http://www.gamesetwatch.com/2009/05/column_homer_in_silicon_the_co_1.phpKrystian Majewskihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11575248324136515649noreply@blogger.com