After having recently (re)played Wizardry 8, I really adore how some older games allowed you to pose questions to NPCs using keywords. It really got you thinking about the game's world and its characters!

I've not played a game with this concept in it before, but i feel it could work really well.

name

job

bye

 

It's not something I feel strongly about in general, but I'd be a bit concerned about it diluting the quality of the dialogue in a game that I expect to be heavily based on it. A keyword system is functional enough in a context where NPCs can be a bit like bulletin boards - Morrowind for example - but having those bulletin board type responses would be jarring in a game like Torment, where you'd have the elegant, flowing "regular" dialogue then a totally out of context rote Q&A session.

Seems a little awkward for the type of game they are aiming for. Keywords had their place in gaming history but it was clunky. The level of programming doesn't yet exist which would make this seamless and unobtrusive.

Edited September 16, 201213 yr by Grimnir

The idea seems cool in theory but in practice with games that use them; it just doesn't work as well as other system. A simple spelling mistake can screw things up, and it would take a lot for them to program keyword reactions. While the usual IE style dialogue tree has its limits as well at least the player going in can easily tell what their limits sre and don't have to waste time on silly stuff as spamming random words for ****s and giggles.

I don't think this style of writing fits with Obsidian's trademark stuff, and besides... we all saw this feature in Fallout, it was basically useless. I could imagine them going with an Ultima VII-style conversation system (or Elder Scrolls-style), but I don't get the sense they intend that for this project at all.

It just will not work. Its too easy to miss important informatio because you did not know the type of word to type, it also would be too anoying to stop what you are doing to have to type stuff in.

The idea seems cool in theory but in practice with games that use them; it just doesn't work as well as other system. A simple spelling mistake can screw things up, and it would take a lot for them to program keyword reactions. While the usual IE style dialogue tree has its limits as well at least the player going in can easily tell what their limits sre and don't have to waste time on silly stuff as spamming random words for ****s and giggles.

 

What he said.

It worked in the Ultima's and it can work today.

It didn't work in Fallout.

It didn't work in Fallout.

I was just about to mention Fallout damn you

 

It was put to use exactly once if I remember correctly ("red ryder" or some such).

This type of thing needs a few decades before it's remotely effective IMO

A couple decades to the future looks like a couple decades to the past.

Yeah, it 'worked' in FO the couple of times the ENTIRE game that it was useful in its randomness. I NEVER bothered to use it. L0L If it's soemthing a player doesn't bother to use not really useful. FO would be way worse if it did away with dialogue trees and only used this. Ultima was fun in spite of it as well. I have never seen a game that is better because it uses this system. Ever.

Keyword-based dialogue systems are (or rather can be) fantastic, but not for the sort of game PE is setting out to be. I'd rather the designers stick with the dialogue trees and make them kick all kinds of tuchus (which we already know they can do) instead of trying to shoehorn in keywords.

Edited September 17, 201213 yr by LadySpace

No. This is an annoying mechnic imo.