Guild Wars 2

Agreed with OP. I get that the intention is there, but there’s little technique or delivery outside of “you did something, here’s a carrot.”

So very true! A little flavour text goes a long way.

i sign to support

The simplest resolution would be that after you’ve checked the virtual ‘delivered item’ box, the NPC gives you the dialogue they give when you return the item.

BrunoBRS.5178:

I remember a part of ANet’s MMO manifesto where Ree talks about how other MMOs don’t care about your actions, and how in GW2, the NPCs would remember the player for their actions.

a few years later, cue Flame and Frost, more specifically the Lost and Found achievement. now i find this mechanic to be quite nice, aiding NPCs to find their lost belongings, but here’s the thing: the NPC doesn’t even remember that you did it. you talk to them again once you deliver the item, and instead of making any mention that you’ve already delivered the item, it repeats the same text from before, asking you to find an item you can’t even pick up anymore because you’ve already delivered it.

would it be hard to give NPCs whose belongings you’ve returned a different dialogue expressing their thanks or something? just anything that represents that the NPC remembers that yes, they have the item they lost now, and it’s this adventurer standing right in front of them that got it back. it would make it much more rewarding on a story perspective, and it doesn’t sound like a hard thing to do (after all, you already have a system that prevents you from picking an item you’ve already delivered, the same system could be used to determine which dialogue you get).

it just feels like a huge wasted opportunity, that the so called “living story” can’t even be bothered to acknowledge that the player just did something to change the life of that NPC.

Good point.

Nice idea, ANet, for NPCs to remember our actions. Now please follow it up with some dialogue coding.

Bear in mind that Ree was actually talking about the Personal Story.

That said, I agree with you that those NPCs should respond differently after you’ve given them the item.

Vahkris.6847:

Bear in mind that Ree was actually talking about the Personal Story.

That said, I agree with you that those NPCs should respond differently after you’ve given them the item.

given her example (you see a village under attack and rescue it, and the village will stay rescued, and those villagers will remember you), i’d think she was talking about dynamic events.

regardless, the point stands. i’m glad to see this thread got some support.

Actually… when you talk to them -after- you turn the item in they give you the dialogue of what they say AFTER they give you the item, not what they said before hand.

I just went and talked to the little charr again and she told me how her and her little toy soldier are going to start their own war band and get revenge now that they’re back together again or something along those lines.

They remember you’re there, they know they have the item now.

PS: If you complete an event (and were part of the event not just it got completed near you) the NPCs -will- acknowledge you and thank you for what you’ve done. SOME areas will even change what they say if an event ques up and instead of saying “Will you help me by fending off these bandits?” they’ll say “Can you help fend off the bandits like you did before?”

Personal story is just as bad. Your first Vigil recruiter will tell you that you are not qualified to Join the Vigil, even after you outrank him.

The guy who asks you to find Dead Drops remembers you

I was actually rather surprised at the instanced dialogue with the NPC’s. Rytlock recognised me as the Commander of the pact and Knut called me Slayer, both are titles earned through the personal story. It’s refreshing to see this outside of a single player game to be honest and it really helped bolster a bit of immersion in the story. I look forward to being recognised and interacting with various NPC’s in the future and watching the story progress.

Yes it would be nice if the NPCs remembered. It would be a little thing in terms of game play but I think it would make me more immersed in the world..