Races and their languages

Discussion in 'Mechanics' started by reversePsychologist, Apr 22, 2013.

  1. reversePsychologist

    reversePsychologist Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    But the feature is optional in itself!

    What's annoying about it? People talking to you in a language you don't know? Why would they do that (if not to secretly insult you in the face, which is the equivalent of mumbling insults that no one can hear while leaving a conversation like a grumpy assmunch).

    Is it annoying that they will feel excluded by, I don't know, a group of other players of the same race/knowing the same language? If languages won't be a thing, that will still be feasible with whispers or skype conversations or whatever. I don't get it.

    This feature doesn't change anything, it's a plus, a side thing, although many people in the thread want it to influence books and signs and other things which would make it bigger and cool but that's not what I'm aiming for and, even if it were the case and I would be really glad, the base mechanic stays the same.
     
  2. General Chaos

    General Chaos Pangalactic Porcupine

    Their reason they stated what they was because when they play co-op they will not be able to play with their friends and do things because they would not be able to understand the text of another player. Also they stated about skype,voice chat etc, that with those it would negate the point of not being able to understand other cultures until you learn them.

    I dunno I guess some people never watched Indiana Jones,played any tomb raider games,RPGs,etc.
     
  3. Akaiji

    Akaiji Subatomic Cosmonaut

    A critique that absolutely ignores the (proposed) implemented common language that EVERY playable race speaks.
     
  4. General Chaos

    General Chaos Pangalactic Porcupine

    Pretty much they did not even listen to what I said about somethings so I doubt they even bothered to fully read this thread I posted (because I like the idea) and just wanted to bash. That is why I am glad things are up to the devs and not the community as a whole :rofl:. Who knows what we would not have if they listened to what some people want.

    Even if this does not become a feature, I am hoping people might get on board to make it a mod, because I am willing to even though I have 0 experience making a mod. If this mechanic is possible ( and I believe it to be) I hope someone decides to make a mod.
     
    reversePsychologist likes this.
  5. reversePsychologist

    reversePsychologist Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    Wow, so you really did post this on irc? Thanks a lot for the support man!

    But yeah, let's keep it here where you actually have to stop and post things rather than in chat where they can just ignore bits and give short vague answers based on their current mood.

    Not that I value my idea so much, but from what you tell me they didn't understand a thing about the suggestion!
     
    General Chaos likes this.
  6. General Chaos

    General Chaos Pangalactic Porcupine

    Nope they certainly did not, and I couldn't agree more.

    On a not I had thought up something interesting that could be incorporated.As you begin learning the languages the text itself would start becoming marginally readable.It would progress through stages until you get to the final state in which you can full translate everything. This could make for a smoother transition because you might not find everything to learn the language so easily or (depending on your play style) might be a bit of a "planet jumper". Going from planet to planet without exploring most of them. This way you could (in a rpg sense) partially read things without fully knowing the language and still understand what is being said through deduction.

    This sorta goes more with my additional suggestion about the different languages being incorporated into game items and places such as sign posts,books,tombs,runes,etc anything that would have text not related to your race/species.
     
  7. fallingorbit

    fallingorbit Hard-To-Destroy Reptile

    All I have to say is I like this language suggestion.
     
  8. reversePsychologist

    reversePsychologist Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    That's another thing that has already been discussed/is being discussed, but basically my idea is not to do that to keep the feature simple code-wise, and because making a language partially readable would maybe require every symbol/letter of the made-up language to correspond to an actual letter, and that would 1) kill variety of languages 2) be partly exploited by being able to read some letters without your character knowing the language (although as said in previous posts, this might be acceptable) 3) it would still require a weird-ish progression system, the least complicated thing that comes to mind is that you learn one letter every x%, which would make it, what, 100 divided by 26? What about symbols and foreign characters? And many other problems etc. etc.

    I also happen to not like it, I want it to look and be undecipherable, even random if necessary (read the previous posts about it). There are other options, of course, which have been discussed, for instance having a certain percentage of learned language makes you understand random words or simple words from a text (but a designated quantity). However this is even more complicated than the first alternative to code I'm guessing.

    I don't know, it would be up to the devs to see which of the countless versions of such a thing would be more feasible, until then I'd like this idea implemented in the game, and therefore my goal is to propose it as simple as possible, with the character understanding the whole language at 100% and none of it at 99%, or not even having progression percentages at all! I mean, it sounds videogame-y at least.
     
  9. reversePsychologist

    reversePsychologist Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    [​IMG]

    So, this just showed up in updates... I guess languages are at least slightly canon, although ironically. This could actually fit well with my idea, it would solve the incompatibilities as here the book is written in human language but it is specified that it's translated, thus temporarily removing the issue of "books in other languages would be long and difficult" thing.
     
  10. Schnell

    Schnell Orbital Explorer

    it's like in the mmorpg star wars galaxies each race have their own language , and you need to learn other languages.
     
  11. reversePsychologist

    reversePsychologist Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    I don't know the game, how does learning a language happen?
     
  12. PlanutExplorer

    PlanutExplorer Void-Bound Voyager

    Hopefully, it won't be that much of a challenge. Somewhere along the way might be a translator you can make or primers which might help out.
    :lolwut:
     
  13. Darlas

    Darlas Starship Captain

    I loved playing around with language in other MMO's when they had a language barrier.
    It was always fun to mock other factions or different character races with switching to your characters language.

    Could also enable something like a translator item (a "Babel Fish" maybe?) so you could equip something so it translates it right away.
     
  14. Mister Pixel

    Mister Pixel Big Damn Hero

    You could learn new languages by reading books maybe?
     
  15. reversePsychologist

    reversePsychologist Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    That's exactly the feel I'd like the feature to go for with this suggestion!

    Those have been main points of discussion in the thread, babel fish-like item, equippable translators and books have already been suggested, I guess it's arbitrary/the one the majority will fancy, the discussion was mainly about how it would work.

    Many here are suggesting translators that fill gradually in some way and make you understand some characters, but I really think it's overly complicated both code-wise and as an idea, I wanted something simpler, the Babel Fish idea has been growing to me both as a nice reference to both Douglas and Chucklefish, both because it would really convey the "very, very rare item dropped by npcs of that race that will make you learn 100% of the language in one click".

    However, should be really rare, can't stress this enough!
     
  16. Sibernaut

    Sibernaut Astral Cartographer

    This would be so good if they implemented factions. I mean what if you tried to communicate and translated something wrong and started a war. I think it would make the game much cool :up:
     
  17. masterofmasks

    masterofmasks Big Damn Hero

    I really really like this idea. even if the devs don't implement it eventually then I wouldn't be surprised if a modder got around to it eventually. On the novakid however we don't have much in the way of lore but if you read much into the page that was set up on the wiki (http://community.playstarbound.com/index.php?threads/meet-the-novakid.16712/) then they communicate mainly by using magnetism on that brand in they're faces. Perhaps the novakid language would be more along the lines of a random sequence of + and -'s equating to alternating magnetic fields. The flaw I see in this system however is that anyone who is not novakid would need a device that would translate they're speech into a magnetic form the novakid can understand. perhaps if your just looking for symbols just make they're words random combinations of the brands on they're faces. It would make for an interesting bit of lore if they're brands were not only what shapes them but also translated into they're name in the novakid language.
     
  18. reversePsychologist

    reversePsychologist Scruffy Nerf-Herder

    That's awesome information, I didn't know that, thanks! However

    I don't think it's a flaw, most of it can just be ignored, as I already said, with "suspension of disbelief", I mean it's just a game, it doesn't need to make THAT much sense, but still if we go with the something-like-the-Babel-Fish idea it would technically still make sense. In case you don't know about it from Douglas's work, it's a creature you insert in your hear and translates for you, and it feeds on brainwaves, it doesn't have anything to do with sound. At least I think it was like that, if it isn't we can just say that's what it is! Science can be better than magic if you really really believe in it. Like fairies! ...science fairies!
    And by the way, yes, that's exactly what I was thinking, their symbol probably also mean their names and also words. I think my suggestion in the OP of a sprite-like language would still somehow fit with the magnetic theme but I don't think a shaky, flashing text can be done, so perhaps just the symbols will do. (maybe slip in a horseshoe-magnet hybrid symbol!)

    I think I'm starting to have an idea as to what the translators would be, although it's one of those ideas that have nothing to do with the core mechanic I'm suggesting, just optional things about its esthetics, will post later!
     
  19. darko1233

    darko1233 Space Spelunker

    I seriously love this idea, I hope this is in the final version. Kudos for bringing this to light.
     
  20. SeaMichelle

    SeaMichelle Some Sort of Weird Fish Princess

    I dunno, I just see most reviewers mocking the idea for being "too difficult to communicate with an unnecessary addition to the game". But that's my only nitpick.
    I'd like to see this in a mod, therefore giving players the option to use multiple languages. I just don't think it would work in the official game.
     

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