Playability of LAIs (as player characters)?

[jeff_wilson]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

Um, GlaDOS is either a heavily edited Ghost or a Shadow.

During the original game, she make mistakes like saying "you must be the pride of home community here", indicating her attempts at personality are a buggy facade.

Originally Posted by Phil Masters

And people can convince themselves that ELIZA is a real person. They're still not terribly interesting as potential PCs.

Putting on as if one is a half-assed autistic savant nonhuman seems to be entertaining enough for fans of C3P0, HK-47, K-9, Bender, and Sam "George" Francisco. Do you know of no-one who likes them?

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by jeff_wilson

During the original game, she make mistakes like saying "you must be the pride of home community here", indicating her attempts at personality are a buggy facade.

Okay, I suppose she's closer to Shadow given how much of her old memories were suppressed/edited/removed. And all the personality-modifying stuff they put in her.

Originally Posted by jeff_wilson

Putting on as if one is a half-assed autistic savant nonhuman seems to be entertaining enough for fans of C3P0, HK-47, K-9, Bender, and Sam "George" Francisco. Do you know of no-one who likes them?

I wonder if that counts as a specialisation of Performance that does not suffer the penalty for Low Empathy / Hidebound / Clueless / etc.

[jeff_wilson]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

Okay, I suppose she's closer to Shadow given how much of her old memories were suppressed/edited/removed. And all the personality-modifying stuff they put in her.

I didn't see anything like that when I played the original game, I can't speak for any retcons in the sequel.

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

I wonder if that counts as a specialisation of Performance that does not suffer the penalty for Low Empathy / Hidebound / Clueless / etc.

It's the player putting on the performance, not the PC.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by jeff_wilson

I didn't see anything like that when I played the original game, I can't speak for any retcons in the sequel.

Wha, Fanon DisContinuity, eh? ó_o

[jeff_wilson]

Originally Posted by vicky_molokh

Wha, Fanon DisContinuity, eh? ó_o

No, I just never played the sequel.

Let we derail entirely, there are any number of talking appliances in science fiction that could make for model LAI PCs, like Eddie, the ship's computer on HHGG, or Phyllis in the Tom Selleck RUNAWAY film, or Johnny-Cab in the original TOTAL RECALL.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by jeff_wilson

No, I just never played the sequel.

Let we derail entirely, there are any number of talking appliances in science fiction that could make for model LAI PCs, like Eddie, the ship's computer on HHGG, or Phyllis in the Tom Selleck RUNAWAY film, or Johnny-Cab in the original TOTAL RECALL.

The toaster in Red Dwarf was the first thing that came to my mind.

But L.A.I.s are mostly autistic sapients. I imagine some people might find that offensive. But as someone with a, thankfully, mild case of low empathy, I consider it a very good analogy.

Your examples seem more like N.A.I.s to me. Inability to adapt to changing situations is the main difference between sapience and complex if/then programs.

[vicky_molokh]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

But L.A.I.s are mostly autistic sapients. I imagine some people might find that offensive. But as someone with a, thankfully, mild case of low empathy, I consider it a very good analogy.

Interesting tangent replied to elsewhere.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by jeff_wilson

Let we derail entirely, there are any number of talking appliances in science fiction that could make for model LAI PCs, like Eddie, the ship's computer on HHGG, or Phyllis in the Tom Selleck RUNAWAY film, or Johnny-Cab in the original TOTAL RECALL.

Actually, most sapient AIs could be modeled as LAIs; someone like early Commander Data fits pretty well (later on he's an EI).

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by Anthony

Actually, most sapient AIs could be modeled as LAIs; someone like early Commander Data fits pretty well (later on he's an EI).

I don't think so, so much. I think he was always fully sapient, just with unconscious "governor gears" to retard his obvious superior nature.
Thought that may have been a problem with poor writing.

[Anthony]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

I don't think so, so much. I think he was always fully sapient, just with unconscious "governor gears" to retard his obvious superior nature.

He clearly had Low Empathy, Attentive, and Broad-Minded, and did not have Memetics Talent 1. He may not have had Hidebound and Staid. As that and the IQ modifier is the sum of relevant differences between LAI and SAI, and the IQ modifier can be gotten rid of trivially, I would argue that he's closer to LAI than SAI.