Message-ID: <3c8479d8_2@corp-news.newsgroups.com>
From: CardinalT <cardinalt@helpmejebus.com>
Subject: Re: General examine question
Newsgroups: rec.arts.int-fiction
Date: Mon, 04 Mar 2002 23:53:28 -0800
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Gary Shannon wrote:

> My question is, does this sound like playing fair?  I don't want to annoy
> the player, but I would like to introduce the idea that casually examining
> something might produce different results than examining the same object
> more closely with a particular goal in mind.  As players, after being
> given such a clue would you expect that "X gizmo" might conceivably reveal
> something new, or would the average player just think "I've already
> examined
> it.  No need to do so again?

I've run into this problem myself in the past, in trying to determine
whether I wanted to include a "scrutinize" command in addition to "look."
The problem you have is that either the player has no clue he should
ever try to "scrutinize" anything, or if he's told that he should, then
he'll automatically "scrutinize" everything he comes into contact with,
just to be on the safe side. (Or, if it's a one-time-only deal where he's
told what to do by this one NPC in this one situation, he'll feel
restricted, like he's being led around by the nose.)

I don't know that there's an easy answer, other than maybe allowing such a
command, but only making it useful once or twice in the game. If the player
gets worthless responses nineteen out of twenty times, then maybe he'll
stop scrutinizing everything by rote, and only do it when he's otherwise
stumped and unable to continue.

Maybe.

--
--CardinalT
  Archbishop of Frith and Funeral Barker to the Stars
