perilisk.1874 Posted September 25, 2018 Share Posted September 25, 2018 Having Blish follow us around in the open world was neat. I know it's not the first client-side NPC, but is this first case of having one follow the player around and react to the world? I'm curious to see what ArenaNet can do with this technology in the future! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArenaNet Staff MatthewMedina.5419 Posted September 25, 2018 ArenaNet Staff Share Posted September 25, 2018 To my knowledge, yes this was the first use of an open world story "follower" like this. There was a fair amount of experimentation needed to get this to work, but we were really happy with the end result. There's definitely limitations to the tech (Blish can't fight with you, for example) but I imagine that it's something we're going to return to when appropriate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArenaNet Staff Erik Fagerstrom II.1704 Posted September 25, 2018 ArenaNet Staff Share Posted September 25, 2018 Yup! This is actually new tech we developed for this episode. (You can hear more about it [here]( "here").) In the past, we've hidden certain NPCs to certain clients based on things like quest progression, but those NPCs are still run by the server. Which means they have to stand still, which can be awkward for some story situations ("Wait, why don't you just come with me?") and irritating for some gameplay beats ("So, I have to go all the way back there to talk to so-and-so?"). As such, we wanted to see if we could address the problem without introducing new risks. And we thought Blish was a good opportunity to try some trickery. (Shoe's on the other foot now, smartypants! This time, _you're_ the test subject!) And I agree -- we built this tech with the intention of using it more than just for one (admittedly awfully lovable) golem-bodied buddy. I can't say for sure when (or even if) it'll get used in future content, since context will determine whether it's really the best tool for the job. So, I guess I'm just gonna stay tuned and see what happens! ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cronospere.8143 Posted September 25, 2018 Share Posted September 25, 2018 Isn't the personal anomaly the same kind of thing? Although it didn't follow you, it was there in open world, appearing next to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonLucas.4981 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 > @"Cronospere.8143" said: > Isn't the personal anomaly the same kind of thing? Although it didn't follow you, it was there in open world, appearing next to you. If you mean the same tech that they used for Blish, it isn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blocki.4931 Posted September 27, 2018 Share Posted September 27, 2018 I really loved the prairie dogs that showed up on everybody else's screen instead. Never noticed Blish, but the critter following my friend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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