11 replies to this topic

[AnnabelleRose]

Quite simply, I think doing this is a great way to let you experience the NPC before it is finished. I think it would be a great way to determine weither or not the public will like the NPC in their party. Sure, they are not finished, and you do not experience the banter, but at least you get to experience them in some fashion.

Another reason I suggest this may sound cruel and selfish. Many NPC mods become broader then the scope of the author, and they wind up being dropped. At least this way we would get a chance to have them available to try, even if in a limited fashion.

A drawback to this could be the author having to spend more time bugfixing the one day.

I know there is no set code that modders are required to follow. People will typically do things the way they want. Even if the vote is overwhelmingly yes, in the end the modder still gets to do what they want.

I still like the idea. Think of it as an appatiser before the main course.

[Kulyok]

I could offer several reasons as to why, in my opinion, a One-Day NPC as a first stage of neato NPC may not be such a good idea.

1) Some people, like me, simply do not play One-Day NPC, unless they have something like Bons written over it. "This mod once has been a One-Day NPC, and now I have broadened and developed it" is not a good recommendation, in my opinion.

2) Perfection. If an NPC has very little content, but all of it is excellent, perhaps - perhaps! - it could work, with features like extra banters, a quest and a TOB portion added later. But somehow, I do not believe it will always be the case. More likely, there will be grammar glitches, "oh, I'll fix it in the next release" bugs and "Yeah, Anomen is out of character, but what did you expect? It's a One-Day NPC!" stuff.

3) Disappointment among fans. "Why, I really wanted flirts, and you just released love talks, and these had bugs." "The quest is sooo buggy." "Why so few interjections? She is silent throughout the game!"

4) Writer's sensitivity. When a mod is done and released fully, the author has to deal with critique, but it is mostly bearable, I suppose. But when the One-Day(Month) release is done, the writing continues, and the heavy critique arrives - in this case, the writer, especially a sensitive person, may very well quit working on the project.

[Meira]

Well, if you're like me and start without knowing anything of IE modding or even any form of coding, a one day NPC would be rather pointless. I mean I think it took more than a day to make even the non-joinable NPCs (that belong to the mini-quest leading into meeting with Amber) to show up in the game.

Even if I would have done an NPC that just hands hangs around waiting for PC I don't think I've got anywhere on the first day.


EDIT: typo...

Edited by Meira, 23 October 2005 - 03:40 AM.

[Kaeloree]

I voted yes, but maybe more of a 'watered down' version of an NPC instead of a one day NPC. I personally don't like it like that, but I know quite a few people (who don't come here) who do, so I'm actually voting for them

I'm the same as Meira - it took me over a day to just get Illyria into the game without problems - and that was without a proper joining dialogue ;P As you might be able to tell, I'm hopeless at WeiDU. XD

[jcompton]

I don't think this would really have the desired effect (i.e., getting an actually good mod in the hands of players more quickly) in most cases, but in certain situations I could see at least the "threat" of having to release a one-day or preliminary version as being a good way to jumpstart a paralyzed project.

[Miss Sakaki]

I agree that it's much better to take things slowly so that you can get a feel for how coding and scripting works and iron out the bugs. A One Day NPC is, for me, not a taster of a future, more complete project, but a challenge for those who want to see how complete an NPC they can make in a day.

[Ghreyfain]

With some things releasing a mod in stages is a good idea. I've done this with Sirine's Call for Tutu, which is a good thing because I haven't even started on the second stage. The original idea was that having it out there would inspire me to add to it, but no go. It is, of course, a complete quest, albeit a short one.

With NPCs, the lack of banter/interjections/tree-of-life/etc. really makes it feel like it's not a finished project, so I wouldn't play it.

[Ghreyfain]

That's a very good point. Indira was a one-day NPC who, uh, took four months. But most of that wasn't actual work. I figure about a week's worth of very slow slack work, all told.

[Aion]

Personally I wouldn't release Lockheart as a one-day NPC first. It just wouldn't feel right to release my Mod until it has at least a fully complete SoA content. My Wikaede one-dayer was a challenge and practice for me, and because I selfishly wanted a non-romanceable cleric in the party.

[AnnabelleRose]

I am enjoying this discussion, even if the vote is not turning out as I had hoped. Great feedback and opinions.

I would like to clarify my original point. I am not wanting content released in a signle day, rather content similar to a single day. Everyone does have their own pace.