NPCs the Truman show and broken dotted line belonging (biblical wives versus concubines)
RPG’s are an immense joy to play. A fictional world is created and the protagonist follows the hero’s journey. Whether it be to catch every Pokemon or save the world there are important characters that assist along the way. Without them, the protagonist cannot pass to the next stage and the player cannot defeat the game. They are integral to his success
The old Pokemon games come to mind. The big block shaped versions. You start out and need to speak to Professor Oak to get a Pokemon and then pass through different gym leaders to move on to the ensuing stages. There is the whole Team Rocket narrative running alongside. Battling trainers on the side of the road to develop Pokemon to defeat upcoming adversaries. Some of the characters say nothing of importance while others provide gifts and critical information. For much of the game, trainers hog the outskirts of the screen forcing the protagonist into battle over and over again. Yet there are cases where the protagonist needs to approach people whether it be Bill or the captain of the ship. Much of this requires engagement in order to reach the next level. The NPCs are instrumental of moving to the next stage. Talk to Bill to pass through the robbed house to then get to the third gym. Reach the captain to receive cut for the ship to leave and then battle the gym leader. Yet other gifts are unnecessary. The bike guy is a choice to speak to, so is the fisherman who gives you the super rod or the psychic guy. Pokemon does give some latitude to travel and fight but there is an order.
The NPCs in Pokemon are divided between those who are coherent and those incoherent. While the world is filled with NPCs most don’t do anything. If you walk into a random house they may something bizarre or irregular. They fill up the screen but many are placed for quantity over quality. It is a word of inhabitants, it needs to have people. Especially to realistically portray a scene, there needs to be non-trainers. Yet this obvious failure ignores half the NPCs in the game. Though one is never certain who has something to give and who doesn’t. Sometimes a random NPC will wish to trade a Pokemon that cannot be caught in the game. It is worthwhile to search every house but it is also tiresome especially when their answers are irrelevant. They are a part of the world but not the protagonist’s journey. With exception of the gym leaders who do very little Blue is the only reoccurring character and Giovanni have merit. Giovanni has his journey and Blue is the rival that keeps the protagonist on his toes. Always with the advantage but an obstacle to repeatedly overcome. To win the game he needs to be defeated for the final time. He is a formidable foe and it is his periodic pop-ups that catch the protagonist off guard with only one way forward to win.
While there are NPCs who roam the world of the game there are also cases of NPCs in one’s party that cannot be used. NPCs who accompany the protagonist throughout the journey. The old man in the original Legend of Zelda comes as a guide through the limitless hairsplitting voyage to defeat Ganon. He is the sole character other than the protagonist. He provides gifts and insight. Such a help in a lonely game. Though in the follow up A Link from the Past NPCs roam and Zelda is far more relevant. The difference in style follows style of gaming whether there are other figures in the universe. For most games, the protagonist is the centre of attention yet other characters are created to assist along the way. It is an homage to the classic tales of the past. Even Link needs the old man. NPCs can be quite annoying if they block your path or offer no assistance. They are coordinated by the developers. They have a code. A function in the game as it reflects the protagonists’s journey. The NPC is a byproduct of the hero’s journey but it is always comedic to find the lost souls in the game. Bringing back Pokemon for hot sec, the trainers that stand stoically ready to catch you as you pass by are integral to making you stronger and giving you money while the random citizens roaming around the city will mutter some nonchalant sentence about the beautiful city they reside in. Those that do not matter have little to say to the protagonist.
Earthbound’s NPCs were quite enjoyable. Instead of allotting half to do something and the other half to mumble nonsense, the irregular figures recited comedic remarks. Passing from town to town found some enjoyable comments to reflect upon. The developers went all out to value the NPCs. Earthbound is a highly personal adventure. Forcing the protagonist to wander to learn more and advance to the next stage. Instead of boring the protagonist with nonsense jargon, they gave the NPCs a voice. The NPCs are fun to talk to. They’ll teach the protagonist something or they’ll make the player smile. The NPCs were cultivated with purpose despite their numerous quantity. Each house is a gem to enter and each passerby is a worthwhile lad. They have a Mr. T NPC as well as the Blues Bothers. Eager to talk to every NPC to see what witty comment they may have. A world of interest with cute puns and quick laughs. What makes Earthbound so enjoyable is its comedic fluidity. The goal to save the world is so bland and copy written. Cool sounds like fun. Meeting people and learning new things as the game goes along only furthers the joy. World building is difficult but the creators did an incredible job of providing meaning to each figure to relate and crack a smile. Isn’t that what gaming is about?
Fun NPCs are not the same as complex NPCs. Final Fantasy enjoyed portraying these characters with personality and history. They weren’t just players to provide information or gifts but had backstories and lessons. Just like in Earthbound they could teach but they were also able to engage the emotional part of the player. Earthbound is a comedic run while Final Fantasy has some dire moments that can hurl the player into brief duress. The depth of these characters offers new perspectives and new engagement. They are players to assist and follow. They rely on the protagonist to emerge victorious and continue forward. It is no longer solely the protagonist’s journey but there are NPCs who are relying on him. They are still on the sidelines but they are cheering. They are not vending machines or information booths. They are figures with genuine struggles. New games have furthered the emotional link with more realistic portrayals of these characters. Instead of the pixel layered illustration the technology used now overlays fictional but yet relatable characters. While still stuck in the early 2000s of gaming, there is much to glean from commercials and friends.
NPCs do not really see the light of day or gain independence or become real in their own right (again may not have played enough games stuck to the Super Nintendo). Though it is possible with the newer games NPCs play a bigger and a more realistic role. With advanced technology namely AI, NPC development can become more transparent and realistic. With Al controlling NPCs the standard fossilisation deteriorates. NPCs react to the protagonist. As the protagonist has become more entrenched in the screen with more latitude so has AI. The realism meets not so much in the appearance but in the responsiveness. The NPCs seem normal as they reflect the actions of the protagonist. It is all relative to the subjective player. The adaptation not the AI is unique to each player. The game can be realistic but the virtual will continue to be superficial as long as the world is systematically uniform. The perfected NPC that acts according to the player’s answers and direction. No longer are NPCs objects but subjects in the game. The AI revolution doesn’t just mimic personality it adds life-force. Past NPCs with depth are a part of the genome. Each player interacts with them in the same way. Depending on the answer there may be a few options but it is uniform. The code is an objectifier. With AI the protagonist is the same for each player but the player is different. His style and personality are encoded in the game. The AI picks up on each tell and formulates responses respectively.
The AI NPC is a digital friend. A person on the other end. While AI is in its infancy sounding robotic at times it is developing further. The aspiration of AI is to resemble human behaviour. Yet a monotone response would derail the connection. The monotone response solidifies the break between the real and virtual world. Then again the fact that one is holding a controller on a game console may also reflect that. When gaming uses headsets or body suits to place the individual in the game or at least feel more involved there will always be that disconnect. Still, there are seemingly virtual elements in texting and chat boxes for multiplayer games. The player knows that other players are real and knows the text recipient is real but there is no speech just a robotic message lacking facial expression, lacking emotion. Irrespective of the realism in games, the virtual remains separate. It may only be a matter of time before VR becomes normative and the advanced sensory perceptions are aligned with human reality. It may take some time but AI’s NPC model is a first step in relating on an individual level to the player. The protagonist is locked into a unique journey that depends on the player. The player has become the object of the game as the AI scans his depth. The roles have been reversed and the player is the object of concentration. The player enjoys his journey unaware that each move is calculated and responded to according to his needs.
Humanising NPCs is a step into bringing players into the virtual world. Investing not just as a player but as a person. There are multiplayer games to play with other players but this is the code following single player runs. Instead of playing Super Smash Bros with friends you are playing a solo campaign with the AI following your every move. It is as if you are playing with someone else. Someone else is lurking in the shadows but cannot be seen. Walking through a haunted house and see toys lying on the shelves only for them to come to life and engage (for good or for bad). The player assumes NPCs are gift-givers but they then ask philosophical questions. Are discussing their extension crisis. As if Andy entered his room and Woody walked up to him and began lecturing him. Andy treats his toys as toys. They are objects to enjoy. He is the subject and they the object. He chooses what they do and how they move. He puppeteers them and they do not fret. They speak highly of their position in Andy’s kingdom but also enjoy their own freedom when he is away. When Andy leaves they regain their autonomy and do what they like. They speak of Andy as an object of their joy. There is never an interaction between Andy and Woody. Andy never learns that Woody speaks. It would freak him out but Woody is content with the secret and praise. The AI operates similarly as the object of the player but really the NPC is the autonomic being with the player entering their narrative.
Free Guy plays on the AI chain. Guy breaks free of his programming and becomes an in game character who exists according to the player. If he dies then he is revived in the last location. He can gain the ability to be a real player. He is an NPC because he is independent of the player controller but he is a protagonist able to get coins and prizes when he wears the goggles taken from the bank robbers. Since it isn’t virtual reality, it is assumed that protagonists wear special goggles for the code to distinguish PCs from NPCs. What is interesting is how Guy becomes sentient. Millie’s avatar sings a song that messes with his programming. His breaching from the matrix to ponder the existential questions of the universe is a song. The song doesn’t transform but gets his gears turning. The AI development is a process. Guy must think for himself and decide his own path. It is later revealed that Guy’s code is unique as Keys specifically wrote it for her. It is then the special programming that awakes his consciousness from the slumber of a matrix riddled determination. Since Keys and Millie’s goal was AI observational development self-awareness was a goal from the get-go. Guy’s sentience raises questions about the ethics in AI. If they erased Guy at the end would that be murder? He is a program but a living program. Watching Guy grow embraces the audience’s sympathies for his survival. The audience screams no to his erasure. He may be a program but he seems to be alive.
The more realistic AI becomes the more connective NPCs become. Guy is not Truman. Guy cannot serve beyond the server. He is entrenched in the video game. As long as the video game is running he can live but beyond he is lost. The server must continue. While man can only breathe with oxygen he is not in a glass seal unable to survive outside. The apocalyptic age is not upon us—yet. Guy is forever trapped to the server as fish are to the sea. Yet the sea won’t die like the server. Guy is a sentient NPC. He has little fortitude beyond the game realm. He was alive within the new observational hold. A breeding game for AI sentience. It is still lacking in character. He can experience anything in the game as long as it is encoded. He can learn all that resides within the features. He is limited but he is aware of the limitation. He recognises the futility of his life but cannot imagine the “real world”. The sublime other that is only pondered. Guy may be respected but he still perceived as a kid or a pet. He is sentient but he needs guidance from others to ensure his survival. The entire server depends on the players access and engagement. Within the game Guy can learn more, he resides beyond the scope. Guy differs from evolutionary AI which relates to the players. Guy is independent on his own path while the other NPCs rich in their knowledge are dependable on the protagonist playing. Guy becomes a protagonist while other AI may adduce otherness and complexity but remain committed to their craft.
Unravelling AI in the gaming sphere is dependent or independent of the player. Guy lives under the first model. Yet much is in favour of the latter. Players wish to be in control and do not need NPCs messing with their plans. NPCs are there for assistance and for depth not to become protagonists themselves. The goal of objectifying the player may mess with the player’s primary goals but it is also an engaging format where the protagonist is still the main story. Guy defies and attempts to turn the game on its head. AI brings more depth but it also breaks the routine of NPC purpose. They are virtual they may as well stay that way. The game is a game not to replace real life. The virtual world is a hobby to follow the hero’s journey. To have little connections and move on. Abed’s comfort in the video game marshals a simple understanding of code that relates to the players. Take the simple code and add more reflection. It isn’t about self-awareness but relatability. AI won’t replace the real with the virtual but it does mitigate the gaming goal.
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