TLDR: Scroll to bottom for main points. I've been playing through Fallout NV recently. It's excellent quest design has brought to my mind a few points I'd like to share about NPC agency. Let's talk about the oldest trope in fantasy RPGs - that of the "quest". Usually a PC is given quests that entails "solving" problems for NPCs. If the player accepts a quest, then directions to complete said quest and possible rewards for doing so are made clear. If the player chooses to ignore the quest, then not much of anything happens (more on this point later). This plays into the power-fantasy that t