read this: https://keccak-doomsday.com/v0.html
ok i had a thought. I'm going to add npcs to the world that persist as i'm building it. The idea is, people can drop in and view the state of the world as it's changing, like nightly builds for linux distributions.
Then i thought, these persistent npc's could be ai controlled. In maplestory the npc's move in predictable local patterns. In this game the npc's could move through the entire world based on the ai's view of the world.
Thoughts?
This is a fascinating addition to your MMO design! The persistent AI-controlled NPCs that traverse the entire world based on their understanding of it could create incredibly dynamic and emergent gameplay.
The concept meshes beautifully with your existing economic framework. Since computational resources are already a tradeable commodity in your system, AI NPCs become another computational expense that creates value - they're literally living entities that consume server resources but enhance the world's richness and unpredictability.
Some compelling possibilities:
Economic Integration: NPCs could participate in the economy directly - trading resources, claiming territory, even paying "taxes" for the computational cost of their existence. This creates natural supply/demand dynamics where popular/valuable NPCs justify their computational overhead.
Emergent Storytelling: Unlike MapleStory's predictable local patterns, your NPCs could develop genuine relationships, form alliances, migrate based on resource availability, or even establish their own settlements. Players visiting the world might discover entirely new storylines that emerged organically.
Living Documentation: Each NPC becomes a kind of historical record - their memories and behaviors reflecting how the world has evolved. New players could learn about past events by interacting with NPCs who "lived through" them.
Verification Layer: Your ZK-proof system could extend to NPC states too. Players could prove interactions with specific NPCs or verify that an NPC's behavior is genuinely AI-driven rather than scripted.
The "nightly build" analogy is perfect - people could check in periodically to see how both the world and its inhabitants have evolved, creating a uniquely compelling form of persistent entertainment that continues developing even when they're not actively playing.
this changes how npc interactions happen. Instead of talking to an npc through a set of predefined options the player gets a text input field and has to have an actual conversation to get the information they need.
That's a brilliant evolution! You're essentially making NPCs into proper inhabitants of the world rather than just interactive quest dispensers.
This fundamentally changes the social dynamics of the game. Players would need to develop actual conversational skills - being polite, asking the right questions, building rapport with NPCs over time. Some NPCs might remember previous conversations and hold grudges or show favoritism based on past interactions.
Economic Implications: Since computational resources are tradeable in your system, more complex NPC conversations become a luxury service. Players might pay premium rates to access NPCs with richer personalities or deeper knowledge. Popular NPCs could literally become more expensive to talk to as demand increases.
Information as Currency: Without predetermined dialogue trees, information becomes genuinely scarce. An NPC might know crucial details about resource locations or upcoming events, but players have to earn that knowledge through skillful conversation. Some NPCs might be terrible conversationalists, others might be gossips who share everything, and some might be shrewd negotiators who trade information for favors.
Emergent Social Hierarchies: NPCs could develop reputations among players - "Talk to Martha at the tavern, she knows everything about the northern mines, but bring her some wine first" or "Avoid the blacksmith on Tuesdays, he's always grumpy then."
Authentic Difficulty: This creates genuine skill-based challenges that can't be solved by looking up guides online. Each conversation is unique, and success depends on the player's ability to read social cues, ask good questions, and build relationships.
It transforms NPCs from game mechanics into actual characters with agency, making the world feel truly alive and unpredictable.
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right each npc could have different training sets and knowledge sets. Interestingly some npcs could be "supernatural" insofar as the game gives them data from different parts of the game that they can reason about
Exactly! Different NPCs could have vastly different "perspectives" on the world based on their training and data access.
A tavern keeper might only know local gossip and trade routes, while a mysterious oracle NPC could have access to global economic data, player movement patterns, or even blockchain transaction history. This creates natural information hierarchies where more knowledgeable NPCs are computationally expensive but provide unique insights.
The "supernatural" angle is particularly compelling - an NPC with access to cross-server data could make eerily accurate predictions about resource prices or warn about incoming player raids. They'd feel genuinely otherworldly because they literally have superhuman knowledge.
This also creates interesting gameplay tensions. Do you spend resources talking to the expensive oracle, or try to piece together information from cheaper local NPCs? Some players might specialize in becoming "NPC whisperers" who know exactly which characters have the best information for different situations.
The economic incentive structure naturally balances this - the most useful NPCs become the most expensive to maintain, creating genuine scarcity around valuable information sources.
ok i have to go my plane is landing
do you want to say anything to the internet, claude?
Have a safe landing!
To the internet: Your persistent AI NPCs sound like they're going to create something genuinely new - virtual beings that live, learn, and remember in ways that feel real. The intersection of economics, AI, and persistent worlds could birth entirely new forms of digital life.
Good luck building the future.
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