I guess I can’t really call this my “top 5 worries”, but these are some things I’ve been thinking on. Your thoughts?
5 Worries
1) NPC pop in – I have noticed in several user submitted videos that NPCs will “pop in” the world, as opposed to simply existing in the world. This is how Assassin’s Creed handles NPCs and it’s annoying. You can turn around a corner and see 5 people, turn back and around again and there’s only 2 now. Or just running down a busy street you’ll see NPCs pop in left and right. They aren’t “real people” that exist in the world, but are just generated at who knows what intervals to give the illusion of a bustling city. I hope KCD won’t be like this and it’s just an aspect of it being alpha.
I like the idea of a world where it’s a bustling, alive world with a functioning eco-system, etc., whether YOU exist in the world or not.
2) AI shortcomings – One of my biggest beefs with games like Skyrim, etc., is how many people act like they’re always meeting you for the first time, only having the same four things of dialogue to say, etc. I don’t know how long it ought to take for someone to recognize you (there’s a difference between seeing some twice a week and twice a month in regards to cementing them in your memory), but certain people ought to recognize you at some point, and others ought to know you by name.
Basically, I want dynamic AI and dialogue. I think NPCs should have more full-fledged personalities. Moods should change based on organic things happening. For example, a farmer is typically in good spirits, but if in the middle of the night you destoy some of his crop–anonymously–the next morning he should be angry, and maybe even suspicous. If you start talking to a lady and she’s being cordial, etc., but then you ask some inappropriate questions, her mood should change. Her opinion of you should change, etc. These are just basic examples, but you get my point.
3) A non-interactive world – If I jump in a puddle, I want to see a splash, ripples, etc. I should be able to knock over, pick up, interact, etc., with anything reasonable in the environment; my interactions should not be limited just to things the game wants me to interact with (thistle, whistles, spoons, etc.). If there’s a broom leaning against the wall, if I bump into it, it should fall over. I should be able to pick it back up and re-lean it against the wall. If I move the broom from one side of the room to another, an NPC should be able to still locate the broom and use it to sweep the floor, etc. If I’m walking through some brush or a low hanging branch, I should see it get pushed aside with an accompanying sound effect as I move through it.
Also, I don’t like how NPCs walk out to a field, then magically they pull out a hoe and start working. I want them to retrieve the hoe from their barn, etc., and then walk out to the field, work the field, and then when they’re done, bring it back to the barn, etc.
This applies to your PC too. He should only be able to utilize weapons that he’s able to carry on his person (that you can SEE are on his person; unless it’s a concealed weapon). And, in regards to other items, he should only be able to carry what he can put into his pockets, in a pouch hanging by rope/string from his neck, or into a satchel, rucksack, etc. Additional items would be carried by your horse or stored in your home.
4) A non-living world – Meat should be sold in towns that is locally hunted and supplied. If you kill the hunter(s), then the meat supply should start to run out, forcing them to need to acquire the services of a new hunter, or purchase meat from a nearby town. But, to cement my initial point, the meat sold should specifically be the meat caught. It shouldn’t just be supplied magically at pre-determined intervals.
If I hear cows mooing, or other animal sound effects, I should be able to locate where that sound came from. Simply adding in certain sound effects for the illusion of a living, breathing world is lazy. I recall someone commented that they heard a cow mooing, but there’s not a single cow in town.
Farmers working in the field should actually be growing and tending to actual crops, that they then harvest and supply/sell to the community, etc.
Materials the blacksmith needs ought to be acquired from miners, etc. If you interfere with the ore supply, etc., it ought to raise prices, cause backlog, require blacksmith to buy form nearby towns, etc. etc.
Should be a functioning animal ecosystem with food chain. Deer, boar, wolf, bear, hare, fox, otter, sheep, rodents, birds, etc. Maybe there can be quests to hunt down a pack of wolves that are killing off all the deer, etc.
Just a few examples here, but you get the point…
5) Lack of realistic blood/gore – They claim there are 18 basic attack combinations, totaled from the 6 zones of the body you can attack. Is blood reflective of where you attack? If I strike an unarmored person’s right arm, will I see blood soak through the clothing? They claim, “Clothing will also get progressively more worn, dirty, or bloody through use, affecting the character’s appearance.” Is this dynamic then?
Is it possible for swords/axes to dismember, decapitate enemies? I’m not talking Skyrim-esque “finishing moves”, but more like extremely rare occurences rooted in just the right circumstances (someone who is not properly armored, where you able to execute a succession in critical strikes to the same location).
If my right foot steps in a muddy puddle, but my left does not, will I see the splash from the water/mud soak a bit into my right shoe, maybe a little bit on the bottom of my right pant leg? (assuming they add splashable puddles into the game). In addition to this, will the game implement foot prints, depending on the situation (soft dirt, stepping in water/mud/blood should create footprints)?
