NPCs Who Keep Living Beyond the Player's View — Pseudo-Players and Rumors
GEKOKUJO: Vagrant Crown · published
We do not want the world of GEKOKUJO to be filled with NPCs who simply stand still and wait for the player. Even when they are outside the player's view, characters should continue pursuing their own goals, making choices, and leaving behind a personal history. This update introduces two systems supporting that vision: pseudo-player NPCs and rumors.
NPCs with Dreams and Goals
Some NPCs have long-term dreams as well as shorter goals. As time passes, they choose actions based on their current situation. Success and failure can affect their gold, progress, rank, reputation, and other parts of their personal history.
The aim is to preserve what happened to a character even while the player was elsewhere, allowing a later meeting to feel like a continuation of that person's life rather than a reset.
Events That Travel as Rumors
Important NPC events and changes in the world can spread as rumors or world news. The player's Rumor Log only records information that has actually been heard or discovered—through an NPC, on the road, at an inn, or through direct investigation.
A rumor is not automatically the truth. New evidence may later confirm it, or reveal that the information was false. We want deciding what to believe, and remembering who shared a story, to become part of traveling through the world.
Bringing the Same People into the Third-Person Field
We are currently working on connecting people from the Living World to the new third-person field and Party system while preserving their identity, name, and history. A companion should not become a separate copy when recruited; they should remain the same person who has already been living in the world.
The third-person foundations for traveling and fighting alongside Party Members and the Wolf Companion are also still in development. Step by step, we are building a world where meeting someone—or hearing a rumor about them—can matter again later in the journey.
Thank you for following the development of GEKOKUJO.