Categorising Non-Player Character Companions and the Influence they have on the Player
Authors
Hansen, Christian Reinhardt ; Iversen, Yasmin Tida
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2017
Submitted on
2017-05-31
Pages
47
Abstract
I videospil er companions figurer, der følger med og støtter spilleren. De optræder både i historiedrevne spil, som fx rollespil, og i spil med fokus på gameplay. Denne rapport undersøger companions gennem et litteraturreview og en analyse af spil, der bruger companions. Analysen afdækkede fælles tendenser, som blev brugt til at opbygge en model for companions blandt ikke-spillerkarakterer (NPC’er). Med modellen blev det undersøgt, hvordan companions påvirker spillerens valg, ved at bruge et spil i to ellers identiske versioner, som kun adskilte sig i companion-typen, kategoriseret af modellen. Companionen med højere narrativt formål (en mere central rolle i historien) påvirkede spillerens valg mere markant end companionen med lavere narrativt formål. Derudover kunne testdeltagerne til en vis grad placere companionen i den hypotetiske model, hvilket tyder på, at modellen kan bruges til at kategorisere companions.
In video games, companions are characters who travel with and support the player. They appear in story-driven titles, such as role-playing games, and in games focused on gameplay. This report examines companions through a review of existing literature and an analysis of games that use them. The analysis identified shared patterns and used them to build a model of non-player character (NPC) companions. Using this model, the study tested how companions affect player choices by creating two otherwise identical versions of a game that differed only in the type of companion, as defined by the model. The companion with a higher narrative purpose (a more central role in the story) influenced player choices more strongly than the companion with a lower narrative purpose. In addition, test participants were, to some extent, able to categorize the companion according to the hypothesized model, suggesting the model can be used to classify companions.
[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]
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