Edit: The title was “incentivise RP interactions” but I think that was slightly misleading so I’ve changed it.
I don’t think this topic has been discussed elsewhere but apologies if so.
Over on Reddit I’ve seen people discussing the problem with KOS in the game. Most agree that it’s part of the game and what makes interactions so tense, but the problem is, nobody RPs on official servers (Edit: not RPing isn’t a problem in and of itself; but not using gameplay mechanics which are unique to DayZ is a problem). Very few people interact, much less so tie up, gag, torture other people, etc. And yet this is something which makes DayZ unique.
So how do the devs incentivise the RP interactions (Edit: or at least decrease the desire to always KOS)? Any thoughts would be great.
One idea that crossed my mind was that maybe KOS is de-incentivised. In real life, the mental toll a person would experience from killing another person would be immense, but this mental and moral pressure can’t be replicated in a game (and shouldn’t be for ethical reasons). But something else can be used to represent the toll (similarly to how kuru is represented in DayZ with shakes and maniacal chuckles (you wouldn’t actually do that if you ate another person, but it works to represent the toll)).
So what about if every time you killed another player you couldn’t eat for a while? Or maybe you were even sick after the first kill. After each kill it “gets easier”.
The more I think about it, the more I like the idea. And hopefully it would make people think a second longer before killing every time.
Other ideas could include:
- not being able to pull the trigger,
- lower level of accuracy directly after a kill (to represent the uncertainty)…
These ideas don’t only add a de-incentive to KOS but also an RPG element given that you would get better at shooting the more you did it… and better at killing 😅