GTD (sort of): Facade

Started by Bionic Bill, Sun 21/03/2004 21:54:25

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Bionic Bill

Well, I haven't heard this mentioned, so I thought I'd go ahead and mention it.  I'm sure some of you already know about:

FACADE!

Experimental gamez0rz!

Instead of summarizing all the information I know about it, I'm just going to link you to the places where I learned about it.


Gamespot's coverage of the IGF


The official webpage of the project

a couple blog responses here and here.

a picture of it being played somewhere (riveting!)

Sounds like a mix between The Last Express, Emily Short's Galatea, and modern white suburbanite theater.

I think it's interesting as all get-out personally, and maybe where interactive narrative ought to be heading. I don't know if this will spark conversation, but if not: YOU HAVE BEEN INFORMED.

m0ds

#1
Though I don't mean to be off-topic, but it seems these guys are more interested in the drunk woman than the game...



;)

Okay, taken a look at the first site you mentioned. It looks quite interesting, that is if you want to walk around and talk to people who currently hate each other! It says you type what you want and they'll interact with it, etc - which seems fairly cool but has there ever been something like that tweaked so well you could type anything and get a decent response?

Bionic Bill

They're game designers. They've never seen a woman.

Barcik

I think we shouldn't expect too much of it. I am afraid the AI will be limited and that after a certain while the game will repeat itself and become boring. Like many milestones in other art mediums, this will probably be a significant but largely flawed step forward.
Currently Working On: Monkey Island 1.5

m0ds

#4
I agree with Barcik. I don't see what they've done to be anything revolutionary. "Smart" conversations with NPC's could be good fun, and other characters within point and click adventures - but you could be stuck for HOURS figuring out what you're meant to ask before you get a coherant answer from them.



"Developer M Lovegrove explains how that with his new family adventure game, Facked Off, you can interact with women suffering PMS. As you move across different areas of the room, they'll pick up objects and throw them at you, with every intent of killing you."

Evil

Jeez Mods, how many more projects are you gonna do at one time!?!... Hmm... Is she wearing a shirt?

Bionic Bill

Well, first of all, you're not trying to get coherent answers from them, according to descriptions--when you're not interacting with them they go about their business interacting with each other.

But it's hard to say anything about the success of the implementation without the game being playable in front of me.

Simply being given space to move around in, and characters to interact with through free dialogue is pretty novel. They've put a lot of work into making a narrative that's supposedly pretty darn interactive. It's the extension of ideas like The Last Express, except the interaction is a lot less restricted. Plus this game apparently has six years of work behind it.

I guess I also like that the concept involves neither aliens/zombies/mutants nor political intrigue/government conspiracy nor guns/swords, etc.

I also guess that I'm just generally in favor of there being the artsy-fartsy scene that is slowly being formed, in spite of the pretentiousness/pompousness/stupidity that will also result.

DragonRose

Quote from: Bionic Bill on Sun 21/03/2004 23:33:36
I guess I also like that the concept involves neither aliens/zombies/mutants nor political intrigue/government conspiracy nor guns/swords, etc.

I have a horrible image of what would happen if a marriage breakup involved aliens, political intrigue and guns.

"Zalgon-26, you've stolen files from the government for the last time! I never want to see you again!"
"Please explain. Statement does not fit with preconceived notions of marital relationship status."
"Conceive this, bastard! *blam! blam! blam!*"

I'm a bit curious about how the parser avoids "I don't understand" messages.  I would think that happens more often with a parser than with a point and click or other kind of interface.  If you can ask the characters about music, would you also be able to ask them about songs, The White Stripes, notes, lyrics, clarinets, tunes, Rock and Roll, Beethoven,  and bagpipes?  (Those were just all the music related things that popped into my head.  If I typed "Look, a three headed monkey!" would I get a response? If I spelled things wrong, would it still understand me?  Or would I simply be ignored?

Still, it sounds quite intersting.  I'd play it, just for novelty's sake if nothing else.
Sssshhhh!!! No sex please, we're British!!- Pumaman

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