Level Up.pdf

Who Are the People in Your Neighborhood? 117
• Players ’ instruction on gameplay (though never tell the player something
they already know)
• A compliment to your hero on their awesomeness (or suitably quake in
fear if your hero is a badass)
• Humor.
While your NPC is waiting to provide help to the player, give them something
to do. NPCs are the “ extras ” in the video game universe, and just like
extras, they need to be given “ business. ” In movie - making lingo, business is
what extras do in the background of a scene to make it look like life is going
on regardless of what the actors are doing: eating, talking, chopping wood,
washing the floors. Simple animations are a good start. Complex activities
are even better. In some games NPCs perform different activities depending
on the time of day10 . Just don ’ t make the player have to chase the NPC
around to talk to them.
When putting NPCs into your game worlds and levels, be sure to place
them within eyesight of where the player is traveling. Make them easy to
find. Place them on the game ’ s mini - map if you have one. Don ’ t make the
player have to hunt them down. Unless your story calls for it, don ’ t put them
10 In life simulators like Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing , NPCs will go to bed if it ’ s late
enough. That means that many players will not be able to interact with some characters
because they ’ re sleeping. Make sure you take this into account, as you don ’ t want to waste
production time creating assets that the player will never see!