Jump to content

Newspapers: Boredom


CaptKaspar

Recommended Posts

To me it does not make sense that every newspaper I pick up reduces the same amount of boredom every time. I think the return I get from reading newspapers would decrease rather quickly.

 

Think about it, there won't be any new newspapers. Nor will any of the 'news' have any relevance to my current situation.

 

3 months into the zombie apocalypse I doubt I'll enjoy reading a 3 month old newspaper that I've already read 50 times. There won't be any new stories, pictures, comics, puzzles, etc.

 

They won't hold any purpose other than kindling to me. Maybe crappy insulation? But I can find better materials other than newspaper just as easily.

 

If it were a major metropolitan area there might be multiple newspapers from that area, but I'm doubting it here in Muldraugh/West Point. Maybe two or three max and I think that is stretching it. I could have course be wrong since I'm not from KY and I didn't bother researching it.

 

Books/magazines make sense to me because virtually every home you go into will have different books/magazines than what you have in your home. So there is a huge variety of those.

 

BTW the time it takes to read books (not skill books) is INSANELY fast! Unless we're reading children's books, I don't think the average person reads that fast! Maybe 'speed-reading' could be a skill/trait?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I dunno, when I actually sit down to read I can read a 500-600 page book in a day, or 5-6 hours, if I put my mind to it/if it's interesting enough. Seeing as your life depends on skill books, I suppose it's fairly accurate.

 

I do not disagree with the length of time to read 'skill books' in game. I do disagree with the time it takes to read regular books. It is about 10 minutes of in game time. 5-6 hours would be appropriate to me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I dunno, small towns typically get newspapers from the nearest big city as well as their own local paper. Keep in mind some people keep their papers, so you could have weeks worth from different papers. Not sure if you read papers or not, but the little town I'm from got at least 3 major newspapers. 

 

Also worth noting, lots of businesses and organizations send around newsletters (which could also classify as newspapers) and the amount of these would boggle your mind. We get a bunch at the place I work from all around town (a really tiny little town at that).

 

I also disagree a bit about not being interested in old stories. As a reminder of the way things used to be, before the end of all things, I think I'd find it highly nostalgic and agreeable.

 

Just my 2¢.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think of something they said in a Stargate SG1 episode (the one with the people living inside a virtual world).

"Imagine you only had 4 videos for a thousand years, what would you not do to get a new one?"

 

Same thing goes for newspapers, both the media and commercial variants. You would find several, even in a small town. And anything that could get your mind off the grim situation that a apocalypse is would be appreciated.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A character could just be randomly gravitated to certain activities to kill boredom or raise mood, expressed via a moodle on the main screen - from want a cookie to must visit M town church. Ignoring such moodles would not hurt, while satisfying them would give free morale boost. And yep it was just an idea that just came and won't be remembered tomorrow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

BTW the time it takes to read books (not skill books) is INSANELY fast! Unless we're reading children's books, I don't think the average person reads that fast! Maybe 'speed-reading' could be a skill/trait?

 

This is true from a realism point of view, but I believe there has to be balance between realism and gameplay. I wouldn't want to sit there doing nothing while my character takes 6 in-game hours to read a book. The gameplay element trumps realism in this particular case for me.

 

I also disagree a bit about not being interested in old stories. As a reminder of the way things used to be, before the end of all things, I think I'd find it highly nostalgic and agreeable.

 

I'm not sure this is universal. I think I'd find it rather depressing...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I also disagree a bit about not being interested in old stories. As a reminder of the way things used to be, before the end of all things, I think I'd find it highly nostalgic and agreeable.

 

I'm not sure this is universal. I think I'd find it rather depressing...

 

 

Good point, though I do think either way it should at least keep you from being bored- even being depressed by the newspaper content is still distracting you from boredom :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm not sure Boredom serves any design objective in the game. I realize it's not fully activated in terms of gameplay yet but I question the inclusion of the mechanic.

I'd argue that a better model would be one that addresses the psychological human needs of things like leisure, understanding, and creation identified by Max-Neef. The game already models well the needs for subsistence, and upcoming NPC relationships will model protection, affection, and participation.

It would make better sense for the failure to address these psychological needs to trigger mental illnesses like Depression. I guess my point is that I don't like calling this mechanic Boredom nor the trigger being the lack of doing something. I think this constrains what could be a very dynamic mechanic.

I'm not sure what I would call this. We often call leisure activities "stress relief" but stress is already modeled with the Anxiety moodles, and stress often involves the "fight or flight" physiological response so this is appropriate.

The opposite of leisure isn't just boredom but would include burn-out, fatigue, exhaustion, and tedium.

And an idle character wouldn't necessarily get bored. They could be resting, reflecting, meditating, or praying.

I guess my point is this - rethinking the Boredom mechanic might allow its expansion in application. Would a character really saw 500 logs in a row without taking a break? Should a player be penalized for writing a novel with journals in game? Unfresh food increases Boredom but that's not really the psychological effect. It's more a deficiency of a mental need. Maslow's D-needs, I guess.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...