Almost every computer game has a large number of characters that you can meet in the course of its passage. Someone will just talk to you, someone will threaten you, some heroes give you tasks, others sell you things. In general, each has its own purpose. And they are all called by one simple abbreviation - NPS. What is this NPS, how does it stand for and what is behind it? You will learn about all this from this article.
What does the term NPC mean?
If you're into video games, you're likely to encounter characters in them that you can't play yourself. They are simply within the framework of the world, you can interact with them in various ways, it is simply impossible to take control of them. Such characters are called NPCs. What it is? An NPC is a non-playable character (the abbreviation itself is originally an English NPC, which stands for non-playable character). Accordingly, it is precisely because of this that you cannot take control of him - he was originally planned as a hero who will be controlled by the computer. And most often he has his own programmed system of actions, which he adheres to. Sometimes NPCs can onlyfor one or two replicas and do nothing else. But in modern games, the possibilities have expanded, and now some characters have extensive programs with their own decisions and different reactions to certain actions you take. However, some gamers may ask - what is the difference between ordinary opponents and NPCs? What do NPCs have that your enemies don't?
The difference between NPCs and enemies
So, you already have a general idea about NPCs: what these NPCs are, how they behave and what they are for. However, they most often do not include those characters who are your opponents with whom you have to fight. They are also controlled by the computer and have their own program of actions, but at the same time you can only interact with them in a hostile manner - that's why they do not belong to the traditional non-player characters, which are called NPCs. But this does not mean that there can be NPCs hostile towards you. What can happen for an NPC to turn into a direct opponent?
NPC Character
As mentioned earlier, NPCs can be very diverse, since they are assigned their own character, on the basis of which they act. Naturally, if we are not talking about the most simple NPCs who perform a specific task, regardless of what exactly happens in the game. They will always sell you things and buy your items, they will always give youquests and so on. But not all NPCs are neutral - there are also both positive and negative NPCs. This can also affect the gameplay - positive NPCs will, for example, give you discounts, while negative ones will threaten you and refuse to cooperate with you. In some games, the nature of the character and his attitude towards you will change depending on your actions in the game world. In general, now you know what NPCs are, as well as the fact that these are far from always just wooden heroes that are placed in one point, which they occupy throughout the game.
What are NPCs doing?
However, it is not enough to know what NPCs are - you also need to understand what purposes these characters can serve in a particular game. The most common type of NPCs are those who give you tasks. You can talk freely with them - they will always answer you. If they have a new quest for you, they will definitely inform you about it, and if you have not completed the previous task that you received from them, they will remind you of exactly what you have to do. However, there are other types of NPCs as well. For example, merchants are extremely common - these are characters who sell a certain type of item, as well as buy things from you that you no longer need. You can also find NPCs that can heal you, and some can even join you to help you deal with opponents - that's how diverse NPCs are. Whatso these NPCs you now have a complete picture.
Change NPCs
Now you understand what NpC are in games - these are non-player characters with whom you can interact to get some information, tasks, things and so on. They do not enter into battle with you, however, a situation was mentioned a little higher in which an NPC joined your character. Now he acts as your assistant, but the situation may be the opposite. In some cases, the NPC may get angry at you and turn into your direct opponent. For example, the guards in the city keep order, and if you steal or attack citizens, they will stop communicating with you and start attacking you. In general, there are various situations in which an NPC can turn into your ally or, conversely, an enemy. So if you think you know what an NPC is in the game, then you may be wrong, because everything here is not as simple as it might seem at first glance.
NPC kill
Most of the time you can't even kill NPCs in PC games - most of the time you can't even attack them. This is done due to the fact that these heroes will be needed for the development of the plot and for other purposes, so they cannot be destroyed. However, in some games this is allowed to be done - in this case, NPCs recover themselves over time. If you kill such a hero, it won't be forever. True, there are exceptions, such as the series of games TheElder Scrolls - there you can kill any character you meet on your way, but you must understand that this will entail consequences. Firstly, the guards will hunt for you, secondly, you will lose the advantages that this NPC gave you, and thirdly, in some cases the game may even end if you kill the character that was necessary for further development plot.
