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New Speech System
time to discuss its good points and bad

We've now been using the new speech system for several months and I'm ready to advance it further. Before I do so, I'd like to get your feedback on what you like and don't like about it.

The further advancement of it is really just a matter of making its use affect more than just the basic speech commands. Right now, localized speech only affects 'say', 'emote', 'pose', 'to' and socials. These are considered speech commands and were done first since they have the biggest impact on stuff.

What was not converted to the new system has been every other message that you see when someone does something. This includes interacting with objects, moving between rooms and even things like watching TV and witnessing combat. In all, over 1000 verbs much be changed to use the new system. A good example of why this is needed has probably been experienced by a good number of you. You're sitting in the Drome, nursing your lager and two other characters are standing there, periodically drinking their lager and nothing more. Whats going on is that you didn't watch them, so you're not seeing the conversation their having, but you're seeing them drink their lager because the drink command doesn't use localized speech.

So, before I embark on this adventure in recoding, I want to know what you think of the system so far. I can tell you that we LOVE this adminside. It's amazing to monitor something like the Drome and see what happens due to the fact that someone overheard something or, even better to us, that something happened because someone DIDN'T overhear something. Its really amazing to us what its done for the game.

So, please, let us have it, good or bad. And I'll try to keep my smart-ass to myself and objectively evaluate your feedback.

~ J

I like it thus far..I can only recall a few times when 'Ive forgotten to address someone and such repost. I still maintain my position that while I understand and mainly like what this new system is doing, I think it's going to seriously mess up n00bs to the game, as when coming in, it'll take a while for them to:
A- Understand how to effectively use the system.
B- Understand what's going on around them due to the system, if they don't understand it. They could be in the Drome, surrounded by PC conversation, and simply think everyone is not doing anything (just one example).

So, my $00.02

(Edited by Lotus at 12:18 pm on Dec. 5, 2002)

(Edited by Lotus at 12:19 pm on Dec. 5, 2002)

I think it's neato, but, it'd be handy if one could set their default to either Loud or Quiet emote/speech, giving a choice instead of speaking quietly by default.
People shouldn't be going around loudly talking all the time. Its for specific moments where you need to speak loudly. Eventually, it'll be more limited in how often you can use it, especially if its used too much, as it ruins the system if everyone is speaking loudly.
Lotus, I don't know if you're aware, but fresh people get several messages to read 'help speaking' when they come out of char-gen and talk the first few times.

Can any recent newbie to the game enlighten us as to the experience of being new and dealing with the speech system?

I think that somekind of 'Buzz' could be placed over a few number of say, pose, to like:

You hear some indistiguishable(sp?) chatter comming from %N's direction.

I like Xee's idea, but I think that what Johnny is saying - if I may be so bold as to guess - is that the bits like that you can't tell other people are talking and it leads to mischief.

But in the real world you would be able to see people talking, even if you couldn't hear them.  So a message like that would be rather good.  If nothing else you could then look at them and pose or think about wondering what is being said or even ask them what they're talking about.

I wasn't a big fan of this when it first came out, mainly because I'm a big mouth and I play big mouthed characters who like the sound of their own voice and want audiences so I often speak loudly. Or make sure I'm addressing loads of people.

That is the only bit of it that I still don't like, the addressing bit. Its a bit of a pain in the ass to keep remembering to address people at times. It would be nice if there was an address all command where you could then start addressing all of the visible players, obviously if you can't see them you can't address them. I'm not sure how it would work if new people came in, maybe you'd have to enter it again or address them individually.

I'm not, really new but having recently played new characters it does give you the "you're speaking quietly" message so you know. It would be good to have the system explained in the help files and also in the @newbie file on communication. - Its in neither, I checked while writing this. That would help to clear up a lot of potential confusion I'm sure.

And maybe - though this is slightly off topic it is communication - there could be something in there about length limits on poses/emotes too.

Those length limits are not imposed by us, we've just only become aware of them due to some rather verbose posing in a script that just wasn't making it to your screen. Really freaky, it just seems to vanish.

You see Johnny say something across the room.
You see Johnny say something across the room.
You see Johnny say something across the room.
You see Johnny say something across the room.
You see Johnny say something across the room.
You see Johnny say something across the room.

You'd kill me if I put that in.

And you can address everyone by speaking loudly. We generally don't want you over addressing though, as that just goes around the system, which is the whole point.
We could do a RP agreement then... Every once in a while the people that are active do a pose to say they're socializing on the otherwise deaf place.

Just like Tylissa on the cell, she bops her head and laughs, curls her hair with a finguer...

It's just an idea tho.

Yeah, but for that, you'd need to be emoting loudly, and for many players, most speech is integrated into a pose ('less you gotta talk fast).
Right now, I'd much rather see the language system finished off, because quite frankly, if I want to be able to speak 'to' somebody in Russian, I should be able to, without having to utilize either shout, or say, because with say, there's no guarantee that they'll hear you.