Goonhub
07-30-2023, 10:54 AM
This thread has gone far afield of the original posted idea, into very deep and turbulent waters, and I'd like to move it back.
The simple answer to the currently identified problem (if a borg is rebuilt, the previously selected pronouns are not saved) is easily fixed by Pali's suggestion of having a cyborg character pull from the pronouns saved in the mind. This eliminates the need to add more menus anywhere.
I personally have no interest in making player pronouns visible during a round. There's already so much information that needs to be communicated in the super-quick environment of Goonstation, and adding yet another variable that people can pay attention to only feels worthwhile if it has immediate gameplay impact. In whatever situations arise that it becomes necessary to communicate player pronouns, then it seems to me like LOOC would be the most useful way to share that information, especially since those messages are shown as coming from the ckey and not the character.
As for the extended conversation about player identity and character identity, I'll work on another post specifically about that, and I'll put it in the Roleplay forum. But to summarize it in advance: your character is not you. It's understandable and normal to empathize with your character, and to feel involved in the social situations created by the game, but it is necessary to work toward separating your character from yourself in order to roleplay in an emotionally healthy way. At its core, SS13 is a game about conflict and deception and betrayal, and if you struggle to separate your own feelings from what happens in a round, you are going to be a lot more emotionally exhausted, and have a lot less fun.
The simple answer to the currently identified problem (if a borg is rebuilt, the previously selected pronouns are not saved) is easily fixed by Pali's suggestion of having a cyborg character pull from the pronouns saved in the mind. This eliminates the need to add more menus anywhere.
I personally have no interest in making player pronouns visible during a round. There's already so much information that needs to be communicated in the super-quick environment of Goonstation, and adding yet another variable that people can pay attention to only feels worthwhile if it has immediate gameplay impact. In whatever situations arise that it becomes necessary to communicate player pronouns, then it seems to me like LOOC would be the most useful way to share that information, especially since those messages are shown as coming from the ckey and not the character.
As for the extended conversation about player identity and character identity, I'll work on another post specifically about that, and I'll put it in the Roleplay forum. But to summarize it in advance: your character is not you. It's understandable and normal to empathize with your character, and to feel involved in the social situations created by the game, but it is necessary to work toward separating your character from yourself in order to roleplay in an emotionally healthy way. At its core, SS13 is a game about conflict and deception and betrayal, and if you struggle to separate your own feelings from what happens in a round, you are going to be a lot more emotionally exhausted, and have a lot less fun.