Booklet...in-game or PDF/Word Doc outside of game?

[Knox]

Hi,

I was wondering about something and wanted to get some feedback from you guys on what you think of this:

Ive got a "RediRef" booklet with lots of useful information for proper police procedure/penal + traffic + radio codes/alphabet, etc...and Im trying to decide wether to include this booklet as a PDF/word doc outside of the game, or to implement it as an inventory item that you can actually open up in-game. This booklet is around 110 pages long.

If I were to make it an inventory item in-game, it would  require me to either:
1) make 110 sprites pages on a GUI
2) have an external .txt file read and transfered into text within a gui that accepts text

The main reason why I would like to have the booklet in-game is so that I can add a "search" feature, so a player can do a search on codes/procedures related to "high-risk traffic stop", for example, and it will give you the appropriate page numbers, etc...

The main reason why I wouldnt want to do this booklet in-game is I realize how much work it will take...

In your opinion, is it worth it? Should I just release an external pdf/doc instead?

[tzachs]

I'm not sure how I feel about 110 pages, that's a lot!

Anyways, I would rather having it in-game. Documents that are distributed outside the game are usually being read before playing the game (if at all), but I don't think anybody would remember turning to read the document while in play.

It may be a lot of work, but it will add to the reality factor, and if it will be searchable it will also add to the coolness factor, so I believe it's worth it.

[Babar]

While it might be fun to have it outside of the game as a PDF, it should definitely be in-game as well. Nobody is going to read a 110 page text off the computer, and if it is needed for some part of the game, it would probably break the immersion if the player had to open a document outside of the game to figure something out.

[Victor6]

While in-game sounds cool, if any real life cop stopped on the job to consult a 110 page handbook before making a decision, he'd be fired by the end of the week.

That's your immersion dead just as quick as alt tabbing in my opinion.

How much of the 110 pages of text is actually relevant to the games puzzles, and how much would be fluff?

[Stupot]

I think it's not ideal having it as a PDF/Word file, as it would mean that the player would have to keep leaving the game screen in order to read it, and that would definitely break the immersion...

That's not to say I'm totally against having this information outside the game... I personally think it would be cool to have such a booklet in hard format, as you'd be able to look at it without clicking out of the game... but then again, I'm not really likely to use 110 pages worth of ink for that...

[Knox]

Its true, 110 pages is alot, although its a small booklet...If Im not mistaken its a booklet many officers keep in their cars:
http://www.copquest.com/20-1000.htm

Ill try to prune it down so its not so massive, like keep it to things that the player will really need. It will be used mostly for  those who arent in law enforcement and would like to look up things like "cop talk" slang, various penal/traffic codes, radio codes, etc...

[evenwolf]

Ill try to prune it down so its not so massive, like keep it to things that the player will really need. I will be used mostly for  those who arent in law enforcement and would like to look up things like "cop  talk" slang, various penal/traffic codes, radio codes, etc...

As long as the file is small include the PDF with the game.   But I would never read through an ingame booklet that was more than like 10 pages.    Unless its involved in a puzzle, like Plato's Manuscript in Fate of Atlantis.  But see the player could always misunderstand and THINK that there's critical information buried in those 110 pages.

[Knox]

Ok, good advice! I believe I can manage to chop the total page amount down significantly...Ill try to include both then, ingame and external.

[GarageGothic]

Yeah, I agree, cut it down to the essentials - enough to make it feel authentic but also like something you might want to read through. PQ4 had a crazy long police manual - which you never had to use even once in the game - and it's the kind of thing that's cool to have but never once did I actually look in it.

I'd say 24 pages would be about max for a PDF version, since people will want to print it rather than Alt-Tab'ing, and no way I'll spend ink on 100 pages that I may not even need. Of course a searchable in-game version could have more redundant stuff if it's presented in more of a database style.

[mkennedy]

Are there any plugins for AGS that can allow you to read a PDF file from within a game? If so maybe you could have it as an external file and just let the plugin handle it while in game.