[stormlord]

Originally Posted by mixxit [You must be logged in to view images. Log in or Register.]

The RP Switch is added


Let's talk switch shall we. No, not the once widely discussed PK switch, devised to protect players from the marauding Ultima Online huns. I'm referring to the newly implemented RP (Role-play) switch.

The greatest criticism of the switch seems to be that now that it exists those who do not wish to role-play in this game (which is by definition a "role-playing game") do not have to. Now they just don't turn on the switch and they can talk about any idiotic thing they want. Score of the Pacers-Nicks game; What level you should be to take on a griffin; ANY SPOILER THEY FEEL LIKE SHOUTING OUT TO THE PUBLIC.

First off, it's ridiculous to blame the RP switch for the bad behavior and lack of common sense of some people. We were doomed to be inundated with inconsiderate jack-asses. People who don't realize that if somebody shouts something like "HOW DO I DO THE BANDIT QUEST" that you can reply to the guy with a /TELL, not by shouting it out. Personally, I don't think you should be giving such information out at all, but that's another article entirely.

So the criticism is that with the RP switch around, you can just say whatever you want as long as you don't have it on. Well, it does create a scapegoat, but it doesn't inspire more stupidity than there already was.

I'm no saint. I've been known to comment out of character, carry conversations that have nothing to do with the game, but I typically do those in /tell form. Only me and the guy I'm talking with know.

So if there's a problem with having the switch, let's see if we can find any benefit to it, because if there is none, then perhaps it should go.

Let's start with a VERY common situation. I come up to a crowd of individuals waiting for a boat on the dock. Five individuals. One is "red" (A PK player), three are "blue" (non-pk players) and the last is "purple" (an RP character).

How does one talk to such a mixed group? I suggest role-playing it, but then I always suggest that. Remember, this is a role-playing game, so I suggest that the "purple" RP switch be used as an indicator as to your demeanor. Since this is an RP game, if you see a purple (RP) player in the area, /TELL your "out-of-character" question to one of the others. The only real benefit I see to the switch is to indicate to YOU that you should be sympathetic to somebody who doesn't want to hear your OOC nonsense.

Is this the only benefit? Again, only if people actually follow through on the benefit of having such a switch will this really be of any use. It may not seem like it in my articles, but I have the utmost respect for the people I've met in EverQuest and find them to be a cut above those of other games. That having been said, no community is perfect. Just as you have the bully up the street or the house around the corner that turned out to be a crack-dealer's place, you have people in EverQuest who seem to feel nothing for other players.

So my hopes are not high for the RP Switch. It's a tool that will go unrecognized. What's more, it lends credence to the notion that Verant had no intent of policing the environment to make it "moron free". They're a corporation, and as such will always lean toward the way that gives them the widest audience and the most cash. It's not in their interest to eliminate players, and thus is born the RP switch. The game is made by players and for players, as Verant is fond of pointing out, but they are funded by the corporation for it's own good.

Face it, it's their ball, and if they want to they can pick it up and go home. And all we can do is call them names.

It's an unenviable task that folks like Brad McQuaid and his crew are faced with. They must try and make all of us happy; even those malcontents at EverQuest Express. And they know already that if you don't like what they're doing you'll most likely still stay in the game, because they have the only ball in town. (Well, there's UO, but who wants to play touch football when they can play tackle!)

So it comes down again to the environment being what we make of it. The kind of folks who read Fan sites are generally those who want to have fun with the game. The kind of folks who read "spoiler" sites are just in it for the false "prestige" they associate with dozens and dozens of levels. So it is with a heavy heart that I relinquish my hope that the RP switch will make any difference. Because my plea as to how the switch should be approached will go unheard by the teeming masses yearning to camp, yammer, and "train".

My only hope is that this comes up on the search engines when they search for Spoilers. So let's add a few words they'll understand and maybe they'll hit this page. My Search engine inserts follow…

[ Spoiler. dOOd. Free Spoilers. EverQuest Spoilers. Most Excellent Spoilers. Get to 30th level with no effort. Cheat. Cheat your ass off. Spoil others good time. EverQuest sword of total annihilation. Slay dragons with ease.]

Article by Archanalia.

I like it. Too bad RPing has become so unpopular. I'll admit, I don't roleplay often, but I don't go out of my way to speak out of context. I feel guilty when I speak out of context most of the time. Why? Because I wish others didn't feel so intimidated or awkward when I do RP. I get the feeling people think roleplayers are dorks. I don't like to make others uncomfortable. And I also find it hard to roleplay something when there's no actual effect in-game. Like this guy said, it would be nice if there was some kind of actual decrease in stats when you act out of character. The one example he gave was a paladin grouping with a shadowknight. If your stats decreased when you grouped, it would reinforce roleplaying. I don't see anything wrong with doing that, and there could be workarounds. Perhaps you could switch gods. Or maybe blessings would come with curses so that no advantage is a sum advantage. There're infinite ways to do it. We can't outright dismiss something. If you do that, you're admitting from the outset that you're too uncreative to solve the problem without throwing everything out the window.

One of hte coolest things in EQ is to just sit and listen to non-players talk. I wish that feature of EQ had been further developed. I wish I could go to special places in cities, like taverns, to hear non-players give clues about local quests and rumours. This is already the case, but the idea could be expanded to not just add more content or conversations, but there could be games to play in the taverns or pubs, things to keep is occupied while we listen for hints. Like dart board games on the walls or card games or chess/etc on the tables. Maybe conversation with non-players could be improved to the point where it's fun and responsive. Right now, non-players don't respond to keywords unless they're listed in their script. Make it so that non-players respond to all sorts of things. For example, a non-player in rivervale should respond to keywords like "rivervale" or "halflings". All non-players should have basic knowledge about the world and their local surroundings.

I've worked with an open-source mmorpg, and I saw how hte scripting system worked for non-players. I remember coming up wiht a multitude of ideas to improve the non-player speech engine. There're so many things one can do. What i've seen in EQ is not impressive. It tells me that either: a) eq players don't want it b) developers don't want it. Because it could be awesome! Imagine non-players that remember you. Imagine non-players having opinions about every other non-player and element in the game (using perlin noise). Imagine them striking up a conversation with you rather than the other way around! Sure, communication wouldn't be perfectly natural, but the system as a whole could be more flexible, less predictable, and comprehensive.