OK, so the dev?s have stated that the game will have very limited PK (arenas and certain areas of the wilderness, from what I can gather in the forums). Whether it?s a moot point or not, I am going to offer up an argument in favor of ?full PK? within the game. Feel free to flame, but at least read the entire post first.
As I have stated in another post, I believe that having a \"real\" PK element in PS is a way of adding a new dimension to the game. Some argue that PK and role-playing don?t mix; I believe otherwise.
I am not a big fan of PK, but I do believe it adds a new level to the game. Role-playing games are based upon interaction with other folks. That interaction becomes much more immersive if there is an element of suspense, drama or danger.
The key to having full PK in the game is to make the consequences of killing another player very, very dire. This can be accomplished a number of ways. The first, and most obvious, is to have (powerful) npc guards within the various cities and towns. If one player kills another, the offending player is automatically placed on an ?outlaw? list. From that point forward, if the player killer is spotted within the city limits, the npc guards will respond and either kill the player or subdue/incapacitate him (for some method of incarceration, which I?ll get to in a moment). This effectively shuts off the player killer?s interaction with the city and the people who live there. It also prevents him/her from purchasing items/weapons/food from within the city.
Another method of preventing random and gratuitous player killing (and this one can be used in conjunction with the first method) is to have the npc-run criminal justice system place bounties on the heads of player-killers. Yes, we?re killing players that have been caught player killing. It might seem like a vicious circle, but a ?good guy? killing a ?bad guy? would not incur any negative penalties and would, in fact, be doing the community a favor (and gaining a reward in the process).
Another method of preventing thoughtless player killing is to arrest the development of the offending player. For instance, killing another player automatically prevents you from increasing any of your skills for a certain amount of time (a week or two?).
Of course, since players have multiple lives, the guilt of a player killer could last a single life, five lives, etc, depending on what the dev?s decide. Or, another way of maintaining guilt, is to have the offending player remain guilty x number of lives, where x equals the number of innocent players he has killed.
By implementing a system similar to the one detailed above, you help to prevent needless and thoughtless pk?ing and you open up a slew of new possibilities:
A number of jobs/professions become available. You could have players working as city guards and bounty hunters. Non-violent players could hire other players to act as guards when travelling from one city to another. Additionally, if some form of criminal justice system is in place, you could have players working as judges or even executioners.
A new level of interaction within the guilds would be created. There are a number of ?evil? guilds already in existence. As it stands right now, they won?t be able to do many evil deeds. Going up to someone and saying ?Hey, want to go fight in the arena?? isn?t exactly what I picture an assassin saying.
You could create more of a feel of factions and unique cities within the game. If you?re outlawed from one particular city, it might not necessarily carry over to every other city (dev?s discretion, of course). Or, there could be one or two towns that are truly outlaw towns ? havens for criminals, thieves and murderers where there are no laws (but there may be a thriving black market).
Players that are on the governing council would have the ability to pardon criminals, etc.
If the game is geared towards role-playing, it?ll likely have aspects that make it more appealing to actual role-players as opposed to folks just looking for hack-n-slash games. As a result, the pk ability isn?t likely to get out of hand. Sure, there might be the occasional person who tries to kill everyone else, but the npc guards, the player bounty-hunters, the isolation from the rest of the game, the consequences of not being able to advance your skills, and a number of other consequences will likely weed out the ?pure pk?ers? and let us role-players enjoy the game.
As I said, I understand that full PK isn?t likely to be implemented, but I wanted to voice the preceding? I?ll certainly be in the game, regardless.
