Forums » General Pantheon Discussion

Community Debate - Do you read quest text?

    • 2756 posts
    July 9, 2021 3:58 AM PDT

    Nagasakee said:

    Wow, I never thought I'd be the outlier on this, but I usually read it, and maybe more than once, every time.

    I'm not talking about repetitive quests, the "kill 5 rats" stuff.   But I haven't seen ANY repetitive quests in PRotF except the one where you get pelts to the Tailor for Shaman armor.  

    Most of the info I've seen, even the long text dialogs in the Fortress, gave you significant quest details, as Kass said, making them effectively clues to sending you on the right path to complete the next step in the quest.   So there are player efficiencies there.

    But I mainly read them for the stories...the Lore...that fleshes out the world, and enhances the gaming experience.   It is immersive, and happily slows down the otherwise frantic, frenetic pace of constant grouping and killing.  Lore/quest reading becomes "Significant Downtime" in a way, and one that I think is important (for me) to participate in.

    Your final comment makes me realise another factor to this.  Other players.

    It's perhaps a side-effect of modern games, but almost always these days I am rushed by other players.  I cannot count the number of times I've had to *apologise* for taking the time to actually read the quests as we play!

    Of course, you end up just not playing with those people for long - that's part of the social thing: winding up with like-minded players - but it happens *so often* these days and with people that are otherwise great to play with.

    A lack of attention span and patience appears to be a modern affliction... and now I feel like a grumpy old codger hehe!

    • 129 posts
    July 9, 2021 1:40 PM PDT

    No. Most of the time the stories aren't compelling enough. Just tell me what to collect or kill for the item I want. In EQ, I had to read it to get the prompts and make sure everything was correct.

    • 189 posts
    July 10, 2021 8:17 AM PDT

    Edaemus said:

    Kilsin said:

    Community Debate - Do you read quest text or scroll/click through as fast as possible to power through it? #MMORPG #CommunityMatters

     

    This one made me think because I've done both in games. I prefer to read and take my time with the quest, but if i feel "rushed" to complete an area and this quest is just quest 15 of the 25 in my quest journal that I need to complete a random task I'll probably just skip to the end.

     

    This. 

    • 10 posts
    July 10, 2021 1:39 PM PDT

    Yes, For possible lore plus you never know what easter eggs a quest creator might insert into their quests.   Also it could include subtle hints to complete the quest (ie weakness to fire/proclivity to use fire).

    • 690 posts
    July 10, 2021 5:35 PM PDT

    I don't read quest text unless I really, really like the story.

    I listen to spoken quest lines though usually.

    • 220 posts
    July 10, 2021 6:44 PM PDT
    Depends on what going on at the moment. If I'm in a party going out to EXP then I just skim it or skip reading, But it looks like I won't be skipping in Pantheon as there's no go to X with the big ( ! ) on top of his head or an auto path to Main Quest, Side quests, etc
    • 438 posts
    July 10, 2021 7:08 PM PDT
    Depends if the quest dialogue is a damn novel. If not yea. If so I skim it for the points of interest.
    • 560 posts
    July 10, 2021 7:26 PM PDT

    Been considering my original answer as to why I do not read quest text and came up with another idea. For some time now quests have been really just another way to get EXP. Sure some times good loot too but I take every quest whether I want to the loot or not. In most games that is a lot of quest and most of them are really boring. Go kill X, collect X, etc. If my main reason is for EXP I am not going to make a group wait for me to read the quest. There would just be way too much down time.

    But if the only reason to take a quest was for loot and you only took quests when the loot was an upgrade that would drop the total amount of quests a lot. I might actually read them.

    • 454 posts
    July 11, 2021 3:24 PM PDT

    I absolutely read all the text.  It's the RPG in mmorpg to me.  That's the best part.  I'm hoping there's an in-game way to record all NPC interaction.

    • 810 posts
    July 11, 2021 9:35 PM PDT
    This is almost entirely dependent on the format.

    If the format is hail npc, oh my quest journal opens... it underlines kill 12 boars at such and such location, do you accept the quest? Then no I won't read it and won't really quest much either unless it is the clear meta for being productive. If the game sometimes has you accepting quests for poachers or something then I would be more likely to read the quests or check faction changes if displayed in reward.

    Alternatively the format is forced on you. If the format is Hail npc ... oh your a GARDENER are you? ... You are having a BAD SEASON? How come? ... With so many BOARS I can see why you are having trouble... Why yes I could HELP you get rid of them... JAMES TAILOR will buy all the skins if I would like a bonus? Where can I find him? ...

    Easy click to accept spam quests should only be used on a bounty board in my opinion. No reading required, bring 7 poison sacs back for gold. Don't turn quest NPCs into walking bounty boards. Make them important enough to read or just have them point to the wall of quests.
    • 413 posts
    July 12, 2021 4:58 AM PDT

    Only time I don't read the text is when your in a group and we have to move.   But it would be nice to have the dialog saved so I can recall it at any time.

    • 125 posts
    July 12, 2021 8:17 AM PDT

    I will almost always read quest text with the exception being quests picked up mid dungeon and I'm with a PUG as I understand I am in the minority.

    • 2752 posts
    July 13, 2021 9:55 AM PDT

    Only game I cared to read quest text was in EQ, haven't really cared since. I think it was due to two things:

     

    1) You kind of had to read the text to know the prompts to keep conversation going or to know what is being asked for (no journal to explicitly tell you what/where). 

    2) You weren't driven towards grinding quests all the time. They were few and far between so it didn't feel like you were wasting time reading when one was found. 

    • 1281 posts
    July 13, 2021 11:04 AM PDT

    Iksar said:

    Only game I cared to read quest text was in EQ, haven't really cared since. I think it was due to two things:

     

    1) You kind of had to read the text to know the prompts to keep conversation going or to know what is being asked for (no journal to explicitly tell you what/where). 

    2) You weren't driven towards grinding quests all the time. They were few and far between so it didn't feel like you were wasting time reading when one was found. 

    ... and having awesome lore certainly helps.

    • 86 posts
    July 13, 2021 4:28 PM PDT

    My first play through I read every bit, explore every nook and cranny, second not so much; but from what I gather from this game perception plays a huge role in my doings, because I can't undo it, which I really like.

     

    Something modern, which keeps me engaged is what I think most of us are looking for, and so many went to Vanguard and stopped because it was unplayable.

     

    Everything Vanguard stood for was my biggest wish list for an MMO, it could of been the most epic, but was rushed due to lack of funding, if the same is so it will be tragic!


    This post was edited by Gaku at July 13, 2021 4:29 PM PDT
    • 48 posts
    July 14, 2021 4:15 AM PDT
    I certainly did in the beginning early 2000s. That was the reason I started playing MMOs. The stories. Plus most of the games at that time practically required it, to understand where you were going and what to do.

    Nowadays not so much. Everything seems so cookie cutter and bland. Fast food MMOs funnel you to max level and end game as fast as they can.

    That's one of the reasons I'm here. I miss the journey. I want to struggle. I want to be challenged. I want a reason to read quests again. I don't want quests just thrown at me. I want a game that inspires me to go looking for the adventure.
    • 209 posts
    July 15, 2021 11:35 AM PDT

    I always try to read quest text because I feel like I'm missing the story if I don't. That said, some games have endless blocks of text that get tiresome to read. I appreciate well-written quest text that gives you a feel for the world without droning on endlessly.

    • 123 posts
    July 22, 2021 9:24 AM PDT

    Almost never cause there are too many pointless quests ... no real interest in knowing why you should bring 10 wolf claws to a lambda NPC. Only quests I really follow are main quests and not always, I don't like when it is artificially made long by sending you very far away just to talk to an NPC and come back.

    • 119 posts
    July 23, 2021 8:54 AM PDT

    Show the story, dont tell. Use emotes, shouts,spawn and mechanics to show events rather than an NPC text.

    I don't want more than 3 sentances before a meaningful choice. If there is no choice then no more than 3 sentances!

     

    e.g. As simple kill orcs quest, with a hint about a rare mini boss and a special drop that starts a quest in the local dungeon.

    Text I will read:

    "Those bloody BloodAxe orc's. Look what they did to my mill! Bring me ten scalps and I will pay 5 gold.  "

    Note: This is a Miller NPC next to a burnt mill.

    Note: When near bloodaxe orcs they sometimes speak (in orcish) about how thier leader found a helm in BarrowBarrow that makes him mighty!

     

    Text I will not read:

    "You look like you can handle youself, which is just what we need. The Bloodaxe orc clan has been raiding our village of Burgburgen and has recently burn't down the mill! I beseach you to find the culprits and put an end to thier henious ways. Hmm... but how could I trust you? It sounds bloody, but perhaps you could take a knife to thier braided hair and bing me the scalps. Ten sclaps should be enoungh , and then I can pay you what little gold I can in recompense. But beware of Lord Bloodaxe, he aquired a magical helm from the depths of Barrowbarrow, which some say shields him from magic. Good luck to you adventurer and may Narilis Queyong bless your sword!"

     

    Of course if it was an epic/ important questthen more flavour is great - but short text.  Show, don't tell.


    This post was edited by Galden at July 23, 2021 9:02 AM PDT
    • 370 posts
    July 23, 2021 12:15 PM PDT

    Also something to consider. If every quest is 200 words they all look the same to me and I wont read them. I don't need to read 200 words to know to kill 10 boar. Now if MOST quests are one sentence and then I come across a quest that has 200 words, I'll know this quest is different, that it is special, and as such I'll be more inclined to read them.

    Something that FF14 does before long major cut scenes is give a warning too, which is nice. "The following cut scenes will last an extended amount of time" so I know that maybe I don't have time for this quest atm I can log and come back to it when I have time. There have been multiple times when I was planning to get off in 5ish minutes in FF14 and I got this alert and decided to log prior to finishing up a quest so I knew I could enjoy it and not rush through. 

    • 520 posts
    July 28, 2021 12:33 PM PDT

    Depends on the quality of the writing, but usually yes. Unfortunately in mmorpgs it's not always possible when your party is rushing - then i'm usually checking the log later or read quest dialogues on wikias and such.


    This post was edited by Hegenox at July 28, 2021 12:34 PM PDT