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TIME AGAIN, THE NPCS?
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CloseI don't know when was the last time NPCs were discussed about, but I bet there has been one or a few.
So I just realized today that I could brush up my general NPC dialogue context. I could probably figure out some tips for myself if I now took a time to think about the subject, but it doesn't really hurt to hear out everyone's opinions. (As some other people might use help with the same matter.)
= What makes NPCs dialogue coherent? What makes it interesting, and not out of place?
Your general tips for writing good NPCs?
edit: ps. could you move this to game design?
So I just realized today that I could brush up my general NPC dialogue context. I could probably figure out some tips for myself if I now took a time to think about the subject, but it doesn't really hurt to hear out everyone's opinions. (As some other people might use help with the same matter.)
= What makes NPCs dialogue coherent? What makes it interesting, and not out of place?
Your general tips for writing good NPCs?
edit: ps. could you move this to game design?
Will do!
Also, I usually just write from the cuff. I generally decide what I want the townspeople of certain towns to talk about and usually stay close to that theme.
Also, I usually just write from the cuff. I generally decide what I want the townspeople of certain towns to talk about and usually stay close to that theme.
Lennon
88
Hopefully this discussion will get some good ideas flowing... Cause I suck at this. Haha.
The only things I have my NPC's talk about is either the area their in, an area furthur into the game, some kind of rare monster or hidden area, or the situation in a town where a quest may be centered. Maybe talk about some kind of special item the town has or something, or just comment on their life (But only if their rich or in poverty).
Now I don't know if theres something I'm missing but. Yeah.
The only things I have my NPC's talk about is either the area their in, an area furthur into the game, some kind of rare monster or hidden area, or the situation in a town where a quest may be centered. Maybe talk about some kind of special item the town has or something, or just comment on their life (But only if their rich or in poverty).
Now I don't know if theres something I'm missing but. Yeah.
Whatever it is, NPCs are usually best when they have something to say that actually means something to the player. Things like "My little brother smells weird!" or "I have so much cleaning to do!" aren't really all that interesting. If it's something about the history of the town, or upcoming events, these are things that the player can at least become involved with.
NPCs near the beginning of the game usually help discuss how the game mechanics work. Explaining stats or spells to the player is a good way to use up NPC dialogue ("I bought this long-bow, and now I can attack from the back row and not take a loss in my damage!" or something).
Those are my two cents.
NPCs near the beginning of the game usually help discuss how the game mechanics work. Explaining stats or spells to the player is a good way to use up NPC dialogue ("I bought this long-bow, and now I can attack from the back row and not take a loss in my damage!" or something).
Those are my two cents.
Darken
3952
NPCs should not waste the player's time. They should have something useful or funny to say. I remember a lot of bad RPG Maker games who will not care for the NPCs and give one lines like "Hello!" or "Don't bother me..." as if the NPC was just there to fill up space. Make sure every single NPC has a purpose. One might be there to tell the player theres a cheap way to get a healing item, another might be there to fill in some backstory.
For NPCs that give out game tips I feel that its necessary to disguise it as an NPC story. Pokemon games did this a lot. The NPC would tell a story like "I was hiking in the woods one day and saw a monster" then the NPC would explain how he found the monster's weakness thus becoming a tiny story that benefits the player game mechanics wise. Its a great way to keep the insight of what life is like in your game world while still being able to give out game tips.
For NPCs that give out game tips I feel that its necessary to disguise it as an NPC story. Pokemon games did this a lot. The NPC would tell a story like "I was hiking in the woods one day and saw a monster" then the NPC would explain how he found the monster's weakness thus becoming a tiny story that benefits the player game mechanics wise. Its a great way to keep the insight of what life is like in your game world while still being able to give out game tips.
captainregal
1356
This is how I have been doing it. I start by writing the npc's data in a notebook. Example:
Name: Kara West
Hometown: The Hamlet
Age: 28
Kin: Husband, Clark West
Lives: House Five (This lets me know where on the map her house is. So that I can decorate it seem like they live there.)
Job: Hamlet Game Shop Owner
Scared or Angry: Angry. Her husband wants to go to war to defend their country.
Happy or Sad: Happy. She recently learned that she is pregnant.
News: She and her husband just opened up the Hamlet Game Shop.
Then I will make an event that randomly chooses between five or more text responses that she will say. Based on the above information. This allows me to connect as many npc's in the world as possible.
Name: Kara West
Hometown: The Hamlet
Age: 28
Kin: Husband, Clark West
Lives: House Five (This lets me know where on the map her house is. So that I can decorate it seem like they live there.)
Job: Hamlet Game Shop Owner
Scared or Angry: Angry. Her husband wants to go to war to defend their country.
Happy or Sad: Happy. She recently learned that she is pregnant.
News: She and her husband just opened up the Hamlet Game Shop.
Then I will make an event that randomly chooses between five or more text responses that she will say. Based on the above information. This allows me to connect as many npc's in the world as possible.
Silviera
2891
Lots of great advice in this thread.
I only have one thing to add. Don't be afraid to have your characters actually talk back to the NPCs. If it's about something important they may even have a meaningful conversation that helps flesh out the main cast.
I only have one thing to add. Don't be afraid to have your characters actually talk back to the NPCs. If it's about something important they may even have a meaningful conversation that helps flesh out the main cast.
Silviera
2891
I guess I was giving more specific advice since I have played the game Rei is working on(where the protagonists are anything but silent). It is of course important to be consistent about things like that.
Dammit Silviera, you stole'd my post.
I'm not an amazing NPC writer, but I do believe that the party should interact with a few of the NPCs, and not just have it be a one way conversation. I have a personal like of having the NPCs be also used for a gameplay purpose, whether it be recruiting them, them giving you quests, giving you items and stuff like that. You could probably think of things like choosing which character you want to interact with the NPC as well, and then get a different response because of the different personalities.
And I love NPCs that have silly replies.
I'm not an amazing NPC writer, but I do believe that the party should interact with a few of the NPCs, and not just have it be a one way conversation. I have a personal like of having the NPCs be also used for a gameplay purpose, whether it be recruiting them, them giving you quests, giving you items and stuff like that. You could probably think of things like choosing which character you want to interact with the NPC as well, and then get a different response because of the different personalities.
And I love NPCs that have silly replies.
When I was reading FG's post I realized I already did a lot of that in my prologue with my NPCs, but it's good to have all these advices written down, so it's easier to check on as from a list when not feeling too inspired or confident on what I'm doing.
Silviera: Yeah, I'm trying to solve that issue. I need to find correct times to give different parts of all the info I need to present to the player. Also, divide it to the right characters and left those parts out that don't have real context with the current scene or whatnot.
But yeah, there's plenty good points here. I also like having the main characters talking to the NPCs even though it does mean some extra work.
Silviera: Yeah, I'm trying to solve that issue. I need to find correct times to give different parts of all the info I need to present to the player. Also, divide it to the right characters and left those parts out that don't have real context with the current scene or whatnot.
But yeah, there's plenty good points here. I also like having the main characters talking to the NPCs even though it does mean some extra work.
Jeepers... I was going to post some advise here, but everything I was going to post was either stated by Narcodis, FG or Silviera... LOL! Way to go guys! Ya beat us all to the punch I guess. ;D
Anyways, Rei, there is awesome advise here on this page. Write some of it down and then just apply your own feel into it, so's to speak, and then just let everything kind of fly from there. You'll see, once you get started, it actually gets pretty easy after a while of doing it and repeating this in a lot of different ways. :)
Good luck! :D
Anyways, Rei, there is awesome advise here on this page. Write some of it down and then just apply your own feel into it, so's to speak, and then just let everything kind of fly from there. You'll see, once you get started, it actually gets pretty easy after a while of doing it and repeating this in a lot of different ways. :)
Good luck! :D
Drakonais
2787
Definitely pay attention to FG's advice, the conversations you could listen in on from Sore Losers made for an awesome and totally believable way of absorbing information. In some unreleased stuff, I had a random variable that changed NPC dialog between one unique statement and a couple general phrases that were modified based upon your popularity in that world.
I always thought that NPCs with one tidbit of information weren't that exciting to talk to. In games like Secret of Mana, I think I just stopped talking to NPCs altogether.
I always thought that NPCs with one tidbit of information weren't that exciting to talk to. In games like Secret of Mana, I think I just stopped talking to NPCs altogether.
Mr.Nemo
1295
I liked the npcs in hero's realm. classic.
ALSO:
What Ocean said about different party members responding to npcs is actually a good way to make these small dialouge varied and potentially interesting.
ALSO:
What Ocean said about different party members responding to npcs is actually a good way to make these small dialouge varied and potentially interesting.
WolfCoder
3554
I kind of like the approach where you have NPCs that have a ton of stuff to say, but there's a selection of things you want to ask them "... about this town" "... what do you do" ect. so the player doesn't have to sit through all the parts they don't want to read what they do want. It also allows the player to read the flavor text if they're curious, or to satisfy the other kind of players that just wants to know where an item is or where to find more quests.
Fallout 3 has an insane amount of dialog options and responses which is overkill for a typical J-style RPG, but you could learn a thing or two from it.
Fallout 3 has an insane amount of dialog options and responses which is overkill for a typical J-style RPG, but you could learn a thing or two from it.
post=92579
This is how I have been doing it. I start by writing the npc's data in a notebook. Example:
blahblahblah
Then I will make an event that randomly chooses between five or more text responses that she will say. Based on the above information. This allows me to connect as many npc's in the world as possible.
Why are you doing this and not making your game?
I'm seeing a lot of helpful and interesting ideas. Something I'd like to add: When writing NPC dialogue, it pays to imagine an actual person saying it out loud so you can see if it sounds natural. (I realized this from watching Let's Play videos.) Drop some G's, add some heh's, and you make your NPCs a little realer.
For some reason, "I bought this long-bow, and now I can attack from the back row and not take a loss in my damage!" reminds me of something Stinkoman might say.
For some reason, "I bought this long-bow, and now I can attack from the back row and not take a loss in my damage!" reminds me of something Stinkoman might say.
beakmanthegreat
130
One thing I am particularly fond of is NPC's whose live you can affect.
Like fixing a broken relationship, or donating to the poor, or *nuking a town. *(Fallout 3 Reference)
In Rune Factory, one of the shopkeeps and a woman had a son, and the mom won't tell the son who his dad is, but the boy goes over to the dad's shop all the time. His dad feels a connection with the boy, and the boy does with the dad. But they don't ever find out that they are related...( I don't think.)
I so badly wanted to get the mom to tell the boy that he had a father RIGHT THERE IN TOWN, but, alas, I will forever have to be sad and depressed by this part of the game.
Now, if I COULD have done something about it, it would've been great! I would've walked away from the game with a more positive feeling, because now I feel like there's something I should do, but CAN'T do.
Perhaps a small reward or at least recognition by other NPC's could be a reward for the sidequest.
Maybe Lady Ann could say, "It's about time Nicholas knew the truth... It's all thanks to you, *insertnamehere*!" Once I completed it.
Like fixing a broken relationship, or donating to the poor, or *nuking a town. *(Fallout 3 Reference)
In Rune Factory, one of the shopkeeps and a woman had a son, and the mom won't tell the son who his dad is, but the boy goes over to the dad's shop all the time. His dad feels a connection with the boy, and the boy does with the dad. But they don't ever find out that they are related...( I don't think.)
I so badly wanted to get the mom to tell the boy that he had a father RIGHT THERE IN TOWN, but, alas, I will forever have to be sad and depressed by this part of the game.
Now, if I COULD have done something about it, it would've been great! I would've walked away from the game with a more positive feeling, because now I feel like there's something I should do, but CAN'T do.
Perhaps a small reward or at least recognition by other NPC's could be a reward for the sidequest.
Maybe Lady Ann could say, "It's about time Nicholas knew the truth... It's all thanks to you, *insertnamehere*!" Once I completed it.
Mr.Nemo
1295
post=93441
Fallout 3 has an insane amount of dialog options and responses which is overkill for a typical J-style RPG, but you could learn a thing or two from it.
Uh. The fallout 3 dialouges are horribly short and retarded compared to the original two games.
