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Sep. 21st, 2015 07:44 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
dmxratedBrian came home late two nights ago, but is due to go back at four today.
Yesterday morning, I showed him the email with those issues I brought up with him and Jake. He watched a video I had linked to, and then went on in great detail about what I'm thinking of. Here is what I wrote first:
There exists a YouTube series called Game Theory. One special episode of it talks in depth about why people play video games. One of three main reasons it cites has to do with autonomy.
Long story short, gameplay tends not to translate well into prose or full-motion. Even when one actually does novelize or adapt stuff and show what would really go on w/ certain things, other things are just best omitted altogether. Still, there are some things you tend to imagine actually happening, even if it doesn't fit from a narrative perspective, because they were given form. Otherwise, you might as well play a card or puzzle game or something.
It doesn't help either that, given your control over things, you get to reset the game following most outright losses or wastes of resources, instead of being forced to accept them.
With your direct involvement in things, it also helps if certain things vary for each playthrough. Economize your resources, celebrate your gains, regret what goes to waste, and enjoy what you use up for the better... If things play out the same way for each playthrough, then you might as well just watch anime or read manga instead.
All of this is exactly where Parasitic Trio would have come in. I'd be in control of what goes on, but the actual characters would have their own personalities, knowledge, and agendas. Everything from the Pokemon video games, played much more naturally...
But in the end, it all proved basically unfeasible.
Such is why I gave Jake permission to continue the story or start it over (so that at least the story as I had planned it wouldn't go to waste). But, I still don't know how to deal with this whole paradox between direct involvement, stuff given form, and the impossibility to take most things literally.
The video in question talks about competence, autonomy, and relatedness. At first, Brian failed to see what those three things have to do with what I myself wrote, but I told him it has mainly to do with that second concept. The other two do factor on, though, due to what I said about economizing your resources and stuff given form respectively.
Long story short, that "paradox" is really a spectrum of agency. When you read something, the only decision you have is whether to continue or stop reading. When you write something, you have all the decisions in the world to make about what happens. Video games are more or less a compromise between producer and consumer, in that one designing a game can only program so much stuff to happen, and players can make decisions but only within boundaries of the game.
-----
Went out with him later on to the Tanger outlets. The moment we left the driveway, he yelled out "Cruis'n USA!", and then asked me if I remember that game. Somehow, he mistook it for an SNES game, but I told him he might've been thinking of Top Gear 2, which he used to borrow from Craig when they were both in 3rd grade (I was in 5th at the time). While I do recall him mentioning several things a year later about Cruis'n USA, the only similar games I remember watching him play were Cruis'n World (another year later) and what Wikipedia specified as Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA (the year after that), both for the Nintendo 64 (as was Cruis'n USA).
Moments after that discussion ended, I told Brian about how Marie had stepped in upon reading about my writer's block, and he said that Marie mentioned that to him already. I asked him if she told him anything further than that, and he said no but did tell me that when I try too hard to think of stuff, all I'm doing in practice is blocking things out, and I should instead take a break from thinking and let ideas flow in naturally.
Following that was an idea I thought up for Day of the Beehive, which felt too hard to explain verbally but did involve a form of randomization (something else I brought up briefly in the email). This led to us talking about how a lot of games process random numbers to determine certain outcomes. I told him that that's a key thing I used to like about Pokemon, and also something I mentioned last year on Christmas (I specified Getter Love!! that time, but he said he's long forgotten that whole exchange). We then went on to specify how it factors into enemy appearances throughout the Earthbound trilogy, which is different for each game (with Earthbound considered by many to have nothing but improved from Earthbound Zero). At some point, I told him that I plan for Day of the Beehive to operate most similar to Earthbound but have all enemies currently on-screen come at you, as opposed to some of them disappearing before the fight begins, due to how much larger the party will be most of the time. He commented that that always seemed like some kind of glitch to him, but I suggested it might've been intentional, so as to avoid overpowering the player or freezing the game up. He said then that it only helps how memory limitations are barely even an issue nowadays.
I took some time to let everything sink in when we were in Nike, and neither of us said anything during the ride home. However, I did pull up both some gameplay videos and the game mechanics document when we got home, and showed him later on.
Turned out that Top Gear 2 was what he was thinking of all along. He also mentioned that he had completely forgotten about Cruis'n World until then, although he doesn't remember Rush 2 at all. Be that as it may, I do distinctly remember seeing him play a mode on that last game, which involved collecting cans of Mountain Dew (which Wikipedia only mentioned for that particular game, hence my inference).
As for the other thing (which he simply thought was nifty), here's what I'm talking about, from two different parts of the file:
It's also possible that there will exist flashing versions of any type of container (depending on the location) that will appear very rarely (1 in 144 for each transition, set in a random spot). These will contain something completely random. When set, the game will use an algorithm to determine whether they contain a food item (including condiments, capsules, and medicine), a piece of equipment, other items (including non-battle items, such as sales items, broken items for Maria to fix, or even money), or random effects (such as those that happen in Mother 3). Each of these will have an equal chance of appearing, before the game sorts through all items or effects under that category. Everything under it (including anything otherwise unused) has an equal chance of turning up. (Key items will never appear in these. Special effects will be decided through brainstorming.)
Under the "Other" category, flashing gift boxes can actually be enemies in disguise, remaining in place until either you open them or other enemies approach you (the latter in which case they will approach you as well).
These enemies carry 12 HP and have Offense, Defense, and Guts stats of 12, but have a total of 1,728 PP and Speed stats of 144. Defeating these guys is hard because of what they can do to you pre-emptively, the fact that they'll usually be aided by regular enemies, and their tendency to flee. If you defeat them and clear the battle itself, any money and experience you would've earned normally will be multiplied by 12.
Any battles to feature regular (white) Party Time! enemies will start off with the line "It's Party Time!" regardless of any other enemies involved, followed by "For this battle," and one of numerous special effects, including:
-all members in your party having a certain command locked (such as Bash, Goods, Powers, Defend, or Run Away).
-all members being restricted to a certain command (such as Bash, Goods, or Powers).
-all members and enemies being afflicted with a random status ailment. (All possible ailments have an equal chance of being picked for both whole parties.)
-all members and/or enemies having their HP and/or PP reduced to 1 and 0 respectively.
-all members having their inventories shuffled with one another's.
-all members fighting automatically.
-all members' positions being shuffled around until the fight ends.
-damage and recoveries scrolling at maximum speed by default.
-the battle ending after one, two, or three turns.
-all members and/or enemies having one or more stats multiplied by 12. (All enemies will have the same stats multiplied.)
-all members having their HP and PP fully restored and being rid of any status ailments.
-all members' and/or enemies stats being shuffled until the fight ends.
-the inability to select targets or recipients while entering commands.
-only one member being allowed to fight. (Even non-playable guest characters will sit the fight out altogether.)
-only one member and enemy getting to move per turn. (Losing might result in either a Game Over or simply continuing with that character at 1 HP.)
-the ability to tell what your enemies will do.
-your enemies getting to know what you plan to do.
These enemies will yield something random (divided between food, equipment, and other items, and regardless of type). Getting an item from any other enemy will override what you would have gotten from the Party Time! or Mystery Gift.
Different variations of "Mystery Gift" enemies (based on type) might operate under different terms.
Yesterday morning, I showed him the email with those issues I brought up with him and Jake. He watched a video I had linked to, and then went on in great detail about what I'm thinking of. Here is what I wrote first:
There exists a YouTube series called Game Theory. One special episode of it talks in depth about why people play video games. One of three main reasons it cites has to do with autonomy.
Long story short, gameplay tends not to translate well into prose or full-motion. Even when one actually does novelize or adapt stuff and show what would really go on w/ certain things, other things are just best omitted altogether. Still, there are some things you tend to imagine actually happening, even if it doesn't fit from a narrative perspective, because they were given form. Otherwise, you might as well play a card or puzzle game or something.
It doesn't help either that, given your control over things, you get to reset the game following most outright losses or wastes of resources, instead of being forced to accept them.
With your direct involvement in things, it also helps if certain things vary for each playthrough. Economize your resources, celebrate your gains, regret what goes to waste, and enjoy what you use up for the better... If things play out the same way for each playthrough, then you might as well just watch anime or read manga instead.
All of this is exactly where Parasitic Trio would have come in. I'd be in control of what goes on, but the actual characters would have their own personalities, knowledge, and agendas. Everything from the Pokemon video games, played much more naturally...
But in the end, it all proved basically unfeasible.
Such is why I gave Jake permission to continue the story or start it over (so that at least the story as I had planned it wouldn't go to waste). But, I still don't know how to deal with this whole paradox between direct involvement, stuff given form, and the impossibility to take most things literally.
The video in question talks about competence, autonomy, and relatedness. At first, Brian failed to see what those three things have to do with what I myself wrote, but I told him it has mainly to do with that second concept. The other two do factor on, though, due to what I said about economizing your resources and stuff given form respectively.
Long story short, that "paradox" is really a spectrum of agency. When you read something, the only decision you have is whether to continue or stop reading. When you write something, you have all the decisions in the world to make about what happens. Video games are more or less a compromise between producer and consumer, in that one designing a game can only program so much stuff to happen, and players can make decisions but only within boundaries of the game.
-----
Went out with him later on to the Tanger outlets. The moment we left the driveway, he yelled out "Cruis'n USA!", and then asked me if I remember that game. Somehow, he mistook it for an SNES game, but I told him he might've been thinking of Top Gear 2, which he used to borrow from Craig when they were both in 3rd grade (I was in 5th at the time). While I do recall him mentioning several things a year later about Cruis'n USA, the only similar games I remember watching him play were Cruis'n World (another year later) and what Wikipedia specified as Rush 2: Extreme Racing USA (the year after that), both for the Nintendo 64 (as was Cruis'n USA).
Moments after that discussion ended, I told Brian about how Marie had stepped in upon reading about my writer's block, and he said that Marie mentioned that to him already. I asked him if she told him anything further than that, and he said no but did tell me that when I try too hard to think of stuff, all I'm doing in practice is blocking things out, and I should instead take a break from thinking and let ideas flow in naturally.
Following that was an idea I thought up for Day of the Beehive, which felt too hard to explain verbally but did involve a form of randomization (something else I brought up briefly in the email). This led to us talking about how a lot of games process random numbers to determine certain outcomes. I told him that that's a key thing I used to like about Pokemon, and also something I mentioned last year on Christmas (I specified Getter Love!! that time, but he said he's long forgotten that whole exchange). We then went on to specify how it factors into enemy appearances throughout the Earthbound trilogy, which is different for each game (with Earthbound considered by many to have nothing but improved from Earthbound Zero). At some point, I told him that I plan for Day of the Beehive to operate most similar to Earthbound but have all enemies currently on-screen come at you, as opposed to some of them disappearing before the fight begins, due to how much larger the party will be most of the time. He commented that that always seemed like some kind of glitch to him, but I suggested it might've been intentional, so as to avoid overpowering the player or freezing the game up. He said then that it only helps how memory limitations are barely even an issue nowadays.
I took some time to let everything sink in when we were in Nike, and neither of us said anything during the ride home. However, I did pull up both some gameplay videos and the game mechanics document when we got home, and showed him later on.
Turned out that Top Gear 2 was what he was thinking of all along. He also mentioned that he had completely forgotten about Cruis'n World until then, although he doesn't remember Rush 2 at all. Be that as it may, I do distinctly remember seeing him play a mode on that last game, which involved collecting cans of Mountain Dew (which Wikipedia only mentioned for that particular game, hence my inference).
As for the other thing (which he simply thought was nifty), here's what I'm talking about, from two different parts of the file:
It's also possible that there will exist flashing versions of any type of container (depending on the location) that will appear very rarely (1 in 144 for each transition, set in a random spot). These will contain something completely random. When set, the game will use an algorithm to determine whether they contain a food item (including condiments, capsules, and medicine), a piece of equipment, other items (including non-battle items, such as sales items, broken items for Maria to fix, or even money), or random effects (such as those that happen in Mother 3). Each of these will have an equal chance of appearing, before the game sorts through all items or effects under that category. Everything under it (including anything otherwise unused) has an equal chance of turning up. (Key items will never appear in these. Special effects will be decided through brainstorming.)
Under the "Other" category, flashing gift boxes can actually be enemies in disguise, remaining in place until either you open them or other enemies approach you (the latter in which case they will approach you as well).
These enemies carry 12 HP and have Offense, Defense, and Guts stats of 12, but have a total of 1,728 PP and Speed stats of 144. Defeating these guys is hard because of what they can do to you pre-emptively, the fact that they'll usually be aided by regular enemies, and their tendency to flee. If you defeat them and clear the battle itself, any money and experience you would've earned normally will be multiplied by 12.
Any battles to feature regular (white) Party Time! enemies will start off with the line "It's Party Time!" regardless of any other enemies involved, followed by "For this battle," and one of numerous special effects, including:
-all members in your party having a certain command locked (such as Bash, Goods, Powers, Defend, or Run Away).
-all members being restricted to a certain command (such as Bash, Goods, or Powers).
-all members and enemies being afflicted with a random status ailment. (All possible ailments have an equal chance of being picked for both whole parties.)
-all members and/or enemies having their HP and/or PP reduced to 1 and 0 respectively.
-all members having their inventories shuffled with one another's.
-all members fighting automatically.
-all members' positions being shuffled around until the fight ends.
-damage and recoveries scrolling at maximum speed by default.
-the battle ending after one, two, or three turns.
-all members and/or enemies having one or more stats multiplied by 12. (All enemies will have the same stats multiplied.)
-all members having their HP and PP fully restored and being rid of any status ailments.
-all members' and/or enemies stats being shuffled until the fight ends.
-the inability to select targets or recipients while entering commands.
-only one member being allowed to fight. (Even non-playable guest characters will sit the fight out altogether.)
-only one member and enemy getting to move per turn. (Losing might result in either a Game Over or simply continuing with that character at 1 HP.)
-the ability to tell what your enemies will do.
-your enemies getting to know what you plan to do.
These enemies will yield something random (divided between food, equipment, and other items, and regardless of type). Getting an item from any other enemy will override what you would have gotten from the Party Time! or Mystery Gift.
Different variations of "Mystery Gift" enemies (based on type) might operate under different terms.